Day 70: 10 weeks + FWB in tennis shoe and brace

*10 week surgery anniversary*

Today is my 10 week surgery anniversary.  It is really hard to believe that I have made it 70 days already.

This week, my doctor wanted me to make the transition out of the boot to a tennis shoe and ankle brace.  I was afraid to really try it on my own, so I waited until PT.

PT Session #9

It started as all other sessions start, with my therapist massaging my scar tissue and working on my flexibility.  And then...he said it was time.  Instead of putting my shoe on the right and my boot on the left, I had to put my ankle brace and a shoe on my left.  This was the first time since my surgery that I wore a shoe on my left foot.  70 days of casts and my boot....and now I'm in a shoe!

The first few steps were wonky.  I had to walk a few laps around the facility.  I walked so slow it is not even funny.  I had to think about placing my foot down correctly every single step.  As with every transition, from cast to boot, pwb in boot to fwb in boot, to fwb in shoe, I had to start over from square one with my therapy exercises.  That is one of the things that makes recovering from a surgery like this so tough.  You take two steps forward and four steps back at every turn.

All in all, the session went well, and my therapist instructed me to get rid of the boot for good and only wear my brace and tennis shoe from now on.  This was more scary than I expected, because my foot felt so safe and protected in the boot.