Upcoming: NYCB Wellness Workshop

This Saturday New York City Ballet is holding a Dance Wellness Workshop that looks really interesting.

As a dancer recovering from a serious injury, and an almost-certified New York City Ballet Workout instructor, I'm really looking forward to this:

A one-day series of interactive presentations focusing on the care and healing of the dancer’s extraordinary instrument of art—the body.

Saturday, October 16, 2010
10 AM – 6 PM

New York City Ballet Rehearsal Studios
Samuel B. & David Rose Building, 8th Fl.
70 Lincoln Center Plaza

Registration open to students, professional dancers, parents, teachers, and administrators.

Recovery: Days 20-22 - Starting PT

Yesterday I started back up with physical therapy - my first appointment since the surgery. My therapist greeted me with open arms. We've been together since May. Going on six months of PT (well, that's counting September which was mostly spent on crutches, not in therapy). As he was writing my new evaluation to kick things off we agreed that this better be the last first-time he ever sees me!

Anyway he said things look really good. He removed the tape my doctor had put on the incision last week and the wound is pretty much healed. It still looks kind of gross, but it's way better than the past times I've had to look at it. The bruising is less and the nasty blood stains are gone (ewww). He did some handwork around it to start "molding the scar tissue" so that it doesn't make my ankle joint stiffen up. Then he dug into my calf a little to find that yes, it's still ridiculously tight even though I haven't been dancing. Guess I was just born with tight muscles, haha.

He tested my range of motion and was pleasantly surprised that it was "scarily good." (It probably doesn't help - or does? - that I've been semi-dancing/marking steps in the boot while teaching rehearsals this week...) He said I was only missing like 5 degrees of flexibility when I point or flex my foot. I was happy to hear that! Although, that's not saying much considering my good foot doesn't point like a pretty ballet arch to begin with, haha. Whatever.

For another week or two we'll continue just gentle stretching and working around the scar. After I see my doctor in October we'll finally begin strengthening so I can get back to dancing. He said best case would be that I can start taking basic barre 3 weeks after we start strengthening...but seriously, if I'm out of the boot 2 weeks from now and can stand and plie decent enough, I may try a little barre. There's no sense in pushing it because I have no auditions or anything officially scheduled til my official 3 months are up. But I really really really miss dancing...

It was cool though - as my therapist was poking around my heel there was NO pain! It was an odd feeling to see him pressing on the areas that used to feel excrutiating for 3 years and now to feel absolutely nothing. It was like I was numb or something because I'm so used to seeing that and associating it with the intense pain that used to be there. I hope it stays that way forever!

Recovery: Day 13 & 14 - 2 Weeks Later

Yesterday was the 2 week anniversary of my surgery and I celebrated by taking quite a few steps without the crutches. I was at work most of the day and it's terribly hard to carry important things around while using both crutches, so finally I gave them up just to hobble around the not-so-big office. It's really awkward to walk without them because the boot is so much higher than my normal right shoe, but it's more fun than crutching!

After work I went to help at Nutcracker rehearsal and actually sort of "danced" a little. By "danced" I mean I stood on the bad foot (yes, still in the boot...) and made passe' and that kind of thing, haha. I can't exactly move around swiftly (or quickly) but I can pose :) It felt good to do something resembling ballet, even if just briefly.

Later I was in a really inconvenient place to any bus I needed to take home to Queens, so I actually took the subway for the first time on the crutches. There was an elevator at the stop I was near, so that meant I'd just have to go down stairs only once when I arrive home to Queens. It wasn't so bad - and seemed lightning fast compared to the stupid buses I've been taking. But I'm not ready to do that all the time just yet. I'm so slow and I feel bad holding everybody else up in foot traffic. Plus the stairs sort of hurt and I already have to do 3 flights just to get up to my apartment. So...no more than necessary, please.

I really hate taking the bus in the morning, though. I often work at 8:30am in midtown. So yesterday for my first shot at rush hour on crutches from Queens I gave myself a ton of time, leaving the house at 6:55am (ugh). I ended up arriving 45 minutes early with nothing to do. So today I left at 7:15am. Bad idea. I was actually LATE for work by 15 minutes. Between normal traffic and the UN being in town, it was not fun. Plus the bus was overloaded with people and we had to stop to check the air pressure, haha. Great. Guess I'll have to keep getting up too early to get ahead of traffic.

In the meantime I set up my first PT session (well, first for this round) for next Wednesday afternoon. They have to go through the whole inital evaluation all over again, even though I'd been going there for over 3 months before the surgery. Whatever it takes - I just want to be back dancing!

Recovery: Day 12 - First Doctor Follow-up

This morning I had my first post-surgery follow-up appointment with my doctor – and it brought good news!

It was sort of a rough morning before that. It was my first day battling rush hour with the crutches and the buses…I didn’t realize JUST how slow things move. I was all stressed out because I was 15 minutes late (though this doctor notoriously runs at least 45 minutes behind schedule…) and then when I got there the receptionist didn’t have my appointment listed for some reason. I was like, um, I’m here…luckily there was no problem and I was actually seen pretty quickly.

The doctor removed the boot and the dressing and took a look. He said it seemed okay and he felt around a little bit. There was no pain where he used to push and I’d cringe – so that’s good! Then he removed the 3 stitches (ew) and taped up the wound a bit.

After that he sent me down the hall for an x-ray. He put my old x-ray with the Haglund’s Deformity and the new one from today up side by side and there’s a big difference in my heel bone. It no longer comes to a sharp point. It’s long and flat like it should be, so it won’t dig into my tendon anymore.

He told me I was doing great for just 2 weeks later, and said that I can start bearing full weight on the foot (which means a little break for my aching arms!). I said, “Still with the crutches?” and he said I could slowly wean myself off of them (hurrah!!!). I’m not entirely sure how slow “slowly” is…but he said if I’m up to it then I can remove the boot in another 2 weeks! Oh that will be amazing…

He gave me a prescription to start physical therapy again just to stretch it. Even the few times I took the boot off myself these 2 weeks I haven’t actually moved the ankle joint. Today he pointed my foot (success…though sadly it still not a pretty ballerina arch, haha) and then went to flex it. Eek. It wasn’t really painful, but it was super stiff. My knee was bent and I could barely get to a 90 degree angle comfortably, which means standing on it flat won’t really work just yet. PT will help I hope.

Anyways I left there with an appointment for a follow up in another 4 weeks, when he’ll start to add strengthening work to my physical therapy plan. That puts me at mid-October.

I’m happy. I was starting to really be afraid of getting around the city on the crutches and in the heavy boot…it’s really really hard. But to know that it’s only a week or so more with crutches and 2 with the boot is really encouraging! Even if I won’t be back to dancing for a while still, just being able to walk is something I miss dearly! We take it for granted but…

When I left I tried to bear weight as he told me and walk semi-normally with the crutches. It was so awkward. The back of my heel sort of feels numb or something because I haven’t used it in 2 weeks. And the boot has a gigantic platform, so if I step on a straight leg as I normally would I have to walk on high releve with my good foot, haha. Weird. I’m sure I’ll get used to it. My right foot sure is glad to have a break though!

It’s progress, anyway…