Post-Op Lapidus bunionectomy - ONE WEEK

If you haven't read my previous blog, I had a surgical procedure called LAPIDUS BUNIONECTOMY on my RIGHT foot on June 1, 2016. You can find information on my pre-op appointment and what happened during the day of the surgery from my last blog. 
In this blog I will be talking about my first post op visit with my podiatrist and the recovery process during the first week after surgery. Enjoy! 

ONE WEEK POST-OP 

So for the past one week since surgery I have been using crutches to get around. I stayed home most of the week and only went out to the stores when I needed something. I literally sat around most of the time because it was quite difficult to get around hopping with one foot. I live in a tri-level condo at the moment so as you can imagine, going up and down the stairs can be a bit challenging but is manageable. Nothing has changed much during this first week since my splint was still on. I felt a lot of pressure on my foot and had to constantly keep it elevated. I was taking Norco (pain med) for the first few days and was freaking CONSTIPATED!! I did not have much appetite to consume food because I wasn't able to use the restroom for the first week. I also had a tough time with sleeping due to the constant throbbing pain from the surgical site of the foot. Don't worry, the pain did eventually subside and was definitely not the biggest issue. ;)

Here's more...

I wasn't able to shower standing up so I got a prescription for a shower chair. I know it sounds like I'm an 80 year old woman but trust me, the shower chair was freaking awesome! You would need to keep the foot DRY so I recommend buying a seal-tight cast protector to prevent the foot from getting wet, which can lead to an infection if you don't keep it dry. Just saying... 

As mentioned in my last blog, I had to inject blood thinner in my abdomen everyday for FOURTEEN days. Below are some photos of the syringe.

The HARDEST part about this surgery is going from being active to being INACTIVE. You have to be mentally ready before going into surgery knowing that you will not be able to put any weight on the foot. What you need the most out of this whole healing process is a good SUPPORT SYSTEM. You will need someone to help you get around, especially the first couple of days after surgery because you will be in quite some pain and discomfort. You will need help with almost everything including cooking, grabbing stuff, going to places, even getting in and out of the shower...well it all depends on the situation since everyone is different. I was very fortunate to have the support that I needed throughout this whole experience. 

P.S. Since there will be a lot of sitting around.....a little weight gain is OK! ;)

Of course you won't be able to drive if you're having surgery on the right foot. Trust me, I've tried to drive with my left foot and the farthest I've gone was in and out of my garage and to the mailbox.. haha

At my one week post op appointment with my podiatrist, he removed the splint and re-wrapped my foot with new gauze and bandages.  I had new X-rays taken on my foot prior to the appointment. My podiatrist went over the x-rays and showed me the differences comparing to my x-rays before surgery. Part of my cartilage was removed and screws were placed to fuse the TMT joint. He said to continue to keep the foot dry and elevated for another week. Everything went WELL!

 

This photo was taken right after the splint was taken out 

New gauze and bandages were placed

My podiatrist also put me on this protected footwear until my next appointment. This is definitely much LIGHTER (in weight) than the splint!

Well that's a wrap! I hope you enjoyed reading my blog and learned something from it. Hopefully this blog will help you prepare for your surgery or at least give you ideas on what to expect if you were to go through the same type of procedure. I will be writing about my two week post op on my next blog! 

"What you do TODAY can improve all your 

TOMORROWS"