stitches

[adele]

Hey guys,
How long do you normally need stitches in for?
As many of you will know i cut my achillies down to the tendon. I was told at the hosp the normal length of time to have stitches in is 7-10 days. LB exdplained problems with healing and she suggested 20 days. On day 5 i saw the nurse who said it had barely started to heal and it would deff take the 20 days recommended at the hosp.

Today was 19 days since it happened and i went to have the stitches removed. At first sight the nurse said it looked like it was healing well and was going to remove them, but decided to have a closer look to make sure. she gently pulled it apart to see what would happen and said they were not ready after all and that i would need them in for another week. That will be 26 days in total- thats almost a month with them in...

So is this normal? What are your experiances of stitches?

I am totally fed up now... i can't wear a shoe which means not being able to walk outside without fully weight baring on the crutches when i am unable to use the wheelchair(which is a lot of the time) which has led to a lot of pain and dislocations... my thumb is totally giving up on me and is ending up back to frount and all sorts. Due to the wet weather i keep falling over, so more cuts, bruises and subluxions etc and thats without the cold and wet feet from not being able to wear a shoe.

any advice on those things would be great as well.
I am trying to get on with life as normal as possible and not let this interfere to much but that is getting harder and harder to do.

Thanks for reading,
Take care, lots of love and gentle hugs
Adele xXx <><

[nonyanomemory]

Oh Adele hun, I am so sorry you sound understandably frustrated and fed up. Unfortunately, its one of those questions that is so hard to answer.

The only thing i know is that when I had my varicose veins stripped (aged 23) and had stitches in my groin both sides and all over my legs, they gave me a few days extra then a very brusque nurse took them out, suggested that perhaps I needed a holiday when the wounds promptly opened straight back up again. Have never quite worked out her reasoning on that one. For about two years the scars would periodically open up again, not totally but the skin would split open, in the end I used vitamin E oil to help. In retrospect I think they should have used superglue!

Because they are not removing the stitches already, I hope with time you will heal and I think you will unfortunately have to keep being patient in the meantime eating and vitamin taking all those healing stuff that assist the process. I really really feel for you Adele.

i don't think the getting wet will help and also the bumps and bangs, I know its not glamorous but could you wear the ankle type slippers, I have some called duvet ducks and they are not even like socks or tight in anyway, incredibly soft with grip on the bottom to prevent slips, but because they go up the leg they don't fall off and when outside could you put over them the protective plastic covers intended for use when one has a cast on, these have a name but it has gone from my mind.

Sometimes needs must and protecting the area is a must for you to prevent further injury. I really understand about your thumbs and the extra falls and wish I could help in a more hands on way, do you think that an extra week or so of mega patience, if you can possibly find some, would help the healing process, not trying to do the impossible and concentrating on recouperation and relaxation would help eventual healing.

Even massages from a nice kind person (not on the injured area) but soothing relaxing elsewhere will help stimulate the blood flow which helps healing and is also relaxing a bonus indeed. I'm sorry about long post but I know you put up with so much with your EDS anyway let alone this as well so had to post to offer my support and say anything I can think of to try and lift your spirits and any mad helpful hints that pop into my mind.

Take care and hope that me sending healing vibes through my words to you make a little difference. Keep writing here to let me know how things are going, its better out than in and honestly Adele i know it feels like it is going on for ever but it will heal eventually of that I am sure. Take it easy.

nonya

[paw]

I am sorry you are healing so slowly. Could you walk a little if you had an open back clog type shoe? I have a pair of trainers with no back that are really comfortable and I wear them to take my dogs outside. They would not rub on the wound and hopefully you could at least get around in your house.

Here are a couple of links to show what I mean. Sketchers LA Gear If you do get clogs make sure not to drag your toes as that would trip you.

Now I need to tell you to follow the doctor's orders and take it easy and wait for it to heal. I used to work for a foot surgeon and he told me that he did not like to do anything with the achilles tendon because he has seen them break and retract up into the leg. I think that is rare, but that is what they don't want to happen. They can fix that but it is not something you want to deal with! Sorry to have to tell you that, but you have to wait till this is completely healed and try to be patient. It almost seems like they should have put you in a walking cast. You could ask for one if you are not doing well with the way you are now.

I am lucky that I heal well, at least the skin does. I have always had stitches removed at the usual 7 - 10 days. I hope you are almost healed and that you get well soon.

[barkingmad]

Hi Adele,

I guess the area its in doesnt help, as there is quite a bit of strain put through that area. I think you must have a fab team because at least they thought to double check before assuming they could take them out...its really not all that uncommon for us to have delayed healing, so dont worry although I understand your frustration about shoes etc.

take care, one way or the other you are counting d own days now!

[adele]

Hey guys,

Thanks so much for the support, it means a lot... sorry i was just feeling a bit sorry for myself the other day!!!

Nonya, thanks so much for your kind words. As soon as the stitches come out am gonna start using bio-oil to help with the healing... would start now, but i have been told to keep it permently covered apart from when changing the dressings.
Paul is great and does give me a lot of massages... in fact i get one most days if i ask for one. He is the biggest sweetie!!!
Don't worry about your long post! It was lovely to hear from you and as i said your words meant a lot to me. so thank you for taking the time to reply to me!!!

Paw- don't be sorry about what you told me... it actually really helped and made me greatful that i still have the stitches in (well a mix of that and nonyas comment)

Donna- I made sure i saw the nurse i saw as i know she has been great with me in the past... she doesn't really know about EDS, but she does listen. She is probably one of the only nurses at the surgery that i would trust though!

About footwear, i bought a pair of flip flops yesterday as the ones i have are on there last legs. The problem is i can't wear my splints in shoes that dont have a back to them, and the cut is on the worst of the 2 legs. I had no choice but to buy them yest as i was looking after my nephew and his mum told me that i HAD to go out with him.
This has lead to a lot of pain, and still really hurts now... but hey ho.

As many people know i am not the best at pacing/resting/being patient waiting for things to heal (if i was then i would never be able to do anything) and it may be that that isn't helping. But the nurse said that i was allowed to walk on it as normal and it wouldn't affect its healing.
Though am gonna be a good girl today, and apart from some housework i am going to rest as much as possible.

Good news is though that it looks like it is almost there on the healing front...
for anyone that is interested i will attach some photos.

thanks once again...
take care, lots of love and gentle hugs!!!
Adele xXx <><

[adele]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/37044474@N03/

[paw]

Some of the clogs have a little "lip" at the back, some have enough to hold an orthotic in place. You could also put some double stick tape under the orthotic to keep it more securely in place. It might be a while till you are comfortable enough to have shoe pressure in that area. One more thing, with the shoes you could wear a cotton sock to help keep the wound nice and clean. (I know you might still have a dressing on it now) Was the tendon cut and stitched inside at all or are there only stitches on the skin?

The reason I talked about achilles tendon with my boss is I have an odd lump in that area and tendonitis. I wore clogs all winter long at Uni even in the snow. They are not the best shoes for snow! He advised me to leave it alone and I did. Once the tendons healed for me I went back to normal shoes.

Your wound does not look infected, and that is a good thing. I hope it finally gets better and you are back to normal soon.

[adele]

Just a very quick message to say that i have just had the stitches removed...

[loosebones]

and? all ok?