My Bionic Ankle

No, I am not defrosting the edamame for a snack: I am icing my ankle with the frozen edamame, one on each side.  I do have a fancy icing machine that my dear friends, Brenda and Connie, loaned me, but I found it much too cold and bulky.  Here, all I need to do is take the bags from the freezer, wrap them around my ankle until they defrost, refreeze, and start again.  I thought it quite ingenious. While editing, I noticed that Zora is in the background chewing on the night boot I no longer need!  Both the night boot and the edamame will eventually go into the trash.   But I am getting ahead of myself on this blog about transitioning back to a shoe.  At my post-op appointment with Dr. Nunley last Wednesday, he told me I could take off the boot the following week.  I don't know why I expected to be able to simply put on my shoe and take off!  That isn't exactly what happened.  When I tried to get my foot into the sneaker, I realiz...

I was anticipating my second post-op appointment with both trepidation and enthusiasm.  I was looking forward to getting my sutures removed, but I was anxious about the process and the pain.  A friend encouraged me to take a pain pill before the appointment, which I did, and an email to my doctor's team about my angst was returned with a phone call assuring me that the nurse would use a topical spray that would "freeze" the area, reducing the pain.  Neither worked very well. My friend and neighbor, Judy Race, had taken me to my first post-op to get my cast removed, and she agreed to take me yesterday as well.  Not only did a need a ride to the doctor, but I also needed emotional support. The appointment began with x-rays.  To my surprise, the technician asked me to remove both my shoe and my boot and to stand, weight-bearing, on the foot.  The doctor requested a weight-bearing x-ray; this would be the first time I stood without the boot, and it feel e...

It's difficult being patient, but I think I am doing a relatively good job considering I am a little more than halfway through the defined recovery period of three months.  However, it's not always easy, especially because I get tired and uncomfortable quite easily. I've found a rhythm for my days.  I have become complacent in my routines and Zora has adjusted herself to my schedule..  Since taking a shower is still a laborious task, I usually wait for my dog walker and trainer, Sue, to pick up Zora.  The first step in showering is putting on the waterproof cover over the boot.  When I finish I have to take the boot off so that I can dress, put it on again to walk, only to take it off again to change the bandages.  The whole procedure takes half the time without having Zora trying to grab the sock, the boot, or one of the bandages. Since my original waterproof cover needed to be replaced (the water had started to make its way into the boot), I picked up a...

Even before my surgery, I was dependent upon others to walk Zora: my arthritic ankle limited my ability to walk even a block.  Since my surgery over five weeks ago, Zora has been walked twice a day by friends, neighbors, and family.  It could be quite confusing for her since everyone has different styles and expectations, and, as everyone told me, as soon as she got close to the house, she would bolt home.  I decided I needed help reigning her back in, so I called upon my friend and local dog-walker and trainer, Susan Cortilet Jones, to walk her once a day, training her not to pull. Sue said that Zora is a fast learner, and, in only two days, I know she has made a difference.  I will never walk as fast as Sue does, so she is also teaching Zora to walk at a slow pace. After her walk, Sue shows me how she handles Zora and teaches me what to do.  My plan was to start walking with her next week, watching Sue and having Sue give me feedback as I take over....