- Lost 3 and a half stone (50lb)
- Walked around Chicago and New York with no forefoot pain
- Bought new shoes without it being a total disaster and rediscovered old shoes that I can now wear pain-free!
- Been able to walk barefoot and also been able to go swimming again
- Started Pilates classes
You might notice that the right foot toe nail, which I mentioned last time was growing strangely and very thick, has now partly fallen off! I saw a different podiatrist, who filed across the face of the nail and about a week later, the top section just fell off! I was a little disturbed by this but it seems as though the nail is doing quite well and that top section wasn't really connected to the live nail anyway. I am continuing with my tea-tree oil and it seems to be growing through a bit healthier. The scars are fading but still visible (which I'm quite pleased about actually - I want proof of what I went through!) and the toes are much less wobbly and floppy now - the joints seem to have stiffened up a bit. Here are the bunion wounds:
You can see they look great too. Even though the bunion bone does protrude a little bit it has not caused me any pain so I'm totally happy.
When you compare them to my old feet, you can really see the difference:
Overall, it's been a great two years and I am so pleased that I made the decision to have the operation.
Hi Gwen, thank you for your wonderful blog. My name is Tammy, I'm 45 and a single mom of two little girls. I had almost the same surgery as you 4 weeks ago and I'm getting nervous about removing the K wires (pain) and if my toes will ever really touch the ground again. I wish I had discovered your blog 6 weeks ago, prior to my surgery. It has made me feel better about the possible outcome.. I also have RA and had almost the same surgery including having both feet done at the same time, except they removed all of my metatarsal joints and my K wires are in to creat space for scar tissue to form to replace the joints as well as to straighten them. Maybe you did as well, I'm not sure. It has been so comforting to read about your recovery. I'm still terrified though. I'm at the four week point after surgery and don't understand how this is going to work in the end. My heal and the side of my feet are so sore from the heel walker shoes and my toes seem to be no where near coming down. That makes sense for the ones that have pins in them but not the big toes, theyre so stiff. I don't know if you answer questions, I know how busy life can be, especially with kids. Congratulations with that. . If it's possible, it would be nice to actually email/blog whatever with someone who's been here. We are also in the process of a possible JRA diagnosis in my 11 year old daughter. The signs are there but the blood tests are not supporting it yet so they're holding off and checking other possibilities. Anyway, if you find time, please email me or comment back. We'd appreciate it.
ReplyDeleteHi Tammy!
DeleteThanks for your comment. I'm glad reading my blog has been helpful for you.
With regard to toes, I have found with my big toes that they don't touch the ground when my heel does and do stick up very slightly. I wondered about this at first but when I began walking again, I found that it really helps with a natural walking movement. If you imagine, as you walk, you roll your foot. If your toes were stiffened into a straight position, there would be no way to smoothly roll forward when walking. (This is obviously just my experience and I'm not a doctor! Hopefully you can ask your doctor/surgeon when you go for your next appointment if it still worries you).
With the K wire removal, I didn't really find it painful. A very unusual experience and slightly odd feeling but not really painful. I don't know whether you've had your stitches removed yet but I found that more painful that the K-wires! (I don't know if you've seen my post about K-wire removal?)
Good luck with your daughter's diagnosis. Fingers crossed they can diagnose something (even if not RA) so they can begin to treat it effectively. Hopefully they are giving her something for the pain already. It took them a while to diagnose me but hopefully the family history might speed up the process for her.
If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to comment again!
Gwen :)
Hi, Gwen. I cam across your blog tonight and wanted to let you know I enjoyed reading about your progress. You seem to be a cheerful, open sort of person, which is nice. I also heard your entries in my head with a British accent! Thanks for sharing!
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