Well, not so much a march as a shuffle ...
For anyone who's not up to date on my broken leg saga, I'm back in the UK briefly to have some follow-up surgery to try and find out why my stupid bloody leg hasn't fully repaired. I had the surgery nearly two weeks ago, and am now lounging on a sofa in Brighton working hard to fill the days while it heals. Yesterday was the first opportunity I've had to talk to my consultant and find out exactly what they did to me during my 'exploratory surgery', and it was mixed news.
an example of keyhole surgery -
looks pleasing like a laser gun!
On the positive side, I am now minus metal plate (no longer bionic woman, a mere mortal once again ...). Also, there was, as the doctor had suspected, lots of scar tissue getting in the way of the ankle joint, which they removed - I wish I could show you the pretty pictures taken by the cameras that they use for keyhole surgery, but they wouldn't give me them. It basically looks like lots of fluffy stuff floating around between the bones, like the insulation in your roof.
However, on the downside, it turns out that I have cartilage damage too, which is more serious. The consultant tried to sound chipper and say that it might heal on its own over time, and that I should do everything I can to promote strength and flexibility etc etc etc. However, he's not very good at the bright optimism, and did eventually admit that the likelihood is that this damage will deteriorate and develop into full-blown osteoarthritis in the next couple of years.
Great. Arthritis. Like old people.
I had to come home and look up what arthritis was, and thanks to the super-giga-mega-information highway, I now know more than I ever thought I would about how damage to the cartilage leads to bones knocking and rubbing against each other, and all sorts of possible nasty consequences. And reading the list of symptoms for osteoarthritis on the NHS website, it actually pretty much reads like what I've had for the last year anyway;
- pain, especially when doing load-bearing activities, such as walking
- short-lived stiffness in the morning, which improves in 30 minutes or less when you start to move
- difficulty moving your affected joints or doing certain activities
So, a possible lifetime of pain, stiffness and possible swelling awaits, but it turns out that's not the 'only' downside ...
1. The doc has banned me from wearing any footwear except trainers and orthopaedic-style shoes (thank the Lord Fitflops have developed a more stylish range these days ..). No girlie shoes, no sandals, basically nothing without a thick cushioned sole, and definitely no flip flops ... so now I am officially a woman in comfortable shoes. Hey ho!
2. I'm also banned from high impact sports - not just running, but skipping, jumping and most team sports that involve one of the above. So, no football, hockey, basketball, tennis, squash ... and OK, I didn't really do any of those things anyway, but I guess it also covers things like skydiving and canyoning ... boo ...
my dreams of branching out into parkour are shattered ...
3. And of course, down the line, it might be more metalwork for me if my bones get too worn and stop bending properly - a prosthesis! yippee!
But, as you know, I'm a half glass full kind of girl, and even though I am a bit fed up with it all, I always come back to the positives in the end ...
1. I still have a foot - which was a close call, since it seems that had I not had two trained medics up my mountain in the middle of nowhere, the foot would have stayed without any blood flow and all the horrible consequences of that ... I am one lucky lucky lucky cow
2. it could be so much worse - there's nothing like a visit to hospital to stop you feeling sorry for yourself, since whatever you have, there are going to be people there worse off than you ...
3. I prefer wearing comfortable shoes anyway, and now have a medical reason for doing so!
4. I now don't have to feel inadequate for being surrounded by over-achieving marathon runner types at work - the doc says no! I'll just have to lounge in the pool with a G&T and salute their achievements ... please come join me!
