Anxious and Terrified After Surgical Complication

Posted by klro0001 @klro0001, Sep 21, 2019

Hello. I am a 36-year-old, wife of 7 years, currently working full time. Three months ago, I had a bunion removed from my left foot. The surgery consisted of a nerve block and general anesthesia. I had no problems until about a month ago. I had numbness (or maybe a mild loss of sensation) on the front of my left leg. No pain, no impact on my mobility. My surgeon indicated that I may have nerve damage from the nerve block. He prescribed a medical food that contains folate, B12, and curcumin. About 2 1/2 weeks ago, I started experiencing a swollen feeling in my left leg that comes and goes. I’ve also experienced tingling, cold tingling, minor burning sensations, and a shooting pain in my inner left ankle. All of these symptoms are brief and do not last very long, but they happen throughout the day. This week, I’ve started feeling like water is dripping on both legs. When the sensations were only in my left leg, I was okay. Now that the sensations have moved to my other leg, I’m very concerned and scared. I have a neurologist appointment on Monday and I’m a nervous wreck. Has anyone out there had a similar experience after regional anesthesia? I feel so alone. Thanks for any insight and thanks for reading this post.

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@lorirenee1

Hi to you, I have peripheral neuropathy that developed about 3 weeks after a lumpectomy for breast cancer. I had the lumpectomy about a year and a half ago, but the nerve pain persists. It can be mild to extreme. I have researched nerve damage till I am blue in the face. I have suggestions for you that might sound crazy, but I am telling you this after extensive reading about pain and nerves. I suggest that you walk constantly. It's like telling your brain that there is nothing wrong. So I suggest that every time you feel these nerve type symptoms, you tell yourself that you do not need pain signals anymore. Do this constantly. You need to retrain your brain to stop giving you pain signals, because your surgery was months ago, and you have healed. This talk with yourself can actually change the way your brain works. On you tube, learn about tapping away pain. Just type in tapping for pain. Listen to a brilliant man names Lorimer Moseley on youtube. I happen to use excellent CBD products, so if you ever need them for relaxation and pain, let me know. They work well. It does sound like, somehow, your nerves were impacted by your bunion surgery. Good luck at the neuro doc. I do not think they really think in terms of altering pain messages. But I think it is crucial to tell yourself that you are safe, and no longer need pain messages due to the fact you have healed. Best regards, Lori Renee

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Thank you. I will try these strategies.

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@lorirenee1

Hi to you, I have peripheral neuropathy that developed about 3 weeks after a lumpectomy for breast cancer. I had the lumpectomy about a year and a half ago, but the nerve pain persists. It can be mild to extreme. I have researched nerve damage till I am blue in the face. I have suggestions for you that might sound crazy, but I am telling you this after extensive reading about pain and nerves. I suggest that you walk constantly. It's like telling your brain that there is nothing wrong. So I suggest that every time you feel these nerve type symptoms, you tell yourself that you do not need pain signals anymore. Do this constantly. You need to retrain your brain to stop giving you pain signals, because your surgery was months ago, and you have healed. This talk with yourself can actually change the way your brain works. On you tube, learn about tapping away pain. Just type in tapping for pain. Listen to a brilliant man names Lorimer Moseley on youtube. I happen to use excellent CBD products, so if you ever need them for relaxation and pain, let me know. They work well. It does sound like, somehow, your nerves were impacted by your bunion surgery. Good luck at the neuro doc. I do not think they really think in terms of altering pain messages. But I think it is crucial to tell yourself that you are safe, and no longer need pain messages due to the fact you have healed. Best regards, Lori Renee

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@lorirenee1 I find that walking helps, I think partially because it increases blood flow to my feet. I have just ordered an electric foot massager which is supposed to increase blood flow as well. I do believe there is a mind/body connection so I will also work on sending these healing messages as I am walking. Thank you for the suggestion.

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@klro0001

Thank you. I will try these strategies.

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Yes, these strategies are based on the latest in pain research, and includes nerve symptoms. Please keep us all informed what you learn from the neurologist, and what tests are ordered. Good luck, Lori Renee

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@sunny2

@lorirenee1 I find that walking helps, I think partially because it increases blood flow to my feet. I have just ordered an electric foot massager which is supposed to increase blood flow as well. I do believe there is a mind/body connection so I will also work on sending these healing messages as I am walking. Thank you for the suggestion.

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Very good. Keep up with the walking and healing messages. I also bought a foot massager. I like it, but do not love it, because most of my neuropathy is in my toes, and the machine does not do a great job on the toes. But generally, for the whole foot, it is ok. I would love to try to buy another machine, but they are expensive. Anyway, keep telling your brain to stop sending pain messages. My very best to you....Lori Renee

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@lorirenee1

Very good. Keep up with the walking and healing messages. I also bought a foot massager. I like it, but do not love it, because most of my neuropathy is in my toes, and the machine does not do a great job on the toes. But generally, for the whole foot, it is ok. I would love to try to buy another machine, but they are expensive. Anyway, keep telling your brain to stop sending pain messages. My very best to you....Lori Renee

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Hello...my neurology appointmenot was okay. He did a physical exam and ordered an EMG and NCV test. My appointment isn’t for 3 weeks! That seems like a long time to me but perhaps I am just anxious. He did note that the injury is most likely due to the nerve block and that most people with injuries from nerve blocks recover within a year. However, there are rare instances of permanent damage. So I guess I’ll know if I’m the exception or the rule after the testing. Anyway, thanks for reading this post. I am so thankful for this group.

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@klro0001 - Thank you for sharing how your appointment went with us. It is hard waiting. I remember waiting 3 months for an appointment with a neurologist and then I had to cancel it because of icy roads in the winter so waited an additional 3 weeks for the appointment. Good luck and think positive!

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@lorirenee1

Very good. Keep up with the walking and healing messages. I also bought a foot massager. I like it, but do not love it, because most of my neuropathy is in my toes, and the machine does not do a great job on the toes. But generally, for the whole foot, it is ok. I would love to try to buy another machine, but they are expensive. Anyway, keep telling your brain to stop sending pain messages. My very best to you....Lori Renee

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@lorirenee1 thank you Lori Renee. Just wanted to provide an update on the foot massager I mentioned. It is from Med massager and has a vibrating platform. It arrived today so it is too soon to give a complete review but I can say it does relieve the burning sensations in my feet. I thought of what you said about your machine not doing a great job on your toes. This machine has a bar at the top of the platform that you can wrap your toes around which provides the toes with a massaging benefit. This unit was pretty pricey but I ordered it based on the many positive reviews I read. Thought I would mention it in case you may want to look into it at some point.

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@sunny2

@lorirenee1 thank you Lori Renee. Just wanted to provide an update on the foot massager I mentioned. It is from Med massager and has a vibrating platform. It arrived today so it is too soon to give a complete review but I can say it does relieve the burning sensations in my feet. I thought of what you said about your machine not doing a great job on your toes. This machine has a bar at the top of the platform that you can wrap your toes around which provides the toes with a massaging benefit. This unit was pretty pricey but I ordered it based on the many positive reviews I read. Thought I would mention it in case you may want to look into it at some point.

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@suuny2 Is the foot massager you bought anywhere on line? I would love to see it and look at reviews if there are any. I need a machine that really deeply massages the toes, more than anything else. Do you think your machine really gets to those toes? I definitely want to see it, and would buy another foot massager if I thought it would help!!! Get back to me if you can. Thanks a bunch, Lori

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@lorirenee1

@suuny2 Is the foot massager you bought anywhere on line? I would love to see it and look at reviews if there are any. I need a machine that really deeply massages the toes, more than anything else. Do you think your machine really gets to those toes? I definitely want to see it, and would buy another foot massager if I thought it would help!!! Get back to me if you can. Thanks a bunch, Lori

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I was just looking at the Med Massager. I used to have a cheaper brand and stopped using it because it didn't help much. The Med Massager looks to be much better. Costco has them for $199 and has a video from the manfacturer and some reviews from their customers here: https://www.costco.com/MedMassager-Foot-Massager.product.100406209.html

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@lorirenee1

@suuny2 Is the foot massager you bought anywhere on line? I would love to see it and look at reviews if there are any. I need a machine that really deeply massages the toes, more than anything else. Do you think your machine really gets to those toes? I definitely want to see it, and would buy another foot massager if I thought it would help!!! Get back to me if you can. Thanks a bunch, Lori

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@lorirenee1 I ordered the massager through Amazon — this is the model,
MedMassager MMF06 11 Speed Foot Massager
There are lots of reviews. I can definitely feel it in my toes but it’s difficult for me to say if it would be considered a deep massage. However, I have only used it once at the lowest setting so there is more experimenting to be done.

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