Back on the Court

48 weeks, 4 days post-op



Before I forget, I wanted to tell my faithful followers (is anyone still reading this?) about my return to volleyball.

November 22
Played 2 matches back row. Accidentally jumped and did a back row attack which went over, and was not legal because I was playing libero. But, the ref didn't notice. I was excited! Our team didn't even make it to playoffs :(

December 6
Played libero and a couple of games front row. We got 2nd place. I think I lost my serving muscles...

December 13
Played libero and a couple of games front row. We got 2nd place.

January 3
Played front row only and was mostly just taking up space on the court. Slow! I think we got second in the tournament?

January 24
Played front row only. We got 1st place in A.

February 7
Played all the way around, the entire day. We got 2nd in the tournament, lost in the finals to Carnival Ride. I ran out of gas by the last match.

So, that's it. I guess I can't remember many details, but I am looking forward to playing all the way around from now on. I am still working on my vertical (I can't jump as high, or hang in the air as long), my quickness, and my stamina. My hitting shoulder has also been hurting - weird, I thought it would get better after 9 months of rest. Anyway, my team has been really supportive and great for letting me come back slowly. Stay tuned for more, we are getting ready for Nationals this year which is in Minneapolis.

Significant Achilles Moments

30 weeks, 2 days post-op

#1
I went for a bike ride yesterday and felt that my seat was really low. I finally stopped at my turn-around point and noticed it was all the way down! I moved it up to full height. Since my surgery I've been keeping the bike seat low enough that I could touch the ground with my feet while seated - I didn't have the calf strength to stand on the pedal and push off. Well, now I do!

#2
While planning my outfit for "going out" I tried on my first pair of sort of high heels since surgery - my gold cowboy boots. I walked around in them for a while but the didn't quite feel right. I think I'm destined to wear flats for a while longer.

#3
We were watching Season 4 of Oz the other night. It's an HBO prison show that aired in 2001. Anyway... there was a staff vs. prisoners basketball game. One of the Correctional Officers was an extremely good basketball player, a scout came to watch him, and told him to come try out for some NBA team. Well the prisoners had bets on the game so they all jumped this CO. There was a big brawl and I saw a knife and his foot and I knew exactly what they were going to do. They sliced his Achilles. I started bawling.

And of course my husband had fallen asleep so he couldn't comfort me and then when he woke up he rewound it - I covered my eyes. I think my fellow ATR friends will know what I felt like - all the pain came flooding back. So, watch Oz at your own risk.

#4
Went for my first hiking trip since surgery at Minnehaha Falls. I played it pretty safe and didn't go climbing off the trails but it was fun.

#5
I had a dream that I played my first volleyball game since surgery. I think it went pretty well, I can't really remember.

Stay tuned for more, it looks like I'm averaging about one blog per month here.

6 Months!

27 weeks, 2 days post-op

Ok so it is a little after six months. I'm busy! You can tell you're getting better when your blogging starts to taper off.

I am doing well. My tendon feels pretty good most of the time. It still gets a little sore and swollen at times. My jogging has gotten better and faster - not so peg legged anymore. I got a new bike and have been biking 10.5 miles to work and back 2-3 times per week. I do my physical therapy exercises pretty regularly - I'd say about 5 times per week. My calf raises are getting better and I feel like my calf is getting stronger.

I think I'm ready to head to the gym and start peppering with a... volleyball! If I can find mine... it's been so long. I have been playing a little sand volleyball on Wii. I've found that Wii games are really good rehab.

Update on the house
We didn't get it. We scheduled closing 4 times and 4 times the seller came up with some reason to cancel it. We finally found out that he owed the lumber company a bunch of money and would only be able to pay off half of that from the sale of a house. Since they had a lien on the house they wouldn't sign off on the deal. So... finally they canceled the purchase agreement. We got a new realtor and we are still looking for a house. We really like our new realtor, and we got locked into a new interest rate that is almost a point lower than before. So, we lucked out.

Ultrasound
I found an interesting article on ultrasound - I had one a couple of months after surgery and they found a blod clot in my leg. Maybe one of these days I'll create an index of the more important posts - the preparations for surgery, the complications (pressure sore, blood clot), etc.

Run, Bri, Run!

21 weeks, 6 days post-op

Last PT Appointment
I had my last PT appointment yesterday. She did the (still painful) soft tissue massage (and said there were some undissolved stitches working their way out)... asked how things were going. Well, they're going great - I've been riding my bike to work, going for 3 mile walks, I went to my first SPIN class (it was difficult to stand up on the bike but I think it is good for building my calf muscle), I can go down stairs pretty normally, etc.

She had me do some jogging on the trampoline and some single calf raises - she was impressed. She had me try some jumps - forward and back and side to side. My tendon felt fine doing this but my bad foot didn't quite remember what to do. We looked at the exercises I had been doing and she starred the ones I need to focus on. She added light jogging and plyometrics exercises.

I guess with my insurance I only get 20 physical therapy sessions a year, and this was #15. So they're not really kicking me to the curb. I can call if I have any questions and I still can come in if I need to. She even gave me a t-shirt for graduation, woo hoo.

Daily Exercises
Gastroc Stretch
Step Down
Side Steps
Grapevine
Walking backwards
Toe push off walking
Walking on toes
One Foot Balance
Hip leg lifts
Hip leg raise
Bilateral Heel Raise
Heel Lift with Eccentric Loading
Single Heel Raise, eccentric loading
Plyometrics - forward and back
Plyometrics - side to side
Plyometrics - diagonals
Massage/Vitamin E

T-Shirts
AchillesBlog came out with a t-shirt and Dennis sent me one for free as a thanks for helping with the Marathon Tracker. Thanks! You made my day!

First Jog
Today I went for my first jog. It felt great! I almost cried I was was so happy - which is quite a change from how I used to view exercise, especially running. My injured leg is still weak so it was kind of a limp jog, but it was still a jog. I went around the lake, about 3 miles, walking and jogging.

Back to Volleyball
My PT said about 9 months to be back to volleyball so we're looking at December 1 people!

I'll post some photos soon...

Getting Better...

17 weeks, 5 days post-op

I had my 12th physical therapy appointment today. I was able to do some one legged calf raises, leaning on the bar, and my PT was quite impressed. She told me to keep working on them one legged, because it's difficult to not "cheat" and let the good leg do all the work. I've been doing single calf raises in the pool, which I think has helped a lot. I stand at about 3 feet deep and I can do a full calf raise with only my left foot.

Since I only have two PT appointments left, she suggested I spread them out and come in every two weeks instead of every week. I love this idea (I was a little nervous about stopping PT). I'm supposed to do my shuffle steps in the pool also, and basically continue the exercises I have been doing - really trying to build the calf muscle. I'm supposed to focus on really pushing off the toes when I walk. I'm getting much better at going down stairs, just that last little bit of strength and flexibility is what I need. At the beginning of August I can start to try running. She said a couple of times that my body will tell me what I'm ready for.

I have been biking for longer and longer distances. If I had an odometer I'd tell you exactly how far, but I don't. I ride for about an hour and try to go farther down the Trail each time I ride.

We went to the Twins game on the 4th of July. I realized my walking has gotten a lot faster. Also, we got to our seats and see this guy sitting behind us with a black Bledsoe boot on his left foot and crutches below his seat. Yep, you guessed it - he tore his Achilles. Playing softball. I told him to check out AchillesBlog.

First Volleyball Tournament

Watching, not playing! They even let me into the players tent, thanks Sonia!




Here's an update on the scar:

Get some calf strength already!

16 weeks, 3 days post-op

Today was a rough one at PT. Apparently I'm not as far as I should be with regards to calf strength. I need to push the calf raises harder, to exhaustion, and not let my beefy right leg do all the work. It was especially frustrating because I feel like I've gotten a lot stronger in the past week - I've been biking more, walking and not getting tired, etc. My flexibility is really good, so that made me feel better. Doing the gastroc stretch I'm at 30, which is about normal. With my knee bent I'm at 30, and 35 is normal. I've improved since last time, and I'd tell you how much but I forgot! I have 3 more PT sessions before they set me loose, so go calf muscle go!

I have been biking for about 40 minutes at a time, in higher and higher gears (I keep it low enough so my injured leg can contribute equally). I've been walking more - I no longer need to analyze the amount of walking in a given activity to decide whether I should do it or not.

A friend from college was in town - Angela and her boyfriend. It was fun to hang out with them, we went to Grand Ole Creamery and walked up and down Grand (see previous comment about walking).

I went to my first sand volleyball tournament this weekend. It was a lot of fun to see my friends and to catch up. It was a little weird to be there and not be playing. I realized one good thing about being injured and not playing sand volleyball: my toenails stay painted a lot longer. I think I'd rather play :) I fielded the question, "Why aren't you playing today?" a couple of times, to which I replied with a showing of my scar.

My handicap pass expired. Not that I really need it anymore, but it was convenient for meter parking downtown.

We did not close on the house. The seller was trying to back out of the deal so we gave him 30 more days and offered a little more on the closing costs. We'll see what happens.

When I need a good laugh, I can always look at the pictures below - taken on my husband's cell phone in the pre-op room. I look like an old lady!