My Severe Ankle Injury: A Timeline So Far

The effects of being in so much pain and being unable to walk for a decent amount of time

Photo by Anne Nygård on Unsplash

I sprained my ankle last month. May 22 to be exact. Ten days before the moment I would be leaving my winter campground for good. I injured myself on the premises and wasn’t given any leeway (which I’ll get to in a future story), then further injured it when I tried to walk and drive, and was told to leave on the date, even though I was heavily medicated, and couldn’t even bear weight on my foot. We left on June 1, which was roughly 10 days after the initial injury.

Lines may have been crossed because we did leave on Memorial Day Weekend to spend three days at a truck stop, and the owner thought I had said I had injured myself there before I came back. It was pretty evident to anyone who saw me that I couldn’t walk and that I needed to rest.

I shouldn’t have been walking at that point, and I needed to keep weight off the foot. In the week when we returned to camp one last time from May 25 to June 1, I barely left the camper to go to the bathroom at all. Forget taking a shower, going in the campground toilet, or even doing routine things I usually have only a little trouble completing.

Now, with my ankle injured, I was trapped. Confined to the space that I usually enjoy and missing the thing I called “walking” that I used to take for granted. I’ve injured my ankle plenty of times before, but this time was different. I couldn’t bear any weight at all.

I lay awake in agony, even under the influence of my medicine and medicinal edibles, which usually knock me out. When strong edibles can’t even knock me out, I know something’s wrong.

My left ankle is my most vulnerable side. I can’t escape hurting it. My partner told me that he’s stuck doing everything, and that I hurt myself because I wasn’t paying attention. That’s true, but I have injured this ankle over 20 times now, and my destiny is to constantly injure my left ankle. I will try my best the next time not to hurt myself, but I can’t guarantee that. I know I’m a mid-40s-aged man now and that I will continue to feel more pain as I age.

Today is June 22, exactly a month (31 days) after my initial injury, and it’s been a long road to recovery. I haven’t been able to walk without crutches this whole time. I know that my ankle injury is a high ankle sprain, and that those normally take about 6 weeks to heal on their own. I didn’t break anything. There are no noticeable scars or bruising.

I don’t know for certain. I have yet to go into imaging to get a full X-ray. Once I feel well enough and can get to the medical center easily, I’ll wait in line to make sure.

My foot is starting to feel better every day. I’m heavily medicated. Lately, so I don’t lose strength in the left leg, I’ve been applying pressure and weight gradually to the ankle so that I can walk when I’m ready. I’ve also stayed relatively close to the facilities at this point, so I can get into the bathroom stall and shower easily, without putting too much pressure on the ankle.

At 2 weeks, roughly after we left our winter campground to find other camping accommodations further south in the state, the throbbing pain and swelling at night started to subside.

At 3 weeks, I started feeling more stable in my foot and could balance myself on my crutches. I put my foot to the floor as often as I can so that I don’t weaken my foot and leg. I don’t want to go through extensive physical therapy to walk on that leg again.

My very strong right leg, which has only been injured twice in my life, is bearing the load, but it’s not feeling too stressed. I mainly use it to balance myself since I don’t put too much weight on the other leg, and when I need to stand up.

Initially, the pain made it difficult to enjoy my hobbies and interests. I didn’t write for most of that time, if at all. I still did my language lessons daily because that task doesn’t require much physical strength.

I stopped doing my weekly podcast on Substack. I couldn’t enjoy anything that didn’t involve resting or trying to fight through the pain. I distracted myself with shows and movies. I also played Words With Friends. I used this time to forget the pain.

I’m hopeful after four days straight of waking up with little to no pain in my ankle, leg, or foot. I’m returning to my hobbies and regularly scheduled activities, including my podcast. The swelling is non-existent at this point.

I haven’t wrapped my foot in an ACE bandage for over a week. I’m strengthening the ankle by standing with my crutches, weight bearing, and elevating it at the appropriate times.

My partner and I both think that I’m a week, if not a few days, from being able to walk without assistance. I already struggle with chronic pain. This just added a burden I didn’t need. I feel stuck at the moment.

This injury will make me hyper vigilant and extra careful in the future. Will I always look down to see where my feet and legs are? Will I be unwilling to make certain maneuvers because I’m scared I’ll further injure or reaggravate this current injury in the future?

The reality of severe ankle injuries in middle age, along with pre-existing conditions, is scary. I could’ve suffered an even greater injury and possibly required surgery.

The way everything is healing, I doubt that surgery is still in the cards, but if I needed surgery and had a longer recovery time, that would kill my routine and hamper my necessary traveling lifestyle.

It already seems strange to others that I’m on crutches at the state park campground. Most people would stay “home,” and I definitely don’t want to let anyone in on my little “secret” that I’m already home.

I don’t want to feel trapped anymore. When I start walking again, I’ll work to strengthen my lower body, and I won’t take the ability to walk for granted again. After sustaining the worst injury I’ve had in the last couple of decades, there is a renewal coming.

I’m not young anymore. I don’t bounce back. This injury reminded me that my body has its own timeline now with its own limits and warnings. When I walk again, it won’t be with the same careless confidence I used to have. I’ll be more aware that this body is mine to protect. That’s the renewal, not just healing the ankle, but learning how to live inside this aging body with more respect and attention.