Had a 5 month checkup with my surgeon today. Was the exact same as the last visit. X-rays and then 5 minutes with the doc saying everything looks fine. Had me stand and face the wall so he could look at my alignment but that's it. Didn't manipulate my leg or anything. Really think these guys are just interested in the surgery and then passing the buck. I told him I was still having quite a bit of pain if I walk long distances or am on it a lot. His response was to offer me a few samples of a pain killing patch (called the Flector patch which I apply directly where it hurts). He suggested that I see my internist for pain medicine as he will not see me again for a few months. I did mention that I feel as if my recovery has stalled and he said it's perfectly normal. Said there will be ups and downs for the next 6 months. He asked if I still felt the osteotomy was not necessary and I told him yes. He still feels it was the right thing to do as it will help my ankle and comfort levels years down the road. He said if I continue to have problems in a few months or so, we may want to consider taking out the screws. Sweet. Lastly, I mentioned that I am still having quite a bit of pain along the entire lateral side of my foot. He asked if it is still partially numb and it is. He said the pain/numbness is due to the nerve regenerating/settling and will slowly return to normal. The one positive thing he said is that I have made tremendous progress since the last time I saw him 6 or 8 weeks ago. I guess I need to remind myself to be patient.
I did do quite a bit of travelling the last few weeks. At one point I was on a very rocky beach and I wore some water shoes so I could swim. It was definitely challenging but my leg handled it well. I was sore the next day but not too bad. On a different day where I drove for 6 hours, my foot did swell but within reason. I did spend all day Saturday walking around the city. My leg swelled up a bit but nothing too severe.
It's been a while since I've posted pics. Here you can see how my leg looks after 5 months. This is as good as it gets. I usually have a fair amount of swelling around my achilles. The colors of my scars are constantly changing as well. One thing I do want to mention is that when I was uploading the below pics, I did look at my old pics from before. It was a definitely a good reminder of the progress I've made!
First pic is the lateral side of my foot. You can see the scar from the modified brostrom repair on top and the scar from where he went in to do the osteotomy on the bottom. The second pic shows the scar from where he put in the screws. The last pic shows the dent in the back of my calf muscle and the scar from the gastroc recession on the front.
