Shortly after helping out in Houston last year, I noticed some pain in my left foot. It was just uncomfortable in the morning, but by the time I was finishing my afternoon class it really hurt quite a bit and I didn't want to put any weight on it at all. It was definitely getting worse, so late October/early November I finally betook myself to a podiatrist.
Diagnosis: Tendonitis. I had strained the tendon that goes down your leg and wraps around your ankle on its way to the middle of the foot. It's one of the tendons that lets you point your foot. Near as we can figure, I must have strained it one of those days hauling debris on the uneven, mushy mud.
He gave me a cortisone shot and told me to come back 3 weeks later. That made it hurt worse.
He put me in a walking boot that would restrict its movement. I took that as permission to walk like normal in it (9-10k steps or more) and discovered that the boot hurt my foot worse than the tendonitis did. Doc gave me permission to take it off and just walk around during my Christmas vacation in California.
On returning to Texas beginning of January, I was put in a non-weight-bearing cast. JT was greatly disappointed I didn't opt for the purple (Tarleton) cast and regularly prayed for the next month that my next cast would be purple.
I was told to buy this knee-scooter that would let me get around. In the first couple days I was very thankful that I am still young and strong when this happened - being able to balance on one foot while spinning the scooter around made navigating the tighter spaces of our home SOOOOOOO much easier!
I seem to have done a good job making the best of it. Give me a straight, smooth road that isn't carpeted and I can get going pretty fast. That was useful for getting to the men's room in a hurry, which led my colleagues to routinely say I was having too much fun with that thing. My favorite moment was a faculty meeting held at the theater: There were no seats on my side of the theater, so I rode my scooter across the stage, tipping my hat and giving little leg kicks with my good leg as I crossed. Great performance no one was watching for!
Teaching was a major challenge and pain. I teach standing up, pacing around the room, visiting my students to answer questions and look over their work to help keep them on the right path. I couldn't move around at all! When I tried the first week or two I had a pair of accidents. I fell down a stair (only one step thankfully) and one time slipped and slammed into my handlebars so badly I cracked a rib. I fell off the scooter many times trying to mount it, injuring knees and back and elbows. I finally gave up trying to be helpful and just cowered in a chair behind my little desk like I never wanted to be as a teacher. I was SO ready to be done with the cursed thing! I had to kneel outside the tub to give myself a spongebath or wash my hair under the tap. My foot swelled up regularly, particularly in the last couple weeks, and made it hard to sleep or concentrate on much of anything else. And putting so much of my weight on my right leg - you know, the one that keeps popping out of its socket that gives me so much back pain it made the Nigerian doctors think I needed back surgery for my herniated disc? that right leg? - gave me back pain all over again. I was just lucky I don't have to teach on Tuesday other than seminary so I could spend that day flat in bed recovering.
After a month, I got the cast off and was told to continue using the scooter while wearing my boot for another few weeks because the tendon was STILL tender. I was just relieved I could finally bathe myself properly and take the thing off to sleep!
Last week the doc told me to start walking around in the boot. I had the oddest feeling: fear. What if I can't walk? What if it hurts? No physical therapy? No one to help me move around? But he was already out of the room to his next patient, so I took a breath and a first step. It was awkward and shaky, but I made it. I was tremendously thankful for the ice storm we had last week that let me stay in bed and get accustomed to hobbling around the house and build up a little strength again. (While also dealing with allergies and maybe a sinus infection - still have to see the doc about that one.)
When the kids saw me later that day, JT was the first to notice I wasn't on my scooter. He couldn't even speak he was so excited, just ran around in circles. Then he realized the tragic problem: he has just discovered Bob the Builder. We had just that day agreed that he is Bob and I'm Scoop, and Bob rides Scoop. If I'm not on the scooter anymore, he can't ride me. *big pouty face* When Princess saw me walking, she whooped and exploded with joyous shouts and songs of praise that Daddy was walking again. A few minutes later Superstar noticed that something looked different, but he couldn't quite... Then, idly spoken: "Oh, Dad, you're off your scooter." Yep, those are my kids!
Saturday as you know we visited the Alamo and I did 6000+ steps without much pain. Monday I walked around the room in my boot helping students with their worksheet, and BOY it felt good! It feels so GOOD to be able to move around the room while teaching again! I'm almost back to my normal hi-jinks again, even if in the boot. I even give myself permission to hobble to the bathroom without the boot on and I'm starting to feel just a little more stable. Hopefully/maybe I'll get permission to walk without a boot next week and be DONE with this whole thing. Unless I somehow reinjure it and need surgery, which is the next step if this hasn't fully resolved the issue.
Two other stories maybe ought to be told. I spent a good part of November sick, keeping my foot up and that really helped. By the time Christmas was ending, I wasn't feeling much pain at all and was just wondering if I really needed a cast or if we could call the whole thing off. I asked Dad for a priesthood blessing. It didn't go the way either of us expected. I was told in it that I had a lot more work to do and this was part of letting my foot heal properly. It needed to be done. I felt a little like Pixar's Inside Out, when Anger steps away from the controls because "Oh, airplane. We've got an airplane, everybody." Okay, I'll eat my broccoli.
The other story is that if you happen to need a knee scooter, go buy one. We rented first from Tanglewood and 1) their customer service really needs help: no instructions, they messed up the billing, few other problems. But 2) If you rent it's $35-$40 per week no matter where you go and they tell you that buying it outright costs $270. It doesn't. It costs $160 online. So just buy the thing and resell it later. It was a better quality product (what a difference!) and it'll end up being much cheaper for us. Haven't tried reselling ours yet, but I don't want to assume I'm out of the woods completely until I'm back to walking normally and can stand teaching 5-6 hours a day without pain.
Diagnosis: Tendonitis. I had strained the tendon that goes down your leg and wraps around your ankle on its way to the middle of the foot. It's one of the tendons that lets you point your foot. Near as we can figure, I must have strained it one of those days hauling debris on the uneven, mushy mud.
He gave me a cortisone shot and told me to come back 3 weeks later. That made it hurt worse.
He put me in a walking boot that would restrict its movement. I took that as permission to walk like normal in it (9-10k steps or more) and discovered that the boot hurt my foot worse than the tendonitis did. Doc gave me permission to take it off and just walk around during my Christmas vacation in California.
I was told to buy this knee-scooter that would let me get around. In the first couple days I was very thankful that I am still young and strong when this happened - being able to balance on one foot while spinning the scooter around made navigating the tighter spaces of our home SOOOOOOO much easier!
I seem to have done a good job making the best of it. Give me a straight, smooth road that isn't carpeted and I can get going pretty fast. That was useful for getting to the men's room in a hurry, which led my colleagues to routinely say I was having too much fun with that thing. My favorite moment was a faculty meeting held at the theater: There were no seats on my side of the theater, so I rode my scooter across the stage, tipping my hat and giving little leg kicks with my good leg as I crossed. Great performance no one was watching for!
Teaching was a major challenge and pain. I teach standing up, pacing around the room, visiting my students to answer questions and look over their work to help keep them on the right path. I couldn't move around at all! When I tried the first week or two I had a pair of accidents. I fell down a stair (only one step thankfully) and one time slipped and slammed into my handlebars so badly I cracked a rib. I fell off the scooter many times trying to mount it, injuring knees and back and elbows. I finally gave up trying to be helpful and just cowered in a chair behind my little desk like I never wanted to be as a teacher. I was SO ready to be done with the cursed thing! I had to kneel outside the tub to give myself a spongebath or wash my hair under the tap. My foot swelled up regularly, particularly in the last couple weeks, and made it hard to sleep or concentrate on much of anything else. And putting so much of my weight on my right leg - you know, the one that keeps popping out of its socket that gives me so much back pain it made the Nigerian doctors think I needed back surgery for my herniated disc? that right leg? - gave me back pain all over again. I was just lucky I don't have to teach on Tuesday other than seminary so I could spend that day flat in bed recovering.
After a month, I got the cast off and was told to continue using the scooter while wearing my boot for another few weeks because the tendon was STILL tender. I was just relieved I could finally bathe myself properly and take the thing off to sleep!
Last week the doc told me to start walking around in the boot. I had the oddest feeling: fear. What if I can't walk? What if it hurts? No physical therapy? No one to help me move around? But he was already out of the room to his next patient, so I took a breath and a first step. It was awkward and shaky, but I made it. I was tremendously thankful for the ice storm we had last week that let me stay in bed and get accustomed to hobbling around the house and build up a little strength again. (While also dealing with allergies and maybe a sinus infection - still have to see the doc about that one.)When the kids saw me later that day, JT was the first to notice I wasn't on my scooter. He couldn't even speak he was so excited, just ran around in circles. Then he realized the tragic problem: he has just discovered Bob the Builder. We had just that day agreed that he is Bob and I'm Scoop, and Bob rides Scoop. If I'm not on the scooter anymore, he can't ride me. *big pouty face* When Princess saw me walking, she whooped and exploded with joyous shouts and songs of praise that Daddy was walking again. A few minutes later Superstar noticed that something looked different, but he couldn't quite... Then, idly spoken: "Oh, Dad, you're off your scooter." Yep, those are my kids!
Saturday as you know we visited the Alamo and I did 6000+ steps without much pain. Monday I walked around the room in my boot helping students with their worksheet, and BOY it felt good! It feels so GOOD to be able to move around the room while teaching again! I'm almost back to my normal hi-jinks again, even if in the boot. I even give myself permission to hobble to the bathroom without the boot on and I'm starting to feel just a little more stable. Hopefully/maybe I'll get permission to walk without a boot next week and be DONE with this whole thing. Unless I somehow reinjure it and need surgery, which is the next step if this hasn't fully resolved the issue.
Two other stories maybe ought to be told. I spent a good part of November sick, keeping my foot up and that really helped. By the time Christmas was ending, I wasn't feeling much pain at all and was just wondering if I really needed a cast or if we could call the whole thing off. I asked Dad for a priesthood blessing. It didn't go the way either of us expected. I was told in it that I had a lot more work to do and this was part of letting my foot heal properly. It needed to be done. I felt a little like Pixar's Inside Out, when Anger steps away from the controls because "Oh, airplane. We've got an airplane, everybody." Okay, I'll eat my broccoli.
The other story is that if you happen to need a knee scooter, go buy one. We rented first from Tanglewood and 1) their customer service really needs help: no instructions, they messed up the billing, few other problems. But 2) If you rent it's $35-$40 per week no matter where you go and they tell you that buying it outright costs $270. It doesn't. It costs $160 online. So just buy the thing and resell it later. It was a better quality product (what a difference!) and it'll end up being much cheaper for us. Haven't tried reselling ours yet, but I don't want to assume I'm out of the woods completely until I'm back to walking normally and can stand teaching 5-6 hours a day without pain.
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