Broken ankle and living alone.

[enthusiasmcurbed]

Hello all, I well and truly broke my ankle. Both bones at the sides and shin at the back. I'm back at home, I live alone and I just can't cope hopping on one foot with a Zimmer frame. I keep falling. Any ideas how I can improve things other than 1; chopping foot off, 2; getting foot chopped off or 3; getting foot chopped off. Grrr

I would end up crawling & towing the zimmer most the time, I suspect.
Wouldn't a cast/boot be helpful?

I'd go spare from being on my own. Do you have any visitors?

I play a contact sport and a few friends have been in your situation! They often food in Tupperware boxes, hot drinks in a thermos flask, cold drinks in a sports water bottle, shove it all in backpack and carry it about the house that way. Also have cutlery, kitchen roll, extra snacks, a book and the tv remote in it too.

Hope you feel better soon!

Sorry I've realised on reading other replies you are asking for help getting around. I've not got any advice for that other than what's already been posted, sorry again!

I'm not sure if you would be able to use one of these due to your shin injury so you may want to take some advice, but if you can I highly recommend them. I hired one for six weeks when I destroyed my ankle and it was an absolute game changer. I am now more than a little evangelical about them!

Ouch Op. That's hard.

I've been there (in a house with lots of stairs )
You need plan. Work out your routes to places in the house. The loo, the kitchen, the sofa etc. Work out where you can pause on a journey and if possible move chairs / furniture so you have something to hold onto mid way.
Have a chair in the kitchen so you can sit as you 'cook' Move things so that everything for a cup of tea is beside the kettle. A tray can be slid along the floor with a drink and food on it. So one journey to the kitchen might result in a cup of tea, breakfast cereal / toast and a flask of coffee and biscuits / water all on the tray to be pushed along the floor to the sofa / chair.

Have they not offered you crutches ? As that helps you learn with the hopping. I managed the stairs on my bum up and down until my good leg became strong enough to hop.

Hope that helps a little?
.

I had one of these after spinal surgery- it was invaluable for anything I dropped or needed to pick up

I broke my ankle a couple of years ago and had ORIF surgery, it was shit even with my mum and DH around to help. Sorry op
Can you hire a wheelchair from the British Red Cross? That's what I did and it really helped me get around. Also agree with a PP about asking for crutches.

Get crutches and a high trolley on wheels. Have a small messenger type bag you can wear across your body to carry stuff. Use trolley to push cups of tea and food or washing or anything around.

I would set myself up downstairs so long as there is a loo and possibly a shower.

Stool in shower and special extra thick covering for leg with elasticated ends. Chair or stool outside shower yo sit and get ready on

Order loads of meals for one for microwaving and use the mw as much as possible. Put a stool in the kitchen to rest on

Stop hopping, learn to use crutches properly, don;t swing about or over reach and unbalance yourself.

Go up and downstairs on your bum - its alot safer if you are on your own. Carry your mobile phone with you in the house in case of injury

Get a grabber. You can order one from Ebayfor about £5.

I’ve just come off a zimmer frame onto crutches following a similar injury, most of the time I gave up on the frame a resorted to using a wheeled office chair. Meant I was more mobile, could carry things and didn’t fall over!

You have my full sympathy, frames are the most frustrating thing ever, and knocker you arms!

How recently did you have your break? Or is it brake? My head is pickled! Lol. But anyway, if recent, give it time. You will get stronger on your other foot and crutches.

I actually did a lot of crawling at first and I didn’t do any stairs. I had ORIF surgery and it was very bad. Ten days after my surgery my DH has to go back to work and I was left with an 8 month old, a just turned two year old and a five year old. It was hard going. I used a lot of the tips above, cross body bag to put things in and even would hang a carrier bag on one crutch and put my food in it with cutlery.

I actually would have loved one of those trolley things someone linked to above, but funds didn’t allow for me to hire one.

Another vote for getting a cross body bag to carry stuff around the house. You can rig one up from scarves and carrier bag if you’ve not got one. Maybe use a bag for life.

Get ready meals delivered, also think of picnic type snack food for easy lunches.

You can get heavy duty waterproof covers (if you’ve got a cast on) so you can take a shower, Amazon sell them.

Can you borrow a rolling office chair? My friend used one successfully when she broke hers. Need wooden floors though

I broke my ankle, of all things I was sat in my caravan with my legs curled under me, decided to get up to turn the heating up, my legs & feet had gone numb, my legs collapsed under me & there was a loud snap. Result a double spiral fracture of my fibia & I later found that I had fractured my other foot. I was none weight baring for 6 weeks, couldn't use crutches as I have dyspraxia & my balance & coordination are useless. I had a Zimmer frame, I learned ways round things, tie a carrier bag on the front of your Zimmer frame, get a travel breaker with a lid, when you make a sandwich, use paper plates & wrap in foil, put in your carrier bag, use a grabber, get a stool in your kitchen, if you must stand to do anything, put a dining chair where your bad leg is & rest your knee on the seat, it's more stable than balancing. Get plenty of take away menus, download loads of books & films, keep your leg up, if you must go out shopping, hire a mobility scooter.

I used an ikea office chair on wheels in the house so I could do most stuff like cooking, cleaning etc. Also went up and down stairs on my bum. I rented a wheelchair for £80 a week. I heard later Red Cross loan them too. I got taxis and used electric carts in the supermarket or did online shopping.

You poor thing!

You may be able to use this type of gadget...

www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B003VMAKVS/ref=asc_df_B003VMAKVS57181184/?hvlocphy=1006530&linkCode=df0&hvptwo&psc=1&hvnetw=g&hvadid=310705025920&creative=22110&hvpone&hvlocint&creativeASIN=B003VMAKVS&th=1&hvpos=1o4&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl&hvqmt&tag=mumsnetforum-21&hvtargid=pla-374643837720&hvrand=9111684555096158178

Thank you all very much for your suggestions. Honestly you've more help than occupational therapy! My ankle is very swollen so I've to keep it elevated most of the time for the next 2 weeks.
The scooter thing looks great and may just save my sanity and anymore bumps and bruises!

I am 4 months into recovery from breaking my tib and fib. 10 days in hospital then ORIF surgery. 6 weeks of cast and completely non weight bearing then cast off and boot and crutches. I used a wheelchair in the house for the 6 weeks non weight bearing and just stayed at home. Food was deliver d by Tesco and I couldn’t do the stairs so sleep down on the settee. Lucky I have a full down stairs bathroom and I managed to shower by wrapping my cast in cling film and then buying a black bag over the top and wrapping the top of the bag in cling film so it was water tight. I put an old chair in the shower to sit on and just about managed.
4 months on I still have a lot of swelling and pain when walking. In fact I don’t walk but leech from side to side like a drunken monkey. Can manage without my crutches in the house but still need to use one when outside. The boot is mainly off but I still use it on bad days when the swelling is bad. I can go upstairs one step at a time but it is hard work and find that my other hip and leg aches as I am putting more strain on it.
It is a very slow process of walking again and my physio tells me swelling and pain could go on for a year. Then you have the additional worry that the ankle could become arthritic as this sort of injury can make the joint more susceptible to it and as I already have some arthritis in my hands I don’t need any more.
Good luck with your recovery.

I've just done 6 weeks of this so I commiserate! Crutches are your friend as are stools to sit on and use as 'way stations' so you can hop/ reach / hop/ reach and therefore get th

I came on to suggest the knee scooter. This particular one is out f stock but someone has written a very detailed helpful guide to knee scooters in the review section.

Sorry I got cut off!! Yes waystations so you can get around. Try Red Cross for crutches if hospital hasn't helped. You'll get used to them really quickly and they will be helpful if you have to navigate steps. Hope you mend quickly.

I hired a wheelchair for 6 weeks which I used downstairs and outside, and had another (lent by my mum) which I used upstairs. I could have not survived without them as I could not get the hang of crutches! I went up and downstairs on my backside - and could do the hoovering sitting in a wheelchair towing Henry Hoover, then balancing on my knee to do the stairs etc. Had a stool in the shower - and a cast protector. Also a chair positioned at the front door that I could sit on, then swing round so I didn't need to try and hop up and down the step. Good luck!

Glad this has been useful OP.
It does get better - it just takes such a long time for the swelling to stop - over a year for me and that was just a clean break - nothing as bad as yours.

Good luck with it all.