myachillesrupture's posterous

To a Hopeful New Year, 2011

 
http://myachillesrupture.com - Wishing everyone a Happy New Year, 2011 as it quickly approaches. When you are able to step out of yourself and evaluate a period of time in your life, there are many lessons to be learned. Time and Patience are two very crucial characteristics to apply and learn from when dealing with an Achilles Tendon rupture injury. 

As an aside, I am open to your suggestions on topics you'd like for me to discuss as I mentioned in the video. I'm a one-man show and any assistance within the area of content would be greatly appreciated. :)

Be safe and best of luck in the New Year, 2011!

Sole Technology

 - http://myachillesrupture.com I share my thoughts on a recent Newsweek article [http://www.newsweek.com/2010/10/14/will-toning-footwear-get-you-in-shape.all.html] and how it can provide benefit(s) to anyone with recovery in mind from an Achilles Tendon Rupture injury and the return to peak physical performance or at least an elevated level of mobility and well-being. :)

2 Useful Sites

 
http://myachillesrupture.com - Wanted to share two useful sites I recently found that I see parallels to my Achilles Tendon rupture recovery and hope you notice the benefits of the information on these two sites to assist you on your quest to mobility and improved physical performance. 

The first site is: http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/08...

The second site is: http://lifehacker.com/5629498/top-10-...

If you have any questions regarding an Achilles Tendon rupture injury, surgery, recovery, physical therapy or anything else, feel free to let me know. I am 16mos post-op from this injury and continue to learn/improve with each month that passes. 

Haglund's Deformity

http://myachillesrupture.com - Today's, post revolves around a condition I was completely unaware of prior to communication with a person who's story will follow this brief introduction. The condition I'm referring to is Haglund's Deformity and you can check out Wikipedia's definition for more extensive detail. This condition can be synonymous with the frequent use of high heel shoes [previous post I did specific to these shoes]. I've touched on footwear selection before and the importance of making informed choices so you can minimize your chances of injury.
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Here is D.L.R.'s story with bold portions as my emphasis:

I would like to share with you what happened to me:   Although this condition is called a "deformity", I wasn't born with it, it developed.  Up until a few years ago, I was very, very normal.  In my teens and twenties, was very athletic with basketball, volleyball and ran track (high jump, long jump, triple jump).  I did aerobics 3-4 times a week and was quite active.  This problem for me actually only started about 4-5 years ago.  Initially, the family doctor thought that I had developed arthritis in my ankle (which made logical sense given that it had been broken twice in my younger days - very athletic in younger days!)  I was told to take Advil.  Time passes.  I now discover that the back of my heel hurts even more and a little bump is now there.  Return to my family doctor.  He says that the little bump is nothing to worry about.  Great.   More time passes.  That little bump continues to grow and now is starting to affect how I walk.  Turns out that I would have had bursitis, the bursa calcified and that was what the little bump was.  I can no longer do aerobics because I can't properly move the heel or put that much pressure on my foot.  Even just plain walking became painful.  I begin to rely on regular use of Advil, because the pain is so unbearable.  Eventually, I get a referral to the surgeon (waited 9 months for that appointment!) and then am put on the short list for surgery (waited only 2 1/2 months) to receive the corrective surgery on June 11.   And Canada has Government Health Coverage.  I waited 11 1/2 months just to get the surgery!

That brings me to my current circumstance.  Although I should be able to 100% weight bear with my boot on, I can manage a little bit in my house and back yard, but need to rely on crutches with longer distances.  I had another follow up appointment with my surgeon today and I can now start physiotherapy.  I also can now wear compression stockings and start to make the transition out of the boot.  I am so looking forward to being able to walk.  With all of my other leg issues, never has rehab ever taken this long!  There is nothing that I have ever experienced that can relate to this.  It is my right heel, so I can't even drive!  I have to rely on my handsome chauffeur (aka my husband!) to drive me everywhere.  But thankfully, Will is a very understanding man.  My surgeon has really not given me much guidance as to where progress goes from here. He assures me that the healing process is complete and that I now just need to build strength in the leg.   Pretty much told me to just gradually work my way out of the boot.  No time line.  My PT Initial Assessment is booked for this Thursday afternoon.  I'm hoping for better guidance.  I'm also hoping to be able to return to work very soon.  I also work in an office environment, although lots of walking is involved in my job.  I don't see surgeon again for 2 months - that's mid October!

My advice to everyone, especially women, if you begin to notice heel pain, see your doctor.  If you notice a bump on the back of your heel, don't let the doctor brush you off -- I'm living proof of what happens when they tell you "oh, that's nothing to worry about" -- and I naively believed him.  I have been thinking what might have been if the family doctor actually would have treated my condition instead of letting the problem escalate to where I couldn't even wear shoes or walk without pain.  I sometimes wonder that if I had been treated properly, I wouldn't have even needed this surgery.  I have also always worn very good quality and well fitting shoes.  And you'll never catch me wearing flip-flops!
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Thank you D.L.R. for sharing these personal details as well as your advice for anyone who may be in the early stages of Haglund's Deformity as well as the reminder that *EACH OF US* is ultimately responsible for our medical care although we are very much trusting of the medical community to provide us with appropriate counsel and targeted actions that serve our best interests.

If anyone reading this story has suffered from Haglund's Deformity, knows anyone who has or is a health care practitioner who's been involved with patients, I'd really appreciate your input. 

Challenge Convention!


http://myachillesrupture.com - This video explains my thoughts on the idea of challenging conventional wisdom when it comes to physical activities that one can perform when they are rehabbing from an Achilles Tendon rupture injury. There's no need to believe that you *MUST* have a certain brand of gear or that you *MUST* follow the same routine each time. The idea is to do something and avoid plateaus in your training/workouts because remaining on a plateau for an extended period of time is not a useful place to be.

I said all of this to really just translate into HAVE FUN! :)

“Achilles Image of the Day”

Achilles-achilles-heel-demotiv

http://myachillesrupture.com - I'm sure we've all seen those Motivational posters lining the hallways and conference rooms in professional settings. You may even have many of those classics in your own place of employment; let's hope you actually don't have any hanging up in your home. LOL! Today's Achilles Image of the Day is a take (uh....FAKE) on the Motivational poster I found to be pretty interesting. :)

Image sourced from *here*

Ways of seeing the World

Mar_tom_scar

 http://myachillesrupture.com - It can be an odd reality when you sustain an injury that impacts your mobility and literally causes you to sllllloooowwww down. An Achilles Tendon rupture is definitely an injury that is far from "mainstream" and much more common to be seen by an obsessed sports fan than the average citizen. I really wish I had a quarter for every time I had to explain this injury as well as anatomy 101. LOL! I mean, c'mon....Achilles Tendon. Check. Rupture. Check. Put the two together and it should not need any supporting detail, right? Wrong. Oh well, I don't have an issue explaining it to anyone, but it does lend itself to more of the idea of how this particular injury can possess such a mental component in the sense of how isolated one can feel because many people literally do not understand this injury and pass it off as a "hurt ankle" and we know this to definitely *NOT* be true.

There is something that I find myself doing that has somewhat of a mental component to it and the picture used in this post signifies that. It has to do with how I see the world now. I was picking some items from my vegetable garden recently and noticed an interesting patter on this tomato that made it pretty unique. The light bulb went off above my head and I immediately said to myself that the similarity to my Achilles Tendon rupture scar was pretty striking! Maybe I'm odd for thinking this way, but unique tomatoes are not the ONLY trigger for me. Haha! Every sports play I watch causes me to zero in and study the footwork even more now that I have sustained this injury. I watch my kids playing and focus on their heel/lower calf muscle region. Obsess, much? Why, yes. Thanks for noticing. Hahaha.

The main idea I'd like to leave you with is that you WILL see the world differently after sustaining an Achilles Tendon rupture. Is this a bad thing? I don't think so. It opens up the possibilities to many things you may not have considered before. New appreciation for family and friends. New ways of communicating. Not taking mobility for granted. Being more sensitive to those who lack mobility. New hobbies. More focus. More purpose. And even seeing tomatoes in a different light. :) These are just a few things I have definitely found to be true in my own life. As with anything I mention, your mileage may vary. :) It's all about making sweet lemonade from the lemons even if you've never tried...   

More Site Functionality


http://myachillesrupture.com - An Achilles Tendon rupture is a serious injury and those of us who have gone through it share a special (I use that term loosely. LOL!) bond and this website is something I hope allows for more discussion and attention to this injury and the individuals who've suffered it.......and emerge from it with new perspectives on life and mobility.

This is a quick vid about adding 2 small details of site functionality to increase more contact and social aspects for the audience. Feedback is something I'm *ALWAYS* looking for.

Speedo Optimus Training Fins Review


http://myachillesrupture.com - This is my official review of a fitness product (Speedo Optimus Swim Training Fins) that I have been using over 6 months to assist in the continued strength building, balance and training from my Achilles Tendon rupture suffered on May 2nd, 2009.

If you found this review helpful, please let me know.
If you have any questions about this product, please let me know.
If you'd like to purchase this product, you can find it here: http://is.gd/dVCMs [disclosure: amazon affiliate link].

Thank you for watching.

Speedo Aqua Fitness Barbells Review


http://myachillesrupture.com - This is my official review of a fitness product (Speedo Aqua Fitness Barbells) that I have been using over 6 months to assist in the continued strength building, balance and training from my Achilles Tendon rupture suffered on May 2nd, 2009.

If you found this review helpful, please let me know.
If you have any questions about this product, please let me know.
If you'd like to purchase this product, you can find it here: http://is.gd/dS2cF [disclosure: amazon affiliate link].