post op day 66 - tissue trauma

Energy level: good
Pain level: 0 for non weight bearing
                4 for 30% weight bearing

My soft tissue has been traumatized.


This is the explanation that Dr. D gives for my lack of progress.

I was “supposed” to be walking on one crutch by now, but it is just too painful for me.

This might be a good place to emphasize that the “progress rate” is my schedule – not the doctor’s. He’s been very evasive about the whole time line because there isn’t one for soft tissue recovery. I want to be top in my class in this recovery competition! It is difficult to measure where I should be in this whole process when there are no concrete expectations.

He uses a bomb analogy (complete with outstretched arm gestures) to describe the shock waves that destroyed far beyond ground zero – the bone fracture is only the tip of the iceberg. Ground zero has completely recovered; the issue at hand is the fallout from the massive shock wave that impacted the surrounding bone and soft tissue.

More discouraging news: there is no time line for soft tissue recovery. Bone has a tried and true track record for recovery. Soft tissue is another matter. Furthermore, pain is subjective. He cannot tell me much I should grit my teeth to get though certain weight bearing exercises. It is up to me to determine the threshold.

On the plus side, even the maximum pressure I can muster can’t do any more damage.


The best comfort he can offer is to say that 66 days is still early in the overall recovery time frame. Maximum medical recovery – or “as good as it gets” – is typically 9 – 12 months.


The “shock wave” explanation calls into question my original theory about the accident. The best I’ve been able to contrive for a pulled apart bone and an intact Achilles tendon is: too much tension at high speed; G-forces pulled on the Achilles tendon and instead of detaching, the tendon pulled the bone apart.

Now, the only hypothesis that can absorb the shock waves is that I hit something hard at high speeds – the speed equivalent of falling a few stories and landing on my heel. Granted I was skiing like a madwoman that morning, but I had just finished 10 smooth laps on that circuit and I don’t recall any bumps that I had previously swerved to avoid.

This is one mystery that may never be solved.