My left foot

2012 a year of challenges for me.

Today I am faced with sad news. My left foot, on which I had tendon surgery on Aug 16, 2012, seems to have popped again so I may have to have repeat the surgery. I'm discouraged. It isn't about the pain of recovery, because there was none or at least very little. The problem is being ordered to bed for six+ weeks after the surgery.

On October 27, 2011 I climbed a ladder in the back yard to trim some branches overhanging our patio cover. This is a ladder I've used for years but on this day one leg must have been on uneven ground or a tree root. The small lowest portion of the cheap aluminum ladder bent. The ladder began to tip and there was nothing I could do. Nothing was within reach, I was free falling. My feet were about 5' off the ground at the time. The ladder went to my right along with the electric lopper in my hand, and I went left.

I know I landed hard on my left butt cheek but I must have also landed on or at least twisted my left foot. The effects of the fall on my butt cheek were quickly apparent. I was on Coumadin blood thinner at the time and a blood clot began to form in my left buttock. I felt light headed because not enough blood was getting to my brain. My son drove me to emergency where I spent a day in a lot of pain as my sciatic nerve slowly was chocked off by the blood clot. Four days later I exited the hospital, they had done nothing except observation. The only thing they did was give me vitamin K to counteract the Coumadin. Later a nerve conduction test (you don't want to have one of those) proved that 33" of my sciatic nerve was not conducting. Over the next year (so far) my sciatic nerve is slowly coming back to life, each little bit that springs to life comes with a sharp pain somewhere on my left foot. The second effect of that fall from the ladder took much longer to exhibit itself.

About 8 months after the ladder fall my son and I were jet skiing on Lake Shasta. We decided to jump off some rocks about 10' into the water. When I landed, even with my thick soled sandals on, I felt pain in my left foot. A few weeks later I stepped off a one foot high stage when a tendon in my left foot, with the most pain I'd ever felt in my life, parted.  Hence the first surgery.

I spent six weeks in a cast with orders not to put weight on my left foot and to keep the foot elevated. This was very restricting. Six weeks later the doctor removed the cast but I had to wear a restrictive boot, and still keep it elevated. Then I started physical therapy. Yesterday while in physical therapy I think the tendon parted again. The physical therapist noticed a bubble behind my left ankle. Then this morning I felt it and thought it must be the tendon.

I went to Dr Song, the podiatrist, who took an x-ray, checked it, then arranged an MRI for next week. We'll know more then. I'm just pretty bummed about having to go through all of that again.