After the events of trying to get referred to an orthopedic, I finally got an appointment for Tuesday - 2 days after I hurt my Achilles. Not too bad actually considering how HMO's work. I was feeling pretty good. Gina is coming with me everywhere at this point, what a great support she is. We get to the office for our visit and there is a ton of paperwork to fill-out. Gina is a trooper and fills it our for me and only has to ask me a few questions. We finally get back to the exam room and the nurse takes off the casted splint and we wait. My ankle is swollen and black & blue. Doctor comes in and has me lay on my stomach so he can see the back of my leg. He moves the foot a little bit and squeezes the calf and I almost hit to ceiling because the pain is so bad. I sit up and he asks me a few questions and says I have 2 options. Surgery or no surgery. He tells me the recovery will be about the same and that it really doesn't matter if I do surgery or not. He leaves and says we can talk about it for a few minutes. WHAT!!! No recommendation...no advice. NOTHING!! I don't know what to think. He makes it sound as if it really isn't that bad. Maybe it isn't, I think. He comes back and we try to ask him his opinion and he says that he has had really good luck with both approaches. He says we can think about it for a few days and he will have me back in a cast (full short cast this time - no splint) and we will come back in 2 weeks to have it off. If we decide to have surgery that would be the last date we could decide. I couldn't believe that he wasn't going to do any additional testing to see how bad it was. Gina and I leave a littel perplexed. I tell her I am going to research on my own a little before I make a decision and talk to several people about the injury. But I didn't feel as if I got enough information to make a decision at this point. She thinks it is a good idea. We get the cast and leave. Maybe 20 - 30 minutes total in the back office.exam room. We were a littel deflated to say the least.
We are thinking - WHAT NOW!!!
