Week 2 Post op - Right foot

   I am surprised how well I am feeling now at week 2. I guess after having done one foot it gets a little easier and less stressful the second time around. I have been very diligent about keeping my foot elevated as much as possible. I also do my leg exercises in bed to help prevent blood clots - per my doctor's orders. I have ventured out this past week to restaurants and the movies a couple times. I made sure to sit in the seats that are right next to the railing so I can keep my foot up. My knee-rider is a life-saver for getting around. While my foot doesn't hurt actively, if I keep it down for over 20-30 minutes it starts to ache. I am also still icing my foot, every couple hours when I am in bed. I stopped taking pain medication after the first week. Now I just use Motrin if it's bothering me. The biggest irritation is sleeping with the boot on. I am just stuck on my back and the weight of the boot is uncomfortable. During the first week I planned my pain medication so that I would take the last dose right before bed because I would fall asleep easier even with the annoying boot.

   Here is my first picture of my foot out of all the post op wrapping! It isn't a pretty site but there isn't a lot of swelling, so yay!

   As mentioned before, the gap between my toes will close in a couple weeks. Something I worried about the first time around;) At this point my doctor said I can start showering with the boot off, just avoid soaking the foot in water (for sanitary reasons). Do not remove steri strips - let them fall off by themselves. Do not scrub the area vigorously, but ok to gently clean around surgical site and rinse off. I am also allowed to start stretching my toes back and forth and doing range-of-motion exercises with my ankles. Continue to keep foot elevated when possible - doesn't have to be majority of day, but just when resting.

   My foot is VERY stiff. Just stretching the big toe is quite painful. However, the more I stretch it the less it hurts. I'm also still elevating the foot. At this point last time, I was spending more time on my feet, walking around. This time I'm spending about 6-8 hours on my feet and about 6 hours in bed with my foot elevated. I know it's hard to spend so much time doing nothing and keeping your foot up but, trust me, it makes such a big difference! It also helps the surgical site heal better.
   Oh, and I am also allowed to sleep without the boot. However, I've noticed that just the pressure of my blankets on top of my foot hurts my big toe. Rather than continue to wear the boot for a few days like I did last time I just went with it. It was totally worth it, so much easier to sleep without the boot! I still keep my foot propped on several pillows though. Also, it really helps to keep an additional pillow between your propped pillows and your body. It's a lot more comfortable for propping up your leg. It's a method we use in the hospital for elevating patient's feet to reduce swelling and it works fantastically!