Stitch Trimming

As today is my tenth day after having my screws removed, I had to go to my GP surgery to have the stitches trimmed. They used dissolvable stitches to suture the wounds but the parts which are not under the skin wouldn't dissolve so they needed to be trimmed off. I was feeling quite apprehensive about it as having the stitches removed last time was pretty sore. I just hoped that as the stitches were only being trimmed it would be better. The amount of blood that we saw through the plasters when we removed the bandages was also making me feel nervous.

When I got into the Treatment Room and met the Practice Nurse, I was glad to see that she had received the letter explaining what the surgeon wanted her to do. She asked me a few questions about what I'd had done and checked that we both had the same understanding of what needed to be done. She then removed the plasters. They actually came off really easily and it didn't hurt! I was also really, really pleased with how my feet looked underneath. The incisions were really small and look like they're healing well.

You can see the loops of the stitches in these photos too. The nurse had to pull them up slightly to trim off the ends but it didn't really hurt. I was very relieved! She said they looked like they were healing well and were not infected at all. She didn't clean them up at all because she said she wanted to allow them to continue to heal a bit more. She decided to put another plaster over each toe for another couple of days. On Wednesday, I can remove the plasters and wash my feet or have a shower. After that, I can apply more plasters if I want to. She said if it helps them feel more comfortable when wearing shoes it's probably a good idea.

I'm really pleased with how well they are healing and how they feel. It feels like they have been cleaned even though they haven't. I guess that's just from having the dressing changed. The next challenge will be to try wearing shoes. I haven't worn any since the operation and as I'm returning to work next week I'd better start seeing how I get on wearing them again! I think it might be a bit sore so I'll probably have to build up how long I wear them for each day. I'll post more pictures once my feet are all clean later in the week.