Referral - October 2021

Referral - October 2021 - Feb 2022

My GP* sent me for x-rays and referred me to the local MSK (musculoskeletal) partnership and finally in February 2022 I got an appointment for an examination.

A podiatry specialist took a look at the x-rays, asked me to walk back and forth, quizzed me on my conservative methods thus far (orthotics, anti-inflammatories etc.) and said surgery was now my best bet.

I have to say I was a bit shocked. At no point had I thought surgery would be an answer to this (in fact, I had assumed that even presenting at the GP wouldn't achieve anything - this thing would fix itself, right?)

The podiatrist briefly talked me through the surgical options - joint preserving, joint destructing, joint replacement, suggested it looked like joint destruction was best one for me, and put me down as a referral to see a specialist surgeon.

Gosh, so I was looking at getting my toe fused permanently. Yikes, I had really hoped it would be some physio and then all better. I had some thinking to do.

The range of movement in my right big toe compared with left before surgery.

*GP - in the UK the General Practitioner is the first gatekeeper in a rather cumbersone process of getting in front of a specialist (often also a surgeon) who can then move you along the treatment/rehabilitation pathway.

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...

cheilectomy-diary

Search This Blog