Is it normal for elevation to hurt this much?
I’m 11 days post-op (yippee!) and days 1–3 were pretty brutal pain-wise. The pain has gradually gotten better, but I’m still having a REALLY hard time keeping my foot elevated above heart level, which is somehow making my pain much worse and borderline unbearable. I have a wedge pillow and a collection of other pillows I’ve been adjusting to various heights to support my ankle/heel, and I’ve tried what feels like every possible position and use an ice pack under my knee, but it seems like the elevation itself is what triggers it. Even elevating at a height as low as a rolled towel for less than 10 minutes is enough to exacerbate the pain from the 3-4 range up to a 7-8.
On day 4, I tried to just push through it, but I ended up needing the strongest pain medication my surgeon prescribed just to tolerate having it elevated. The only positions that are comfortable are sitting upright on the couch with my leg strait and stretched out on the sectional, or standing in my iWalk (still NWB of course).
I’m trying my best to keep elevating above heart level as much as I can manage, but I have to take frequent breaks to lie flat or upright because the pain in my foot gets to be too much. My swelling actually isn't too bad, and I’ve seen other people here share about how it was their heel not being supported and causing blisters, but that’s not my issue. When I elevate, it feels like I have a tourniquet tied tightly around my ankle and makes my whole foot feel searing/throbbing/aching pain.
My biggest concern is whether I'm negatively affecting my healing by not being able to keep it elevated above heart level 80–90% of the time this early into recovery. If my swelling is well managed, and I have minimal pain + less pain med use while just lounging on my couch or laying flat in bed, will it cause any harm to just do what feels most comfortable so long as I’m NWB?
I have my first post-op appointment in 12 days and will definitely ask my surgeon, but hoping for some advice reassurance for my anxious brain until then 😅