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Tag Archive for Ankle Surgery Preparation

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How Long Does It Take a Broken Ankle to Heal? 3 Tips For a Speedy Recovery

Suffering from a broken ankle can be an excruciating experience. No matter how it occurred – hey, even if it happened when you were wearing those dangerous six-inch platform heels on an icy winter night – healing a broken ankle should be your primary concern. After all, you don’t want to spend all of your time indoors recovering…you want to get out and enjoy life like you used to do.

 

Unfortunately, rushing your broken ankle to heal is one of the worst things you can do for your injury. Your ankle needs a great amount of time to heal, and if you push it before its ready, you could risk re-injuring yourself again. Typically, it takes a broken ankle about six to eight weeks. Therefore, if you want to help your broken ankle heal, you might want to consider taking the following steps:

1. Take a good hard look at your diet. It’s safe to say that if you’re filling up on junk food, you’re not getting the nutrients your body needs to efficiently heal your broken ankle. To give your body a kick-start, consider taking a calcium and magnesium supplement. The calcium is crucial for building strong bones, while the magnesium helps your body absorb all of the calcium. You can find these supplements at drugstores everywhere.

2. Give yourself time to rest. We know it can be boring just hanging out on your couch day after day; however, if you want to speed up your broken ankle healing time, you need to cut yourself some slack. Turn your recovery time into productive time by working from home, starting a blog, or learning a new skill like designing websites.

3. Isolate your broken ankle as much as possible. Instead of using crutches – which come with the risk of bumping your broken ankle – consider using a knee walker instead. This handy mobility device isolates your ankle and makes it easier to move around. You can’t get that kind of promise from a wooden mobility device that causes armpit blisters (ugh).

It can take a few months for a broken ankle to heal, so use these tips to ensure that your broken ankle recovery is a speedy one.

 

Category: After Surgery Recovery | Tags: , , , , , ,
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What to Consider Before Ankle Surgery: Prepping Your Bunker

The big day’s looming – and your ankle is practically twinging with anticipation. You’ve been hobbling around with an ankle injury for so long, you can’t even remember a time when you could run without encountering a problem (or strut down the sidewalk when you see someone cute – busted!). It’s so bad that you almost can’t wait to get yourself on the operating table so you can start taking those “steps” toward recovery (yes, pun intended).

But before you practically throw yourself at your surgeon, you need to seriously prepare yourself for the upcoming months of recovery. Think of it as prepping your home as a recovery bunker – and Doomsday (aka your ankle surgery) is about to arrive!

Prepare Your Home For Ankle Recovery Invasion: You’re about to be laid out by a serious ankle disability – and you need to prepare your “bunker” for an invasion of ankle recovery! To do this, stock up on prepared meals that can be cooked with just the touch of a button (seriously, what did people do before microwaves?). You may also want to consider having a friend or family member come check on you after work to see if you need any assistance with meal preparations.

Part of building a successful bunker involves making sure it’s comfy. So stock up on pillows, make sure that you have plenty of outlets for your phone and computer by the couch or bed, and make sure you have plenty of entertainment on hand (recommendation: re-watch the entire Lost series. Seriously, you won’t even notice the first weeks of recovery).

Make Your Bunker As Safe As Possible: A good bunker is a safe bunker – and with your ankle recovery in mind, you want to ensure that you eliminate all tripping hazards. Kiss your loose rugs good-bye, tell your kids to pick up their toys, and install nightlights in every room so you have a clear view of where you’re going at night.

Prepare Your Bathroom For Your Disabled Ankle: You may want to stay on the couch forever once you’ve managed to get yourself there, but like it or not, you’ll eventually need to move to go to the bathroom. Make sure that all rugs are firmly affixed to the floor. Buy a non-slip bathmat for the shower, and place a stool in the shower so you can sit while bathing yourself.

Get Your Knee Walker Ahead of Time: No one likes to wait for a package to be delivered – and NO ONE likes to do that while struggling with ankle recovery! That’s why we recommend that you get your knee walker before your actual ankle surgery. This way, you can test out the model, get used to the feeling of this mobility device, and feel comfortable with using it by the time the day of your ankle surgery rolls around.

Now that you’re bunker is prepped, you’re ready to spend your next few months retiring and nursing your ankle back to health!

Category: After Surgery Recovery, Ankle Surgery Recovery, knee scooter, Knee Walkers, Mobility Options, Non Weight Bearing Products | Tags: , , ,
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Healing an Ankle Fracture as Fast as Possible

Whether you’ve been injured at home or on the job (or during an embarrassing night out with friends in your favorite pair of sky-high heels), rehabilitating on the couch or in bed might initially seem like a fun idea. But as the days pass by and you start to run out of television to watch, you suddenly feel like you’re coming down with a case of cabin fever. You want to your ankle fracture to heal as quickly as possible – and you’re looking for the best ways to do exactly that.

The good news is that there are ways you can optimize your ankle fracture healing time so that you don’t encounter any delays or disruptions. However, as a general rule of thumb, you usually can’t speed up healing time – you can only help your body heal in the amount of time it needs to take.

To help your body heal an ankle fracture as fast as possible, here’s what you need to know:

Your diet can play a big difference in how well your ankle fracture heals up. If you want to get off the couch and back to your normal routine as quickly as possible, start fueling your body with calcium and magnesium. Calcium is essential for bone health, so start chugging that milk or taking a supplement. Magnesium helps the body absorb more calcium, so look for a supplement that combines these two powerful minerals.

Follow your physical therapy right down to the last instruction. Many people end up accidentally delaying their healing because they don’t listen to their physical therapists or do all of the exercises and stretches at home. These exercises are given to you for a reason, so be sure that you do your stretches whenever you’re instructed to.

Choose a mobility option that decreases the likelihood that you’ll get injured again. Knee walkers also called knee scooters minimize the chances that you’ll trip over loose objects or bump your foot when you’re out and about.

If you use these tips, you’ll be surprised at just how quickly your ankle fracture will heal!

Category: After Surgery Recovery, Ankle Surgery Recovery, Knee Walkers | Tags: , , ,
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Ankle Fusion Recovery Preparation Checklist

When it comes to ankle fusion recovery, you want to ensure that you’re properly prepared. While the idea of laying on the couch and watching endless amounts of television might seem like the ideal situation, the truth is that you’ll need to prepare your house and your office for your limited mobility.

After all, it might be a blast to hang around and watch TV, but it won’t be so much fun when you can barely crawl into bed or reach your food on the top shelf of your kitchen cabinet!

With this in mind, we here at Knee Walker Central have outlined the exact steps you need to take to prepare yourself for ankle fusion recovery. So grab a cup of coffee, sit back, and discover what you need to know about preparing for life after your ankle fusion:

  • Move all of the loose carpets and rugs around the house. Since you’ll have limited mobility, you don’t want to run the risk of accidentally tripping on the carpet.
  • Since you’ll be limited in how much you can move, you may want to consider preparing a batch of food that can get you through the first few days of your ankle fusion recovery. This way, you won’t have to make those annoying trips to the grocery store or fumble around your kitchen just to make dinner. Microwavable meals are a great option here.
  • Get yourself a knee walker! A knee walker – or a knee scooter – can make it much easier for you to get around the house or your office. Your insurance may even cover the purchase of the mobility device. Get in contact with your insurance company before the ankle fusion procedure to see what you need to do to get coverage.
  • Let your family members and friends know that you won’t be able to move around as much after your ankle fusion. By asking your family for help after your procedure, you can help determine how to handle normal household activities. Additionally, letting your boss know that your mobility will be limited can help him or her determine your workload for the next few weeks.

Use this preparation checklist to make sure that your ankle fusion recovery goes smoothly!

Category: After Surgery Recovery, Ankle Surgery Recovery, Crutch Alternatives, Knee Walkers, Mobility Options | Tags: , , ,
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How to Elevate Your Broken Ankle – WITHOUT Pain

If there’s one piece of advice that everyone seems to be tossing your way, it’s this pearl of wisdom: always elevate your broken ankle. Your doctor stressed it to you. Your mom called you up to tell you. Even your former college roommate sent you a Facebook message to tell you that you should always elevate your broken ankle.

While you appreciate the well-wishes and good intentions, there’s no denying that there’s one big issue surrounding your elevated broken ankle…

How can you elevate your broken ankle without experiencing any pain?

Hey, we get it. Lugging around a massive cast or boot is a pain in the tuckus. Add to the fact that you have to lift that heavy leg and place it on a pillow to elevate it, and it’s no wonder more people experience unpleasant jolts of pain whenever they elevate their ankles.

Fortunately, this article will help highlight how to elevate your broken ankle without pain. But first, let’s talk about why you need to elevate your foot in the first place. Raising your foot slightly above your heart can help reduce swelling, as it minimizes the amount of blood that’s being directed to your foot. This not only makes your broken ankle much more comfortable, but it can also aid in the healing process. When your muscles aren’t swelled, they’re busy repairing themselves.

Now that you know why you should elevate your broken ankle, let’s focus on how to do it with minimum pain:

The secret to elevating your foot with minimum pain is to find the perfect pillow. Avoid soft and feathery pillows, and instead invest in a pillow that’s firm and supportive (memory foam is an excellent choice here). If possible, invest in a king-size pillow, as this gives you plenty of space to move in case you need to roll over to grab something.

Place the pillow under the knee, which will cause your foot to rise up. If you place the pillow under your foot, this will place a considerable amount of stress on your knee.

If you’re sleeping in an elevated position (helpful hint: you should be!), then you’ll want to use adhesive tape to secure the pillow to the mattress. Make four to eight loops with the tape, secure it to the mattress, and then place the pillow on top. This will prevent the pillow from moving around in your sleep.

These tips should help you rest and sleep with an elevated foot – without the annoying pain!

Category: After Surgery Recovery, Ankle Surgery Recovery | Tags: , , , , , , ,
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The Ultimate Ankle Surgery Preparation Checklist

When you know you’re about to walk into a hospital to have major surgery performed on your ankle, you might only be focused on one thing: imaging what life will be like after you have your ankle surgery.

If you’ve never had ankle surgery before, then you might think that your life will be on pause for the next few months. And in a way, it will be. You’ll definitely have to get used to moving around your home and office. You may have to find new modes of transportation because your ankle cast prevents you from driving around. And you may even have to put those beach vacation plans on hold – after all, no one deserves the torture of getting sand in their cast!

But if you think that life after ankle surgery will be grim and miserable, take heart: if you prepare for the surgery, recovery can be relaxing, hassle-free and – dare we say it? – even enjoyable.

So if you want to breeze through your ankle surgery recovery time, you need to make the most of ankle surgery preparation. Luckily for you, we have a checklist that will put an end to any questions you might have.

Read on, take note, and start your preparations – and you may even actually enjoy your ankle surgery recovery time!

1. Transportation to and from your home, as well as the hospital. You may know that you need someone to drive you back from the hospital, but what about all those times you need to run errands or go to work? Work out a carpool plan with a generous coworker or enlist a family member to drive you around when you need to run errands. Try to limit the amount of activity you’ll need to do directly after your ankle surgery, as you may not be ready to deal with transportation and mobility a week after your procedure.

2. Preparing healthy meals before your ankle surgery. Let’s face it – the last thing you want to do when you groggily stumble back from your procedure is to deal with cooking a meal in the kitchen. If you live alone, consider cooking up a massive batch of meals ahead of time. You may want to make a massive pot of pasta, bake a pound of chicken breast, and cook up various sauces. Buy pre-made salads, boiled eggs, and granola for easy-peasy breakfasts and lunches.

3. Call up your insurance company to ask how much of your prescriptions, follow-up appointments, and mobility devices will be covered by your plan. Be sure to get an exact outline of how they’ll cover these expenses and what your responsibilities will be. After all, you don’t want to encounter any nasty financial surprises when you discover that your prescriptions cost as much as a weekly paycheck.

4. Get your chosen mobility device well ahead of your ankle surgery procedure; in fact, if possible, we suggest that you leave at least a few days between receiving your mobility device and the procedure. That way, you have enough time to accommodate for potential late deliveries and any mistakes by your insurance company.

5. Splash out on movies, TV shows, and other forms of entertainment. Let’s face it – you’re going to be stuck on the couch for more than a few weeks. Make it an enjoyable time by catching up on your favorite shows, movies, and reading a few books on your must-read list!

When it comes to ankle surgery preparation, you don’t have to go in blind. Use this checklist to ensure that your recovery time will be a restful and relaxing one.

Category: After Surgery diet, After Surgery Recovery, Ankle Surgery Recovery, Crutch Alternatives, knee scooter, Knee Walkers | Tags: , , , , ,