Overcoming Foot Drop

I remember waking up from surgery and I immediately noticed that I couldn't feel or move my left foot, it was just very numb. The dr told me it was from the anesthesia and that it would wear off in a few hours. I was discharged that same day and I went home thinking it would pass. A day passed by and my foot was still the same and that is when I started to worry. I contacted my dr and he agreed that it would be best to get checked out. He ordered me to have a nerve conduction test called an EMG, mind you this was a month after my injury. All that time that passed with no answers and no improvement was such a dreadful experience. I remember going to two separate hospitals desperate for answers. No one was able to give me any answers or even fix me. While I was in the hospital they found a blood clot on my injured leg behind my knee. I thought that maybe that's why I had lost function on my foot but the doctors said that most likely wasn't the reason I couldn't move my foot. They put me on blood thinners and sent me home to wait to see a neurologist. I went to get the nerve conduction test and there they told me that they could see there was some type of damage to my peroneal nerve. Again they weren't able to specify if the damage was from my surgery or from my blood clot. They mentioned that my nerve level was functioning at 50% of what it should be.

They told me it could take up to a year to recover and were uncertain if I'd ever go back to normal. They also advised whatever progress I made at the 1-year mark would most likely be the most i would recover. Again I left that appointment with uncertainty and without clear answers. They did recommend I do physical therapy but my insurance was taking forever to approve it. I started rehabbing it myself at home. I would use the tens unit that I bought on amazon two times a day and would do exercises I found on youtube. I also bought this foot strap that connects to your ankle and shoe so it can keep your foot in an upright position. I was very self-conscious about the way I was walking because I was literally dragging my foot. I had to lift my leg up so high in order for me not to drag my foot on the floor. I remember one night when I was using the tens unit I was trying to concentrate and send a signal from my brain to my foot so it would hopefully move. I did that a couple of times until I saw my foot move very little, but to me, that was such a victory and gave me that hope I needed to keep positive. Fast forward to today I have full function of my foot again.

I worked really hard at home too rehab it and little by little I started getting better. I wouldn’t say I am 100% recovered because I still have weakness in my foot. I'm still not able to run or walk fast but I have faith that soon I will be back to myself. This journey hasn't been the easiest. I became really depressed and down for a while and spent countless days shedding tears. Knowing my insecurities almost cost me my quality of life really took a toll on me. I really hope whoever goes through this keeps a positive mind and keeps pushing. I'd be lying if I said it was easy because these have been the longest 3 months of my life but with a positive mind anything is possible. I hope people can relate to my story and know there is a light at the end of the tunnel and that you're not alone.

Ysamar Flores age 29