3-Day Post-Op Visit After Hardware Removal

October 2018

Blood seepage and doc visit

I am posting a brief update for those of you that have questions about blood seepage after surgery. I wrote in my last post about how I was concerned with all of the blood on my bandage, since I had not experienced this after my first two surgeries. There are photos showing the amount of blood lost in my previous post. According to my doctor, this sometimes happens, and he did not seem concerned. There were two spots on my incisions that had fresh blood spots, which he dabbed, and then wrapped my foot back up. 

I thought my foot looked pretty gruesome when the bandage was removed. My stitches look more like frankenstein than they had before! I am afraid I am going to have some nasty scarring after this heals. My doctor had said I was going to have two small incisions, and I have two large nasty-looking ones.

I removed the photo of my foot showing the stitches that I originally shared because I had a complaint--even though this blog is meant to provide information and not to provoke disgust. Feel free to contact me, if you are interested is seeing a view of the differences between dissolvable inside stitches and exterior stitches. The scarring that I have from these two incisions with exterior stitches is worse than what I have from the dissolvable stitches on my other foot. 

Activity and exercise

Before my checkup, I had not been putting much weight on my foot or doing any toe bends because I was afraid the pressure was going to cause it to bleed. I have been doing a bit more now that I feel more comfortable after my doctor examined my foot. I have been walking a good amount, doing yoga, and I rode my bicycle a couple of miles over the weekend (mostly flat and paved surfaces). I have not been doing vigorous toe bends, as that is one of the areas where there was fresh blood when the wrapping was removed. I am wearing a surgical shoe at all times except when sleeping or exercising my toes.

Pain

I have a lot of pain on the top of my foot, and I have to walk gently; however, the crushing pressure that I had been feeling has minimized. It is now more of a raw tender pain when something touches my foot, or when I walk. I have been icing my foot because it relieves the pain. My foot swelling is minimal.

Let me know if you have any questions! I do not plan to update this blog much, unless something significant occurs.