Scheduled for nail removal + honest feelings on LL

Edit Post

Quote from: bigdreams55 on April 26, 2018, 07:15:17 PMGlad to hear you're doing better Microbe.

Did your doctor give you a timetable for recovery? Probably ideal to take it easy for a few weeks.

Thanks bigdreams!
Doctor told me that I should be fully recovered around a three-four weeks.
I'm feeling much better now and the incision sites are not as painful, I think I may recover faster when the stitches come off in two weeks.
I walked alot with the aid of a walker last night and woke up feeling pretty good, with only slight stiffness and some difficulty flexing my knees.

Edit Post

One thing i've noticed during both my LL and nail removal surgery is that my dominant, more muscular right leg is more resistant and painful compared to my less muscular left leg, which moves more freely with less pain. Knee flexing is the most problematic so far. I can walk without a walker but with little endurance along with a waddling gait. Hip region gets stiff and painful. My physio has recommended me to still use a walker.

Edit Post

Post 1 week nail removal-

Pretty much waddling around my room during the day and go out to eat in the vicinity of my hotel, by foot. Walking is very slow with very obvious abnormal hip and back movement. I still have the dressing and the stitches on. Legs do become quite tight after walking for too long. My left less muscular leg feels more stable compared to my more muscular right leg, hence why I prefer using my left foot first when going up and down the stairs. My left leg is also more flexible and lighter while I cannot fully flex my right leg. My current medication routine contains antibiotics, painkillers, some tablets for gastro protection, prescribed probiotics and multivitamin. Mentally I feel exhausted, it's been an extremely long week. 

Edit Post

Almost over! Hope that the second week treats you better.

Edit Post

Quote from: Microbe on May 02, 2018, 04:46:38 PMPost 1 week nail removal-

Pretty much waddling around my room during the day and go out to eat in the vicinity of my hotel, by foot. Walking is very slow with very obvious abnormal hip and back movement. I still have the dressing and the stitches on. Legs do become quite tight after walking for too long. My left less muscular leg feels more stable compared to my more muscular right leg, hence why I prefer using my left foot first when going up and down the stairs. My left leg is also more flexible and lighter while I cannot fully flex my right leg. My current medication routine contains antibiotics, painkillers, some tablets for gastro protection, prescribed probiotics and multivitamin. Mentally I feel exhausted, it's been an extremely long week.

This isn't from a positive thread, but I thought you might find this specific post more positive. Read it and close the tab/thread.

No kidding about the mental exhaustion. I can't even imagine what it must be like at the moment. However, it will pass. Again, you deserve all of your own time.

Edit Post

Thanks android and login for your support, these words really do encourage me to look forward and do my best to gain recovery! I read MDOW post about him recovering to around 90% in a year, which sounds reassuring, even despite the long post-removal time frame. I can also somehow sense that my legs feel better and lighter without the rods. It's just a matter of time, probably few weeks, few months, when I'll be able to tell whether the rod removal along with physio will improve the chronic left pain I faced post LL/pre removal. I will keep you guys updated.

Edit Post

This is a current picture of my dressing on the left hip. There was some slight blood/plasma bleeding that I only noticed yesterday. The doctor will have it changed tomorrow. Plus you may notice some bruising/discoloration around the wound

Edit Post

Quote from: Microbe on May 02, 2018, 09:25:50 PMThanks android and login for your support, these words really do encourage me to look forward and do my best to gain recovery! I read MDOW post about him recovering to around 90% in a year, which sounds reassuring, even despite the long post-removal time frame. I can also somehow sense that my legs feel better and lighter without the rods. It's just a matter of time, probably few weeks, few months, when I'll be able to tell whether the rod removal along with physio will improve the chronic left pain I faced post LL/pre removal. I will keep you guys updated.

Hey, man, Phineas Gage recovered and kept on living, and more amazingly, still being able to reason and live a socially normal life, after having had an iron rod shot straight through his skull. The human body is amazing if you give it some time. We wouldn't have lasted this long in this hostile-to-life-universe and planet without some serious potential (including the one you used for CLL - you grew your bones back from nothing to fill a big gap!).

QuoteA report of Gage's physical and mental condition shortly before his death implies that his most serious mental changes were temporary, so that in later life he was far more functional, and socially far better adapted, than in the years immediately following his accident.

Never lose hope. We never go down without a fight, have we ever have to rely on our body, or on what our minds can achieve.

Edit Post

2 Week Post Surgery-

Legs are feeling better and endurance is getting better day by day. However I'm still waddling with abnormal back movement. Pain from the wounds are still there at times, mainly arising from the feeling of stiffness or sudden movements. I'll be getting my dressing and stitches removed today and then I can have a proper shower. I struggle with climbing stairs with my right leg, so I prefer to use my left leg when going up the stairs. I have started to lay on my belly to do some flexion exercises, and it's my right leg that's giving me the most pain. The physio exercises are done without too much issues. So the highlight is that I've gained endurance and some speed while walking, however the waddling gait is still present and the wounds are still painful and stiff.

Edit Post

One of the biggest affected regions with nail removal (along with nail insertion) is the hip region and unfortunately the abductor muscles are perhaps the most badly affected. The trauma and wound prevents proper hip abductor exercises, the best one being laying on the side and lifting the top leg. Laying on the side is still quite painful around the incision regions, and this causes the abductors to atrophy, leading to the waddling gait.