The next phase of healing in the Broken Ankle Saga began last week with my first visit to the physical therapist. The boot is still on and will be until early April, but I’m walking without crutches and I’m cleared to drive (after taking the boot off of course).
Both of these things are huge. It feels good to be able to put my full weight on my right foot again, and losing the crutches makes it a lot easier to get around. It also makes it possible to carry things — coffee, snacks, computers— from room to room. That’s something I took for granted before the crutches, and now that I’m off them I treasure the ability to get my own beer.
Stairs, while still challenging, are much easier (and faster) to climb, which opens up the possibility of returning to my Game Room (and office) on the third floor. The kids aren’t thrilled about that as they’d gotten used to not having to share that space, but hey, it’s my office. They’ll adjust.
After two months of relying on friends and family for rides, being able to drive the Jeep is fantastic. I picked up my comics for the first time in weeks — including X-Men: Red #1, which features the return of the original Jean Grey. I also drove to work on Thursday and Friday.
It’s slow going and I need to be careful not to overdo it … but I am going.
This is all good and it’s transformed my day-to-day, but it’s physical therapy that I’m most excited about. I had my initial evaluation at Robbins Rehabilitation on Friday and got my first round of exercises. I’ve done physical therapy twice before — once for an impinged ulnar nerve, and a second time for a shoulder injury — so I know the drill. I also know how much it can help with returning to normal function and that’s what has me excited. It’s entirely realistic that I can get back to 30 minutes of exercise a day (as measured by my watch), which is a goal I haven’t hit since December 29.
I’m still months away from hiking, running, and swimming but I can see the path that will lead me there … and I’ve taken my first few steps along it.