Ask Lemmy

Do your physical therapy. All of it. Its not fun in the short term but will become something you don't remember doing and you'll heal much faster

It'll be fine. Surgery is neat. If they put you under, one second you are awake and counting backwards... and then you are suddenly waking up.

The most important thing is do exactly what they tell you... especially any and all rehab afterward. Take the rehab seriously, because if you shirk it, you are very likely pay for that for the rest of your life.

Do the work after the surgery. Don’t skip or be lazy with recovery. Do the work. You will not regret it.

DO. YOUR. PHYSICAL. THERAPY.

If you have any books you've been putting off on reading, nows the time to start.

You are going to be on some heavy painkillers for a little while. Really not a big deal, just remember no matter how you feel good/bad, ect. You thinking will be a little off. Don't make any real decisions and don't worry if your mood is weird. Just ride it out for a little bit and the cone back to your self.

Only real thing I regret when I broke my leg was not using a cane after crutches. Didn't realize using the crutches too long led to my fibula reattaching incorrectly and breaking again a year later randomly as I was walking.

Do what they tell you, to recover. The surgeon looks bad if you get a bad outcome, so they've truly got your best interest at heart. Don't cut corners!

Ask for the heated blanket. Tell them if you're nervous (they have drugs for that!) and try to relax. The worst part is over (breaking the damn things) and soon you'll have a cool scar.

Don't skip your post surgery PT. Your PT sessions have a huge impact on the outcome and can mean the difference between full recovery or being a gimp for life.

Eat lots of protein while you're healing. Your body needs protein to repair the damage caused by the accident and the surgery, without it you will be so devoid of energy, you'll wonder if you're dying after simple tasks like tying your shoes.

Don't lose heart, recovery can be long, but it does get better.

You'll feel helpless for a while. It sucks.

But there will be a point in a year or two, where you actually make it a day or two without even remembering your injury. That's how you know you made it through to the other side.

You'll get there friend! I broke a small bone in my wrist a few years back - required many surgeries and i went a long time without being able to do the things i loved. My wrist isn't perfect, but I have my life and activities back. You'll get there, be patient and kind to yourself through the process. I definitely had moments where I wanted to define myself as "broken" - but your body is just a vessel. You're gonna be OK.

Surgery as others have said is a quick in and out and it's fixed. Be sure you have your therapy afterwards planned and ready to go. Not every physical therapist has appointments ready the moment you leave the hospital. Also make sure your employer, health insurance or whatever applies keeps you financially afloat while you aren't able to work. Have a plan for reentering the workforce.

I triple broke my ankle last year, so let me tell you it sucks tremendously.

Depending on the severity of your fracture you will be spending a couple months on crutches, and then up to a year doing physical therapy to restore mobility and the lost muscle and circulatory function in your leg(s).

As for the surgery itself, my ankle was broken in three places and basically turned around 180 degrees, so in a first surgery my foot and leg were fixated using metal rods that were pierced through my ankle and screwed into my shin bone, to allow the swelling to reduce.

Then some days later, the external fixture got removed again and the foot was placed and fixated in an orthopedic boot, a modern version of plaster casts that can be removed intermittently.

Now, almost 18 months later I am still not completely done, because the third surgery to remove leftover metal elements in my leg has caused the massively scarred area to heal very poorly, causing a fucking antibiotics resistant infection in the wound as well.

In short, you have my sympathies, it fucking sucks so much.

It's completely normal to be nervous.

You have more power than you think – you can ask people to pause during the lead up and post-op times, ask questions that you want, tell them your concerns.

Find lots of good media and other entertainment that makes you laugh!

Have a great recovery !

I triple broke my ankle in my youth. It was clean so doctor only had to pull and reposition the parts, didn’t have to operate.

Crutches for 8 weeks, you’ll never have so strong lower arms again. In winter so got ice spikes that you flipped down on the crutches when you go outside. Felt like a cool weapon. I could outrun a lot of people down the stairs and on ice.

Got all the cute girls to sign their name on the platter cast.

Wasn’t too bad! Itching under the cast was really annoying. At one place the cast had been too tight on the skin so skin was rotting. Leg was a thin slivered pathetic version of its former self. It’s insane how much you lose from such a short time. It’s fine now though.

Good luck!