X-ray and Plaster room

On Tuesday I was excited because today was the day I was due to visit X-ray and the plaster room. I had asked the doctor the day before about me going in a wheelchair as up to this point I had been under strict instructions to keep my feet up but he said he thought it would be fine to go in a wheelchair as I would be trying standing and walking after I'd had my plaster done. This excited me greatly, as I was getting very bored of my bed (even though I did love playing around with the remote control and adjusting all the different levels to my liking!).

Unfortunately, the porters weren't happy to take me in a wheelchair so I ended up going in my bed to both of the different departments. I went to X-ray in the morning but didn't get a ride to the plaster room until about three o'clock, which worked out well as that was during visiting time and it meant my husband could come with me.

A student nurse came along too to watch the procedure as she hadn't seen it before. We went down to the plaster room, which involved navigating a crowded waiting room while in a bed (quite embarrassing) and wearing a nightie (very embarrassing). I was really looking forward to seeing my feet and also the surgeon who I was told would be there to check on my feet and how they were healing.

The plaster room staff were lovely and got straight down to unwrapping my feet from the thick bandages. They eventually got to a point where there was just one dressing left and it was quite a sight - lots of dried blood.

Then, the surgeon came in and they exposed the feet fully. I can't really describe it but luckily my husband took more photos! There was a sense of disconnection with it - like they weren't really my feet. The wounds were still very big and the right foot especially had quite gaping holes in it! Luckily, the surgeon and the plaster team all thought they looked great and were doing very well.

I really do recommend clicking on these pictures to enjoy the full effect of them!

One of the main things that struck us was the overall shape of the feet. Yes, they definitely looked pretty horrible in terms of the gaping wounds (and the fact that one of the cuts on my right foot started trickling blood down my foot) but generally we were amazed and pleased by how straight the toes looked (especially when you compare them to what they were like before). I was also extremely pleased that the surgeon was so happy with them. 

Then the plaster room team set to work on wrapping them back up but this time in plaster so that I would be able to bear weight on my heels and practise walking. By the time this was finished, it was too late to meet with the physio team so I had to wait until tomorrow. This had been a possibility that I had been getting used to over the last couple of days so although I was disappointed I wasn't surprised. However, I was very pleased with my lovely new purple casts (which ended up looking quite blue, which was a bit of a shame).

I returned to the ward to get some rest as tomorrow was going to be a big day with physio, the stairs test and hopefully going home!