I am back at the hospital today to change my drain that’s been leaking the last couple of days. I didn’t think much about recovery after surgery and in part it’s been quick, but quite slow in other aspects. Four days ago I got the last stitches taken out of my toe, but the part around the sentinel lymph nodes near my groin has been a slow process. I had stitches there, but last week they were removed due to the beginning of an infection. I was put on a course of antibiotics and the wound was opened and a drain was attached. Until then, the liquid was trapped underneath the skin and caused a large bulge from the accumulation. That liquid was removed at the hospital and I would need to do it every couple of days. It meant spending as many hours as possible with my legs raised up to help my body absorb these fluids naturally.

Since the drain was attached and I started antibiotics, the liquid is captured in a bag and it seems to be speeding the healing process. It’s also allowed me to work more which is a topic for another post about working under these conditions when I should be resting – but that’s what you get when you work for yourself. When I thought about people that have bags glued to their body for strange fluids, it always made me feel quite squeamish and now I have one myself! It’s actually no that bad. It’s a bag attached to an adhesive that is glued over your wound and has a little plug for you to empty it out. When they attach it, they put a metallic mesh in the wound which is made of silver nitrate or something, that prevents infection and helps the liquid flow out.

Looking forward to not having a bag on my leg and to start recovering and learning to walk again. I thought losing the toe was no big deal, but it is. I get really tired from walking and my feet and legs hurt probably because I am compensating incorrectly. I have tried to read up about people in my condition that have lost a toe and what their recovery was like, but didn’t find anything. I have read that losing a toe does not impede you from walking, but it doesn’t say if you will walk again without limping. The thought of running seems like an impossibility at the moment. It feels like the remaining toes are just too fragile to take the weight and feel like they will snap if I bend them. I guess it is all a question of time, but I will be very happy if I get to run again!