Monday Photo Shoot: Body Parts

John's Monday Photo Shoot is Body Parts...ha! Too perfect for today...ok so technically that was yesterday now but...

WARNING: Icky surgery photos! If you don't like blood you might want to just not look! :-) Added them this way so you can enlarge if you like!

Pix 1-6:

Those of you following my journal probably already know I had foot surgery a year ago last Sept. I had injured my foot on a roller coaster 5 yrs ago come this July. I had just thought it was bruised & it settled down in about a month but when I went back to teaching that fall I could not walk down the hallways. I was literally leaning against the walls. I had ice on it in my office & on Vicodin & was still in pain. Doctor after doctor they were not very helpful. I did have a great PT guy who did get me walking pretty good, but it never really went away completely & acted up at times. Finally, the 6th doctor MRId it again & by that time I had lost 92% of my Tendon (PLT). I had an aggressive growing Lipoma. Lipomas do develop due to trauma. So they had to go in & take it out & then graft some muscle. I got back about 50% of my muscle which once it gets developed fully it can give me 100% strength potentially.

I was off work for about 9 weeks. It was NOT fun! I had stomach complications after surgery and I am not a good person to just sit & watch tv etc that long. I am use to being out & about...hiking & biking, shopping...that alone was killing me! ....just use to doing  so much in a day & reduced to sit on your butt was not me! Oh and dancing...man it is not good when your spirit can't dance! My hips were going through withdrawal! The first 3 days I was only allowed to get up to go to the bathroom. Next 2 weeks I could only walk 10 min/hr, next 2 weeks 20 min/hr & next 2 weeks 30 min/hr. UGH!!!! Then after that I was still on crutches until about Jan/Feb.  Oh & then in Jan & Feb I stubbed two toes (on separate days!) first one on the foot I had surgery, I killed the ligament in between the first knuckle (tip of my toe) so that is real flimsy now. The second time was a baby toe on my good foot. I was on the phone when I did it & man....well turns out I broke it in 2 places. One healed good, just a line fracture but the chip that came off is not wanting to reconnect. Ugh!It isn't bad now but then I had to get that all taped up to my foot. They don't tape it to the other toes, that can pull the fracture away. So then I was waddling like some women 9 mo pregnant with both feet hurting. UGH! Then one day I dropped a totally filled shampoo bottle right on it! Good thing noone was within earshot! Although the guy upstairs may have just heard me!

Pix 7

I was doing pretty good until this past July. I was shopping at Michaels & stepped off the curb and had pain so bad I was in tears. Every step I took excruciating. I ended up in a cast for 9 weeks...killing the rest of my summer! Again only 20 min of walking per hr. I had tore the tendon, had tendintis, tore the plantar fascia & had Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome. He changed my cast every 2 weeks so that was a nicebreather and it didn't look so nasty by the end of the 9 weeks. He said I really didn't do anything that thinks "just happen".

Pix 8-12

These pix are after I got my cast off at the end of summer. Still not great, as you can compare my arches but much better and I was icing it to death. I was asked to go to a PT guy up north who was finishing his Dissertation in Neurophysiology. Dr. Z said for some reason all the patients that go there make such incredible progress in such a short time. I know why! He is WONDERFUL! First thing he told me was I was walking wrong. Had me trying to walk a straight line. Right! HA! I'm not sure I could ever do that! I asked for a note in case some cop stopped me! Ha! No, I wouldn't have a need really but just was funny thinking about it. Ultrasounded it to death...highest level! I could feel my whole foot in my skin! YIPES! Cortisone machine really helped. Then I had to learn to walk on my toes! Ya Right...this is why I never went into Ballet! Exercises everyday, TENS stimulation etc. I was getting pretty good and then my PT benefits ran out in Nov.

Pix 13-18

This was tonight! You can see the arch is not that great & actually it is better than Friday night. I was at a friend's friday and before heading out to dinner we sat & chatted for a bit. I had my shoes off & as I was happily talking I got this HUGE pain...sitting!!! I ws like "what was that?" Then 2 more about 50% of the first one. We did try to head out & walking wasn't hurting too bad so we had a nice time. When I got home & iced it & took the Motrin, Tylenol etc. Called Sat & they said come in today.

I had been to Dr. Z last week just for routine & told him it wasn't really bothering me too much and just showed him where it was hurting a bit & a bit numb. He ultrasounded it & informed me it was not great. It was .34 & needed to be under .30. Said the tendon was not all one color either. When I went in today he ultrasounded it again & it was .44! UGH! And this is down from Friday. He said I may have tore it abit & then said, "It may just go" mean tear completely. He reminded of a story he told me in the summer of a woman who was playing basketball & went up for the ball & it just tore in half. I remembered but thought he just told me that so I wouldn't feel bad then. Today he was much more serious of a tone. I asked if we were still talking about the tendon they repaired since this seems to be more on my heal & he said, "NO! This is your Plantar Fascia!" UGH!!! Fix one & now...He said at least it settled down for me a bit and wants to see if the PT will help. He can do a shot too but wants to wait to see. Classes started today & I had 3 in a row! I tried to sit for some of them. They also have me trekking from one building to another. They are going to work on moving my class...we'll see. He said it could be that it just is getting overworked from the other tendon not 100% or it could be just it was also going to go like anyone else.

Pix 19

My cute pedicure for Christmas...nice Snowman. I tried to pamper myself after a frustrating fall term. Getting my nails done is not a typical thing for me but I am quite enjoying it. A friend of mine took me when I was in the cast this summer to perk up my spirits & it really helped. You can tell my toes are swollen too...man! Were did that ice go again. Oh anyone that has Plantar pain...one past PT said to take an 8 oz bottle of water that you have drank & fill with tap water & put in the freezer. Then you roll your arch on it. It stretches the arch and freezes it & helps for pain. Isn't that a great idea! I also have a splint to wear at night to keep it 90% & he wants me to get a Prism step stretcher for when I'm sitting at the computer etc.

Well, maybe by this summer I can start hiking, biking, shoppng & dancing again. :-)

P.S. Anyone with a foot fetish...I'm probably not the girl for you! HA! At least not yet!