The Penguin Walk

After ten months of recuperating from my broken ankle and still having a slight limp I was looking forward to  being able to have my normal walk back. Last night sent me into a tail spin of regression. I thought I had barely hit my toe, but it is swollen and may be changing color. My stubbed toe hurts more than my ankle ever did. A nurse friend advised me to place cotton balls on either side of the injured toe and tape all three toes together. I followed her advice and now I can walk a bit better but the pain is still there. I may need to get into my pain pill stash. The pills were sent to me for my ankle, yet I never needed them. It's funny how pain from my toe has shoved everything to do with my ankle aside!

In texting with my daughter, she suggested I may need to wear high top boots. "Your poor feet," she wrote, it seems as if they get hurt a lot." I agree. When I dropped a magazine holder on my toe and the nail floated in a bed of blood, I had to drive myself to the emergency room at the hospital. They sewed my nail back on and told me a new nail would grow underneath the sewed on nail. It sounds awful but there was no pain with that episode.

The more I think about it, I may have to get me a full body armour or at the very least, boots that reach to my thighs.  My knees have taken a few falls in the past, and now that I am older, I certainly do not want to break any more bones.

I notice that my walk has now changed into something like a penguin would walk in slow motion. I am using my heels more instead of my whole foot. I cannot wear shoes and even my Birkenstock sandals bother my toe. About the only thing I can do is sit in front of my lap top, sit on the couch or relax in bed. It seems as if I've reverted back to square one!  What next? is a question I am asking myself.