my left foot

For the past few years, I have had some real fun with my left foot. I believe it all began 5 years ago, when I was up in the wee hours getting ready to head to the airport for a trip to Vancouver. It was a warm July night, about 4:30am. I had gone to bed early the night before, and the last thing I said to my husband was - "Please make sure to turn the window fan off in Caleb's room - it will have cooled down in there and we don't need to use that electricity all night." I then packed my suitcase, except for the items I would need the next morning. We had a rather large hallway - with the main bathroom, and both the kids' rooms off this large square hallway (our bedroom was in the finished attic). I left the suitcase to the side of the large hallway, knowing that I would walk straight to the bathroom in the morning and avoid the suitcase.

So, I walk down the stairs so early in the morning - not turning on any lights so that the kids will still keep sleeping. I immediately notice that Caleb's window fan is still going. What? That fan has been going all night? How much electricity is that going to use? So before heading to the bathroom, I walk straight to Caleb's room to turn off the fan - and promptly trip over the suitcase (which I never would have done if the fan had been off - I would have headed straight to the bathroom). My first thought then was, I've broken my leg!! But then I scrambled to the bathroom, checked out the quickly swelling lump and cut on my left leg, got an ice pack and thought, There is no way in Hades I am missing this trip to Vancouver! It must just be a really bad bruise.

I got ready for the day, made it to the airport and promptly limped my entire trip. After 5 wonderful days, I headed back home, limped a couple more days and then finally saw a doctor. The xray showed a clean break in the middle of the bone on my lower left leg. He told me it was already healing and a cast probably would not help. He did warn me about walking on uneven ground - a jar could get the bones out of alignment. I had flashbacks of all the walking on rocky paths I had done in Vancouver - including a long, bumpy path down to the nude beach I followed on several occasions (I kept my clothes on by the way, but I could tell stories...)

Due to the break, I started to use my foot differently and plantar fasciatis ensued. It would come and go - always the worst in the summer (when I was playing tennis and walking on pavement the most). It basically meant that the bottom of my left foot was in a LOT of pain. About a year and a half ago, my primary doctor told me to do the stretches and ice my foot after using it for tennis and the like. It didn't help. The ultimate cortisone shots and shoe inserts from the podiatrist last fall and winter didn't help more than a little while either. This summer was the worst - with the move and everything going on, I was in constant and awful pain; shooting pains up my left leg, almost unable to walk in the mornings. I quickly found a new podiatrist in Gboro. Since the end of July, I have been wearing a "boot." So much fun! I knew in recent weeks that it wasn't working - the pain was returning. I have been a complete slug with this boot - can't really walk much or exercise except for the exercise bike.

So when I saw the podiatrist last Friday, I knew we would be scheduling surgery. It will be in early November - sure hope this takes care of the problem. Meanwhile, I'll have the boot till near Christmas. Everyone sure has a comment about the boot - "Hate to see what the other guy looks like!" is the most common. Getting rather tiresome. It's like I'm pregnant again, and everyone has advice for me or some story to share.

At the grocery store today, and a couple were giving each other a hard time (just joking and having fun). She noticed my boot and said, "You're the third person I've seen with one of those today!" She asked what was wrong. I told her. She asked if I had to wear it all the time, or if it came off. I explained that it was kinda like an aircast and I took it off at night. She said it would be hard to sleep with that, and I responded that my husband probably couldn't sleep well with it either. She laughed and said, "But you sure could get him back if you wanted to!" I had a flashback to the window fan left on and the ensuing years of pain :) I laughed and her male partner said, "Women sure are evil!" She laughed and said, "It's because men make us that way!" So true...