Is this normal

Hi, early days for you just hang on in there it will get easier.

I'd recommend tramadol for a short period of time and putting a pack of frozen peas on each foot they help reduce swelling and bring out bruising

The first 4 days are tough hopefully by Monday you will notice a difference

S

Hi, what you are going through is perfectly normal. Keep your foot elevated and ice!!! I'm only 15days post op and had my dressing removed today. My consultant said to me that I was only to try driving if I was confident that I could do an emergency stop ( will give it 3 more weeks before I try. I was given co-dydromal and ibuprofen which worked for me.

Take it easy and don't rush into anything.

C

I have finished work today to have my operation on Monday. I am having scarf / akins then and they are doing something with my 2nd and 3rd toe. Then they are removing a neuroma. I'm really starting to panic now. I just don't know how much pain is to be expected when the nerve block wears off.....dreading it now

Hi

Keep taking the pills and the pain will subside....as Sue says by Monday you'll feel a lot better. The pain varies from person to person and I think it'll be to do with your pain threshold. For me the first few days were the worst then it became easier.

E

Hi Elaine 4625 I'm sure you will be fine , the pain block is great , I had all the anti sickness drugs going as I don't get on well with general anaesthetic , instead of giving me morphine (as that too can cause sickness) they injected loads of local anaesthetic around the ankle while I was in theatre , I think I haven't rested as much as I should have and my husband forgot to give me my dose of painkiller as to why I probably got in a bit of a state for a few hours , I have however found this forum today and the advise given is a god save , my advise is to listen to everything you are told by nursing staff and the great people on here , good luck for Monday

Happyface - what an optimistic name!

I had the same procedure performed March 7 on my left (non-driving) foot. I am on day 21 now. I started to drive at day 3 because of family emergencies and had no one else to rely on. I simply didn't take my Percocet (the greatest invention ever) and only took the Ibuprofen during the day. It didn't hurt for me until the beginning of the 2nd week, when I guess the block was totally worn off.

By about day 7 of driving and not elevating, my foot throbbed so bad I thought it was going to burst. Called Doc and he said, Elevate! So I continue to drive, but will pull over and stick my foot out the window for a few minutes when need be. At day 21, the foot still throbs when I am vertical verses horizontal. Like others advise, take your pain meds when you need to, you just had major surgery, but don't let the pain pills mask the pain so much that you don't feel it. Pain (like the pain in swelling) is also a signal you need to heed.

An important reason not to ignore this swelling is that it can cause an pulmonary embolism (PE). My 23 year-old son had a different type of surgery last March which caused much swelling then May 31 had a PE which almost killed him. So when I feel the swelling, I'm down with my leg in the air immediately.

I will be having the right (driving) foot done mid-May. That's when Doc said the left foot will be healed and fairly strong enough to support me. He mentioned it would be better to wait a few more weeks, but since I will be basically bed-ridden for the first week, it will allow the left foot to continue to heal.

Terri

Thanks for your advice ... I will listen to all the instructions given to me at hospital. I think it's the unknown of what to expect and when anybody asks you what I'm getting done people's faces screw up and say how painful the surgery will be. It scares me.

Hi,

I am also new to this forum though I have been reading the posts for a number of weeks and found

them a great help. I had a Scarf Osteotomy on my left foot and the second toe straightened on

Wednesday 28th March. I was in hospital overnight and pain was controlled by ankle block. I am

now on Tramadol and Paracetamol. Yesterday the pain was agonising but thankfully it has now

settled down and is manageable.

I was terrified before the surgery and had already cancelled it once. Now I am so glad that I

went ahead with it and it was not nearly as bad as I thought it would be.

Hopefully the recovery will go as easy and I will have one good foot for the summer.

Best wishes to everyone in their recovery.

Hi Again

Medication making me dozy. Meant to say had surgery on Wednesday 26th March.

Go and read the other topics and you will see that you MUST elevate for 90% of the time for the first few weeks or it won't heal properly. I was told 5 minutes every hour maximum to have my feet down.

As for the person about to have the operation- -start taking all the pain meds about 12 -18 hours after surgery so it kicks in before the nerve block wears off- many of us didn't know that and had horrid pain at about 24-36 hours after surgery and then another 12 hours of pain while the drugs built up enough to help. On a positive note by the time I got to 4 days after I didn't need any pain meds and I have had BOTH feet done at the same time.

I am now exactly 4 weeks post op and still elevating 90% of the time- definitely no driving yet till 6 week check up and I certainly don't think I could drive anyway- I wouldn't want to jeopardise the work that's been done- I want it to mend right the first time Broken bones, pins etc all take weeks to fix back together.

Happyface - First, this is a great place to meet others going thru the exact same thing although everyone's recovery may vary. For myself I had the same surgery and have endured the process without pain meds. The pain has been outstanding and I am getting thru it with Advil, ice elevation and patience. As mentioned some days it feels like my toe will explode. After 90 minutes up on crutches or knee wheeler which I recommend, I have to get back on the couch. Everything you are experiancing I can relate to. Good luck to you and take things a DAY AT A TIME!!!

Hi everyone,

I am new to the group with only my second comment. I am on my 10 the day post- op rt bunionectomy with 4th and 5th hammer toe correction. I am only experiecing pain when I stand straight up and it is so intense that it feels like someone is banging on my foot with a hammer! Only up to the washroom and the kitchen with my crutches during short periods on my left foot. I am using ice to my ankle and foot and ibuprofen for thepain and swelling. Is there something else I can do to speed up my recovery? And will the intense throbbing end? Any suggestions?

Are you staying with your feet elevated above your heart for most of the time Yvette ? That has helped me with throbbing and pain levels along with packets of iced peas around the foot ( obviously we won't be eating them later :-) , I think the biggest lesson I have learnt is patience, whilst being so sedatory and I've done a lot more reading, and if nothing seems to work Could you approach your med team and get them to take a look before your next appointment ? They usually review after two weeks down here but I guess it might be different with other health authorities

Wishing you a good nights sleep and a better day tomorrow

S

Yvette, I'm 10 days, exactly where your at. Think slowing down opposed to speeding up is the key. Easier said then done. Pain is intense here in N.J. Numbness and coldness!!! Share something I did which was soooo stupid. My foot was so cold I took a blow dryer to it to warm it up. Never felt it and next day I woke up with a big blister on my big toe. How incredibly dumb thing to do. Good luck.

Thank you my fellow happyfeeters,

Bob- ouch!!!! I wish u happy healing x2!!!! And I will try to have more patience. I guess in my profession I'm always trying to fix someone and it's a little perplexing when I can't fix myself.

I spend most of my days and night with my foot elevated above my heart. And I ice as often as I can every exposed area of my foot and ankle. I just started doing arm exercising with leg bends. I noticed my calf muscle of the affected foot, atrophying. I have learned to shower on one foot with the other foot on the toilet.

Didn't know how flexible I was. I have learned to balance quite well while on crutches. However, only up tothe kitchen and bathroom because the throbbing pain won't allow me but short periods time standing up vertically.

Thank you my Fellow Happyfeeters.....