Double Bunion op - what to expect first few days/weeks post op?

Hi Elizabeth..... i had a double done on 11th May last year, so i am 9 months done the line now.... firstly this site is amazing for all the help you need, such lovely people on here.... i had double bunion removal and hammer toe correction... like all surgery it does not come pain free... to be honest the pain for me was bad, but with medication and keeping feet elevated you do get through it... i found trying to walk to the bathroom day after surgery was so painful it made me feel sick but just do it slowly, i lived in my bedroom for three weeks, and my partner who can not even cook a slice of toast became the most amazing helper... bless him, soon the stitches were being taken out and advice from surgeon get walking again BUT .....  its not that easy, having the two done i dont regret because i would of not gone back for the second to be honest... it did affect me emotionally too... felt rock bottom, eat at silly hours and gained a stone in weight.... it is a long journey but it will all be worthwhile.... all symptons and the way you may feel someone on here will relate to which makes you feel so much better, i can honestly say i dont know what i would of done without this site.... myself i am still learning to walk as both big toes and second toe are still stiff, surgeon said this surgery takes at least a year to start to settle down and i can say it is so true.... i had days where i would just try to walk from the lounge to kitchen thinking i was doing good... and then toes would swell so it was back on the sofa with feet up.... but we all get there in the end my love.... so just take one day at a time... if i have one funny memory of having my feet done, i went to spain three months after and had to have a wheelchair because of the heat the swelling was bad and painful... my partner not being used to pushing a wheelchair was pushing me and looking at other things.... and i nearly ended up in a fish pond... even though i was in a little pain we screamed with laughter... plus the only footwear i could have was soft house slippers... it was a sight i must say.... through out your recovery keep on this site because it is a god send.... i wish you a speedy recovery hun, and you will ok, keep positive, we are all here to help xx

Hi. I just had bilateral bunions done 7 days ago. I must say its painful but taking pain killers 4 hourly helped me a lot, I have a cast and will be removed after 21 days . I don't regret doing the op because the pains were worse than what I'm experiencing now. Don't worry you will be fine

Hi just thought I'd update this thread with my progress.

I am now 6 days post op - double bunionectomy & osteotomy.  I had quite a few concerns before I had the operation - namely how exactly would I cope with both feet in plaster, particularly as our bathroom is upstairs.

But I'm happy to say things haven't been as bad as I expected.  I was wheeled into the operating theatre at 9am and woke up on the recovery ward about 11:30am with both feet in plaster.  I was later moved to the ambulatory ward,  where I stayed for the remainder of the afternoon.  I got the medical shoes and attempted to walk about 4pm, I was a bit shaky at first but with the help of elbow crutches I soon got the hang of the shoes.  I was discharged about 5:30pm and was happy to get home.

The stairs weren't as bad as I expected and I was very happy to get into bed.  The last few days have been anywhere near as bad as I expected, although I did get over confident yesterday and spend too long on my feet.  Last night was in the most pain I've had since the op and it was my own fault.  Today I'm back to resting as much as I can and keeping on top of my pain relief!

So all in all, I'm glad I've had the op.  The pain hasn't been as bad as I thought it would be and rest/elevate/ice as much as possible. 

Hi everyone,

This site has been a great source of information and I feel a lot more comfortable with my surgery as I can see everyone has similar experiences and in some cases very different experiences. I also recently had double bunion surgery, on both feet (big toes and pinky toes) and it's now 3.5 weeks after surgery. I had my surgery in Melbourne. After surgery my feet were only wrapped in bandages and at 2 weeks had stitches removed. In the first 1.5/2 weeks, my feet were also throbbing and was painful to put my feet down, so it was always on the elevated as much as possible (following advise from doctor as well as reading other people's experience). At 1.5 weeks I was able to walk on my heels slowly with crutches but before that, I improvised, using a computer chair to move around the house after the 1st week of minimal movement.

I was also given the post surgury Darco velcro shoes to walk around in. At 2 weeks, I was able to move around on crutches and in order to see my Dr again to have the stitches removed it was a must to get around in with my crutches and immediately after surgery, I was encouraged to learn to use the crutches, scary at first to try and walk at 2 days after surgery but manageable.

After having my stitches removed, they didn't appear to have healed 100% and no futher bandages were applied either when I was sent home. I have taken the unusual step of applying freshly crushed turmeric on where my stitches were, once every 2 days for about an hour and only washing the wound 24 hours after I have applied the turmeric (google around on applying turmeric on open wounds - most talk about turmeric powder, but freshly crushed turmeric I believe is the best). Now at 3.5 weeks, the wounds are healing well, some of the scabs are starting to peel off and I'm guessing the rest will peel off within the next 2 to 3 weeks and hopefully with minimal scarring (I have used fresh turmeric before when I had an snowboarding accident with snow burn on my face and there has been no scaring on my).

I've also stopped using my crutches at 3 weeks and can walk around on my heels (with my Darco shoes on) which is great as I can now move around slowly and up and down stairs. My Dr has advise at week 4, I can throw out the Darco shoes but as my feet are still quite swollen, I might need them for a bit longer if I don't fit into any of my sneakers.

My left big toes is still numb, which I think is because it's still so swollen (my left foot is a bit more swollen then my right foot) it may be affecting senses there, so I will monitor this over the next few weeks.

I've also been slowly doing toe excercises, wiggling them gently for about 2 minutes, 3 or 4 times a day)

Overall, I'm glad I've had both feet done, as I only need to go through recovery once. The first week - 1.5 week was the hardest, but from week 2 onwards, everything is getting easier each day. I hope to be able to contribute back to this site as it's been a great source of information

Hi Elizabeth how are you getting on? I had both my bunions done a week ago. I was allowed to wait bear straight away as long as I wear the Velcro sandals. Also advised to keep feet well up for 23 hours a day. Am now walking more easily on my heels etc

Are you pleased with your progress so far? Hope you are getting on well

Best wishes

Hillybill