6 Weeks Later...
It feels like a lifetime ago that I took a tumble and broke my foot. Now here we are 6 weeks later and I can say that your girl is back to (almost) 100%!
A Lifetime Ago...
A little over 6 weeks ago, in what now feels like a lifetime... I broke my foot. I took a hard stumble off our driveway and sprained my right foot, along with giving myself something called a Navicular Avulsion Fracture. You can read all about that day HERE. Flash forward 6 weeks, throw in one crazy pandemic, the quarantine life and lots of other fun in between and it brings you up to today. So where exactly am I in regards to my foot? Well I'm happy to report that I'm pretty much back to my old self.
Recovery
My Orthopedic doctor had given me a potential recovery timeline of 6 weeks to fully heal and she was pretty spot on. Currently, I'm off any type of foot boot or brace and walking on my own. I still have some bruising on my foot, but an unfortunate run in with Ben's toy car and a few toddler induced bumps with my foot could be hindering the full bruise recovery. Overall though, I have almost full mobility back in my ankle and foot. There's no longer any pain and I can fit back into old shoes again! I do have weakness due to not being able to move my foot normally over the past month. But hoping a few quarantine safe walks and being more mobile can help rebuild the strength lost. I'm also a little bit like a Weeble-Wobble at times since my foot hasn't been used to being fully walked on for a few weeks straight. LOL. But every day is so much better than the last and I definitely feel pretty recovered from the whole injury.
Timeline
In case anyone ever finds themselves in a similar foot situation and is wondering about my own foot recovery, here's a little breakdown of what the healing process was like for me:
Week 1:
The first few days after the break were tough in regards to just getting used to hobbling around the house. Thankfully I had a walking boot and not a full hard cast so I was able to remove it to shower and to ice my foot. I spent most of the first week trying not to put too much pressure on my foot and not bear any weight on it. Mentally, I felt so helpless. I couldn't drive (pre-pandemic), couldn't get out of the house without any type of assistance, mom duties couldn't be fulfilled and simple things like getting up to get water or a snack in the kitchen became an arduous process. Thankfully, my mother in law and own mom came to the rescue and helped with Ben duties. If they weren't around I have no clue how I would have managed watching a rambunctious toddler while nursing a broken foot. When it came to personal stuff, getting dressed and even showering became a whole ordeal. Since I couldn't get in or out standing on my own we had to invest in a medical chair and special non slip mat to keep me safe doing something so simple as taking a shower. Adjusting to life with a broken foot in week one was crazy.
Pain
Pain levels were manageable the first 3 days and then became crazy painful halfway into the first week. Each night my foot would just throb with pain and it was hard to sleep. I was told by the doctor that nights are the hardest in regards to pain and inflammation and she was absolutely right. I definitely relied on my prescribed pain medication to get me through this time. The pain was no joke and there were some nights that it was hard to hold back the tears because it was so intense.
Week 2:
Week two was all about adjusting to life with a boot and start to bear minimal weight on my foot. I ditched my crutches within this week and learned how to find the perfect "high soled" shoe to match the height of my bulky boot which was now my BFF. I also became a little more bold and braved a Target run with PB's assistance. Walking in the boot proved to be a workout in itself. It was hard and definitely left me feeling super worn out after trying to boot walk for any amount of time longer than 15 minutes. On the bright side though, the end of week two was when I felt like I was in a good "broken foot" routine in regards to things like getting dressed, moving around the house and finding a balance with Ben.
Pain
Nights were definitely still uncomfortable in regards to pain and general comfort. I also would be in pain after over exerting myself walking in my boot. The discomfort wasn't as extreme as week one, but it would still amount to a dull ache and require a dose of my prescribed pain medication at night. Sleeping was still hard since I would sleep with my boot on. I had the option of removing the boot when sleeping at this point, but I was too worried I'd roll over and re-injure myself without it.
Week 3:
Week three was a turning point in so many ways. I was told by the doctor that by this week my foot would be feeling a little bit better. And once again, the doctor was right! I felt good enough being mobile around the house and recovery was going well. Things were certainly looking up. We were even supposed to go on a Disneyland trip, I felt good about venturing out and testing more limits to my boot cast, but then a little thing called "COVID-19" decided to show up and pretty much disrupted all of our plans. My broken foot took a backseat to the new stress of the Coronavirus pandemic situation that was unfolding The one benefit? Sheltering in Place or "quarantine" is the perfect way to make sure your broken foot recovery goes well, HA! Since we couldn't go anywhere, there was limited chances for putting undue stress on my foot and meant a LOT of undisrupted healing time.
Pain
Little and very manageable with the occasional OTC medication instead of the heavier doses of pain killers. My foot was still pretty bruised and swollen, but I was comfortable enough to switch from my bulky boot cast into my lightweight brace which made a world of difference by the end of week 3!
Week 4 & Week 5
Lumping these two weeks together because I felt like at this point I was already feeling good! The quarantine life meant that we weren't going out or walking any crazy distances so it gave me a good amount of time to rest my foot and slowly start to building myself back up. By week 5 I was pretty much off my brace or any additional foot assistance and could put all of my weight back onto my foot.
Pain
None, except for the continued bruising and some mild swelling.
Week 6
The finale (hopefully). The doctor said by week six my foot would be pretty much healed. As I type this, my foot definitely feels worlds better. There's still some mild bruising that seems to be healing slowly, swelling is completely down since I can fit back into my shoes! And I've even managed to get outside for walks, jumped tiny jumps with Ben and even tested my foot in short spurts of toddler induced slow sprints. While I can't say that I'll be running marathons or doing any intense types exercise soon, I'm excited to continue to get stronger!
Pain
None!
Broken Foot Lessons
As crazy as this time has been, the broken foot life has definitely taught me a thing or two about myself and facing less than ideal situations that may occur. I remember the first few days right after breaking my foot, life felt so overwhelming. It was hard to get used to life with a foot out of commission. It was hard to not be able to be 100% for my son or for my family. Then things got easier, it wasn't right away, but with some time and some adjustments... it ended up being fine. It's a lesson I carried over into the COVID-19 pandemic we're living through right now. While it may seem like getting hit with a double dose of bad luck with a broken foot, then a handful of weeks later dealing with a pandemic, I was able to take some positivity out of it, that even in the most dire of situations, with time, this too shall pass!💜
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