Post op bunion removal

[samthebordercollie]

I'm due to have my right foot operated on in October: My bunion is huge, not painful itself, but my squashed toes are (I think hammer toe is the expression) and I've only been able to wear trainers for years:
My big worry is how long the recovery will be: I run every day at the moment, also walk, cycle and swim and I'm generally very active all day: The thought of sitting on a sofa with my feet up fills me with horror and I'm not sure how I'll cope, or my 2 dogs for that matter (DH isn't a great walker)
The surgeon said it would be 6 months minimum before I can run again so I'll lose all my current fitness:
I'm nearly 57 and know the longer I leave it the harder recovery will be: What experiences has everyone else (particularly runners) had?

Had my dressings off today. The scars are so neat! Longer than I expected but very, very tidy. My toe is super straight! I can’t believe it. The toe feels like it needs to crack, but the consultant isn’t concerned.

I’ve got a smaller dressing on for another 2 weeks and I’ve got to stay in the surgical shoe and on crutches for 4 weeks when I’ll have X-rays and a meeting with the consultant. I’m so happy though! Heading into the office for a few hours later this week and will be walking a bit further each day, I’m just very much taking each day as it comes.

@LilyGlobe it's great seeing your foot for the first time when the big bandage is removed! I have a light bandage I have to do every morning, but I'm finding it really quite painful by the end of the day as my foot has swollen (I'm rarely sitting with the foot elevated now as back working) and the circulation to my toes is drastically cut off by the little plaster toe I have to put around each one.
I just want the swelling to stop but apparently it can continue for months😭😱
Looking forward to no bandages at all in a fortnight.

I was surprised by how straight it was. I have a huge gap between that and my next toe now, no idea how I’ll keep flip flops on if it doesn’t move itself over a bit 😂
I’m experiencing quite a bit of pain and stiffness today. I’ve had to take painkillers and I’m back to resting. I think it’s just where it was obviously moved and touched by the consultant yesterday and adjusting to being without a big dressing. I struggled to sleep without the shoe on last night but now I can go out, I really don’t want to wear it in bed as well.
Aiming to increase my steps slightly each day. I’m slow on crutches and find them frustrating so I’m just keeping in mind that it’s only another month.

45 days post op and everything is going well, swelling is gradually going down and am wearing my pre op trainers: Walking 15000 steps a day, cycling 35km 3 times a week and swimming: Running is still a long way off but I'm enjoying doing weights and Pilates instead, in fact my body feels a lot better than it did when I was running, plus I've lost 3kg since the op so the fears of weight gain were unecessary:
How's everyone doing?

Day 34 here. All dressings off now, I’m still in some discomfort/pain most days - if I somehow flex and bend my foot in my sleep then I wake up in a lot of pain. It definitely feels like nerve pain though. Oh and my heel! My heel is taking the weight and really hurts!
I’m in the surgical shoe and on crutches for another 10 days, and then I’ll have the X-ray and post-op review. I’m back at work full time but it’s quite exhausting, crutches makes everything so much harder. I’m walking around 5000 steps a day.
I have good movement in the toe (I have to move it daily with my fingers) but it seems to have curved slightly again, but that could be the swelling.

I put on just under 1kg which isn’t surprising when you consider I spent 2 weeks laying down, eating chocolates 😂

I’ve had many days of regret, mainly over timing. I wish I’d waited until after Christmas. It’s done now though! I had planned to be back in the gym by now but I’ve decided to wait until after my post-op review.

You’re doing so well!

LilyGlobe. Mine curved a bit too (and still isn't dead straight) but the pain is gone, and that's the main thing.

Hi everyone. I was 6 weeks post op earlier this week, and had my cast removed. At last and thank goodness! I now have a sloped shoe and lots of exercises to do as the swelling is pretty bad. Now aiming to increase my steps and activities each day but I'm a loooong way from being anywhere near your steps, @samthebordercollie ! I'm not in pain as such, just feel I'm working all sorts of new muscles now in my foot, which is tiring. Overall, I'm overjoyed I'll be getting a new foot for Christmas!

@CryMeACucumber congratulations on getting your cast off and being mobile: The swelling can go down pretty quickly: Mine is noticeably better now, I've been doing a green clay cataplasm every night which I'm sure is helping a lot: So pleased you aren't in any pain, and you'll be amazed at the progress you make each week: I'm with you, a new foot for Christmas is wonderful, being able to get into proper shoes/boots instead of trainers would be the best present on Christmas Day!

Oh your feet look lovely post op@samthebordercollie
You must be so pleased

I tried to get a proper boot or trainer on today as it is so cold and my foot has been so cold. Couldn’t get either on. Cried.
I see the consultant on Tuesday so find out then just what the hell I do about footwear. Sadly I’m still in pain so not feeling like it’s been a successful operation.
I’m feeling sorry for myself tonight but I’ll shake it off, I’m sure.

I had to buy some 5E fitting footwear. Can you get bedsocks or something similar to wear? (Just to keep your foot warm)

If it's any consolation, I think I'm just a week or so ahead of you and my foot is still very swollen. I've just tried to put on a stretchy, fabric top shoe. No luck. And then a trainer completely opened up. Absolutely not a chance. I wasn't surprised - my surgeon said "''normal' shoes by 12 weeks", and by 'normal', he meant a trainer. But I just wanted to see how far away from that goal I am and if there was any chance to could be walking without unbalanced hips!

It does all sound completely to be expected @LilyGlobe but I hope you're feeling a bit better today and that the consultant puts your mind at ease tomorrow. Will look forward to your update! 🙂

Hope everyone else is doing well. X

It took about 6 months before my swelling totally subsided.

At what stage were you able to get your trainers over the foot, @sueelleker ?

What are you wearing on your foot instead? I refuse to wear the post-op shoe longer than I have to 😬 but I don’t know what type of shoes to order to see me through the rest of winter.
I’m so excited for tomorrow! Really hoping the X-rays show it’s all ok. I’m still getting a bit of pain and discomfort but I think a lot of that is the cold. A lot of it feels like nerve pain, which I was expecting.

@sueelleker I’ve been wearing a slipper sock and another two socks with it but it’s just so cold at work, my foot feels like it’s in an ice block all day!

Not sure if it helps but I couldn't get my old trainers on when I transitioned from the surgical shoe so bought HOKA Bondi Wide shoes men's sizing which fitted. I was back in my original trainers after a couple of weeks

My worry with wide fitting shoes is my other foot is quite narrow so will be flopping about in it?

I'm still in the surgical shoe - the raised, platform type one. So just hobbling around. I'm not back at work yet though - have got another 3 weeks, so I really hope the swelling goes down enough to wear a matching pair of something.

My other foot was fine because the shores are lace ups you just lace them very tightly!

Ah ok. I’m after boots to wear for my works do - I don’t really want to wear trainers with a nice dress 😬 I reckon I’ll be able to get Ugg style on, I just want them to be a bit sturdier than Uggs. I’ll have a chat with the consultant tomorrow and see what he says. I’m going back to the gym this weekend so definitely need to check my trainers will fit too 😂

@CryMeACucumber I absolutely hate the shoe. I’ve been back at work for a few weeks now and I can’t wait to wear something other than the shoe. I’m also looking forward to ditching the crutches.

My usual fitting is EE, and I bought a couple of pairs of 5E to tide me over. I think I wore them for about 3 months.

I saw the consultant today, X-rays look good. There has been slight movement but he’s confident it isn’t going to move much further. I still have pain but we both think it’s nerve pain over anything else, but this will be reassessed at the next appointment. He’s very happy with the range of movement in the toe so I can ditch the shoe and crutches now.
I managed to get my trainer on straight away but I’m struggling to walk as I’ve developed a limp. He thinks that within a week it’ll disappear but if not, I’ll be referred to physio straight away.

I’ve ordered a lot of winter boots in different styles so hopefully something will fit!
Next appointment is in 4 months. I’ll have more X-rays and if I still have pain, another MRI.

Good news about your x-rays, @LilyGlobe. Sounds like you’ve got some decent reassurance and a proper plan. I would push, though, for some physio sooner rather than later, to address your gait and help to build strength. The several occasions I’ve needed physio in my life have been immensely positive and helpful. I hope you find some nice boots for your work Christmas do!

@LilyGlobe I second @CryMeACucumber regarding seeing a physio if you can. A good one! The first I saw was awful he spent 5 minutes on the massage and that was it. So I changed and the massage he did (20 minutes) was very effective, really helped the swelling go down. I went home and walked 5km as fast as I did pre op.

Limp disappeared yesterday but I’m limping again this morning. My health insurance has already approved 5 sessions of physio. so I’ll see how it is on Monday.

I’ve managed to find some lovely sheepskin boots that look nice and fit well in my normal size. I can also wear my trainers and gym shoes, which is excellent because I’m back in the gym 😁 I’m taking it easy but managing more than I actually expected. I can’t do squats, lunges, deadlifts or use the treadmill and I have to be careful with free weights if I’m standing but I did manage to get straight back to 100kg leg press, which is only 50kg off where I was at pre-op!