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I had surgery on May 8th to begin the medial (inside) tibeal plateau repair. That side alone took twelve screws and a plate to put back together. My doc said the other side "shouldn't be as bad" which are famous last words. On May 12th, they went in to do the lateral (outside) plateau repair. They found quite a bit of damage that wasn't seen on the X-ray or CT scan. They managed to put it back together with some unknown quantity of screws (at least as many as the other side), two plates and he said something about some wire. So the total count is somewhere around 25-30 screws, three plates and some safety wire.
I was in the hospital for about a week which was one of the most miserable experiences of my life. I was so heavily medicated to control the pain that I was like a zombie. I was on 3mg dilaudid every three hours, and 1mg ativan every six hours. Both IV. To say I was high is an understatement. I've never been a user of drugs. But I really don't understand the appeal of the high. It was a horrible feeling. It helped with the pain, but the rest of it wasn't enjoyable. That being said, after coming home and withdrawing from it, I know why people are afraid of the withdrawal. My skin felt like it was on fire for three or four days. It would itch, feel like a horrible sunburn that never got better. To be honest, it brought on a level of pain all its own.
I've been home a week on Friday. We got to start PT on Sunday and I'm not friends with my therapist. She's very good at what she does, but that means bringing me some pain. She comes out to the house pretty much daily. I'm still on long acting pain meds, but I manage the dose and I've cut back a little on those. I don't want to fall behind with PT going on. And the meds for breakthrough pain I'm pretty much off of. Next week when I go to my follow up on Wednesday, the dressing should come off. That alone will make me feel like a new guy she says. I won't have the resistance of the dressing working against me for range of motion, and mentally it won't look so broken she says. She's also hoping the orders get changed from passive stretches to active. Of course once again, that means more pain. But at the same time it means more range of motion.
Boredom is my biggest enemy right now. There's only so much TV that you can watch. And I'm not a big TV guy to begin with. I still need someone to help me into and out of bed since I don't have the strength to secure my leg myself and pull it into bed. We are working on those steps towards independence. To help pass the time and give me something to do, I did order an rc car and truck. I used to enjoy them. And I figure it'll let me build them slowly at my pace and by the time I get them built, I should be mobile enough to get out and play a bit. But the big thing was to find a way to engage my head into something.
The struggle is real and continues. I have some days that are better than others. Some days are frustrating since it seems like we aren't making progress at all, or it'll be a painful day. I try to keep my head up as best I can. I look forward to following the races. It's my weekly sanity.
Shane
The rc car and truck should help the boredom subside too
Thanks for all the well wishes. I don't wish this injury on anyone. Not even KBW...
Shane
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I agree on KBW. He might be a nice guy in real life, but here he's just provocative about everything and usually without good reason. I don't mind an argument or a discussion, but bring some aspect of reality and reasoning to it. I'm curious if he brought his same provocative attitude with him to thumper talk, but I'm not interested enough to sign up and find out.
I can't wait to ride again, but I think given the northeast weather pattern I won't get on the bike until next season. Potentially selling my 250 since it's the responsible thing to do. But I still have my 450 FE in the garage with a whole twenty minutes on it. Just needs a couple more things to be complete...mostly the FMF full system. One of my friends is going to clean it all up for me since I haven't been able to after getting hurt. On the upside though, at least I did get to ride my 450 before this happened. That's a small victory. I think the bike is very good, and it'll only get better as I dial it in. One of the big improvements will be here tomorrow (cone valve forks). That'll make it easier than fighting with the 4CS suspension. In the twenty minutes I did get to ride, it felt like the 4CS were inconsistent. They'd feel good one lap. The next lap they were questionable in the same section. Most tuners I've talked to say the fork is well made, just flawed in design for various reasons (that part varies from tuner to tuner on the design issue). The shock though, felt like it will work pretty well, especially as it gets dialed in.
Shane
The pain got better at about two months but the foot still doesn't work correctly. It may have 30% useage. I cannot shift a motorcycle gear other that with my heal in front of the shifter. I cannot pull my toes/foot upward. There is a 50/50 shot I'm stuck with this the rest of my life. Hey, I to sold my 250 afterward. Lol. This whole experience was very depressing for me. I was non wt bearing for like 14 weeks total. It like to have driven me crazy.
I still walk with a limb and wear an afo brace to make the limp less severe. But I'm just glad I can walk again And I do hope to ride again one day. I might have to purchase an electric shifter or get me a 450 that I can just lug around and change a gear every so Often. I can downshift just fine just not click up.
By profession on am an orthopaedic RN and you are correct 3mg of dilaudid q3 hrs is a lot, then throw in the Ativan and you were really out of it.
they had me on like 40mg oxycontin twice a day with or break thru stuff. I remember them try to get me to shit and I couldn't even stay awake on the damn commode. I stopped the scheduled shit and said we will manage my pain with the prns. stay on top of your bowel function of you will get in a world of hurt you won't believe!! Lol
The pain is way more manageable now. I'm on the same 40 of oxycontin now every twelve. I've thought about backing it down, but if I do and need to go back up I know that to get caught up will take some time and a lot of pain. I'm also on oxycodone (5-15mg) every four hours for breakthrough pain. I'm pretty much off of those entirely except for PT since I know the PT will bring some pain. It seems like I can't take enough stool softeners to be able to stay regular. It's tough keeping a balance. Too much and you get too loose, but not enough by a little bit and you're back to being bound up or pushing rocks out. It's definitely a fine line.
I'm a firefighter/paramedic...so I knew all too well what the drugs they were giving me were. But the pain in the hospital was miserable. I was a bit shocked that it took such a high dose to get it under control (and I generally have a high tolerance for pain to begin with). I was definitely out of it for the most part. People came to see me, and after they saw me were surprised I could carry on a conversation since I had the "1,000 yard stare." Most of the conversations I don't recall though and I remember struggling to stay awake and focused. Sometimes I wish I didn't know exactly how the meds work and interact since it would be way easier to put my head in the sand. But I am happy that I'm pushing my way off of them sooner rather than later. And like I've mentioned...I don't understand the appeal of being high. It was a shitty feeling. But after being high all the time, I can also understand not wanting to go through the detox process since that was an equally different (but shitty) feeling as well.
Good luck in your recovery. Seems to be some injuries stacking up lately. Between here and I know local guys who have been taken out with significant injuries. Hopefully the cycle ends soon.
Shane
As far as KBW goes he was entertaining and jeffro you seem like one of the best guys on here but I would not want to hear KBWs opinions after some beers. Lol That could get bad quick.
Life goes on. I'm now out of bed more than I've been since I came home. I still can't bear weight on my leg (doctors orders). But I'm slowly feeling like more of a person and gaining more of my independence. I still need help with some things. And for smaller things I have something that wraps around my foot and gives me a handle so I can control my leg with my arm to get it to where I can control it. Definitely slower at it than I'd care to be. But a week ago, I couldn't do much of anything for myself so I'll take the progress.
PT has been a challenge. I have to do my nightly session soon. That's usually enough to take me out for a nap. But I was at 56 degrees I think on Saturday when my PT came. She's hoping for me to be at 60 tomorrow. Wednesday when the dressing comes off she's hoping it'll stay off and that alone will be good for a big jump in range of motion. I hope she's right. Maybe then I can start finding some position of comfort to sleep in. My PT is really good. She knows she's not here to be my friend. She gives me some tough love which I need. But she also has enjoyed working with me since I give her the work and effort she's looking for as well. We're "buddies" right now, not "friends." She insists by the time our work together is done for good, we will be friends. Time will tell though.
Vital is a huge help to passing the time. It's much needed. Especially when there can be some good conversation going on. It seems harder and harder to come by with some of the threads in here lately. Hopefully it turns around soon.
Shane
I had a tibia plateau fracture in 2009 from a simple over the bars crash in Georgia one winter while down on a vacation from the snows of Pennsylvania. I had the surgery to repair it down there. At that time I had no idea what I was in for. I knew it was pretty serious when the doctor talked to me about doing a knee replacement. I was 36 at the time and in great shape. I remember asking the Dr if I will be able to run again and he replied that I'll be lucky to walk right again.
I'm hoping that what I can tell you about how I recovered will help you in some form because it is a very hard injury to recover from but you will. First thing I did was get off prescription pain meds and just take aleve to help with pain as soon as I could. Also keep your mind occupied and try not to think of injury. Hopefully you have someone helping you at home. I was between chics and was living alone. The reason tpf's heal so slow is because blood flow to that area is so poor. To promote blood flow I got a large trash can and did 15 minute ice baths on whole leg as many times as I could stand a day. It makes a huge difference. Also do as much as you can to get your range of motion back. You'll thank yourself a year from now. Do everything your pt tells you to and more. The pain sucks but it will pay off. Also get on an exercise bike as soon as you can. It does 3 things: strengthens your shriveled leg, promotes blood flow and range of motion.
I don't think my injury was as severe as yours but I recovered 100% with no lingering problems. I was back shredding in about 4 months after being non weight bearing for the whole time. I started riding when doctor told me I was allowed to walk. Keep a positive attitude and I hope I was able to help you in some way.
Jim
keep your head up!!
I'm basically off the paid meds. I take one a day at night. I take gabapentin 3 times a day for the nerve pain with is all that I have ever had. Now I just get jolts of electricity shooting thru my foot. That shit will stop you in you tracks. The biggest relief I got with getting of the pain meds was getting back to taking a normal shit. I forgot to mention one of my other side effects from my hip injury. Man I had massive scrotal edema. I'm talking almost soccer ball size nut sack. This mad trying to shit even worse as you could not sit on the commode right. Man I'm glad to be back to somewhat normal.. Good luck and I'll follow your progress here. How long are you non wt bearing? That's the shit that drove me crazy.
And JMax...my doc kind of painted the same picture for me as far as knee replacement and stuff. But he also knows I have bigger goals. I'm a career firefighter/paramedic and I need to go back to work. Aside from being how I provide for my family and what I do, I'm one of those guys who truly can say I love what I do for a living. I'm not an "eat, sleep and breathe" firefighting type (I'm sure you've all seen the kind), but I don't hate my life when I'm going to work. My doc agreed that's the biggest goal and did tell me that as long as I do the work, I stand a good chance of having my life back before my injury.
I've been doing the PT. Right now we are still doing passive exercises instead of active. I go Wednesday to have the dressing removed and to follow up. We are hoping to get orders to be more aggressive with the PT at that point. I think my therapist might be looking forward to it more than I am since she smiles and says "and then we get to have fun." So far though, we've gotten to about 57 degrees with the dressing on and a week and a half (this was as of Saturday) post op. She seemed very happy with that number.
I am lucky to live with my family. My wife has had to do things for me through this that she never imagined she would be doing until we were much much older. I give her a ton of credit. She's dealt with my suffering, frustration and emotions pretty well all things considered. I couldn't have made it this far without her. The rest of the family had been a huge help as well, but she's been my rock. We went from sharing responsibility with everything to her having to deal with it all. And in the middle of it, she had to deal with getting tenants out of our rental property for not paying and getting it ready to rent again. She did it all and re rented the place while taking care of me in and out of the hospital and continuing to work. I feel bad and I apologize often because sometimes I think she forgets what it's like to be the one who is going through this. I'm stuck in bed or a chair while life continues around me. It's difficult to deal with having gone from very active to sedentary.
The faster than normal recovery is a refreshing story to hear instead of the doom and gloom ones I've heard and been told. I don't think my wife would let me ride before the doctor's ok, but I don't blame her and I have a career to think about. I'm ok with waiting for the doctor's ok. But to get my range of motion, walking and the gym back early would make me happy. That would at least get me back to "light duty" at work and then hopefully cleared for full duty quickly.
This crash still wasn't supposed to be that "bad." It's just one of those things that had everything come together. Small jump I had done literally thousands of times. Not high speed. Just the right kicker over the bars and a brutal impact somewhere. It really can happen any time and any place. Just glad it wasn't even worse.
Thanks for all the words of recovery and giving me a place to talk some moto any time of the day or night. With few exceptions, this place is filled with good people and you've all helped me along in some way! So thank you for that. Let's keep it going.
Shane
Just saw the question about how long I'm non weight bearing. Initially it was 8-12 weeks. Hoping closer to 8 weeks and I would be even happier if the first three with the external fixator count (I don't think they will since nothing was repaired at that point). But at least the clock is ticking.
As I'm sure the doctor has already told you - an improperly treated and poorly healed tibial plateau fracture can have significant long-term consequences.
Pit Row
I have been flirting a lot lately with getting a bike again, as a 41 year old and single provider for my family, this thread is a brutal reminder that sometimes it isn't worth it. Hang in there dude, it sounds like you have good doctors and a good plan to get you back on your feet.
I agree with you entirely. My injury was just "one of those things." It was the perfect storm of circumstances that came together. Could have happened in a car accident just the same.
And I do ride very much within my limits. There is no "let me try," it's either I can or I can't. But even within limits, things happen. And that's all that happened to me. I can't live my life in a bubble, nor will I. Right now the focus is on recovery so I can have my life back again.
Shane
Today was a pretty brutal PT day. She apparently got some new orders that clarified some things for her as to what we can and can't be doing. And as my luck would have it, she made these massive changes when I cut back on my pain meds. I'd rather take a pain med as needed than the constant 40mg of OxyContin that stays in my body all day. So I had cut that in half. And I'm paying for it now. Just processing that pain is part of progress. And it's all for a good reason in the end. I've already been assured there's plenty more pain to come my way if I want my old life back. At least we are traveling down the recovery road now.
Shane
After my second and third surgeries they had me on 3mg dilaudid every three hours and 1mg Ativan every six hours. They stopped that to discharge me and had me on 40mg of OxyContin twice a day, and then 5-10mg of oxycodone for "breakthrough" pain or every 4 hours. Today marks two weeks post op for me from my third surgery, and I'm down to taking the oxycodone "as needed," so mainly for PT or appointments. Today I tried to go to 20mg of OxyContin every twelve hours. I managed, but I'm definitely way more sore tonight than I previously would be. I'm not sure if it's due to the cutback on meds, the fact that my PT got different orders today so we did some different things or a combination of both.
I've never been a big fan of taking meds. They have their place and in this injury, they've been more than needed. Even my PT looked at me a little crazy for cutting back on the OxyContin asking if it was a good idea since I "still have to be able to get through her daily."
I want to return to work. That's my biggest goal right now still. Even more so than getting back on the bike. But for me to make a full return, I need to be healed and fit once again. I don't want to be a liability to myself or my guys at work. Not to mention being able to provide for my family once again will go a long way towards how I feel about things. Just wanting to do that will help me push through the pain and discomfort of whatever therapy they have planned. Hopefully at some point I'll be able to take advantage of my pool/spa and do some water therapy...but that's still a while off. I just keep trying to find positive things to look forward to and work towards. Finding and reaching small, shorter term and obtainable goals. All of those will help add up to a successful big picture.
The funny thing is when I got hurt, I never imagined it was this bad. I knew it was a tib/fib the moment it happened. I thought even if they did surgery, it wouldn't be a big deal. Man, I was wrong. This has been the injury from hell. It's worse than when I shattered my talus and broke my fib fifteen years ago (same leg ironically) racing an arenacross. I thought that was bad, but has nothing on what this is like.
Keep your head up coming out of your own hole bro. Like I said, I've never been there but I know it can't be easy. You are right about finding true friends. They're few and far. At least at the end of everything you'll know where you stand with everyone and can make some decisions at that point about how to handle it all. If you ever need a buddy...ask.
Shane
Shane
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