Just over a year ago, I was complaining that time seemed to stand still — that I was sitting around watching grass grow, and that from the restricted confines of my own home… my life had quite suddenly become a prison. Restricted mobility can do that to a person. I won’t lie. It was a personal hell. Looking back at it now, it was also one of the biggest challenges of my life — mentally and physically.
What was key for me? Mental toughness, a never say quit attitude, laughter… and this blog.
I also promised myself throughout that whole ordeal …that this year would be different. And so far… it has. I’m living life – not taking anything for granted – and, quite simply, “doing stuff” whether it is working in my garden, having laughs with friends, or making more time for me.  Sure, the challenges are still there. My ankle continues to be, as I now call it, an “ongoing work in progress.” I am nowhere near my goal of returning to the hiking trail — but I continue the hard work to get there.
On April 27th, I walked in my first post-break 5k! I finished that 3.1 miles in 55 minutes. I wasn’t walking for time, or to be first… I was walking for me. It was marvelous to simply be on TWO feet!! I even managed to pass some people along the way (thankfully, breaking your ankle and dislocating your foot doesn’t damage your ‘competitive spirit’!)
I had purposely chosen this particular 5k because it was in the same town where my whole adventure first began – Auburn – but this time I made sure there was no mud (ha!). It also ended on the 50 yard line inside the football stadium, which was very, very cool.
Six days later, on May 3rd, I started something else….
That Friday was the start of what would be six weeks of inner ankle injections (SUPARTZ).
I will be blunt —- they hurt like a M***** F*****!!
Most interesting discovery? That I had nerves down in between my bones that could feel stuff, like needles and needle movement.
Should any of you be advised to have the same injections, take your crutches! I couldn’t walk on my foot after the first four injections. By the fifth and final injection six weeks later, I could walk out of the doctor’s office on my own.
What did it feel like? The shot itself was only 2 ccs going into the joint (we alternated between the interior and exterior side of the joint each time) but – as was described to me – ankle joints have less spaces for the fluid to spread around. I can describe it as feeling like a stone had been inserted in between the bones of my joint. Walking hurt! After the first shot, I was icing for hours… and finally was able to walk on two feet – unaided – after about 24 hours. For the second and third and fourth shots — the crutches were a staple of movement for the initial hours post-injection. I did the shots on Fridays, so by the time the round of shots ended with number 5 on May 31st… I was ready to move on to something else.
On the plus side, I have noticed less bone-to-bone rubbing at the front of my ankle, where I had suffered post-traumatic arthritis in my ankle break. On the other side, I have been limping a lot more and I have experienced new feelings of “pressure” at different times, in the ankle bone area, the back of my heel and leg… and on the interior front of my ankle. My observations are unscientific, but having had tendon issues in the past that required cortisone injections… these ‘feelings’ are definitely different.
Swelling is still a nagging issue in my foot.  I am still wearing a compression sock, which helps. The worst I’ve experienced is after being on my feet for hours — that swelling lasts a long while. As long as I am on my feet, though, the foot/ankle remain pliable. I know that as soon as I sit down, the ankle will get stiff, until I can work it all out again when I get back up on my feet.
I am still going to the gym with the weightlifters… and still spending most of my time on ankle exercises. Stationery bike for 40 minutes at level 12 gets me more than 7 miles of “travel” – then I hit the elliptical for some interval training (forwards, backwards, forwards, etc) for 28 minutes. It definitely helps.
I mentioned earlier that I have also been “doing stuff” — one highlight was taking my 60+ pound dog for a slow walk on May 27. It was the first time I was able to do that since prior to my ankle break, and back then I was walking both of my dogs at the same time. I cannot do two yet — that’s 100+ total pounds of pure excitement that I am not sure I can handle yet.
Found this article today before I started writing this blog entry. Wanted to share it here because it speaks to what I’ve referred to —-> our perception of the passage of time. Cliff’s notes version is that we perceive time as going faster when we constantly do the same thing, like sitting in traffic during our morning commute, or going through repetitive cycles of movements and meetings in the office. But if we do new things, seek new adventures and experiences, our perception of time is that it slows down. Think about that a minute. Makes sense, right?
I am still pinching myself that it is already mid-July. I mean, how did that happen? I lost May in shots, June happened so fast I wondered if we were a couple of weeks short… and now we are staring at August around the corner, which means Autumn is almost here —- what??!!!
So, I am stopping to smell the roses from my garden, meet friends for lunch outside of the office building (never did that before)… and “do stuff” like getting a sassy new haircut, and finally venturing to the local European/German Metzgerei (butcher) that I have been talking about for years. Last week, I also spent a few hours at a comedy club laughing so hard that tears were coming from my eyes. What a cathartic feeling! Laughter IS good for the soul! (I am definitely going to do that again!)
I am planning to walk in another 5k next month – this one near my house that benefits the Wounded Warriors. And my work team is planning to participate in another in mid-September.
The humorous part of my story is that I have somehow become the unofficial poster child for the “worst case scenario” —- the one everyone points to when they hear a friend or colleague is participating in a mud run. I really don’t want to give mud runs a bad name, because I know that I’d be doing every single one of them if this had never happened to me. What happened to me was a “freak” accident. Yes, mud was involved… but stuff like this happens every day. I recently met a kid who did something similar (though not as bad as mine) on a sidewalk. If I represent anything, it’s how your life can change in less than 10 seconds.
I opened up a fortune cookie several weeks ago and found this message — it really spoke to me about the road I have traveled since this adventure started.
I am 69 weeks into this now… can you believe that?!
- And Pop Goes My Ankle! (leftturnahead.wordpress.com)
- Love Your Ankle Day (sparkaliciouswit.wordpress.com)
In pre-op, my complete joy that this day had finally come was revealed in my blood pressure, which was calm, cool… and low. I was smiling, laughing and joking with the nurses and anesthesiologists, and when my doc wrote “YES” on my leg, I told him he forgot to add an exclamation point!
And here (L) is what I was doing about 30 hours after surgery (with my doc’s permission)!
AN ARM & A LEG 