Diary of a Broken Ankle : Day 39

Merdeka! Merdeka! Shouts my leg. Freed from the cast today after 39 days. I haven't washed my leg since I fell on the field after a round of frisbee.

The nurse used a saw-like contraption that looked like it could cleave my leg but it didn't hurt - just a load of vibrations to break open the cast.  My leg has really shrunk - looks really disgusting.


Finally I got to take a pic of my x-ray. The fracture gap looks like it expanded (!) at one view and closed at another. The doc said I could start FWB (full-weight bearing) and see the physio immediately.

Fracture of the lateral malleolus

Lateral view of the fracture- closing up now

Because I was a bit hesitant to start walking , (after seeing that gap in the fracture),  he gave me an ankle boot and said I could use that for a week.

So at the physios; was told to flex and point and pivot while measuring he measured the angle with a tool that looked like a kind ruler. Then he manipulated my feet to see if there was any pain. Couldn't point my feet downwards  but I could flex my foot abit. Looks the muscles have hardened and knotted up. Was given some exercises to do on a printed piece of paper and sent on my way.

The sensation of putting my feet on the ground was strange- its like electric rods under the sole of my feet as the skin had not felt impact in a while. The boot was more a crutch for my confidence but I used it to walk from Euston road to Oxford circus and take the tube home. It helps as well as a marker for the general public that there's crippled person on the loose.

Anyway after coming home and washing my leg (not scrubbing as was warned!) the skin started to flake off and it feels a bit tender at the moment. 

Dead skin flaking off

 

The day life stood....still

I could call this story of a broken ankle as "The day my life slowed down" or " The day I limited my options within a second"

Its a story of accepting that disability has taken over and that everything you do will be a thousand times slower. A frustating life indeed.

You'll be sitting at the corner of your kitchen eating your meals like a maid because you can't carry your plate, and sweating it out at home in the heat even though its sunny outside. Taking a walk in the park will not be easy because getting to the park itself is a challenge.

So what's the difference between the rich and the poor? The difference is that the rich are provided with more options, and these options enable more opportunities in life. It's nothing to do with the money you see So what's the difference between an able-bodied person and a cripple? The able bodied person is provided with more options and opportunities than a cripple. And trust me, you won't believe how many opportunities an able bodied person is afforded until you've lost it.

It may seem that the cripple has it worse off; the poor can choose to earn and not be poor however the cripple can remain a crippled indefinitely. However I've seen some people who are down in the pits and never climb out of their situation. And then there are cripples who defy their broken bodies to do things even better than an able-bodied person. Watch the Paralympics to know what I mean.
It's all in the perspective and the attitude in life.

So with that,  I'd like to thank a friend of mine for encouraging me to get out of my pit and take a "walk" in the sunshine today.

Plants again - since summer is ending (sort of )

Red Robin tomatoes - not as many as I thought it would be

Gloxinia Violacea - the tuber is humongous this year.

Wahaca Chilli reincarnation - last year's plant that 'died' and rose again

Sweet William, my first plant - 3 years old and growing strong

Diary of a Broke Ankle : Day 30

Toes were swollen today (weather was scorching)

I've been hopping on one foot which probably didn't do me much good because started to have stabbing pains which come and go everytime I shift my foot.

Have to take it easier - its been 4 weeks now....can't stand to have another fracture and be in another 6 weeks of cast.