11 weeks post op
https://reddit.com/link/1uo5f2n/video/o0lkfyqndfbh1/player
Long time lurker, first time poster.
I (37F) ruptured by achilles April 12 during a ballet class. I was lucky to schedule with an Ortho the next day and have surgery (speedbridge) April 17. Shout out to Dr. Bohl and his amazing team at Rush in Chicago.
These are my first steps in shoes outside of PT/my house while I was at the gym. I am still mostly in the boot and have developed a sort of Stockholm syndrome with it because it feels so much safer. But practicing at the gym has felt really good so far!
I wanted to thank this community for the immense support and stories that have really gotten me through this. Hearing that managing mental health was a huge part of recovery encouraged me to be dilligent about spending time with people I love and asking for help.
A few things that helped get me through the last few months in addition to lurking on reddit (some might say to an obsessive degree...):
- The person outside Trader Joes on Roosevelt when I was about a week post-op. They clocked me on my knee scooter and said "if you ruptured your achilles I want you to know it gets better". This has stuck with me and reminded me to lean into the kindness of strangers. It really does get better.
- My incredible PT - I hang on her everyword and tell her EVERYTHING about my progress. For a socially anxious girl this felt deeply vulnerable. But PT is really the foundation of recovery and I am so grateful my insurance is covering it without being dicks. I was straight forward and told her how important movement and exercise is to my mental health. She made it a priority to teach me exercises I could do at the gym which really helped my confidence in getting back into a regular exercise routine.
- TAKING TIME OFF WORK. I am a primary care doctor, it was so hard to convince myself to take time away because medical training has damaged my brain. I ended up going back post-op week 4, which was a little too early but the time away was so important and really allowed my to focus 100% on my recovery. I have remarkable coworkers who covered for me while I was away and I had to remind myself that I would absolutely do this for them - allow them to do this for you.
- Activating my support system. My mom was in town when it happened and she extended her time to stay with us. She helped cook, take me to appointments and we had time to dive into projects like recovering an ugly footstool I have.
I called friends to come hang out, they brought me snacks and stories and magazines and hugs. They picked me up and we went to lunch. Accessible restaurants are your friend! Get outside and get a sandwich.
My husband has been an absolute star through this on going journey. We made sure to go on dates and found ways to get outside even if I only lasted like 10 minutes on a walk (aka scoot) to the library.
- My shower chair - I love it. Took it out of the shower finally cause I graduated to feeling comfortable standing and washing my feet! But its still near the bathroom because I find sitting in the shower actually very nice and dare I say luxurious.
My goals are to be able to get back into dance and ballet class next spring. This has been a helpful driver for my recovery but I am being patient and finding ways to move my body in the meantime. If there are any dancers on here I would love to hear your story too!
Thanks again to this glorious community. Here's to learning to walk again!
ETA: fixed weird formatting -ok its still weird but alas Im leaving it alone now.