Has anyone else torn their Achilles? Rehab tips and advice

[dubc80]

Well, since I can't call up Erik Karlsson or Kobe Bryant...

I tore my Achilles playing ball hockey last Wednesday and had surgery on it Thursday. I'm going to be on crutches and in a cast for some time. Its sore, and I'm on painkillers, but its bearable and not too bad. To be honest, the most annoying part right now is moving around on crutches.

They gave me the choice of either having surgery or having it set into a cast and heal on its own. I chose surgery as I felt it was a better fix, and there is less chance of re-injury and more chance of gaining back total strength and mobility.

I wanted to see who else has had this injury and how the recovery/physio process was.

Which physiotherapist did you go to and would you recommend him/her?
How long did it take you to be able to walk again, and to play sports?
Are you able to do all the activities that you used to be able to do?

Potentially not being able to play the sports that I love really upsets me.

Thanks in advance to others who can share their stories!

[mac_82]

Oh man do I feel your pain. I did mine out in Toronto a few years ago playing soccer, so I can't really help with any physio recommendations.

I went with the surgery route as well, as the probability for a re-tear was a lot lower.

I hate to break it to you, but I wouldn't be expecting an Erik Karlsson type recovery time. 2 reasons. His achilles was sliced, not torn. And you don't need a lot of movement when you are wearing a skate, compared to wearing a running shoe and playing soccer/ball hockey, etc. Even someone like David Beckham wasn't back playing soccer for 6 months after his surgery.

I tore mine in July, 2010 at 28 years old. After surgery, week 5 I was in a walking boot. Week 7 I was partial weight bearing. Week 9 I started physio. Week 11 I started full exercise. Week 12 I started lightly jogging. Week 17 the doc said I could start playing sports again. My doc was pretty aggressive with my physio, but it worked out really well. I was going to physio twice a week, and going for massages as well.

As soon as I was full weight bearing, I was doing as much stretching as possible. I was also walking 10-12 flights of stairs every morning. And you gotta rest, elevate and ice as much as you can. There was still a lot of swelling.

A couple of tips.

I had to take 2 weeks off work, I was a literal couch potato, sleeping lots because of the meds.

Get a stool for the shower. And lots of garbage bags.

Get some vitamin E cream for the scar. Once you are out of a cast rub that thing for all it's worth. You don't want your skin sticking to the scar tissue.

I had to wear very low shoes, or high tops. I found anything else really irritated the scar for the first year or so.

The first winter I found my achilles very stiff in the morning. I had to get heat packs to warm it up before stretching.

Even when you are in a walking boot, I would try to stay off your feet if you can. For the next year or two I had a lot of problems with my other achilles and my hips/lower back. My body was still over compensating for my weak side, and I ended up with tendonitis in my good achilles because of it, and my hips were pretty messed up.

And the mental aspect of the injury can be just as bad as the physical. I had a mental roadblock when trying to run because I didn't want to risk a re-tear. I couldn't go 100%, and for about a year and a half my first thought was always my achilles. Gradually that goes away, but it does linger.

Now the good news. There isn't anything I cannot do now that I could do before the surgery. Still play hockey, soccer, run lots, work out. It just takes time and work to get back there.

Good luck, and feel to ask me any questions you have.

[TheSutterDynasty]

Originally Posted by dubc80

Well, since I can't call up Erik Karlsson or Kobe Bryant...

I tore my Achilles playing ball hockey last Wednesday and had surgery on it Thursday. I'm going to be on crutches and in a cast for some time. Its sore, and I'm on painkillers, but its bearable and not too bad. To be honest, the most annoying part right now is moving around on crutches.

They gave me the choice of either having surgery or having it set into a cast and heal on its own. I chose surgery as I felt it was a better fix, and there is less chance of re-injury and more chance of gaining back total strength and mobility.

I wanted to see who else has had this injury and how the recovery/physio process was.

Which physiotherapist did you go to and would you recommend him/her?
How long did it take you to be able to walk again, and to play sports?
Are you able to do all the activities that you used to be able to do?

Potentially not being able to play the sports that I love really upsets me.

Thanks in advance to others who can share their stories!

I'll let others suggest good physios because I'm biased but so long as you do indeed follow through with a lot of physio then prognosis is good. A lot of people find returning to sports difficult mentally rather than physically.

Typically in the past it was always surgery; but now they're seeing better results just sticking people in a boot - takes away the risks of surgery. Sounds like your went well though so that's good.

Recovery is long but you can speed it up by doing your rehab exercises religiously, but also not pushing it too hard.

[icecube]

Kobe and Karlsson probably got HGH or steroids to heal their faster. So if you can find those, I say go for it.

[killer_carlson]

I had surgery in Feb and they had to do some work on the achilles. Not a tear, but a slice vertically.

The other thing that i did not realize is that there is very little blood flow to the back of your foot there. The cuts do not heal like a cut elsewhere on your body would. It takes way longer. Set your mind to that.

Im walking now and have been for a few weeks. I am taking physio but that seems very, very limited. Very much just trying to get movement back in the foot ankle area. Trying to push more each day, but we will see.

Other things i noticed

Balance is poor after you get out of that boot
Consider spending a few bucks on getting a bar secured next to the toilet, or near the shower to help you get in and out. That was awkward the first three weeks.
The seat in the shower is a good idea.
For taping things to my leg to keep water or sand out,i spent a pile of money on tapes. Best recommendation is to buy a bunch of the "pro wrap" and then hockeytape on top of that. It worked the best for me. I went through a roll every two days
I also echo the complaint about shoes and the scar site. Even today wearing runners that were not done up was uncomfortable.