Update:
My pain in
the ankle subsided overnight. What a
relief! No more electric bolts shooting
through my ankle. I had an appointment
with my podiatrist this morning to find out what was going on.
I was afraid
that I had somehow damaged my ankle and I would be laid up for a while as it
healed, or even worse, that I had a Charcot incident and I had major
irreversible damage to my ankle. The
x-ray and exam showed that neither of those two concerns was my problem.
You’ve heard
of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome where you develop severe wrist pain; well I was
experiencing Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome. The
tendon that runs down the leg and behind the ankle bone was inflamed which puts
pressure on the nerve that runs below it causing shooting nerve pain. The doctor said that since I haven’t been
wearing my prosthesis (while waiting for the new one to be made) all the stress
of standing etc. was on my right foot (instead of being divided between two feet). I probably overworked the tendon causing the
swelling.
Yesterday I
stayed at home and kept my leg up, iced, and rested it. The pain started about 4 a.m. and lasted
until about 9 p.m. After that I would
have a few minor twinges but nothing too great.
If I have a
reoccurrence, I’ll have to wear a lace-up ankle brace or get lace up boots to
give my foot a bit more support. Right
now, the rest, ice, and elevation is enough.
I am so
relieved to hear that it wasn’t anything major or that would take time while I
was laid up to heal. Thank you,
Lord!
Thought for the Day:
“As a child
of God, I know that He is always with me, and I’m comforted to know that He
understands how much we can bear. When
others share stories with me of their own challenges and trials, I’m often
moved to tears. I remind those who are
suffering or grieving that God’s arm is never too short. He can reach anyone.”
“Draw
strength from that. Dare to give it a go
and to soar as high as your imagination will take you. You can expect challenges. Welcome them as ‘character-building
experiences.’ Learn from them and rise above them. You may have an excellent dream. Just be open-minded enough to accept that God
may have a different path for you than the one you envisioned. There are many ways to reach your dream, so
don’t be discouraged if you can’t yet see the way on your own.” [Nick Vujicic,
Life Without Limits].
Since my
hospitalization and amputation, I’ve been upbeat and positive. I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve
been a bit down (and that usually only for a couple of hours). Lately, I’ve been struggling emotionally more
than I ever have since my amputation.
Not a lot. But enough that I feel
it. As I think about it, I am reminded
of how fickle we are emotionally. It
doesn’t take but one little change for us to go from happy to sad. Life can be going great one minute and then one
little thing changes and suddenly “it’s the worst day of my life.” For me being back in the wheelchair for
another two weeks was enough to tip my emotional balance. I am a bow hunter and this wheelchair time
happened during the peak of the rut so I couldn’t get out hunting—talk about lousy
timing! I mean, come on. And I’m going to let that and a couple of
other minor things zap my sense of emotional well-being? On the cosmic scale, what a stupid thing to
waste emotional energy on!
One of
things that has proven the most difficult to accept is how many of my life-long
plans and assumptions have changed and continually need to be revised. I now have a better understanding of how an
aging adult must feel about losing their driver’s license or having to move out
of the home they love because it is too much for them to care. There are some things that are permanently
out of my reach now; but there are many things that I can find a way to work
around or swap for something else.
Watching other guys work at the church construction work days has been
very tough for me. I want to be out
there working alongside of them! Maybe
someday. But not today; not right
now.
I know that
most of the things that drain my emotional batteries of happy juice are pretty
small potatoes. But it is hard not to
allow those things to consume my thoughts.
After all, these are things happening to me. You know what the difference is between major
and minor surgery? Minor surgery happens
to you. Major surgery happens to
me. It is only natural that the stuff
happening to us is a big deal; but I think we make too big of deal out of it
all too often.
One
contributing factor to my deflated emotional state is I’ve become much busier
and I am not spending as much time doing inspirational reading. I definitely need to do more of that. So the downtime I had resting my leg was
spent reading the good stuff. I’m not
floating as high as I normally do yet; but I am definitely on the rise.
Here’s a
thought. There are people all around you
that might be going through an emotional rough patch. Why don’t you take a moment to reach out to
touch them? Make a call. Send a message. Offer a prayer. Stop by and
say “Hello!” Do something to let them know that they are not alone in the
struggle they face. Right now single
parents, older adults, or college-aged students come to mind. But everyone can use a word of encouragement
and support. We all have bad days and
difficulties. And your life doesn’t have
to be all sunshine and butterflies to be an encouragement to others. A good way to help lift your own spirits is
to help someone else.
Be
encouraged and be an encourager as well!
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