Well, after injuring my ankle jumping this past spring, I had it confirmed. The ligament/flap that holds my peroneal tendon in place is blown. So, my choices are a) live with a tendon that jumps out of the groove when I re-stabilize my foot in the stirrup to keep the ankle from rolling or b) surgery to fix the tendon.
Given that I jump and do eventing, that means surgery is my only option. grumble
Well, yes, sounds like in your case surgery would be what could stabilize your ankle?
I also would grumble, loudly!
Update: Just had MRI results reviewed. Not only is the retinaculum torn (flap that holds in the peroneal tendon) but my ATFL was declared MIA. Sure explains why taping/wrapping/ankle braces aren’t stabilizing the foot.
Surgery now = 6 weeks in a cast, 3 months non driving.
Sorry, but maybe getting it fixed will in the long run bring best results?
Best luck with your surgery.
Oh I’m going for the surgery fix, no mistake. Its just a daunting length of time when my husband and I own a farm.
You will get through it. I am week 5 in my cast after cavovarus foot reconstruction on my left foot. However, I am driving as it is my left foot. My peroneal tendons were getting sawed on, on the side of my foot due to my foot confirmation. Dr. fixed the tendons and realigned my foot. I have the same timeline you do. 7 more days until cast removal:encouragement:.
I already had both tendons repaired in the other foot as pretty dramatically tore both peroneal tendons, again on the side of the foot (not the usual site of tears:no:). I tried to live with that condition for years as I had problems getting anyone to order an MRI (another story). Anyway, I do not recommend living with it. Get it fixed. By the time I got the right foot fixed, I needed a hip replacement on that side probably due to my funky gait with the torn tendons.
it is a daunting amount of time but worth the investment for future soundness. Get some good cast covers to keep barn yuck out. Get a knee scooter or I-Walk and you can still help with chores. calvincrowe is a foot surgery and chore pro. I board so I don’t have to do farm chores.
Jingles for 3 months flying by.
Susan
Thanks for the shoutout, Kyrabee! As someone who has spent roughly 6 months non-weight bearing in the last 3 years, and owns a small farm, and teaches school full time, I sympathize! Have plans in place before you go in for farm help. Do get a knee scooter- I have two, one with small, smooth wheels for indoor use and a all-wheel drive outdoor model with big fat tires. I cleaned stalls from my scooter, set up grain and hay (in color coded feed and muck tubs so hubby/nephew would get it right daily) and hit the dog park. Do buy a shower boot thingy for ease of use. I used a 5 gallon bucket in the shower for a seat, as I’m cheap. 
. I couldn’t master the I-walk crutch (let me know if you want to buy one used…cheap for COTHrs!) . Have crutches on standby at all times. Practice with the scooter and crutches ahead of time. My insurance covers my scooter rental, especially after I satisfy my deductible with the surgery costs. Hm… ICE! ice is your best friend post surgery. Pack it around your knee and toes (all that’ll be sticking out of the splint and bandages you’ll go home with) and elevate as much as possible. If they opt for a nerve block, do it, but realize the pain hits like a bomb when it wears off. Take pain meds ahead of it…don’t get behind it. I’ve got lots of “pro tips”- feel free to PM if you have any specific questions.
I agree with Calvincrowe…Get all the appliances you need and practice before hand. I am single and if I hadn’t done that and figured out all the logistics of “normal” chores, I would have been crying in the corner unable to do anything about day 2. It is still hard but I figured out before the surgery to make things doable. I don’t have an all terrain scooter but have a knee scooter and a sitting scooter which I am glad I ordered ahead of time. My left knee is arthritic and I wasn’t sure how it would do on the knee scooter. Well, the knee was fine but within 1 week I had a developing nasty pressure sore on my shin from the cast against knee scooter pad and the doctor said to get off of it (the knee scooter). The shin healed and I am now using the knee scooter at work and still have the riding one at home. I use the crutches to get to the car and into wherever I am going. Due to other issues on my right leg and fairly recent back surgery, I am unable to load and unload the scooter into the car this time around. When I had my right foot done, I had no problems taking the scooter with me. And yes, I drove despite having surgery on my right foot. My doctor said to go practice driving with the left foot and I did. You can also get a plate for the car that effectively, switches the accelerator to the left foot so you don’t have to sit wonky to get the left foot over to the right. Probably would have been a better idea but I didn’t know about that until I was nearly past the 12 weeks. I didn’t have any problems with my driving situation.
I know lots of people thought I was a bit out there doing all this stuff before surgery. For 4 weeks before, I did laps in the house with the crutches every night after work. I had to fix the cat litter boxes so I could easily get to them to clean. I wish the were up about 4 inches higher but I am managed. Loading the dishwasher is another pain because the scooter is always in the way but I get it done. Lots of things to consider but for you, hopefully, DH will be helpful. I haven’t managed to get my cats to help at all…they just make more messes:lol:.
Susan
@Kyrabee, I drove left footed for a couple of years. I had always driven a manual shift, but when my right knee got really bad and would dislocate at the drop of a hat, I drove an automatic for a while. If I couldn’t drive left footed, I wouldn’t have gone anywhere because I couldn’t trust my right leg to move to the brake. I eventually had arthroscopic surgery on that knee, got it all put back together, and immediately bought a car with a stick shift. That was in 1987, and I still haven’t gone back to driving an automatic, even though I walk with a cane sometimes due to rheumatoid arthritis.
Rebecca
@Calvincrowe @Kyrabee @RMJacobs I love ALL these tips.
Its not my first go round with crutches. My husband always has them at the ready because the minute they go into storage? Baaaad juju.
The atv knee scooter might be a great idea, at least so I can get around the property.
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