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Mid foot fusion.

Posted , 83 users are following.

michelle65897
michelle65897

Hiya. I had a mid foot fusion 2 weeks ago now. I am really struggling with non weight bearing. Has anyone else dealt with this please. I am crying with frustration. My husband and I are very keen walkers and it is really hard not being able to get out and about under my own steam.

look forward to hearing your tips.

8 likes, 252 replies

252 Replies

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  • orientmick
    orientmick michelle65897

    Posted

    hi i had foot fusion op this time last year and cannot stress enough how important it is to follow rehab instructions set by your surgeon. I presume you will be 6 weeks in plaster followed by a similar length in the boot. The non weight bearing period is particulary tough if you have been active before, just going to the loo seems a impossibly tough mission. I cracked after about a month and although careful found myself venturing out of the house on crutches and inevitably had a few stumbles. Eventually my wife got me a wheelchair from the red cross for a small rental fee and this helped me to get out and about with my wife but also to move about with a bit of freedom and independence in the house, wheeling myself downstairs into the kitchen to make a cuppa or a sandwich. I would say throw away pride and make use of this if available in your area. The recovery is a long drawn out affair, 12 months on i am awaiting follow up surgery to remove metalwork and screws and am far from being pain free however i also had my tendons shortened in same op and the doctor says it is this that is causing me post op pain. Another option is to buy a wheelchair from ebay and re sell when finished with, please dont think like i did that you will be able to resume your life where you left off straight away. Preparing mentally is something i never entertained and yet it was/is this that affected me most. Follow physio when your ready for it and keep it up after as my surgeon kept telling me 3 months fair, 6 months good, 12 months better. Sorry i cant tell you its a bed of roses but at least you can prepare, and again please keep weight off foot however frustrating it can be it will save you time in the long run. Good luck with your recovery  
    • michelle65897
      michelle65897 orientmick

      Posted

      Thanks for the reply Mick. I have a wheelchair from Red Cross which is a real boon although I can't use it round the house. The showering is very very hard and so have started having one every other day and a wash in between. I didn't mentally prepare for it and wish I had now. Did you become quite depressed with it all? It's particularly hard because I am a nurse and am not used to being on the other side of it. Did your toes feel numb and then have episodes of tingling and what pain relief did you take please?  It's so hard not putting foot to the floor, I sometimes forget when I've got up in the night to go to the loo and just remember in time. I've had a few stumbles but didn't put my foot down thank goodness. I also have the feeling that my husband is becoming frustrated and impatient with me and so I'm trying not to ask for things all the time. 

      Sorry for the long post, but I could go on and on.

      thanks. Michelle.

    • brenda_24043
      brenda_24043 michelle65897

      Posted

      Hi Michelle

      I had hammer toe straightened and adjacent mallet toe reduced and big toe realignment. I have wires. This was done on NHS in the local private hospital on 9 Feb: I am 2 weeks 4 days past op (I had a general). I am 68 really fit, regular gym person and a rambler and socialiser who lives with a husband who has health issued. I always did everything for my husband but now I need help. Mentally moreover. I have never felt so low. I have to laugh as my husband said yesterday that he is exhausted and he has lost 4 lbs in weight; well that's because he has had to move if he wanted to eat he had to do it. What I need is a happiness pill every day and husband is just going through the motions of servicing. When you are an extremely active person the aftermath following euphoria post op is very hard.

      I have been so careful. I keep my hospital boot on the floor next to bed and a tote sock with anti slip sole to hobble to the Loo twice a night. I drink a variety of teapigs posh tea to try to stop eating treats, which means I hobble to the Loo 2 to 3 times a night. I tried using crutches but my shoulders and arms ached. I am doing upper torso exercises everyday. My next target time is When my pins are taken out on 11 March. However I guess they will just bandage again until the next 2 week milestone of 6week-post op. I am lucky I have had no pain.

      I do online bridge compulsively, puzzles, suduko and crosswords. But the best thing in the world is my 10 month grand daughter and friends who come in and make me laugh

    • Mother_Jo
      Mother_Jo brenda_24043

      Posted

      Hi Breda, I am 15 days post op midfoot fusion with 3 screws and heel graft taken. I'm 45 and also a gym lover and very active. I was on 20 mg fluoxetine antidepressant before the op and it is really helping me cope. My 5 year old had 4 days of distressing gastroenteritis last weekend. Looking after him screaming in pain on crutches was so hard as I could not rest as much as I wanted. I'm in a cast for 4 more weeks then moon boot for another 6. I go back to the gym Monday for a physio session for return to exercise. I'm also using an i-walk2 hands free crutch for times when I need to do little jobs. Wishing you good healing...
    • brenda_24043
      brenda_24043 Mother_Jo

      Posted

      Hello Mother Jo

      I really feel for you.

      Do you know I've been reading all the posts in this group and a vision has overcome me of feisty women with knapsacks on, skateboarding their personal effects down the stairs (which is what I do, however, the skateboard is a cushioned lap try haha). We are here doing something positive in correcting things we know are rectifiable in order to give us a better life. Gosh I have been so relieved to read how you cope. I remember having 3 girls under 5 (twins there amongst them) and I was super woman. One daughter has intimated that it is only minor compared to our friend who has cancer; hey yes but we mindset according to our problem. We are lucky we are going to get better. Thank God for being outspoken women and sharing our anxieties ... Bless you and hang in there

    • linda12431
      linda12431 Mother_Jo

      Posted

      Hi mother jo obviously you are 2 years on. I am just wondering how you are going. I have always been very active and a runner and gym goer. I have been diagnosed with osteoarthritis in both feet and the pain seems to be getting worse. I am only 42 and have 3 children. Was it worth having the mid foot fusion, has it helped 😋

    • shelly86115
      shelly86115 linda12431

      Posted

      Hi Linda, I ham 8 week into the mid foot bone fusion, Im in the boot now. I have osteoarthritis in both feet but one worse than the other. Im wondering how long it will take to recover.

      Im 50 but the foot has been bad for about 3 years. I hope its worth it.

    • EmmaJL
      EmmaJL linda12431

      Posted

      Hey Linda,

      I'm 46 and just been diagnosed with osteoarthritis in my right foot and about to be X-rayed in my left because i have all the same pain happening there too. I have a 5 year old so nervous about getting fusion surgery done but also feeling gloomy as i feel like I am far too young and active to be so restricted by my feet. I have only been looking into surgery on-line and havn't spoken a professional yet but would like to know if you took the plunge to have surgery and if you did, has it helped at all?

    • ann06805
      ann06805 EmmaJL

      Posted

      Hi Linda

      I am 2 years and 4 months post op for mid-foot fusion, posterior tibialis shortening and calcaneous restructure. I had severe pronation with severe pain for years. I am 95% pain free! BUT, I followed physical therapy religously and added massage to my regime. It was incredibly hard at first - 8 weeks in cast, 8 weeks in boot (first 4 non-weight bearing). Best thing was renting a wheelchair so I could get around and not be stuck in the house. I healed very well. I did however - 8 weeks prior to surgery begin a regime of taking calcium and vitamin c everyday, continued another 8 weeks post op and I know it helped my healing. I also worked very hard on trying to laugh every day (and if you saw me trying to get up and down stairs on my tush you'd laugh too!!). I know that being as positive as I could be helped keep depression at bay. It was hard - I won't lie! (I own a dance studio and I found ways to teach after the first 8 weeks which helped tremendously). I still have to do my left foot and am waiting until next year to make sure my right foot can handle the stress. But, if you have a good surgeon and trust him and really follow everything they ask of you I would go for it!! Best of luck.

    • debbra64399
      debbra64399 EmmaJL

      Posted

      Hello Emma

      If possible I would delay as long as possible surgery on the foot. Try other non-surgical treatments, ortho supports, tendon strengthening, do tons of physio exercises. Surgery should always be used as a last resort, as there is no ability to reverse it.

      I rushed into surgery and wished I had tried more with ortho supports and physio. I was a very active runner (running 6-10 miles on most days). My foot was constantly swelling and I had been diagnosis with OA. I was extremely impatient and wanted a cure. Plus, at the time, I had excellent health insurance so could go privately.

      The surgery on my left foot (a mid-foot fusion) was successful, in the sense that I no longer have the swelling and pain. But the recovery was over a year. I suffer with metatarsalgia and a very stiff big toe, where they removed the bunion to use for the the fusion. I did my physical therapy afterwards. I could never run the same distance or times again. I got back to 6 miles once a week, 3 miles during the week. It has been slow progress. It was a year in trainers, before I could wear normal shoes.

      I have now developed ankle OA. I have decided not to run, but to work on strengthening the tendons and muscle around the ankle to avoid the need for surgery.

      Good luck with whatever you decide. You are young and should look at ways to strengthen your foot.

    • EmmaJL
      EmmaJL debbra64399

      Posted

      Hi there Debra64399,

      Thanks do much for taking the time to answer me and I will take your advice on perhaps waiting for as long as possible. I have big reservations about being out of action with such a young child and being such a burden on my husband post surgery during the recovery period. We run a business together so with me off work too, he'll have enough on his plate!

      I have just been referred to a physio and I'm getting some custom made orthotics done next week so I am hoping that really helps. I have osteoarthritis in my taloniviscular joint (mid-foot).

      I guess I'm just feeling a bit overwhelmed with the whole thing. I am desperately trying to find a fix to all of this and gradually realising its not as simple as all that.

      I am not a runner but love walking and generally clock up about 5 miles on average a day. I am now finding anything after 2/3 miles starts to hurt like hell. I've had to stop walking my daughter to and from school and drive instead now which is helping with the pain management. I'm being more selective about when and where i walk. I find that devastating as I am in my 40's!

      Good luck with your ankles. My father has had ankle replacements in both, not out the question it will happen to me too.

    • katie821210
      katie821210 orientmick

      Posted

      Hi , my name is Katie just wanted to talk to someone in the same situation ,

      have you had your hardware ear removed ?

    • Wickedwitch517
      Wickedwitch517 katie821210

      Posted

      hi all...

      i had a midfoot fusion in july 2018 , i am still in horendous pain and now im on a list to have metal work removed .... so if anyone has any input or experiance of having metal work removed i would be greatful of the info....

    • Wickedwitch517
      Wickedwitch517 katie821210

      Posted

      hi katie

      im booked monday 29/6/20 @7am for midfoot metal work removal! im two years post fusion op almost to the day, and still on fentynal patches and copious other medications for the pain. my break initial happened five years ago come october, its been a long old slogg.

      ill let you know how i get on from monday onwards if you would like xx

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