Helpful Gear/Must Have Devices: We CAN DO this!
Lisfranc on 3/25/26 surgery on 4/23/26. I'm still in my boot/NWB phase, but I have found a few things extremely helpful and I wish I had known sooner. Of note, I acknowledge and am very grateful for the privilege of being able to purchase whatever I needed, but I did get several items second hand/facebook marketplace or borrowed. Here is everything I recommend and I'll update as my recovery progresses (FYI I'm required to share these are affiliate links I make money from purchases but I don't know how else to send the exact item I liked). Sorry this is so long, but I hope it helps others. This is a LONG LONG road.
Ice Packs:
- I used this one the most: ice packs. The large size flops nicely over your midfoot and arch to chill exactly the areas you want. If you load it up, it will stay cold (not icy but cool) overnight for early morning pain/discomfort before you are ready to re-set. i mostly used this pre-surgery and then again after my splint was removed 2 wks post-op
- These one was particularly good right after surgery with the bulky splint in place. it would strap behind my knee: gel pack for behind the knee
- these were CLUTCH post-op with the splint in place when you could only ice behind your knee and at your toes. i tucked these into the top of my splint on my toes and they were amazing!! toe ice packs
- I ordered this during my pre-op stage (I had a long wait for surgery, but didn't care for it as it concentrated the cold on the bottom of my foot instead of the top where it hurt): ankle ice pack (didn't like)
- I was lucky enough that a friend loaned me this. It would be extremely helpful for those recovering independently. I found my support people were able to fill ice packs so I didn't use it that much, but would definitely recommend if going it alone: cold therapy machine
Pillows: There is no such thing as too many.
- This single leg pillow for the couch (see below this height wasn't enough for me): single leg elevation pillow
- This double leg pillow for bed (helped keep the hip pain at bay from one up/one down position all night, but see below- this height wasn't enough for me): both leg elevation pillow
- This was amazing. I purchase a huge roll and cut up several to match the same size as the 'prefab' pillow above. I ordered king sized pillow cases so they could be washed and stacked them up under the above pillows. This was alot more stable than stacking bed pillows and I found I really needed alot more height than what comes in the prefab ones above: Foam roll to cut for extra height when elevating. I also used these between my needs to sleep on my side with the wedge pillows below. if it's helpful, cut them to 18"x30" (slightly larger than the elevation pillows for stability) and these pillowcases will fit: king size pillow cases
- This is weird but it was AMAZING. We had these dog steps already because our senior dog is aging. I would put them on the bed upside down and almost have my legs straight in the air. It went a little under my low back and relieved alot of pain there. I found I craved this position after being up for bathing/etc especially in the immediately post-op weeks. this was a LIFESAVER and huge PAIN RELIEF from the elevation: dog steps for extreme elvation after being up in the immediate post op stage
- I had a lot of low back pain from elevating and trouble sleeping for obvious reasons. I found these wedges to be useful in two ways (I would support my low back to get my pelvis up a little and relieve that pain and then would use them to roll back against when trying to sleep on my side with my leg elevated): wedge pillows for side sleeping & back pain. probably going to keep these long term!
- Ankle pillow: used this a TON in the pre-op, immediate post-op and later stages. Sometimes I just wanted my ankle higher than everything else. One nice thing about this for people caring for themselves is that you can velcro in the right spot while your knee is bent and then extend your leg: ankle pillow
Mobility Aids: Long story short, I recommend them ALL.
- Crutches: this was all I could tolerate pre-op. my foot was shattered and scooters were too 'bumpy' and hurt. Any will do. I had a pair from walgreens we bought emergently the day it happened and these on the other floor of the house later when we realized this was going to be a long road: crutches
2: Scooters: I was lucky enough to borrow two of these (we kept one in the car and one in the house). I liked this brand the best (it felt 'stable' compared to the others): knee scooter. FYI the smaller/cheaper scooters are helpful if you live in a small space but I sometimes felt like the blance wasn't good and I might fall off or over going around door frames.
iwalk: just started using this. LIFESAVER for anyone that has to be up/doing chores/caring for others. it takes some getting used to but I felt most able-bodied with this. be careful when learning it and wear a good tall shoe on the other foot so you don't get hip pain: iwalk "prosthetic leg" or crutch replacement. you can put this on the other shoe to help with height (I think this will be good when you start weight bearing too): shoe height adjuster
Walker. read it will be wildly helpful when I start partial weight bearing: walker for partial weight bearing. you can add this if you want to be able to 'take a break' knee sling for walker. FYI get a bag (walker bag) for your walker for phone/water bottle etc. don't try to carry things. it's just not safe
Miscellaneous MUST HAVES:
Tote bag: tote bag. got this little washable thing right when it happened. Carry book, phone, water bottle (get one with a lid) and keys/wallet to/from the car and around the house. MUST HAVE.
MY FAVORITE THING I PURCHASED: We plugged our bedroom lamps into these and it empowered me to be able to read/etc and turn them off/on when I wanted. Probably the best thing I got: remote for lamps
Household Aids:
Get a shower chair. Anything will do. I used this one pre-op and again after I was cleared to get wet: shower chair. i preferred this with a washcloth in the seat so it wasn't slippery to the ones with a cushion(seems like that would feel dirty after a while)
I didn't wind up needing it (relatively healthy and active prior to injury, but I think it would have been VERY helpful if I didn't have good balance/strength): toilet riser. my advice: get one with handles
Hope this helps others. Cheering for you!