Two Week Post-Operative Visit

As my two-week post-operative appointment grew near yesterday, I felt the insides of my stomach gelatinize directly in proportion to the seconds counting down.  So many thoughts were flying through my brain - would I still need crutches and for how long?  What about my stitches - were they ready to come out and what did my foot look like? And most importantly, what about activity and return to normalcy??  Ugh.  So many questions, so many worries...and so hard NOT to play the "What if" game.

I left work early and soon found myself sitting on the exam table in Dr. J's office.  His Nurse Practitioner walked in and had me remove my boot. 

Up until now I had not seen my foot.  I had been wearing an ace bandage that had been wrapped on top of...stuff (?) by Dr. J in the hospital, while he commanded that I not even look at my foot while he was wrapping it.  He told me to not even think about the foot until this visit and to JUST. LEAVE. IT.  To my surprise, I had listened to him rather than pushing the envelope as I would normally do, left it alone, was compliant with his requests and compliant with my (ridiculous) post-surgical medication regimen.  I knew there was 'stuff' under the bandage because my foot resembled a sausage.  Over my sausage foot I had been wearing a protective boot.  At night I had been wearing a softer version of the boot, but still just as clumsy.




















I sat on the table, legs outstretched and bootless.  The Nurse Practitioner updated my medical history with my post-operative medications (I had been prescribed EIGHT but have been taking FIVE.  One I discontinued because it was the narcotics for pain that I mentioned yesterday.  In all conversations with friends who have had foot surgeries, the resounding advice was to get off of the narcotics, ASAP.  Another I discontinued because I took the entire prescription, which didn't need to be refilled (Celebrex for inflammation) and the third I'm starting today (twice daily probiotic). 

Then, she prepped my foot for Dr. J.  With the boot removed, she cut off the ace bandage.  Underneath the ace bandage she unwound one long layer of gauge bandage, then a giant non-stick cotton pad, then another long layer of gauge bandage, until I saw......MY FOOT! 

I had not seen my right foot since before the surgery when Dr. J initialed it with a marker in the pre-operative area during surgical preparation on the morning of June 28th.  His initials were still there, and my foot had a weird yellowy-orange tint to it due to the surgical antiseptic they use to create the sterile field during a potentially infectious surgery, since I had not been allowed to get it wet.  It was then that I realized WHY he did not want me even to see my foot - along the right side were an angry row of stitches that resembled The Joker's smile from Batman.  They were large and black, but there was no redness or puffiness.  However, I did realize why my foot had been throbbing sometimes in the evening - I had not expected there to be that many stitches.  It was pretty mystifying.

Then she cleaned off the area and left the room.  There was a gentle knock on the door and in strode Dr. J with his big signature grin.  He asked me how things had been and I gave my update and swallowed hard, bracing myself for whatever news was about to come. 

He examined the stitches, paused, looked at me and said that "These are totally ready to come out right now!" reached for scissors, a scalpel, forceps and surgistrips and proceeded to remove them one by one (which was entirely more painful than I had anticipated).  Once they were all out, he covered the area with three surgistrips, which had two big gaps in between; he probably needed at least six to cover the area fully.  When I asked him about why he didn't cover the area fully, he indicated it was because he wants the area to breathe and get air circulation.  His instruction was to wear open footwear and no closed shoes (e.g. sneakers, heels, clogs, etc.) until my next appointment with him.  He seemed pretty convinced that my healing was very much ahead of where he thought I would be and agreed with me that it is probably due to me ditching the narcotics early, to taking 2,000mg Vitamin C daily and laying off alcohol and adhering to a reasonable bedtime.  His recommendation was to keep doing whatever it is that I've been doing, because it's working!  This made me feel good. 

Then came time for questions.  My first question was about the crutches, and I heaved a giant sigh of relief when he told me that he doesn't think they are necessary anymore.  He also said that he doesn't think I need to wear a boot anymore either, unless I'm walking for more than 30 minutes.  His recommendation is to keep the area clean, open, breathing and to only lightly clean it in the shower, pat it dry and to wash my feet before bed as well.  The surgistrips will stay on for a few days and will fall off when they are ready.  He said to keep managing pain with Tylenol as I had been doing, but TO NOT PUSH IT.  Meaning, only do daily walking, no "fitness walking" and if my foot gets achy, then wear the boot, and to continue to keep it propped as much as possible including at night.  Of course, I am to keep with the crazy drug regimen.  He booked my next appointment for July 29th and said that depending on how things look then, we can talk about return to activity and a plan.  My heart leaped when I heard that!  I wanted to hug that man!  He gently reminded me again:  One step backward to take a few steps forward.

I left his office with a giant smile on my face.  My foot hurt and was achy for the rest of the night due to the stitch removal, but I didn't care because this was HUGE progress!  My next major milestone appointment is next week when I return to see Dr. M to talk about my antibiotic regimen which I'm supposed to remain on for the next 2 months.  The purpose of this visit will be to determine how things are progressing and whether or not I may need to switch to IV. 

...

This morning I took the dog for a walk around the park and to the coffee shop for a cup of coffee.  It was MAYBE 1/2 a mile total.  But it was a walk.  With both shoes on, and both feet on the ground, and with me being able to carry his leash.  It was a slow limp, but it also felt like progress.  Stairs are still very painful and my foot is aching a little more as they day wears on, but it is giving me hope, although I still have a long way to go.