Another Chapter of Reconstruction

I woke up in the recovery room with a definite feeling of "deja vu." I've been here before. I know that I've been here before. I was handed the control to a pain pump and instructed how to use it. I soon came to realize where I was and why I was there. I was in Texas Orthopedic Hospital in Houston. Although it was a slightly different hospital setting, the surroundings were familiar. Indeed, the familiar recall was on target. After having so many foot surgeries, I decided that this one hurt no more and definitely no less than any previous foot surgery. Aside from having a brutal headache, the pain pump was doing its job. Unfortunately, the more I pushed that button, the worse my headache became. I later came to believe that the headache was an unfortunate reaction to the pain medication.  Just my luck!


The doctor came in while I was still in a stupor and, from our short visit, I gleaned that the surgery had not been simple. He had found more problems than he expected and therefore had done much more repair work than expected. 


It wasn't until later, when I read the surgical report, that I realized the extent of the surgery. In all, there were about nine separate procedures which resulted in seven incisions. It still amazes me that there could be so many problems in such a small space. And yet, I know how acutely I felt the ever-increasing pain. There was clear evidence of why my foot hurt so badly as well as full realization that the longer I waited, the worse the foot had become. 


Without going into the whole surgical report, he did bone repair in several places. He removed bone spurs and repaired recurring bunions and straightened toes. He placed plates and pins into the foot to support the bone work he had done. But, if anything, the bone work was less important (to me anyway) than the work done within the incision at the bottom of my foot. This was the location of the "stump neuroma" which is from the neuroma that had already been repaired three times. Each time, the latest procedure was used, but the nerves "re-sprouted" and acted as live wires inside the bottom of my feet, often causing unbearable pain.

For those of you who are not familiar with the word "neuroma," it is basically a tumor that forms from nerve tissue. I'm not sure about neuroma formation in other parts of the body, but formation in the foot usually begins with something called "Morton's Neuroma." It is my understanding that the neuroma usually forms at the nerve center in the third web space. In other words, between the bones leading to the third and fourth toe. When the foot is squeezed in any way, the nerve compression painfully announces its presence. Unfortunately, that squeezing includes standing on it. As the neuroma expands and gets irritated, it is literally like standing on a toothache.


Under normal circumstances, the neuroma is removed and the nerve pain ceases. I had my first neuroma surgery more than 27 years ago. I went to the doctor after the pain and stinging became so bad, I actually thought there were red ants crawling and stinging my legs and feet. More than once, I pulled my car off to the side of the road to try to swat the red ants away.


At the time, the doctor chose to repair both feet at once. Since there was no internet at the time (yes people, there was life before internet!), I went to the library to research the options. The research revealed that this was mostly experienced by runners. But it could also be caused by wearing ill fitting shoes and high heels. Okay, none of those causes applied to me. I have no idea why my feet decided to sprout these awful tumors when I was in my 20s and 30s yet they were mine to deal with.  In any case, surgery was only called for in extreme cases and runners could be back running within six weeks. Once the surgery was inevitable, the recovery time was reasonable. I had no reason to expect that my feet would bot be "cured" within a few weeks. Wouldn't that have been great?


What followed were many years of pain. I didn't matter what kind of shoes I wore, my feet were at issue no matter where we went. A trip to the zoo or a Mardi Gras parade were impossibly painful.


So fast forward to the recovery room where I provided living proof that neuromas in the foot are not necessarily an easy cure. In the end, I felt that I had "given birth" in the bottom of my foot. Not only did he have to repair the original stump neuroma, but also he found a new one that had to be repaired.  Additionally, there were ganglion cysts and what he called "ganglion material" that was wrapping around the already strangled nerves. Did I mention the feeling of "standing on a toothache?"

Thus began the current healing process for my right foot. Once it is "well," I will have similar surgery on my left foot. Although I am not looking forward to another surgery and difficult recovery, I am eager to have both feet absent of all these painful appendages. I am ready to have normal feet. I am ready to go dancing again!