Johnson's Journey: The Broken Ankle Saga continues...

Well I went to the doctor on February 22nd and they took my first green cast off. I met the ankle specialist and he said he wanted me back in another cast because I broke one of the hardest bones to heal. In most cases when this bone breaks patients need a pin put in to hold the bone together. Fortunately he thought I had not broken it badly enough to warrant surgery but that given time it would heal itself. I got a new cast, this time a light blue and was told to wait 10 days before trying to walk and then if it hurt to much after that to wait.

Well let me tell you it is sure hard to be a nurse on crutches! Before I broke my ankle I was the "runner" in our little team. Constantly grabbing new patients and checking them in, doing skin test, giving allergy shots, getting charts etc. Well obviously this had to change. My being one of two nurses in our office meant Debbie has had to take on that role (which she was a big part of before given the amount of patients we see a day, but I did more running due to her arthritis in her knee, plus she is SOO much better at dealing with patients on the phone after almost 30 years of being an allergy nurse!) We have such a great group working with our doctor that came together to help Debbie and I in this tough situation.
I am still giving a lot of allergy shots and checking in patients with the help of our admin. assistant who walks them back to a room. Also the doctor I work for is amazing! He has no problem checking in a patient himself, doing the skin tests himself etc. I really could not work for a better doctor and I think I am quite spoiled!! Still the amount of standing and moving with the crutches is exhausting. Just grabbing our encounter sheets for allergy shots and pulling their shot records, getting vials and shots ready plus calling patient after patient in a row is enough to make me want to pass out. Sometimes with the kids especially I sit in my chair so that I am on their level and bending down is difficult.I do have a rolling chair so I am able to put this to use in our little "closet" of a shot room. But as well as working for a great doctor and having a fantastic co-nurse and admin assistant I have some pretty good patients. Many told me my first week back I shouldn't be working and I would just say well I have to earn some money for all these medical bills haha. Some gave me hugs and my many kids ask me how my foot is, "is it better?" "does it hurt?" and most tell me they hope I get better soon. In more recent weeks my patients tell me I look like I feel better so I wonder what I must have looked like when I came back to work a week after I broke it.....

Well last weekend it had been 10 days since my appointment so I tried walking on the ankle some but it hurt SO bad that I pretty much gave up. The doctor told me if it hurt too much to wait. Today was another appointment with the doctor. My Mom and brother Luke took me (it is kinda funny to have my Mom take me to the doctor as she hasn't in years! But nice too) They took my blue cast off and took some x rays. I was able to scratch my leg and see how much my muscles have atrophied. I now have one skinny leg! It was soo weird that after they took the cast off I promptly rolled up my jeans on my other leg took my shoe and sock off and took a picture with my phone. When the doctor came in he said my x rays were looking good and that my ankle seemed less painful when he palpated it and that the swelling had gone down as well. I told him about the pain and he said some of that was normal it will hurt and if it goes away it is fine. He put me back in a cast to give it a bit more time to heal (purple this time!) and made it a walking cast and told me to start walking on it and get rid of the crutches soon. I asked him about my toes because they swell up everyday when I am at work and he said that it was normal for my type of injury. I go back in 3 weeks at which time I will probably be put in a walking boot. Sometimes I wonder if I will every get to wear 2 shoes again, much less the brand new nude color Jessica Simpson heels I bought a week before the break and never got to wear! I'm hoping by summer I will be back to two shoes and able to exercise some. But really I just want to be able to cook, bake, do my own laundry and CLEAN MY HOUSE!! I never thought I would be dying to clean but I really am. Don't get me wrong my hubby is very kind and caring but our definitions of clean are NOT the same!