I had 4 surgeries for my j pouch. It was 10 years ago so I think I minimize the pain, but I don't remember as much pain as just a long process of surgeries, sickness (I had an internal abscess) and dealing with the whole plumbing issue. I did have foot reconstruction 3 years ago. It was on a much larger scale than yours, they straightened my foot, inserted a plate and a total of 8 pins, straightened my hammer toes and cut my little toe off as it could not be straightened and was a royal pain (literal and figurative.) It was much more painful than the j pouch stuff. Probably the hardest part, though was that I couldn't put any weight on it for 8 weeks and then had to slowly work up to walking. That, coupled with the fact that it was my right foot so I couldn't drive, made the surgery way worse than the j pouch.

All that said, it had to be done. No one but you knows what you are going through. Everyone, including me, gives advice but you know what you need. My best advice is to listen, but make up your own mind.

Well, everything is relative, and bone pain is a different sort of pain. It is a deep, intense pain. That said, of course you should not have any surgery that is not necessary. Sure, you'll have pain, but you will have appropriate treatment.

I certainly would not look forward to it, but hopefully you are already experiencing foot pain and ultimately this will improvement.

Jan

Hi KSR,
As I sit on my sofa and stare at my crutches I think that that is exactly what I was wondering 3 weeks ago.
I took the plunge last week and had the foot surgery (and yes, I was more terrified than with my pouch...same reason...Fear of pain).
I had the bunion sawed off (litterally) and the toe straitened but refused to allow him to cut any bones in half. Too terrified of never walking again.
Mine was a semi per-cutanous surgery...he made only 3 tiny 'X's in my foot and worked from there. No big opening, suture lines etc. He says that it heals faster with less risk of infection that way...I hate infections so I went with his technique.
The long and the short of it is that the pain was much Less than I had expected.
Yes, the first 2 days are hard but managable with pain meds, by the 3rd day I was cutting down and by today, day 9 I am close to med free except when I do something stupid (walked 1 mile to the farmer's market, did the marketing and dragged a full buggy home...)
I was up and walking (albeit in the ugliest shoes on the planet)out to the car 12hrs post op...with 2 crutches. Day 3, 1 crutch...now, none other than when I go out (to protect myself & foot from idiots).
So, there you have it. For me it is the surgeon and not the surgery...he/she has to be good, know what they are doing and be as minimally invasive as possible.
Sharon

I was chatting with Sharon about this in another thread the other day. I really, really want to get this bunion of mine taken care of but I'm afraid of the pain I suppose. It cannot be any worse than my j pouch surgery though. That was rough. For me this would be totally elective surgery (my foot is in a lot of pain however daily). I'm 99% sure I'm going to do it soon. The good news is pain killers work fabulously! Good luck with your foot surgery...It's going to hurt but you should be able to manage the pain with the meds.

Hey KSR,

I too am looking at my foot propped up in a boot. Had my surgery 11 days ago--an osteotomy for hallux rigidus, bone cut and a screw put in. Don't worry too much about the pain. It has been much less than any abdominal surgeries I've had. When my foot was up and iced, I had virtually no pain. At this point, I can't put any weight on it, but I don't have to keep it up as many hours of the day. The biggest challenge is getting around. I recommend you ask your doctor about renting a wheelchair or, even better, one of those knee scooters. The crutches are tiresome!

One last bit of advice: if you're sensitive to certain metals, let the doctor know before surgery!

Good to hear...they used no metal in my foot. I refused so he 'did without' meaning it is the whole bandage that acts as a sort of cast to keep the foot/toes in place and movement-free.
Those screws and stuff scare the daylights out of me. Fear of allergies to them I guess.
I agree that as soon as I put the foot up and iced it the pain dissapeared within minutes.
I am 12 days out today and I walked to the market (with 1 crutch)putting moderate weight on my foot but still avoiding full pressure on the toes.
Gets better every day. The boot is off and I am wearing a sort of orthopedic shoe for now but the summer-sandal version (so much prettier than that stupid boot).
How is your ankle doing? Swelling?
My toes are still blue and my foot still quite swollen (couldn't fit it into any of my shoes or sneakers)but the bruising is fading fast and the ankle swelling is almost gone too.
So far, no regrets.
ps...yes, I agree that the crutches are exhausting (I kept dropping 1, tried to pick it up and would then drop the other!! Grrrr!)
Sharon

I had Haglund's deformity of my right foot (http://www.foothealthfacts.org/footankleinfo/haglunds-deformity.htm), and had the bone ground down back when I was about 22 years old. Wore a boot for a time after. My abdominal surgeries were way worse than my foot surgery.

jeffp-

Are you still taking pain meds? When did your doctor tell you that you should be able to get around easier or walking with less pain?

I have always been told the intestinal surgeries we have are some of the worst to have including how painful too. Sometimes I wonder if some people don't know how bad pain can really be.

Karen

I had mols surgery, ie skin cancer, on my foot a year before jpouch surgery and it was bad. But I think the pouch surgery beat it.

I had my toe surgery on 6/24. The first few days was hard but the pain was nothing compared to the j-pouch surgery or having a massive obstruction. The past two days, I have only needed to take tylenol for pain.

Sorry for the late reply everyone. I thought I would get notified if there was a new post, but I guess I didn't turn that on.

I just started walking on my heel with a boot last week, which was exactly 2 weeks out. I had quit taking pain meds a few days before that, but took some more after I started hobbling because it hurt and I don't like to be in pain! (I can't really take much ibuprofen.) My surgery involved cutting the bone as well (1st metatarsal I think), and the bone was screwed. Ha ha

Turning ON notifications now...

Intestinal hands down. Barfing after my Achilles surgery didn't cause me any pain or pulled staples.