Injections of Doom - pics coming!

[cjsmith]

Today, the doctor actually had a third person come in and take photographs of me while I was getting the shots. (OK, fourth person in the room if you count me.) The photographer said this is the same facial expression she made when she was pushing with labor. Sadly, she didn't focus in on my face, so instead these are big photos where you can see my whole upper body. But still you can tell that I'm lurching up from the chair. I firmly maintain that if these had been taken the first or second time they'd have been much more dramatic. Ah well. The doctor says he'll e-mail them to rfrench, and then maybe I can post 'em here.

I'm not walking very strangely today. I think my nerves are weak enough that I can't really feel the weird effects of the anaesthetic.

New bit of information today. My nerves may not go FULLY numb. I figured they were supposed to die completely, but apparently not -- as long as the neuroma pain is gone the treatment is good. I may retain some sensation in the affected toes.

Comments

[quasigeostrophy.livejournal.com]

I may retain some sensation in the affected toes.

As long as it isn't some tingly sensation like they've been asleep or something. That would drive me bug-fsck.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

That would drive me up a wall too. When I asked the doctor a bunch of questions before treatment started, I asked about tingles and phantom pain. The doctor said there wouldn't be any, long-term: "only for the first couple weeks [after the treatment ends]", he said. O'course if it does for some reason turn out that way, I could get the surgery.

[therobbergirl.livejournal.com]

We live in the future. I demand that you be able to just buy new feet!

Ah well, I'm glad that at least this option is available for you.

[quasigeostrophy.livejournal.com]

In a way, that's what my dad is doing. He's had ankle problems ever since he injured it 18 months ago and is finally getting his left foot/ankle amputated next month. He's more confident he can at least get back to some activity with less aggravation if he just gets the prosthesis, learns how to use it, and gets on with life. The doctors seem to agree. Extreme, but given the extent of his injuries and the complications since, understandable.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Yikes! How come it's that bad? :-( Good luck to him! I salute his courage.

[quasigeostrophy.livejournal.com]

He's had three corrective surgeries not including the initial night in the OR after his arrival at the ER. For a long time, it developed an internal infection, and they tried to wrap the bones with an antibiotic-infused mesh and give daily injections. Then the largest of the two pins (and 13 screws) broke. At 70, he's fairly active around the house and drives everywhere, and he feels like he's been tied down for 18 months when he could have taken a couple of months to learn to walk on a prosthesis and get on with life. I know it's been driving him crazy, especially since mom doesn't drive and my sister who still lives there works nights and therefore can't help much.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

What a saga! That is just awful. I feel for him. I wish he didn't have to make such an irrevocable decision... but if it's what will work out the best, I'm glad he's willing to do it! Again, my most sincere good wishes to him.

[quasigeostrophy.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I think the surgery is scheduled for December 3 (I need to check that).

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

I'd want a lot of other stuff first. This foot thing is soooooo minor compared with my Stoopid Girl Parts...

But yeah. I'm sure that day will come, unless the technophobes and the religious types successfully block the research.

[sunnydale47.livejournal.com]

See, there's something good ... if you didn't have the SGP problem your foot would seem much worse!

I'm half joking ... but only half. When I have a bad flare in, say, one knee, I don't notice much else. When the flare starts easing, I suddenly start noticing all the other joint and muscle pains that I'd forgotten about because they were so mild by comparison. When that happens I always think, "Well, at least the flare gave me relief from my usual aches and pains!"

That's really reaching, but sometimes that's what it takes to come up with something positive. =wry grin=

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

I'm half joking ... but only half.

I understand. I definitely see what you mean here.

Over the past few months I've started to realize that my concept of pain is a very *good* result of my Stoopid Girl Parts troubles. A wisdom tooth dry socket is nothing -- NOTHING -- I didn't even bother to take painkillers, not even right out of the recovery room, that's how nothing it was. My abdominal surgery a year and a half ago? I was out jogging a couple days later, incisions still covered up with lots of tape. These foot injections? I make faces.

All in all I'd rather not have had it, but I do realize that in a lot of ways it's made me tough. Tough has benefits.

[emmera.livejournal.com]

This is going to sound completely strange, but I have to ask anyways - I'm a college student, working to get my Health care aid certificate. In my Anatomy and Physiology class we're working on the nervous system right now.
A while back I found you on random, and was rather fascinated by your injection treatment, but being shy I never said anything to you. I DID however bookmark you, so I could check in and see how things were going, and if it worked.

The question: This ties in SO well with where we are in class at the moment. I've done some research on Morton's and was wondering if I could share your experience with the class (or at least the teacher). I'd leave your name and journal address private if you wished. There's no bonus marks involved for me, I'm just one of these medically curious people :)

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Feel free to share this with whomever might benefit! One of the reasons I'm writing it up is that odd feeling of "just in case someone else I know goes through this one day".

If you like, I'll go back and unlock some of my old posts about what we tried first -- anti-inflammatory injections when it was misdiagnosed as metatarsalgia/capsulitis, physical therapy, orthotic inserts. Or if you're just interested in the injections, all that stuff's probably unlocked already.

[emmera.livejournal.com]

I appreciate the sharing! Whatever you feel comfortable sharing...
My teacher has a habit of not answering questions some days in the hopes that we'll go out and look things up ourselves... it almost always works on me so here I am :)
I've always been medically nosey.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

I just got caught up on adding lots of old schtuff to my LJ "memories", and if you want to take a look at (or share with your class if you like) anything related to my foot pain, it's under footpain. There's a lot of fluff. August 4th is my first real post about the alcohol injections.

I'm so organized I could just slap myself. :-)