u/anonpls_tysm

I’ve always been really lean - I’m 5’10 130lbs. My whole life been super super thin and I’ve worked so hard to build up my muscle tone and be a healthy, active person. I got injured 3 weeks ago (I’m a week out from surgery) and I put on some shorts today. When I looked at my legs I gasped and almost cried. My left calf is so, so much smaller now. And I can’t do shit about it. I am just really having a hard time today overall. I can’t do anything I love to do. I can’t go outside beyond my back deck (my house is all stairs) I can’t be out on my farm with my animals. I can’t be in my garden. I literally lay in bed with my leg raised all day. Since surgery it’s painful to have my foot down at all - so I just scooter around for necessities and then straight back to horizontal.

This is fucking rough. All I want to do is be hiking again, walking my dogs, doing Pilates, seeing my friends. Overall I’ve maintained such a positive mood and outlook and I know how fortunate I am - my injury isn’t the worst of the worst at all (tightrope) if anything I got so lucky… but how do you deal with this? I’m literally wasting away.

I just had foot surgery last week and I figure now is a great time to focus on my health and jump start a glow up during recovery. I am in great shape and I am really happy with how I’m aging. I just want to optimize what I’m doing. I do not want to use peptides at this point. Just using oral supplements for now.

I’ll be honest I’m new to this and utilized AI to help me with a recovery plan - can you all tell me if this looks decent?

I’m 41F
5’10
133lbs
Normally super active with tons of hiking, reformer Pilates, light weights etc. I live on a farm so I’m always busy! Not being able to walk after this injury/surgery has been super hard on me mentally but I’m getting through. My main focus is: healing/recovery, mental clarity, clear youthful skin, overall wellness and feeling good. If there’s anything you’d recommend or changes I’m open to it!

Wake up, empty stomach:
Liposomal Glutathione (1000mg)
NAC (600mg)

With Breakfast:
Vitamin D3 (2,000IU)
Astaxanthin (12mg)
Omega-3 (1000mg)
Vitamin B12 (1500mcg)
Grüns superfoods greens gummies

Dinner:
Omega-3 (1000mg)
Vitamin C (500-1000mg)

Bedtime:
Liposomal Magnesium Glycinate (175mg)

I had surgery on Thursday (today is Monday). My post-op care instructions are vague at best and I remember nothing that was said to me after my operation. I have not put the boot on my foot since surgery as I am elevating it high and I icing on and off basically 23.5 hours a day. I only really get up for the bathroom or to just wiggle my other leg around.

I tried to put the boot on this morning as it seems like I’m supposed to wear it but it’s not possible to put on properly. My foot is bandaged so that my toes are in somewhat of a pointed position, so my heel cannot sit properly in the boot. Even putting it on loosely feels like it’s doing more harm than good - the weight of it puts pressure on my foot that does not feel helpful at all.

I’ve emailed my care team Friday and again this morning about this concern and still waiting on a response.

Pain: I had an internal brace put in and was given ibuprofen for recovery. That was fine until 48 hours post op when the nerve block started to wear off and the most painful zapping sensations and foot spasms started happening. Fortunately I had a friend with a couple of oxy pills to get me over that hill. Ibuprofen does not touch nerve pain and that was really intense. The spasms were the worst - my foot would be jerking around involuntarily which of course would cause more pain. Yay.

Please let me know how you handled post-op boot wearing with the bandages… I want to do the right thing and I don’t have a lot of direction right now. Should the boot hurt when I wear it? I know I should probably get up and move a little more now that I’m +4 days out from surgery but I’m just nervous to do too much.

A freak accident brings me here. Last weekend I tripped and ended up in the ER. No broken bones seen on the x-ray and the ER Doc put me in a boot, sent me home on crutches and said “bare weight as it’s comfortable. It’s just a sprain”. A couple days passed and thanks to ChatGPT’s advice (and the horrific swelling and bruising) I went to my general doctor who immediately feared a lisfranc injury. He ordered up a weighted x-ray which confirmed his concerns and he was horrified that I’d been instructed to walk on my injured foot. A CT scan and an MRI gave more details; now I have surgery scheduled for later this week. I have multiple bone fractures and a lisfranc tear. It isn’t as bad as it could be I’m sure. It’s a 3mm separation. The pain isn’t bad - I keep elevated and booted any time I need to get around. Fortunately I have a borrowed knee scooter which has been such a help!

I know I’ll get more information on healing after the surgeon gets in there and makes whatever repairs are necessary. But my questions are… do I really need to be in a boot for the next 4 months? I am SO ACTIVE in my normal life. This past week has been hell. I’m worried about my mental state if I can’t do the things I love all summer. Obviously I’ll do whatever the surgeon tells me to do; re-injuring my foot and potentially requiring another surgery or extending my healing time is not an option for me.

I’m just still accepting this has happened. I’ve never been injured before, never needed surgery before, I’m young and super healthy and this is just hard to wrap my mind around. Is it really 9-12 months until I can hike again? Will I be walking in a boot in two months? Any show recommendations for when I’m able to wear them? I hate this! Thanks for listening 😩