It’s been 8 weeks since my surgery, which is hard to believe. I haven’t worked since December, and I’m not due back for a little over a month from now. If I had the choice, I would have went back to work a couple of weeks after, but I work a physical job where I’m on my feet all day, and it’s not possible. If I had a desk job, I would have been back right away. It’s definitely lonely being stuck in the house the majority of the time. Since it’s my right foot with the problem, I can’t drive yet. I’ve been out a couple of times for some fun stuff with friends, but usually my big excursions are just doctor’s appointments or the grocery store. It’s rough not having much of a social life these days. I’ve had days where the boredom of too many hours to fill and the frustration of the little things being hard to accomplish get the better of me and I just break down and need to cry. So here is my list of some of the problems I’ve encountered and some tips I’ve discovered along the way. These may not work for you if you have a knee issue, so please keep that in mind as you read.

1. Not driving. This might not be a big issue if you live in a big city, but in small towns with no bus routes or taxis, and expensive Uber/Lyft rates to go the next town over, it’s difficult to get around. If you’re lucky enough to have close friends and family, they’re usually willing to help out, especially if you treat them to a coffee or lunch.
2. Loneliness. If you can get out, do so. Talking to the animals all day makes for a lonely day. I love my pets, but it’s not the same as spending time with friends.
3. Boredom. This ties in a bit with the previous point, but there’s a lot you can do to occupy your free time. Sometimes you want to do something but just can’t seem to enjoy it. I think that’s natural. That’s where having a lot of hobbies is to your advantage. I have a lot of things I can do by myself, such as studying Japanese, reading, video games, working jigsaw puzzles with the radio cranked up, or catching up on movies.
4. Cooking. I can manage to cook most things with relative ease, but I’ve kept it more simple than I would prefer. The last two months I’ve really favored one-pot meals for two reasons. First, they’re usually fast to cook and don’t involve making a lot of trips from the stove to the fridge or pantry and back again. Second, a one-pot dish makes for fast cleaning of the dishes afterward. One final note: make extra and eat leftovers. I did this all the time before surgery anyway. Cooking just one portion doesn’t make much sense to me, so I usually make two, sometimes even three, portions at a time. Large recipes, like soup recipes, lend well to freezing, so this is a nice option if you don’t want to eat the same thing within the week.
5. Cleaning. Vacuuming and sweeping are possible with the knee scooter and a lot of coordination, but it’s still difficult. I would certainly advise caution. Dusting isn’t too bad if you don’t try to overextend your reach. Cleaning down low, such as the bathtub or toilet is best done kneeling carefully.
6. Showering/Bathing. I wrote in detail about this in the last post, so I don’t have anything new to add. All I can say is find a system that works well for you and keeps you as safe as possible.
7. Working out. Obviously difficult if you can’t bear weight, but not impossible. Shopping on crutches can be good cardio; it’s actually more tiring than most people think. Shadow boxing is decent cardio, although I find it pretty boring. I’ve been focusing more on toning my muscles and stretching instead. Using hand weights, modified planking and pushups, and situps are all great options that I’ve been doing lately. I don’t get that same post workout high that I can get from pedaling hard, but it still feels good to know I can at least try to do healthy activities.
8. Laundry. I’m fortunate that the washer and dryer are right next to my bedroom, so this is pretty easy for me. I dump my dirty clothes in the basket by the washer and just load them into the machine when I have a full load. The tricky part is pushing the basket back down the hall to my bedroom. It requires a little creativity. If it’s a lightweight load, I carefully nudge the basket along with the crutch from my good side. If it’s heavier, sometimes it’s honestly easier to crawl along on the floor and push the basket in front of me.
9. Rain/Snow. Going out in the elements is tough. Because you’re moving more slowly, you get a lot wetter than other people, which is a problem during the cast phase since you can’t allow water to get inside. Sometimes you just have to be willing to draw even more attention to yourself and wrap your leg in a garbage bag. A better alternative is to get someone to drop you off at the curb of the store/doctor’s office/where ever, so that you don’t have to walk across the parking lot in the wet weather.
10. Stairs. The most evil of all obstacles when you’re on crutches. If I’m at home, I crawl up the stairs and butt-bump back down them. This is so much safer than using crutches to navigate a staircase. If in public, find the elevator or handicap entrance ramp and use that if at all possible. It’s so easy to lose your balance just hopping up the curb, and you have a higher distance hopping from stair to stair. My town doesn’t have a lot of stairs leading into public buildings, so I don’t have to worry about that issue when I go out.

So there you have it. Hopefully these tips and tricks can help you if you find yourself in the same situation!