back to 2 shoes!

After 9 long weeks my appointment to see the consultant came around finally! I went to the hospital on Thursday and had an xray and then had the cast removed, my appointment this time was not with Mr Shah sadly, who was my surgeon and has been my consultant on my 2 previous visits to the Fracture Clinic. I saw a different consultant this time, in fact I don't even know his name! He was very pleasant though and showed me my xrays, which I hadn't seen since being in Plymouth hospital.  He explained about the healing  and physio and asked if I had any questions, I asked about timescale to get back to normal, but he explained everyone varies. I go back in 3 months time, at which point he explained I should be back to normal activity.  But what is normal activity? For me that means running 2-3 times a week, which I doubt!  I also wanted to know how often physio would be.  Once a week on the NHS unfortunately! Not a lot really!

When I first tried to walk on my newly released leg, I couldn't put my heel down so was walking on the ball of my foot, and was told to use crutches again until I readjusted.  As soon as I got home I got straight in the bath to exfoliate and soak off the unbelievable amounts of dry skin which was peeling off in sheets all around my ankle and foot. Not to mention the hair that had grown, in fact I have some ingrowing hair follicles as the hair was obviously struggling to break through with a cast on, horrible!

I went straight to Nuffield Health & Leisure centre from the hospital and booked into their 2 month health & physio programme which gives me 5 physio sessions plus gym membership.  The physio may take place in the pool or gym so should be quite varied.  It will be interesting to compare NHS to private treatment!  I will get a contribution to the Nuffield physio package from my employer health plan, so that's  a bit of a bonus.

I am now limping around the house with no crutches and doing the basic exercises that the NHS gave me , 3-4 times a day and trying to walk on it and put it through its full range of movement (with pain!).  Its pretty much painful all the time and also swollen all the time, and I also need to keep elevating it as I did in the first 4 weeks.

I am very impatient and want to see instant improvement but I know now that this is going to take time, to repair the soft tissue, stabilise the bone and metal work and reduce the pain and swelling.

I know a few things for sure, no running or heels for a long long time, if ever....

Nearly time to see my ankle!

I thought it was about time I updated my blog, it was easy to keep up with whilst I was sat on the sofa for the first 5-6 weeks with my leg elevated to find the time, but since I have been more mobile and working from home I just don't find the time!

I am 2 days away from hopefully having my cast removed for good.  I visited the fracture clinic approximately 3 weeks ago and the consultant said he could still see a slight fracture line on  the inside ankle bone, so thought it best to put it back in a cast to protect it and to be safe.  He also said the cast would be slightly different in shape and I would get a boot to wear with it which would allow me to start weight bearing.  I asked him about using crutches and he said within 3 weeks I needed to go from 2 crutches to 1 and then to none by the time I returned.  I must admit I flinched with pain at the thought of putting weight on it, but within a day I was walking on 2 feet using 2 crutches, and within 3 days using 1 crutch, which actually slowed me down.  I was nervous the first time I put weight on it and it was little more than a shuffle.  However nearly 3 weeks later I am able to walk well on 2 feet, with the boot over the cast to give me a flat sole to walk on.  I still need to take it easy and rest it regularly but I have been able to start working from home full time now.

It was great starting back to work as I had got very bored, even though I enjoyed my coffee mornings and cooked breakfasts with friends, I missed making a contribution to Training for Travel and have managed to agree terms to work from home until I can drive again, so I am now enjoying working on some interesting projects such as designing resources and training material for the new Functional Skills qualifications which start this year as well as assessing learners by telephone.

Its been a long 9 weeks and I like to think I have done everything right.  I rested well at the start, and I have also eaten healthily. I have taken Vitamin E supplements to help skin and soft tissue healing, which as worked wonders on my face too! I have also take calcium/magnesium supplements for my bones and also collagen supplements which help with soft tissue growth.  I have tried to do some exercise from home both upper and lower body but its no replacement for what I was doing before!  I cant wait to swim at the end of this week, in actual fact I am happy to just float around the pool, its the full body immersion in warm water I am looking forward to most!!

Returning to running is bottom of my list at the moment as I have read about metal plates on leg bones causing stress risers above and around the metal work, which can cause stress fractures. Back to square one almost! I will try walking on the treadmill at the gym, but will probably start on the cross trainer as its non impact on joints.  First of all though lots of swimming, and pool walking!

The physio will start next week, and am looking forward to the progress,  however not so much the pain, as my mum informs me!  My mum is now 2 weeks out of her cast/boot and walking on one stick, and having regular physio in Portugal.

I will update the blog once I have been to hospital this week and then put monthly progress as I know other people have read this that have suffered trimalleolar fractures and similar.

Bye for now :-))

Purple casts are the way forward

It is now 3 weeks since I broke my ankle, it seems like a lot longer, but this week it feels like I have made some progress with my visit to the fracture clinic, which I will come back to later.

I had a proper night out this week with my group of lovely friends, I managed to venture as far as my friends Nics house and had a couple of drinks, it was so nice to chill out, get out the house and have a laugh and a gossip.  We were discussing our trip to Las Vegas in October to celebrate 4 of my friends 40ths birthdays.  Lorna decided it would be a good idea to ring the hotel in Vegas to tell them to expect us in October and to ask about the White Night parties at the Nikki Beach Club which is in our hotel!  We have previously done 2 other trips, the first one was to New York in April 2008 and we went skiing in Morzine in February 2010, this is our final 40th trip so we will have to find another excuse to go away over the next few years!

The weather has been miserable most of the week, so much rain all the time.  When I do get to leave the house Andy makes sure I wipe my crutches before I come back in! I managed to venture to Next this week and treated myself to a new pair of pumps, which is about the limit of my footwear at the moment. I should have got a discount as I only need one at the moment! I cant wait to be able to wear some different footwear and look forward to the day when I can see my 2 feet properly.
This week looks as though me might get a high of 16c woohoo! At least its not showing rain every day!

I saw a guy on crutches when we were out and without thinking I said to him "Ooh, a crutch man!", Andy said I didn't need to acknowledge everyone else on crutches, like VW Beetle drivers do! Maybe I could invent some sort of greeting where we bang crutches, like a version of the All Blacks haka.  OK maybe not.

Its been a sad week in the news with the tragic events in Barford and the father and son that were killed when their boat went over the weir, how the mother will find the strength to carry on is beyond me, but she has 2 children thankfully that made it out of the river alive, only just.  It puts things into perspective when you hear about tragedy and sadness in the news, especially when its close to home.  The awful weather we have experienced definitely played a part in the events on the river that day, its too sad to think about.

This week I have been busily searching the Internet looking for deals to Florida for Christmas and New Year, once our insurance claim for our cancelled trip is underway we can rebook.  We did consider going next Easter but its this years holiday so we may as well go the whole hog and spend Christmas & New Year away.  I have found some great flight deals, and the villas we have been looking at are absolutely amazing, with everything you need for a fantastic holiday, Pool, hot-tub, games room and lots more and they are all massive 5 bedroom homes, so I am looking forward to spending my first Christmas out of the UK with my family and the Fitzmaurice family. We are seeing the Fitzmaurice family this weekend so will hopefully decide on dates/villas etc so we can rebook.  It would be nice to have it booked before we were originally due to go on 1st June as it will take my mind off it.

Harry Potter Land Universal Studios Orlando

I had my appointment at the fracture clinic this week, its so busy in there. Who knew so many people fractured bones!  Admittedly a lot of them had a fractured finger, so I think they should have gone to the back of the queue as I quite clearly had the most serious fracture in the clinic that day, only kidding! (I did though).  The nurse cut off the temporary plaster and removed the dressings with no discomfort felt. She then left the room for a while which gave me a chance to take a look at my surgery wounds for the first time (photos below, but only scroll down if you have a strong stomach). My ankle  shape didn't look too bad, still a bit swollen but no bruising at all.  The wound on the inside of my ankle is approx 6cm long across my ankle bone with 11 stitches in, this is where the screws are holding the bone together that was broken in 3 places.  This wound was quite tidy and neat compared to the other one, the wound on the outside of my ankle where the plate is inserted is approx 12cm long with 14 stitches in, it was sutured together tightly so was a bit puckered and looked like Frankenstein's neck if I am honest!  I had a bit of a cry when I saw them as I have no other wounds on my body and now have these 2 horrid scars in a very obvious place on my body, it just brought it all back to me what a horrible injury I am dealing with. The nurse removed the stitches, which I didn't feel as my foot is pretty numb around the ankle, which the nurse said was due to the nerves being cut in surgery.  I was then sent for xray and then Mr Shah, the orthopaedic consultant looked at them to decide the next course of action.  He said the bones were all aligned correctly and were showing good signs of starting to knit together, this was the good news I wanted as I know of other people who have had to have further surgery to correct the bone alignment when it hasn't worked the first time. The consultant then put pressure on the sole of my foot to start moving my ankle up!! OUCH!! I expected major pain but again it felt quite numb and all I could feel was some pulling and slight pain near my Achilles tendon. He managed to move it a couple of inches altogether, although it wouldn't go anywhere near 90 degrees so getting my heel to the floor will be the job of the physio and my exercises at home once I am out of plaster.  I was sent to the plaster room, where I chose bright purple to cheer me up, and again my foot was pushed up as far as it would go so it could be set as close to 90 degrees as possible to stop the Achilles tendon from shortening too much.  This plaster is so much easier to be in, as its lighter and better fitting so makes it much easier to move around in and sleep in too.  I am back in a few weeks when I will find out whether I am in another cast or a splint boot, and this depends on the bone healing at that stage.



looks quite normal here!



my skinny leg :-((

who said coloured casts where just for kids!

I have been out for coffee again this week, this is still a very exciting event, believe me! I have also been to the hair salon again for a new colour and I had my colleagues here from work this week for our monthly meeting which I offered to host as I thought it would be a chance to catch up on what was happening. It was lovely to see everyone, but by 2pm I was brain dead and I slept for 90 minutes as soon as they had left.  I am hoping to return to work (from home) in 3-4 weeks, but it will be a long while before I can drive, so return to normal service will be a few months yet.

I am getting quite good on crutches now, my balance is better and its definitely strengthened my core.   I am more confident on the stairs now, Andy even dragged me round Sainsbury's this week but I did sneak off and find a chair when I got too tired!  I am getting a bit impatient now as I am keen to get to the next stage in recovery, and start some physio but the consultant said it wont start until I am out of plaster, logical really!

Anyway, keep smiling, pecker up, best of british etc etc etc :-)

(only scroll if you want to see the pictures!!)

this is where the plate is inserted along the bone

Inside ankle bone where screws hold bone together

DISCLAIMER. - I will not be held responsible for anyone fainting or throwing up, I warned you!

What doesnt kill you makes you stronger

The boredom has begun to set in now along with frustration.  The first area of frustration is not being able to exercise properly.   I am finding it hard to read the comments on the Regency Runners Facebook page of the great runs people are having.   I have worked so hard in the last year getting my running pace up, and improving my fitness.  I managed to knock 7 minutes off my 10k time at the Regency Run in April from the last race I did. I also ran a half marathon in March, raising over £500 for Cancer Research.  My race time wasn’t much too write home about, but at least I completed the race and ran it all.  I don’t intend doing another half marathon either so that will remain my personal best! Right at this moment in time I can’t imagine ever running again and that breaks my heart.  It is my main stress buster and energiser.  I actually enjoy running now, whereas I never used to!  Plus I have a pair of Brooks Glycerin 9 that cost £100 sitting in my wardrobe, that were prescribed to my gait at Warwick Sports, my left foot gait will have changed by the time I am back on two feet! The second area of frustration are the things I cannot do for myself, such as carrying things around, tidying up, popping up/down stairs, going out to the shops.  Every time I try to tidy up in the kitchen or lounge Andy tells me to sit down, but he doesn’t realise I need to feel as though I am still able to do some things for myself.  I appreciate every trip I make out of the house, and this week I have managed to go to Neros’, the pub, friends for dinner, hair salon and out for cooked breakfast so it’s been great to feel as close to normal life as I can get at the moment. I am grateful every week for the help of my friends & family I don’t know what I would do without them all.  We had  a laugh about all the weirdo's in Leamington Spa when we went out for breakfast, we all seem to know them which is quite worrying, and what is even more worrying is that we might end up as one of the weirdos one day!  I'll be the one that drags my leg behind me as I wander around the shops trying to find a pair of shoes in 2 different sizes to fit my deformed foot ;-))

I finished reading a kindle book this week that I had started before we went to Cornwall called "She Won't get far her bag's too heavy" by Marie Stamp, its a true story about Marie, who is in her 50's and she decides to walk the South West Coastal Path, having previously done Mont Blanc and the Matterhorn. The South West Coastal Path starts in Minehead, follows the north coast of Devon into Cornwall through Bude, covering our 10 miles section, onto Lands End and back along the south coast to Poole, a total of 630 miles.  Its quite amusing as she tells the story of her journey, and how she refused to queue to pay for a jacket potato as it would get cold so she just left the shop without paying, and her exploits of wild camping in random fields on her route.  I decided to re-read the section covering Bude and Cracklington Haven to see if she mentioned any landmarks we had passed, or even Dizzard Woods where I slipped.  She mentions a section where she walked along a steep clifftop, which I remember was about 10 minutes before my accident spot.  Another walker and dog were approaching her and the other dog rushed past her and made her stumble down a rabbit hole, and she thought she had broken her ankle, luckily for her she had just twisted it! Maybe there is a bit of a Cornish triangle there!

I have done a bit more research on my injury this week, to try and find out how long its taken other people to heal and to understand a bit more about my type of fracture.  The trimalleolar fracture is also known as a Weber C, there is a Weber A & B too.  Approximately 70% of people suffer a Weber B, and only 20% manage a Weber C.  The direction I broke my ankle in is in the majority though, as I broke it in supination, as opposed to pronation (see pic).  I have made an enquiry about hydrotherapy, where you are in a small pool with water temperature of35c, with a physiotherapist.  This allows you to make normal movements but not fully weight bearing, so I am going to book this as soon as I am out of my cast, and luckily there is one in Leamington Spa.  I am hoping I can do this as well as the NHS Physio treatment I will start once I am out of my cast.  I found a blog the other day by a lady called Charlotte Ord, who is from Godalming in Surrey.  She is a well known personal trainer and has featured on lots of TV programmes such as ITV’s The Biggest Loser. http://www.charlotteord.co.uk/  .  She suffered the same injury, jumping off a rock and landing badly on her foot  in November 2010 and was back in the gym 4 months later doing squats & lunges, she then progressed to the cross trainer and finally running after approximately 6 months.  Its great to read a blog written by someone who is positive about making a full recovery, as I like to think I am.  She has made a full recovery and says it no longer affects her gait/walk but she doesnt have full flexibility in it.  Many of the other blogs I have read have been stories of people who are full of problems, pain & suffering for a year or more after.  These people seem to feel really sorry for them self and also don’t seem to help themselves by spending 16 hours a day on the sofa watching TV!  I am now doing daily leg exercises by squatting on my good leg, and leg raises on my bad leg.  I am also doing abdominal crunches & planks (on one leg!) and I also stretch my legs and toes daily using a resistance band and I am trying to walk a little further with my crutches, still non weight bearing though, this is my arm & shoulder workout!  I might try and walk around my road this week!  I have set up a forum site this week for people with broken bones as there isnt any such thing, so I need members who have a broken bone now or have had one previously, or a serious knee injury that required plaster!  http://www.brokenbones.ning.com/

Mine is a Supination break

no excuse for no exercise!

toe stretching!

My cast is feeling looser each day as my calf muscle shrinks, I can get my hand half way down inside  it now and I think I can feel my metal plate!! Yuk!  I am keen to see what my orthopaedic surgeon says on Monday and get a more permanent cast fitted.  I think I will also feel more at ease to know the bones have been aligned properly and are healing alright without the need for further surgery, so please all keep fingers crossed for me on Monday 14^th May!

My mum had her visit to her consultant in Faro yesterday, he was an English speaking doctor and has informed her she doesn’t need surgery at the moment, and has told her she can put a small amount of weight on her foot, but is not to remove the Cam Boot cast to move her ankle around which is what she had been doing.  I have recommended some hydrotherapy for mum when she is ready as there are some lovely spa hotels in Albufeira with Hydro pools. 

If my therapist is anything like this I am going daily!

I have a lovely display of flowers still, they smell gorgeous.  I have to ask my in-laws to tend to them every few days as I cant do it myself! I have had some fabulous funny/kind/rude cards too.  The kids have been keeping everywhere tidy in the house, Andy has had a bit of a moan this week as things have got a bit much, but its to be expected with myself and 2 kids to care for ha ha!

Flowers from work

I am now in week 3 and the time has gone quite quickly, which is surprising.  I am hoping the next 3 weeks go quick too as I am keen to get to the next stage at 6 weeks,  where I can semi weight bear on my foot as this will make life so much easier.  My right shoes are taking too much wear, I will end up with one faded converse in a few months time!

Next week, details of my visit to see the orthopaedic surgeon and my xray results...

Let the healing begin

Am I adjusting to being back at home? Not sure really?  

I don't spend much time at home usually as I am always out working, exercising or socialising! Daytime TV leaves a lot to be desired so I am trying to build up some recordings of decent stuff to watch. Lots of things have had to change and thankfully I have a very organised and efficient husband (Andy, note I am praising you!). I have to be up and in the shower by 7.30; I need help getting in and out of the shower, but thankfully can dry myself and get dressed.  However getting my knickers & trackies on requires me hooking them over my club foot, pulling them up to my thighs, then rolling backwards in a gambol to get them over my bum.  I make sure everyone has left the room at this point, probably not a nice sight! I have taken to coming downstairs on my bum now as the stairs are the hardest obstacle in the house. Andy then makes breakfast and a packed lunch for me and I am usually ready and sat on the sofa in my corner position by 8.30am!  I can’t risk showering or navigating the stairs when everyone is out at the moment so it’s a case of having to be up & ready early.  I also have to make sure I drink lots of water as that makes me get up hourly for the toilet as my bum gets sore sitting all day, I can only imagine how painful bedsores must be!  Andy came in with some Jif Lemon wipes the other day and said he wanted to wipe my crutch!!  Thank god he meant my walking aid! I had moaned that it smelt plasticky! There are many things I have had to laugh at this week, such as the shoes lined up in the hall the other day, along with my “shoe” for my right foot.

Guess which one is mine?

Shortly after I arrived at Plymouth hospital last week, I realised I ought to tell my parents I had injured myself as they were in Australia at the time.  They were visiting my sister and family as it was the 1^st birthday of my niece Ruby and they were having a naming ceremony on Bondi Beach on Sunday 22^nd April.  However I decided not to tell them until after the naming ceremony as I didn’t want them to be worrying about me, so decided to text them later on Sunday.  I woke up Sunday morning in hospital and turned my mobile on to read the following message:

I think I must have read it 3 or 4 times before I realised I wasn’t dreaming, you can see the start of my reply below it.  What are the chances of that? Mother & daughter breaking an ankle on the opposite side of the world, 12 hours apart! Mine is my left and Mum’s is her right.  Mum had a double fracture, she hasn’t yet had surgery and may not need it, her foot is in a boot cast.  They had to arrange their repatriation back to Portugal through insurance as the consultant had insisted her leg be elevated for the whole flight, so it had to be business class.  I said to Mum it’s a very dramatic way to get an upgrade!  They also had accommodation paid for as my sister lives in a 3 storey town house in Sydney so mum didn’t have easy access to the bathroom and sleeping on the sofa was not ideal.  Mum & Dad are now back home in Portugal where she will get another X-ray to see if they recommend surgery to insert plates & pins in her ankle too! Can you imagine if we fly together, we will both set off the alarms as we go through security at the airport with our bionic legs!  Get welll soon Mum, love you lots.  Everyone has laughed at me including the paramedics & nurses when I have told them I have a metal allergy.  I am allergic to cheap metal jewellery (nickel) which gives me a nasty rash, so I thought I had best mention it as I was having metal inserted into my leg for the rest of my life!! Well it paid off as I have titanium plates, worth top dollar on eBay apparently, no bog standard NHS rubbish for me ha! I thought I might as well tell the surgeon I was allergic to cats, dogs & horses too but he assured me there were none in theatre that day.


red circles show area of break, obviously have to be an expert
as I wouldn't have spotted it!

The kids have slowly adjusted to me changing from “busy working mum” to “mum on the sofa”.  They have been really good and have helped Andy around the house with not too much nagging, Joseph has vacuumed and helped tidy up and Georgia has kept her room tidy and put plates and dishes away, after her obligatory reply of “hang on a sec”!  I was hoping the novelty of using my crutches might have worn off with Georgia by now as she uses them and then leaves them in another room! I shouldn't moan, as they are always there to give me a hug if I get tearful, which I do frequently!  Georgia makes me stand up for a hug though as she says its not the same when I am sat down ;-)

One of my hourly walkabouts

I have had lots of lovely visitors since arriving home last Wednesday and a great variety of gifts, I am not being inundated with grapes which is good.   My lounge looks like a florists, I have fruit platters, jaffa cakes, scented shower gel & bubble bath, magazines & a lovely M&S pamper hamper from the girls at work.  We have had dinner cooked and delivered by friends, lunch bought in for me and continuous offers to get things in town.  I am overwhelmed by the kindness of people, not that I had any doubt but I have a great bunch of friends and family around to help out.   It really breaks up the time when I have visitors and is the highlight of my day.  I am having to write down my visit schedule though as I am still a bit “away with the fairies” otherwise I forget who is coming and when.  We went out to the local pub with friends for Sunday roast this week and I was taken to Nero by friends on Monday, it’s nice to breathe fresh air and it makes you realise how much we take normal activities for granted!  I bumped into Rachel from Regency Runners at Nero who assured me I would be back running in no time, I can’t see it myself at the moment but it’s a goal to aim for!


My escape to Nero with Cheryl and 2 of my fellow
walkers Michelle & Paula

My leg is less swollen now and I can see the muscle in my thigh and calf shrinking already from lack of exercise and general usage.  The best position is still to have it elevated on pillows day and night, otherwise as soon as I stand up or put my leg down the blood flows to my foot and it feels like its going to explode out of the cast. I am not in constant pain, I just get a bit of discomfort around the wound and a bit of aching from time to time.  However if I try to do more my ankle makes sure I pay for it, for example not having it elevated for an hour or so one day made it so painful that night I barely slept.  My next appointment at the fracture clinic is Mon 14 May, when they will x-ray to make sure the broken bones are setting straight and I will hopefully get a new lighter weight cast, so I might get to see the wound then!   I am still on daily pain relief, I tried to wean myself onto Paracetamol for a few days but have gone back onto Cocodamol until the pain calms down again. The healing process relies on good nutrition and a few good quality supplements to help you along the way, so my friend Sarah has sent me some useful links to information for certain types of Vitamin E, Calcium Citrate and Magnesium Malate.  These along with a healthy diet should help the bones, muscles, tendons and skin heal quickly.

nice bruising post surgery with surgeons fingerprints top of pic

Our holiday to Florida on 1^st June with the Fitzmaurices has now been cancelled by the travel agent.  We have lost 70% of the package holiday cost but got a full refund on the park passes, airport parking/hotel and car hire, apart from small admin fees which we can claim back.  We can claim the 70% loss back on our insurance once we have all the paperwork we need and are currently looking at re -booking for Christmas, which will be something to look forward to. Holiday insurance has saved my family & I over the years many times!!

I have stopped with the “what if’s” now as there are too many, and as my sister said “it is what it is”.  I said to Andy I wished I had taken the time to look for my walking sticks which I have taken on every mountain walk we have done previously. Maybe they might have saved me falling, which they have done many times when its slippery or uneven under foot. His reply to that was “If my aunt had bollocks she’d be my uncle”. So, no more what if's!

Just a ramble

I was trying to think back to where all this walking malarkey had started?

We first discussed this particular trip to Cornwall with our friends in September last year, when we had just done our 3rd mountain climb up Snowdon as a group. Over the last few years we have climbed Ben Nevis (with a metre of snow on top), Scafell Pike (in a snow blizzard) and most recently Snowdon (torrential rain & gale force winds). I had climbed Ben Nevis previously with a group of girlfriends for a charity event to raise money for Breast Cancer Care, as a friend of mine had recently been diagnosed with breast cancer and after her treatment had suggested doing this mountain climb, during which our group raised over £10,000 between us. So that's where the walking all began and I purchased a pair of good quality walking boots, which I will come back to later.

Michelle & Stuarts house in Bude

part of the coastal path, a dry bit!

Our trip to Cornwall was planned as our friends Michelle & Stuart have a house in Bude, so we arranged to walk a 10 mile stretch of the coast heading south from Bude to a pub at Cracklington Haven. Andy had not come to Cornwall as our son Joseph had reached the final in his football team, so it was a really important match, but I had decided to go to Cornwall with the rest of the group as I had been looking forward to it.  On Friday night we had a few ciders at the local Pub, but were home and in bed by midnight as Stuart had categorically said "breakfast at 8, walking at 9" so everyone was up and ready to leave on time. After picking up some sandwiches in Bude we set off on our leisurely coastal walk. We passed Widemouth Bay where we walked along the beach and Paula and I admired the view of some topless male surfers.   The walk was a lot hillier than I had imagined so I was pleased that my fitness level is currently good from all my running.  Some of the hills we climbed were pretty steep, amongst the steepest in Britain at 35% incline I have since found out!  Some of the coastal path follows the road which saves you walking on cliff edges or along too many beaches. We had a lovely lunch stop in the sunshine by a stream and then set off up a steep hill, we were past the half way point and listened to Tony & Stuart tell us how hard the hills had been on their bike ride the previous day, Tony even showed us where he had been sick on a previous ride due to physical exertion at the top of a steep hill, I think he even got down on his knees and demonstrated the position, those of you that know Tony wont be surprised by that at all!

Girls at start of walk

Protecting my assets (ask the lads why!)

Lunch stop at midday

35% incline hills

Tony locating his puking up point

We passed a lovely house on the clifftop which had lovely views and a white wooden picnic bench in the garden. We stopped here to re-group and chatted about what quenched our thirst the most, I had got my heart set on a Berry Rattler cider and a cream tea at our final destination!  The map below shows this clifftop house as Cancleave Holiday Cottage.  Once everyone was walking together again we headed across a field where we could see the path disappeared into some woods, Dizzard Woods, a National Trust property.  We started down a narrow uneven path with a lot of wet mud. Ahead of me were Jason, Tracey & Stuart and immediately behind me was Michelle, who was the only eye witness to my clumsy fall! Paula and Tony were out of sight behind us.  I had commented to Michelle & Tracey how slippy it was and said to take it easy, I was trying to walk on the outside of the dip in the path when my right leg slipped first, I tried to correct myself and then slipped on my left leg which took all my weight. My foot went under me, I heard a double crack and fell onto my side. Tony said he heard me scream the first time and thought maybe I had got mud on my boots, if only, and then he heard the second scream and realised I had seriously hurt myself. I could see immediately see that my ankle was facing inwards/downwards at a funny angle and said immediately I thought I had broken it.  Slight panic set in amongst everyone at that point as we realised nobody had got a signal on their phones! Hindsight is a wonderful thing as we now realise you can often make emergency calls on phones without a signal as it will pick up any available network! A kind walker who passed us, said he would call for an ambulance as soon as he picked up a signal, he then came back to tell us the air ambulance was on its way. My initial comments were "how embarrassing" followed by "what if its just twisted and a helicopter is on its way!!!" The lads who had ran back up to the field had also managed to make a call for an ambulance, we said that we hoped two wouldn't arrive! The paramedics came by car in no time at all considering we were quite remote, they had gas and air with them which I got straight on to.  By this point I was feeling a little faint, the pain was coming in waves and I kept telling the girls it was like child birth.  Paula said the colour had drained from my face by this point.  The gas and air gave immediate relief and I was as high as a kite, my voice sounded funny and I was cracking jokes keeping everyone entertained apparently!  They kept asking me on a scale of 1-10 where my pain was, and I mostly said 7, so after failing to be able to get a morphine line into my hand they kept me on gas and air.  The paramedics got me onto my back and removed my walking boot.  My friends had been told to keep my boot on until someone arrived and it had definitely kept the ankle in one place and kept swelling down as it was done up fairly tight.  All I could see was a massive lump sticking up and my foot facing inwards, the lump was were the Talus bone had become dislocated from underneath the Tibia.  We heard the air ambulance landing in the field and the air paramedics soon arrived at our location, they decided that they needed to call the coastguard to come with a 4x4 to get me to the helicopter as it was at the top of the field.  I was then moved up to the field by stretcher, and then put in a 4x4 to take me to the helicopter.  I wish I had asked for some photographs to be taken at this time as apparently their were approximately 15 people on the scene by this point!! Its not until afterwards you realise the scale of things you realise you would like to see what was going on around you.  I was still feeling very embarassed by this point, but was also very tearful as I now realised I had properly injured myself and would have to go to hospital for a plaster cast.  I thought I might make it back to Bude that evening  to join the guys for a meal, this wasnt to be the case though!  I also knew Andy would be trying to ring me to let me know the football result and might well be cursing me if he couldnt get in touch with me, so had asked Jason to ring him to say I had twisted my ankle and that I was going to hospital but I was ok, we decided to play it down a little as I was 200 miles from home! Everyone I was with that day played a really important and supportive role that day, whether it was holding my hand, constantly talking to me, supporting my head & ankle with their coats or just listening to my delirious banter.  The lads were anxiously running up and down the hill to get a signal and then had to stay at the top to wave the helicopter in to the right place.  They have all said they felt helpless at the time,but they all seemed very calm and were absolute saviours on the day, they are all very special friends but they were anyway.  I dont know how I will ever repay them.

Yellow indicates path we had taken, red dot is where I fell
and blue dot is where helicopter landed

I was soon in the helicopter with my headset on so the pilot could talk to me, and back on the gas and air.  There was no room for passengers so it was tearful saying goodbye to everyone.  The pilot decided to take off to the left so I could wave at my friends, this was quite funny at the time. I asked them to video me in the helicopter as the kids would love it. I am quite a thrill-seeker so the helicopter ride was quite enjoyable under the circumstances.  I was very high on gas and thought the mouthpiece was a telephone and the dialpad was on my leg so kept trying to phone the pilot! Bizarre behaviour!  The journey to Plymouth hospital was only 8 minutes, this later took the guys well over an hour by car when they came to visit that evening. The coastguards were kind enough to take everyone else back to Bude by car as they didnt really fancy continuing on their walk after everything that had happened. We had walked approximately 7 miles by this point and had about 4 miles to go.  The fall had happened at 1pm and I was in Plymouth for around 2.15pm.  They x-rayed me on the bed straightaway and said it was a multiple fracture and disclocation so I would need to be sedated immediately so they could "pop" the ankle back into position.  This is probably the point where I was the most scared as I was on my own, I was shaking with shock, cold and covered in wet mud. I didnt feel a thing as they put my ankle back into position and they put a cast on it straight away with a gap at the front to allow for swelling.  I was x-rayed again and then moved into a cubicle to await a bed on a ward.  The doctor came to tell me it was a Trimalleolar fracture sometimes referred to as Weber C, and that it was an unstable fracture meaning it wouldnt heal just with a cast so I would need surgery in the next few days to put plates & pins in.  I was sobbing by this point, I couldnt believe that such a simple fall could result in such a nasty injury.  The doctor said my walking boots which were pretty good ones, had isolated the fracture to one area, and if I had been wearing less stable footwear I could have fractured bones in my foot too.   I called Andy at this point to let him know what had happened, forgetting he had been told I had just twisted my ankle, so as I explained I had broken my ankle, that I needed surgery to put plates and pins in and I would be in Plymouth for 3 -4 days until the swelling had gone down, he was stunned to say the least and I could sense his panic and distress at being so far away.  We decided he should travel down the next day as it was 4pm by this point and was a 3hr + journey to Plymouth.  Some of my friends travelled down to Plymouth from Bude that night once I knew I was staying in to bring me some clean clothes. It was very emotional to see them all again but they cheered me up no end, however I can't believe they didnt bring me a cream tea, I still hadnt had one!

My rescue helicopter

My first plaster cast

The next morning the orthopaedic surgeon came to see me and explained about the operation I needed and that it could be up to a week before they could operate due to swelling, so there was an option to transfer to a hospital closer to home and have surgery there.  Andy arrived at around 1.30pm and we had a long emotional hug, he later said he hadnt quite believed it was true until he saw me.  Once I discussed the options with Andy we decided this would be much easier to move closer to home and he was happy to drive me to Warwick on Monday.  It took until 6pm on Monday to get everything arranged, and Plymouth had spoken to Warwick so they knew to expect me that evening.  This didnt go quite to plan, so on arrival at Warwick after a fairly uncomfortable 3 hour journey we were told they werent expecting us and I would have to go through the A&E process!! It was so busy, so even after showing them the letter we had to wait until 1am to get to the ward.  Not happy with this part of the NHS at all.  The staff were rude and not interested when we tried to explain that calls had been made and the Orthapaedic SHO knew I was coming.

cast removed on day 4 and no bruises!

The next morning the orthapaedic surgeon came to see me and removed the front of the temporary cast, I was expecting a black and blue twisted ankle but it was remarkably normal looking apart from looking quite "cankle" shaped! The surgeon asked for some ice to be applied to it and said they would do surgery that day, so I was quite shocked but relieved that it would soon be done and out the way.  I was in theatre for 3 hours and the kids arrived just after I got back to the ward, this was the first time I had seen them since before my fall, so it was a bit of shock for them to see me with a drips attached and looking a bit worse for wear with my leg up on a frame.  They were very brave, and we all had a bit of a cry and a hug.  I had a few visitors that night and the next day in hospital and was then allowed home at 3pm on Wednesday.

Its been a bit surreal since Saturday, it is slowly starting to sink in as the realisation hits me that I have a long period of recovery ahead.  I have 6 weeks in a cast and on crutches and am not allowed to put any weight on my foot at all, then in 6 weeks they will re-assess this and might be able to walk on my toes.  I wont be driving or walking properly for a good few months.  Everything at home is difficult, stairs, showering, getting up and down from sofa or bed!  Those of you that know me, know that I never sit down, I am always on the go either working or doing some form of exercise so this period of adjustment is going to be hard.  I have had lots of visitors at home and everyone cheers me up when they come.  It has been decided that the holiday to Florida with our friends Tracey & Jason can't go ahead in 5 weeks time, so the next thing I need to do is cancel that and start the insurance claim.  We are all gutted as we booked it a year ago and have been really looking forward to it, but putting it all into context, its only a holiday, which we will go on in the future and I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason, and I am sure that will manifest itself in the future.  This could all have had a much worse outcome and there are many people who are much much worse off than me, so I am still smiling....

I am not sure if I will continue with this blog it depends if people enjoy reading it, so please comment !!