Learning how to walk

[adventurechick 0]

I'm now down to one crutch and I'm out of my cast and boot. I'm putting weight on my foot now and trying to learn how to walk... but it's extremely painful.

So question for those in the titanium club..

How long did it take you to walk normal once you were allowed to put weight on your leg/foot. Did your muscle come back fast? Has anyone tried one of those air casts? So maybe that was a few questions... but I'm all ears.

PMS #449 TPM #80 Muff Brother #3860
SCR #14705 Dirty Sanchez #233

[Squeak 17]

sorry i cant hel with advice,
but
YAY glad you are well on the mend, it wont be long now

You are not now, nor will you ever be, good enough to not die in this sport (Sparky)
My Life ROCKS!
How's yours doing?

[MikeForsythe 0]

I just sent you a PM I did a jump four weeks after a hip replacement. I was walking the whole orthopedic floor the day after surgery and was back to work 10 days after leaving the hospital.

Time and pressure will always show you who a person really is!

[adventurechick 0]

It's been 3 months since my accident and I'm now just putting weight on it.... crazy painful.

PMS #449 TPM #80 Muff Brother #3860
SCR #14705 Dirty Sanchez #233

[Zenister 0]

completely normally? about 3 months (after i was cleared to try so closer to 5 months from accident to 'normal') and I started off to soon tbh.

find a method to rebuild your muscle mass WITHOUT putting your full weight on your leg..
I used a hammock that let me use my 'good' leg to assist (sit sideways and do slow extensions)

Get a physical therapist to make sure you are using your crutch correctly. Most people do not. You want to train yourself to 'walk normally' so use the crutch as much as possible to help that.. learning to walk 'with a hitch' (ie not using the crutch enough to help support the proper motion) is a good way to keep that hitch forever...

also dont push yourself even after you feel 'semi-normal'. set a standard before you will jump again.. for me it was the ability to run 2 miles with minimal discomfort and no pain.. I figured if my leg could take that full body impact, I was fairly sure if i HAD to PLF on that side I could do it without causing further injury...

____________________________________
Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

[redwings 0]

Just take it easy. It is better to take a longer time to heal than to reinjure yourself.

I broke my left ankle June of 06 and the muscles are about 80%. Granted, the doc never ordered PT for me, I swam at least once a week.

That is great news you are on the mend. I had to wear that damn boot for about six weeks. In summer. I washed the foam lining every week.

Why don't you just go to the police station in a red clown suit and let everybody know what we're doing here?

I have a phobia for moobs. Thanks, youknowwhoyouare.

[adventurechick 0]

I'll be doing PT. I had a hard cast for a month and a boot for 2 months non weight bearing.. so this is the first time I'm actually putting weight on it... and I want to die. Not literally, but I'm hoping this pain goes away soon.

PMS #449 TPM #80 Muff Brother #3860
SCR #14705 Dirty Sanchez #233

[monkycndo 0]

After breaking the fib and metal added, I was on crutches for 2 months post surgery with no weight bearing. One month in, I got out of the cast and into a boot. I was able to wash the leg and do light physio(stretching only). Month 3 was walking in the boot and doing RoM weight bearing exercises. Month 4 was in shoes with restricted duty and harder physio. By month 5, the x-rays showed good calus build up plus had strength/flexability so was cleared to jump.

I did my exercises faithfully. My ortho and PT were both happy with results. The ankle still gets sore. My ortho said it might take a full year to fully heal as much as it will. Might not ever be completely pain free due to the damage done to the tissue around the ankle.

50 donations so far. Give it a try.

You know you want to spank it
Jump an Infinity

[Peej 0]

I was in a cast for six weeks and started physio the day that my cast came off. I was there three times a week for the first two weeks and then twice a week for the next couple. I broke it in September and was walking normally by December.

Advertisio Rodriguez / Sky

[virgin-burner 1]

cant really help you with advice but i'm happy you're getting better!!

“Some may never live, but the crazy never die.”
-Hunter S. Thompson
"No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try."
-Yoda

[johan420 0]

i broke broke both elbows and right ankle/leg(3places) last year(april)..i have removed some hardware in in my left elbow, waiting for removing the right one and a titanplate attached with 13 screws in the ankle(next year). I started to walk after 2months(painful).., trained alots with my bicycle..i lost 22pound that summer..

[kbordson 8]

YEAH Gail!!!!

Not for the pain of course, but for the progress. I hope that as time progresses, the pain ebbs. I'm just now walking without any knee (or ankle) pain again... it's been 6mos since my knee surgery (and 2mos since I rolled the atv). I'm hoping that your body will heal well.

[adventurechick 0]

Thanks Karen! I've been reading the books you gave me and about to watch one of your movies! You are such a guiding light!

PMS #449 TPM #80 Muff Brother #3860
SCR #14705 Dirty Sanchez #233

[kbordson 8]

Well... don't get too lazy sitting on your butt with your nose in a book that you forget to do your PT (ps which movie are you going to watch)

[redwings 0]

Even after a year, I sometimes still feel the pain. The pain is your body's way of marking your progress, so a little pain is good.

Once you start to walk again, you'll find yourself seeing a lot of things in a new light. Having two free hands, for example. Being able to shower upright is another. I was so happy I could use both my hands I just about smacked myself silly.

Why don't you just go to the police station in a red clown suit and let everybody know what we're doing here?

I have a phobia for moobs. Thanks, youknowwhoyouare.

[sunshine 2]

It took me close to a year to be able to walk normally with no pain. I was able to walk without crutches and even jump about 6 weeks after getting my cast off, but i could not hop or jump up and down on the ground. I guess what i'm getting at is everyone is a little different so don't get frustrated. I hope you heal mucho faster than i did, but if it seems like you're making little progress, don't give up. You will eventually walk normally.

___________________________________________
meow

I get a Mike hug! I get a Mike hug!

[calledisrael 0]

i don't have titanium... but after i broke my leg and was released to walk on it, it was still months before it felt normal. i remember walking down the stairs 2 months post-cast and wondering if i was ever going to be completely pain-free... you'll get there.

and i got an air cast on my orthopedist's recommendation, and it was great.

life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.
(helen keller)

[pinkfairy 0]

I gotta tell you, walking ROCKS!



After 8 weeks, I can really, really appreciate the fact that I can walk.

I did not become a member of the titanium club, but had just a spiral fracture of my right fib that looked so good, they didn't put any screws in. I was supposed to put weight on it after 4 weeks (!) with the cast still on, but that didn't work at all. It was really painful, but I think that was mostly because my swelling got worse when I put my foot down, and that pressed against the cast. I managed to put weight on it properly with the cast off after 6 weeks after having talked to the docs, and that went well, only with a little pain and swelling. Now it's 8 weeks ago, and I can walk without crouches in my house, but still use them when I go out. I have enough flexibility to walk normal paces, and I'm just waiting for my leg muscle to grow back, then I'll be able to walk normally. I think it will be 2 weeks or something like that, so that'll make a total of 10 weeks. The muscle really grows back fast, you can actually see it getting bigger day by day.

It sounds like your injury was a lot worse than mine. And I can't give you any advice, except contact the doctors if you are in really a lot of pain. And that swelling can cause pain and make everything seem worse than it really is.

How long it takes really depends on what kind of injury you have, how old you are and your health before the injury.

I wish you luck on your recovery, and hope you'll be able to walk soon!

Relax, you can die if you mess up, but it will probably not be by bullet.

I'm a BIG, TOUGH BIGWAY FORMATION SKYDIVER! What are you?

[opurt 0]

I've got 9 screws and a plate from a trimalleolar fracture.

It took me 11 weeks post incident to be cleared to put weight on the ankle. I could stand with no problem, but couldn't take a step without crutches. I was in a Bledsoe brace.

There was no change during the week I was cleared to loadbear. But after a week, in week 12, I could take a few steps without the crutches (still in the boot).

At 13 weeks, I could balance for a couple of seconds on my right foot only. While in the brace.

At the end of 13 weeks, I am able to drive. I got enough motion in my foot to work the gas and brake. I'd take my brace off and put my shoe on to work the pedals.

Day 100 - about 14 weeks - brought the first pain-free walking day (in the Bledsoe boot) without crutches.

Day 103 I'm cleared out of the Bledsoe boot and into a much smaller brace that fits in my shoe and over the ankle. Walking without the Bledsoe boot is again slow and painful. With the big brace, walking is no problem.

Incident plus 132 days - 4 months, 10 days / approx 19 weeks - Haven't used crutches or a brace for about a week. Walking with a slight limp in dress shoes. Can walk virtually normally in running shoes. Gait is not normal yet. I'd say ankle functionality is about 70%. So the answer to "When will I consistently be able to walk without crutches or braces" is "about 19 weeks".

Incident plus 208 days - 6 months, 24 days - approx 30 weeks - I'm discharged from physical therapy. Another milestone. The ankle is doing well. Still kinda stiff. Still can't run on it. But gradual improvement continues. It's gotten a lot of flexibility back. I'd say it's around 80-85%. I can go down stairs better. The achilles tendon is becoming more visible. The swelling around it is dropping. There isn't much swelling nowadays. If I drink alcohol, the ankle does swell up. I guess from the vasodilation effect, which prevents the foot from pumping out as effectively. Otherwise, minimal swelling at the end of the day.

Incident plus 225 days - 7 months 13 days - approx 32 weeks - I walk 3.5 miles, which takes about an hour and 4 minutes. That's an 18 minute mile. I do this on the track. The walk was uneventful. The next day however, my ankle is really complaining. It feels like it felt shortly after I got out of the small ankle brace. It takes 10 days to return to normal. I need to slightly overload it. Obviously, 3.5 miles is a bit much yet.

Incident plus 266 days - 8 months 23 days - 38 weeks - I start doing calf raises with both legs together, instead of doing each leg separately. The right calf has strengthened up enough to keep up with the left leg.

Today, about 51 weeks after the incident, I ran for the first time for an extended period of time - 3/4 of a mile. I stopped due to an abundance of caution. The ankle is only complaining slightly.

It's still not 100%, but it's pretty good. I'd say about 90-93%.

I've kept a log of my progress, which is why I can recite dates with such accuracy :)

Stay serious about the physical therapy. Stress the ankle, but let it rest too. Let pain be your guide. There's a difference between good pain and bad pain. A good physical therapist will put in you in pain which helps you heal. Mine would make me sweat with pain but ultimately it worked out nicely.

YMMV.

[monkycndo 0]

One PT aid that really helped me is the Dynadisk. Once you start going, ask your physio terrorist about it. It really works your balance and strengthens the muscles of the ankle. I was surprised just how much it improved my flexability as well. The firmness can be adjusted by adding air to provide more support at first. Then let some air out and it gives a better workout as the ankle gets stronger. I realized I had not stretched much lately. Pulled out the disk and hopped on. My ankle is sore, but it is that post workout "good" sore.

50 donations so far. Give it a try.

You know you want to spank it
Jump an Infinity

[lippy 776]

One thing that really helped me learning to walk again was focussing on heel-toe heel-toe. Especially after getting used to just stomping the cast down and hoping for the best.

The crutch coozy (patent pending) helped a lot. Cut a few little holes in a beer coozy and use a pull-up cord to tie it to your crutch. It helps a lot for carrying shit and not having to dig in pockets while balancing strangely.


And most importantly....If leaving the DZ after a night of drinking, don't hap-hazzardly throw your crutches in the back of your buddy's truck. It sucks arriving home and realizing that your crutches are somewhere on I-20 and you have to hop up 2 flights of stairs

I got nuthin

[d123 1]

I don't know exactly what you've broken but here's my story:

For me it was Tib&Fib. But I'm a restless fuck so I've begin to walk a lot sooner that one would normally do. I didn't had any cast and I've use the 2 crutches to take some weight out of my leg while trying to walk normally. Funny thing the more weight I've put on my leg the less my feet was swollen (ankle was the swollen the same all the time). Did that for 2 weeks and then I've begin to walk without crutches. Slowly. My big toe was oriented sideways BIG time and I had a bad walking pattern plus clicks in the ankle. Every step gave me a click-click. It was sad&funny at the same time. Begin PT and worked wonders with my walking pattern, my toe and improve the mobility a bit. Still had the click. At that time (2-3 months after operation) I've learnt that Less is more & ICE ICE ICE. That is the truth when you are dealing with ligaments and tendons. It's a weird cycle. Ligaments are damaged & mussels are atrophied. If you put weight on the leg it would inflamed the ligaments and they will stop healing. You need to build mussels to take the effort of the ligaments but in order to build them you have to use the leg and this can inflamed the ligaments. Some bracelets or wraps act as external muscle and can take the pain away when exercising. It's tricky to find the right amount of exercise that would build muscles without affecting the ligaments. That's why LESS is MORE. It means don't force yourself, if you feel pain stop. ICE will make everything better. Stay away from the pain killers they give you. They make you dizzy.
For the muscle thingy at PT there's a machine called TENS that will assist you in that task without affecting the ligaments. Think high freq electrick shocks).

After 4-5 month you will be ready to push it and to handle pain. My biggest boost was when I've started to do longboard. I'm pushing with my bad leg. First day, 15 min of riding put me out for 2 days. Yes click-click pain. But as I said I'm a restless fuck and I've continued to do that against my better knowledge (click-clikc) and succeeded to shape my ankle muscle to prime condition as a side effect of having fun. The click went away too.

For me the ankle operation motivate me to take up Paragliding, Kiting and long boarding. Some of them even in the recovery period while I was struggling to accept the click-click thingy
Best of luck with your recovery and trust me on this: You NEED to be positive. Just hanging out with the paragliding guys gave me a big boost in motivation. When I did my 1st flight (tandem) I was not able to run and my walking was not that good. Having friends is GOOD

Lock, Dock and Two Smoking Barrelrolls!