So many lessons learned this past two weeks with this broken foot. Ugh. What a pain, literally painful and also a big pain in the neck. I've keep having dreams where I see my feet from the ankles down and I am dancing and twirling barefoot on very short, soft grass. Then I wake up. Bummer.
So far I've been back to work, been shopping for cast appropriate clothing which pretty much means I'll be wearing black stretchy pants for the next three months. They get filthy every time they touch anything from upholstery lint to the bottoms of my crutches every time I drag them in and out of the car across my body. Crawling up and down staircases also doesn't help either, luckily I generally only do this on one knee.
I've been trying to heed the lessons of Pinterest articles all about how to cope with a cast on your leg and if there are two lessons that I keep banging my head against it's "slow down or you'll get hurt" and "accept all the help that is offered." I have to go slow. I can feel how easy it would be to crash and break something else if I don't. Patience for such things is kind of annoying. Ha.
Over the past few years I have acknowledged privately and publicly that I am bad at receiving help and that I don't like that about myself. So I've been working on changing that. But it's a daily challenge to just say "Yes, thank you." instead of "Oh, no, I'm fine. I've got it." Everyone at my office has been SO kind to me and are constantly offering assistance. Even though I have accepted help I still catch myself refusing it, even for the simplest things like help filling up my water bottle.
One deeper thought about this, I think there definitely is a struggle in a situation like this to push oneself to be as independent as possible. It's like a bit of a rebellion against the break and everything rotten that is associated with it. So maybe it's okay that I just push myself and want to do things myself. I guess showing appreciation whether or not I accept the help is the most important thing in that situation. Isn't is amazing how everything that happens to us in life is filled with little lessons we need to learn about ourselves and how we live and operate in our relationships and daily life.
So far I have been wearing black leggings, capris, or long knit pants. The leggings and capris are definitely most comfortable. I have really been dressing down for work but need to step that up this coming week as I'll be in a lot more meetings and going to a few outside events. Dressing up with crutches just feels annoying to me but I think I'm also getting sick of wearing athletic wear every day. We'll see how this goes.
The thing I find most challenging is that I really need to find some long shirts to wear because after a few yards of walking with the crutches my shirts are often up around midchest. There is something about crutches that makes your top bunch up under your arms. Embarrassing. Which is leading me to also wear long, drapey sweaters and puffy vests as additional coverage and for warmth.
Although its quite cold here right now, I feel like I am always either sweaty or cold. If I'm up on my feet I am totally burning hot, then if I sit down to rest for a while I get very cold. So layering is a must and I haven't had a real coat on in days. If I'm only running in and out from car to home or work, that is fine, but if I get stuck outside for few minutes that can be a problem.
I bought a bunch of clothes last week that I thought would work with the new fashion. I got home and realized all the sizes run very small, so I had to take almost all of it back this weekend for exchange. Super annoying but it also gave me some time to know better what would work and what wouldn't. I have to say I didn't find a lot that made me happy. Since it's still quite wintery here I can definitely take advantage of all the after holidays winter clothing sales and still get a few months of wear out of them. Good deal for me. But that means more shopping, even online I find it a little tiring. Clothes that work with a boot or cast aren't easy to figure out.
After some research I am looking at getting an iWalk2.0 crutch. It's hands free and attaches to your thigh with your injured leg tucked behind you, fully supported. It sounds a million times better than crutches and the testimonials are powerful. Hoping tomorrow I can stop by and check it out at a local medical supply company. I'll definitely share a review.
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