Broken Ankle Week 24

Opera at the ballpark in San Francisco

Last week we took the subway to the ballpark to see the San Francisco simulcast of La Traviata. It was cold and fun! I brought folding cane and used it on hills and on the ballpark stairs without railings.

Iterating and experimenting since new pain feels like I’m regressing:

• My strategy is to take cane if there will be hills and leave cane at home if no hills. I can easily walk 1–2 miles if no hills. My ankle hurts when walking downhill.
• At my last acupuncture appointment, acupuncturist “surrounded the dragon” on my ankle where it has had intermittent nerve pain.
• I’m trying epsom salt soaks for foot and ankle. Not sure if it’s helping but it feels good.
• I am massaging the tibia incision regularly and noticed that the incision hurts less now.
• I’m trying to get used to the feeling of the metal on my fibula. It feels so weird to run hand down my leg and feel metal under my skin.
• When I’ve been sitting for a while and stand up, my tibia hurts and my heel feels cool.
• If I stand up and take a step and it hurts, then I move my ankle around for a bit and wait and try again until I can walk easily.
• I jumped once (see goal below) to see what it feels like. It hurt a little. I want to be able to move more. I walk, I bike, I do yoga, I do PT exercises. None of that feels as dynamic as I used to move.

Goals I am aiming towards

• In 7 weeks I need to be able to hike up and down steep inclines for a vacation we have planned (and also walk on beaches).
• I will continue walking up and down hills. One hill per day. Until I can go downhill without much pain.
• Put my small pandemic-purchase trampoline back together and try light jumping on it because I want to move more.