Cheilectomy Day 10

Foot continues to improve. Icing a couple of times today continues to improve overall sense of 'tightness' in the foot.

Have discontinued the ibuprofen now, see how that goes.

I'm pretty much fending for myself now - though I did need to employ help to take out the rubbish/garbage, and did have my meal prepared for me last night.

This lunchtime I really fancied eggs, so I made myself an omelette. Strange how little moments of returned independence really boost the serotonin levels (or maybe that was just the food..!)

My work is normally mostly a desk job but I don't have any work at the moment, which is a kind of relief, because although I'd welcome the distraction (not to mention the money - luckily the NHS paid for my procedure), I think being able to keep the foot elevated these last few days has been really beneficial. Working on the laptop in a lying down position is fine for the purposes of writing this blog, but I wouldn't be able to do it for 8 hours a day. And to sit at a desk would make it difficult to look after the swelling.

Topping up the tan - now that the temperature has dropped.

TOP TIP

Make sure you plan to be off work if at all possible for at least 10 days (this may be shorter if you're getting just the cheilectomy, or having minimally invasive procedure). Get a sick-note from your doc if you are in employment.

Comments

Cheilectomy 5 months

As each month milestone approaches, it feels like the toe is worst than the month before, but when I read back, I can see that's a fallacy. I guess, as it gets better, I just measure its progress day by day, so some days it feels worse and some days it feels better. And that's kinda the lesson learned in this post. For example, the last couple of weeks we've had a cold snap in the UK (temperatures down to -2 in the daytime), so I've had to swap the trainers to more suitable walking boots (something I couldn't wear last month). I've been in the walking boots every day now for a couple of weeks. It feels roomier than when I tried the boots last month, so that indicates the swelling (from Covid probably) has gone down. It's more comfortable to wear the boots now, so clearly that's progress. I've been doing around five miles in them, but do find that it's a matter of one day on, one day off. So if I do a five mile walk one day, I'm not up for a...

Cheilectomy Day 6

I woke up in the middle of the night in some discomfort. I think what must have happened was I inadvertently stretched the big toe where I had surgery in my sleep. It was pretty unpleasant, but it soon subsided and I went off to sleep again. This morning my spirits are pretty low, as I had planned a big day celebrating in friends from near and far and having a picnic then heading to a party this evening. As it is, I'm stuck home and all my friends are out celebrating without me. This is pretty difficult for me as the last couple of years have been incredibly isolating. My relationship broke down, we had endless lock-downs, I moved house a couple of times, and my dog has had cancer and surgery and is quite elderly now, my mum has been diagnosed with Alzheimers and I'm feeling like she's becoming less and less present. Some friends were coming from London and I was looking forward to being 'normal' again. Alas, it wasn't to be. But when I was offered the surgery, ...

July 2022 Cheilectomy Day 1 - the surgery

Day 1 - surgery Arrived for a midday appointment. It's important to make sure you have someone who can take you to (and more importantly) collect you from your appointment. You CANNOT (nor will you want to) drive after the surgery. And trust me, you ain't gonna be taking public transport either. I was advised that because I was having a local anaesthetic, I could eat and drink normally, to bring something to eat and drink and a pair of shorts to wear under the hospital gown and a dressing-gown to wear over the top. I changed and ate my lunch and drank my flask of tea and discussed the pain meds that I'll be taking for the first three days after surgery (my worse fear - way worse than the surgical procedure - and the point of all my questions). I do not get on with painkillers - namely, my stomach doesn't. I took ONE co-codamol tab for the knee when I did it in. OMG! The cramp in my stomach was abysmal. I took FOUR ibuprofens the following day, and by day three my inside...

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