Braces and cam walkers are pretty neat but really none of them make it as impossible to move my ankle as I'd like.
Plus
Equals
I made myself a terrible looking, plaster of Paris, short leg cast that worked pretty well once.
But a person in my "delicate condition" (somebody's mother) can't just go around applying a leg cast any ol' time she wants. (Mommas, don't let your babies grow up to need therapy.)
The point is, I really haven't found a way to completely lock my ankle at a 90 degree angle. What I noticed though was that when I point my toe, I makes almost a straight line across the top of my foot and the top of my leg.
I began to think to myself "Hey, what if I found something sturdy and flat to tape this area?" I could totally lock my ankle at 180!
I didn't have anything sturdy and flat in the house when the inspiration struck me. (Seriously, how do I not own a ruler?) All I had was a giant souvenir novelty pencil. I got it out and taped it onto the top of my foot just as tightly as I could. That's when I had learned a very important lesson in human anatomy. It turns out, there's not much meat on the tops of our feet. When you smash a giant novelty pencil down onto that surface you hit several bones and lots and LOTS of delicate nerve endings almost immediately. The second I moved my foot I saw stars! Let me stop here and explain that, while I am super into the appearance of injury, I am in no way interested in actual pain. Not mine or anyone else's for that matter. This was not a happy accident for me. Cleverly, I had neglected to put scissors or crutches by me and walking was out of the question! I managed to claw my way out of it eventually, then I tried again with a kid made potholder for padding. It worked great but looked lumpy and odd (that was, coincidentally, my nickname in college *rim shot*)
So off I went to the "Kinky Girl" section of my local hardware superstore to find the right "flat thing" for the job. I came up with this. The guy at the store told me it's called a strap tie. I thought that was a fitting name.
I gathered the rest of my supplies and went to work.
The potholder keeps the rig nice and comfy and the tape holds it in place very well.
Here's where I had to stop blogging yesterday. The stupid camera lost the pictures of the final wrap after I had already taken it off. But fear not gentle reader. I made the ultimate sacrifice for you and I rewrapped it this afternoon so I could show you the finished product.
It looks much better with the strap tie but, as you can see from the close up, it's still a bit lumpy and odd looking.
I'd like to try this one with a padded, soft cast to see if I can hide the bar better. But it feels great! If I could get the look right I would actually wear this in public. If that happens you will hear about it!
Ta-ta for now!
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