Achilles rupture - some pain during healing

Thanks for this. Never heard of the castor oil one before. I have been massaging bio oil onto scar a couple of times a day.

Glad your progress is steady. I posted about 7 days ago to see how everyone is doing, but my post ended up in the middle of this string at the 3 months ago range. LOL.  My progress has been slow and steady, have been getting IMS therapy for pain and it is helping. My other leg has been feeling the strain (overcompensating??) and so off to the Dr. today to ensure I have not done anything to that Achilles tendon, other than strain. Also to get referral to PT so she can work on it as well.

Otherwise, am able to do small toe raises and walk on toes; so some progress there. Back to walking small distances. 30 to 45 minute walks.  

I still wake up with a stiff ankle every morning. Doesn't take long to loosen it up, but feel like I am starting over (Groundhog Day?!) every morning.

Hope everyone else is doing ok.

Sandy

Morning Sandy and all, I just received notification of new comments so thought I'd pop by. I'm now at 6.5 months and doing okay. My ankle's still very stiff every morning, but loosens up fairly quickly, especially after I've had a hot shower. I'm still doing stretches and exercises every day, including single calf raises (they're not yet quite on full tip-toe, but I'm getting closer). My NHS physio has discharged me (not that he did much good anyway!) and advice from my private physio is to start adding more dynamic power walking sections into my daily two mile walk. From there I can build up to a full on power walk and then start adding in small, gentle jogging sections, but that'll be in the weeks and months to come rather than right now. I'm driving fine and go swimming every week, plus I try and get a couple of sessions each week on my exercise bike, so I'm feeling fitter again. My left calf is still noticeably smaller than my right; the muscle's starting to build up on the outer side, but the inner just isn't happening yet. 

Great news that you're getting back to tennis, Neil. 

I hope your good leg is okay, Sandy. It's amazing just how much the rest of the body has to compensate for an injury.

All the best to everyone

Jo :-) 

Hi Rebekah, I'm so sorry to hear you're going through the same injury. I assume your leg's been put in a plaster cast? I had to keep my leg elevated for a long time, otherwise had pain due to the swelling inside the cast which also caused my toes to go a reddish-purple. If elevating your leg doesn't resolve the pain I'd suggest going back to the hospital to have the injury checked out and a new cast applied. 

Thanks for the reply.  I am in a plaster cast.  I was just confused how I went from being ok to all of a sudden swelling up like that.  Maybe I over did it the days before.  I guess I'm just confused as to what's normal with these injuries and what's not.  Most of my injuries would usually get better as time went on.  Is it normal for it to get warm from time to time?

This injury takes a very long time to heal and it's a really slow recovery. Everyone says it's much worse than a break and I would absolutely agree with them. I'm seven months today, non-op, and still get some pain and a lot of tightness in mine, I still can't walk very long distances, and certainly can't run or jump yet. It sounds like you need to rest a lot more - as in pretty much all the time at this stage - with your leg elevated. I don't recall mine getting particularly warm, though, just itchy inside the cast which I helped by blasting it with the cold setting of my hairdryer! You can also wrap an ice pack around the cast, which will help with the swelling. I remember one night in the cast, maybe around a week or so in, where I was in absolute agony with shooting pains and my hubby almost took me back to the hospital. Then I remember at about three weeks in there was a certain moment one night where my Achilles felt as though it had re-attached, it was very odd! There will be a lot of ups and downs along the way and my best advice for the whole process is to always listen to your body. Give us a shout if you've got any more questions x

Hi Rebekah. I am sorry to hear about your injury. It is not something I would wish on my worst enemy. As JW advises, the recovery takes a long time and varies from person to person. I am just over 29 weeks post injury.

I did not have a plaster cast, but was put immediately into an air cast. In it for 8 weeks. Around week 5 was allowed to start weight bearing. I was advised to get to a physiotherapist asap. I am glad I did. They will guide you as to what you should and should not do. In the first few weeks rest and elevation are your best options. Patience is a big thing. I would recommend you do not rush things, but be guided by your Dr. and PT.

I am now able to complete a 2.5 mile walk, but do not do this everyday. Try for 4-5 per week, taking a day off to rest leg.  I still experience pain in the back of my heel and have not yet had the strength returned to all of my toes. So my heel raises are taking longer than I like, but I still see progress and that is what counts. Every morning my foot is stiff, but it does not take long to stretch it out. If I sit for a prolonged period of time, it will again stiffen up.  I hope that by seeing the progress JW and I have made, you will see that it is a slow process that requires a lot of patience.  Good luck to you.

I also recommend you check out Agnes' ATR blog. She blogged about her rupture and year long recovery journey. There is a lot of good info there, and suggestions.

Thanks for the support!  About how long did you miss work for during the beginning?  Also did you notice any spams in your quad?

Hi Rebekah. I was fortunate (?) to  have been laid off from my job at the time. Since then I moved to a rural area where there is very little work of a similar nature. So I was able to stay home for the duration. I could go back to work if there was a job here, and think I would have felt comfortable to return to work 10 weeks post injury. I think it is an individual thing. How long you should be off work depends really on whether you can and need to drive; and what sort of work you do; and if you are able to schedule for periodic rest (with leg up) periods and physiotherapy appointments. I would discuss this with your doctor and employer.

I did not notice any spontaneous spasms in my quad. After 8 weeks of rest and little activity my quad felt the strain of renewed activity, but that was quite short lived. Regular stretching exercises worked for me.

If you are feeling spontaneous spasms, I would ask your doctor, to be sure there is no other muscles or tendons injured when you ruptured your achilles. 

Hi Kurt04630

I am now 9 months post injury and sound like you have gone through  exactly the same process. I was 3 days in cast from date of injury then placed in airboot with 5 wedges, first 2 weeks on all wedges then losing a wedge a week at a time. A very long recovery and my advice is not to "think" it's healed. I was at times walking round the house without boot on....not a wise decision. Let the healing process take its course. I am now 50% able to heal raise and I think that's more in my head than anything else. I still have lots of scare tissue and an indent but also thickness around the back of my heel. I was told that this would be pretty much permanent. A horrible injury!!!! 

Hi Kurt, I fully ruptured mine in March this year playing badminton and was non-surgical too. I had a cast for 4 weeks, then a boot with three wedges (removing one every other week) for a further 7 weeks. I was only full weight bearing from about week 8 and even then it was tentative and I didn't go very far. It really seems that everyone receives different treatments and timescales depending on where they are. That indentation will be there for some time, so I wouldn't worry about it too much. Mine's gone now, but I still have a bit of lumpiness at the back where there's scar tissue under the surface, though it's going gradually. It's a very long-haul recovery - I still have a way to go to get back to full strength and flexibility, but I'm getting there. Any other questions feel free to ask. Fingers crossed for you that yours heals well. All the best, Jo

Nightmare Gav.

I havnt taken it out of the boot , only to give it some air with my foot up . I do move my toes when its out and up on a chair to stop my foot get stiff . Hopefully it get better for you at 12 months . 

Hi Jo, 

Long time no speak? I hope your recovery is going well? I know we had our injury at roughly the same time and received very different treatments. I think another few months and I will be there or there about. Went through the physio process but work has been a barrier!! Hopefully start doing a bit more exercise in the new year. 

Hi Kurt, 

It really is the worst injury to sustain. Patience is key and listen to your body. I would say that I maybe tried to push my recovery as I was going insane around the house but once you get another wedge out, you should be able to maybe walk to the local shop! It's important for the mind too! Just try and remain patient and positive. It does improve but it will be a lengthy recovery. I have the odd day where it feels stiff and I walk quite flat footed. 

Hi J . 

Yes lots of different treatments .

I do believe in listning to your body . They seem to be heading towards more aggresive treatments for this  injury . 

Yes Gav  i agree with keeping positive . I go out 3 times a day for half hour using crutches just for exercise . Then do core exercise at home . 

Hey Gav, it's been a while! All going okay here, thanks, although like you I still have a way to go. I'm swimming every week and getting out for a decent walk most days, plus going power walking once a week with the hopes of adding a bit of careful jogging in the new year. Oh and I can jump! (on both legs - no hopping here yet!) I've still got a LOT of tightness around the front as well as the back of my ankle, which is a bit of a concern, but I'm stretching it every day and still working on strengthening. My NHS physio discharged me at about five months, which isn't great, although he was pretty useless anyway! I've been back at work for a while (self-employed) but finding it rather difficult at the moment, as my hubby's just had an operation on a slipped disc, so I'm having to do all the driving and heavy lifting, which is taking a bit of a toll on my ankle and the time I can put into exercising it... Roll on 2018 ey?! 

Listening to your body is the most important thing in this recovery. My treatment's been the complete opposite! The only advice the hospital gave when I came out of the boot was 'No passive stretching' which resulted in the NHS physio barely wanting to touch it and he didn't even give me any stretches to do, just left me to my own devices! So I've had to do my own research into what exercises and stretches I should be doing, which I have been every day since about month four. I think the lack of support has hindered my recovery somewhat, as I've not felt particularly confident in it, and then there's always that fear of pushing too hard and it going again. That said, I've been following someone in New Zealand who did hers about seven months ago and was also non-surgical, but she's been advised on the more aggressive route and is having an amazing recovery with lots of support from doctors and physios - she's already running again! 

Ive been watching a go called Evan Brown  on utube .Simler process as me . But he has had PT from 2 weeks onwards . Its mad he has been keeping his ankle strong and  supple from very early on . Out the boot week 8 and walking  a lot . He say that early PT and weight baring are key but ive also  seen that walking and going about your normal way of life  is as good as PT . The main thing is that you are out of the danger zone . Keep doing what you are doing . You are nearly there  and its good of you to be helping us lot in the early stages .👍

Hi JW and Gav

I am at just over 8 months now. Stiff at night in mornings, but nothing that a few stretches doesn't work out. Like Gav, I am at about 50% with single raise. Can really feel the pull in the back of calf when I do these. I am lucky in that my health plan continues to pay 80% for physio. I go about every 3-4 weeks, but feel that my progress would be the same without physio. So thinking about ending it. I can walk great, some power walking. No running yet. LOL, couldn't run before. But now really want to get into it.  I bought a stationary bike and a balance board. Both help a lot. Like you JW, I still have tightness around the front of my ankle as well.  When pushing my stretching, it can feel like a vise. Glad you are doing well, but watch that heavy lifting! Hope hubby recovers quickly.

 

Hi Gav,

Glad to hear you are doing well. Luck you don't have a lot of stiffness. It is my biggest complaint right now. My good foot developed tendonitis from over compensation during recovery.  Now both ache a lot at night, both tendons and the calves. Stretch a lot, but have been advised that this could take some time to go away.  I practiced walking with a roll to my step, walking on my toes and walking up and downstairs using toes first. I found this helped the flat footedness for me.  Also found that it helped the other muscles in the leg too, as they were also feeling the strain.

Take care.

I wonder how Jonathan has been doing.

Thanks Sandy, I'm sure he'll be fine, he just has to take things easy for a while. Not that I wish your ankle to feel tight, of course, but it's good to know that you're experiencing the same as me and that it seems to be fairly normal at this stage in recovery. I'm planning to go and see a massage lady in the new year who specialises in working on releasing internal scar tissue, so I'm hoping that'll help loosen mine up a bit. I used to run (well, jog!) before my injury and the private physio I saw in the early stages seemed to think it was a good goal to get back into it eventually. I went to watch my old badminton club play the other night and that was a hard thing to do, as I wanted to get up and join in, but it was great to see the old gang. Watching just how hard you have to push off on your toes when playing has made me even more certain that I've made the right decision not to play again, tough as that is. I have a stationary bike too and try to get on it at least once a week (although I'm slacking a bit at the mo as too many other things to do!). I'm probably about 50% with single calf raises too - I get frustrated that I can't get right onto my toes yet, but I'm determined to get there eventually! Hope you continue to recover well. Always good to keep in touch and discuss progress. x