Foot surgery - lots of crutch-time

To reduce narcotic-related nausea, lay down and keep your head still. I have a touchy tummy and it helps to take Vicodin with food.

Pain is much easier to deal with if you stay on top of it. You will also heal faster and take fewer pain pills overall if you take care of your pain before it gets ahead of you. Don't wait until it becomes unbearable, because then you will have a harder time getting it back under control. If your meds aren't working for you or the side effects are unbearable, call your doctor. Different pain meds work better for different people and there are lots of other things out there to try.

On the nurturing/caregiver thing: Being thrust into the caregiver role is surprisingly difficult. Even though my work+life load was objectively manageable, I remember feeling constantly overwhelmed. It was a marriage changer; we're stronger now, but it was definitely one of those trial-by-fire things. We flew in my mother-in-law for a week at one point so I could get some rest and it was a huge help.

Glad you made it through the surgery okay, GLC, but what a drag about the pain. I am SO lucky that narcotic painkillers don't bother me at all. I was actually on them for close to a month after my pelvic surgery, though I tapered down every week until I switched completely to ibuprofen. I can't even imagine getting through the first month of recovery without painkillers. You are one tough cookie!

Hope the pain lessens soon.

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Originally Posted by soprano

To reduce narcotic-related nausea, lay down and keep your head still. I have a touchy tummy and it helps to take Vicodin with food.

Pain is much easier to deal with if you stay on top of it. You will also heal faster and take fewer pain pills overall if you take care of your pain before it gets ahead of you. Don't wait until it becomes unbearable, because then you will have a harder time getting it back under control. If your meds aren't working for you or the side effects are unbearable, call your doctor. Different pain meds work better for different people and there are lots of other things out there to try.

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Absolutely. There are some meds I can take and some I cannot. Also stay on top of the anti-nausea drugs. I used to take those for migraines.

Right now is the worst it's going to be. Tomorrow it will be better. Soon this will be a memory.

I'm glad it went well.

As for positioning, you can get your foot above your heart in positions other than on your back, like lying on your side with your foot propped on the arm of the couch with a few pillows, and lying on your stomach with your knee bent. It is really uncomfortable to bee on your back all the time. :(

Glad you're doing well! I also can't take any pain meds without getting really sick. I'm ok with percocet in very low, extended-release doses but that's about it. I find pain much easier to deal with mentally and emotionally than nausea! In away, I think the predictability helps. When you're sick to your stomach, it's so difficult to tell what's going to send you over the edge.

Hope the boring, painful, stuck-on-your-back phase passes quickly!

(((((GLC)))))

+1 on asking for a different pain med. People can have very different reactions to meds that are closely related chemically.

But also, I've read that the pain-relieving qualities of opioids are overrated just because of their ability to also improve people's mood and make them better able to deal with pain. Honestly, after my wreck last year, Aleve helped me more than the Vicodin 7.5 they prescribed. I don't know if you're allowed any NSAIDS, but don't dismiss them just because they're OTC.

Hang in there.

I spoke to the hospital on the follow up call and asked about taking other pain meds (OTC) and she approved tylenol only...but to keep track of how much I was taking. She said that I'd have to speak to my doc before taking anything else.

Then, when my doc called, I asked him. He said Tylenol was fine, but he also approved Ibuprofen. I've been alternating between the two every 5-6 hours now and it helps.

I have a pretty high pain threshold, so just taking the edge off it with these two OTC drugs helps enough. And it's a little better every day, too.

Today I need to get my rear end downtown so that I can pass my Shamrock run registration to a friend. This should be an interesting adventure! After two days of lying here, it'll feel good to get out, I suppose.

After my knee surgery last summer, I turned in most of an unused Rx for Oxycodon at my local police department for disposal, street value of $2500 according to the Sargent who met me at the door. Oxy make me sicker than any puppy should be. Remember asking Friendly Sargent how anyone gets hooked on it - all he said was that people do, dispite it making them ill.

I wound up switching between tylenol and ibuprofen too, and using an icebag after fun time in the "knee machine".

Hope you get to feeling better, an are more mobile soon GLC! ;)

You poor thing, so pleased the op has gone well and you appear to be coping extremely well.

Hope you don't mind me going off Topic briefly but after reading this thread, it just shows what a gutsy crowd of people we are, perhaps it's because we ride, or because we are females?

My friend has been in a similar situation since 28th Dec and is doing well and she has been using her exercise bike, somehow managing not putting any weight on her bad foot. Reckon she has got massive muscles in her left leg though!!!

Carry on repairing well. ;)

My bil is an orthopedic surgeon, he now suggests taking tylenol and ibuprofen together. Depending on my pain, I take 200 mg of each. Sometimes I take 800 mg at a time ( I am one who can't tolerate narcotics either) It does seem to last longer than taking just one or the other.

Not much more I can add than what everyone else has said. I also do not handle meds. To help with the nausea, I eat as much fresh ginger as I can. Dice up ginger in to really small pieces and add it to oil and vinegar salad dressing. or eat it plain, in thin slices. Or make a fresh brewed tea with ginger and touch of honey to cut the hot taste.

There is also a light Chinese chicken dish with ginger. It's very light and refreshing.

Ginger is one of the herbal remedy for nausea. It does help a lot!! Has to be fresh ginger though.

Eat well, heal faster.

Glad you're doing well. The ibuprofen helps with swelling, so keep taking it along with the Tylenol. Be careful though, it may upset your stomach after a few days.

Good luck healing. You'll be back on your bike and out in the barn in no time.

More updates.

Today I got my hard cast. They removed the post-surgery splint and I was stunned at how much my calf had atrophied in just three weeks. It was amazing (and gross). The incisions are healing well but are not closed enough to allow me to have a waterproof cast so that I can swim. Oh well. I'd rather heal completely than to risk it anyway.

I did get an application for a handicap hangtag signed, so I'll be trying to get on of those tomorrow at the DMV.

I have been getting around inside the house on a knee scooter. I have been surviving the world outside our house on crutches. BUT, this afternoon, my hands-free crutch was delivered so I'm super excited to try it. If I can operate it, it'll make a HUGE difference in doing things around the house.

Oh, and on Sunday, I was able to do a full lower body workout on DVD that I've had for years. It's a weight based workout done totally on the floor and I was able to do the whole thing with the exception of the warm-up. I'm so excited about it and I plan to do it a lot (probably alternating with upper body workouts). My cardio is going to suck when this is all over, but at least I can maintain most of my muscle!

And just for good measure, here is my x-ray:
http://i631.photobucket.com/albums/u.../xraysmall.jpg

Thanks for the update! I was wondering how you were doing. It sounds like things are going well so far.

Happy healing!!