Cheilectomy Week 7

Progress, progress, progress! Vacation week and I loaded the bike on the car ready for a week of driving, cycling, camping, kayaking and hopefully, walking.

Well, let's just say, I'm glad I packed the bike!

The good news is, I was pretty much able to enjoy my vacations (hols for the UK audience) without hinderance. The only bit I didn't manage was a walking trip. I can walk around all day pretty much without issue, but to actually go for a walk is - not ready for that yet.

It's been hot again, and I've been doing the exercises and icing a fair amount. I used the bike to do shops and get around. Kayaking was fine - before the op, I'd get burning pain from the spurs if I used my toes to anchor myself in the kayak, but there was also the pain of turning the toes downwards to accommodate the feet - remember, I have knee problems the same side as the foot, which prevents me being able to comfortably turn the leg outwards to allow the toes to sit sideways. But now with no pain from the spurs - which were removed in the cheilectomy, I was able to kayak to my heart's content (well until I burst the blisters on my hands from the paddling!).

I did manage to make the walk with the dog, probably around a couple of kilometers from where I was staying to the river and back. That's further than I've done before, so happy that this is notable progress.

I still feel like there's a big wedge of something plantar side of the toe when I'm walking, and I did some research into this (I also get a lot of pain when bending the toe downwards - plantar flexion - which I think is related to the osteotomy). There's some further information in the comments section of this post that is useful for comparisons. It's worth mentioning too that I have similar experience of the sensations/pain that others report here regarding the nights and sleeping.

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Cheilectomy 5 months

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