Well... I feel.... sheepish is probably the only applicable word. I had my follow up with the orthopedic doctor on Thursday afternoon. He pulled up my x-rays and showed me the bone chip and explained that basically the fracture was caused by a very bad sprain and one of the ligaments had pulled the small piece of bone off my talus. Not bad enough to need surgery (which I knew from the ER), but obviously very painful. And then here's where he differed from the doom and gloom of the ER and their 4-6 week in the boot prediction. He was happy with how my ankle looked at the appointment and the lack of swelling (I mean it was swollen but it's not like. SWOLLEN swollen) and range of motion that I had, especially on no anti-inflammatories (because I still never remember to take them in the morning only at night lol). He confirmed that I had been doing the right thing by (mostly) staying off my feet, and continuing to rest/ice/compress/elevate it as much as possible.
 |
| I was getting a little tired of my camera roll being entirely dog photos in this chair |
 |
| My friends sent me a care package because they are the fucking best <3 <3 <3 <3 |
He said for someone young/fit/healthy (apparently he meant me lol), he wouldn't recommend that level of inactivity (4-6 weeks exclusively in the boot) because of the atrophy it would cause in the tendons and ligaments -- also like JFC after only four days in the boot my back and my hip hurt in new and creative ways from the compensation, it was awful. He gave me a sheaf of paperwork describing PT exercises, recommended I pick up a smaller ankle brace so I can DRIVE again, and said I could follow up in 6 weeks if I still had pain but basically let my body tell me where the limit was on activity for the next few weeks. We swung by a specialty pharmacy on the way home and located a brace in the style he had recommended, and then proceeded home where I COMPLETELY overdid it by helping with chores because that's fundamentally who I am as a person lol. Don't worry, I spent the remainder of the evening with it elevated and iced, and I'm continuing to rest/ice/compress/elevate as much as humanly possible.
 |
| Also using the Asissi Loop, because why TF not? |
If I'm able to jam the new brace into a riding boot sometime in the next week or two, I might still be able to make some summer shows, especially now that I've got the set up for virtual lessons ironed out! Wish me luck!
Yay! So glad it isn't as doom and gloom as originally thought. I've already saw your insta story and know you did succeed in stuffing the brace in a boot, lol but when I rolled my ankle good at a college level horse camp, I stuffed my brace into my paddock boot and made it work with my half chaps.
ReplyDeletePermanently stretched the boot but I was already on my way to wearing tall boots all the time. Jumped in the brace and boot setup too so dressage should be a piece of cake!
That was going to be my next attempt, if the boots I got on didn't work, lol. I rode bareback yesterday just to be sure I didn't put too much weight on things, but I feel like I could probably manage stirrups. Except now we're under a heat advisory and even at 5 am it feels like 90, so GROSSSSS.
DeleteI did the exact same thing several years ago falling down some stairs (I'm very graceful...) and man, that HURTS! I'm glad you won't be out of the saddle too long and that you will be able to salvage your summer show season!
ReplyDeleteIt was excruciating! Another friend said she did the same thing but carrying a saddle down some stairs - I feel like at least the stairs give you some credibility, I just... can't walk on uneven ground apparently lol.
DeleteSo happy about this news!!!
ReplyDelete