Has anyone had Ankle Surgery?

[Gomar]

Has anyone here have ankle surgery before? I'd like to know what the experience was like and what prompted you to have it.

As I mentioned in other threads that I have a weak ankle on my right foot. It probably got sprained like 7-8 times already. Now while I am completely committed to do ankle exercises after this most recent one heals up. I am also completely confident that it will probably not cause much trouble for me walking, maybe just get tired quicker when running.

However as people who do kickboxing or bjj, I feel like the threshold of for ankle issue should be lower than normal people for surgery. Though yes, I can walk and do normal exercises just fine. But when you doing kickboxing or bjj, you don't want to be afraid of spraining it when throwing a kick or spraining if someone tried to do a leg lock on you.

As I said before, I am going to try to do physio exercises the hell out of my ankle when it heals up and see how far that takes me. What degree of issues will you accept before considering surgery?

 

[ripskater]

I had it done. It helped some. It took 10 months before I could really play basketball again. I thought I was done playing sports though because my ankle still hurt quite a bit after surgery. What has really helped was the foot and ankle routine out of the book ProbodX. Along with doing the listed slant board exercises on the bosu ball. I felt like I got my life back. It also improved my balance and athleticism.

 

[damac]

i think you should get a diagnosis since you are even thinking about surgery.

you can't power through stretched out and torn ligaments, etc. and thats when people start to wear hardcore braces.

if you were born with lax body parts unfortunately you may have issues in the future.

if its a bad foot that perhaps got injured bad early on and never treated right, you have chronic instability.


i am 38 and a year ago had my first injury with a ladder, didn't have a history of sprains. i ripped up all the outside bodies, jones fracture, and peroneal tendon and its cover because it was sublexing.

tried to rehab conservative approach after booting to let jones fracture setup and i progressed slow for a while until things went downhill badly and let me know i couldn't even function without falling over.

i think doctors suck for trying slow approach to see if you are ok with living with it and a brace for the rest of your life, even after manually mainipulating my foot and seeing what was wrong. for some reason they like to avoid surgery?

but thats a no go for real athletic people and i think deep down you know whats going on with your body. you could let it be until you keep rolling it and do major damage like me and the whole joint pops out of place and locks up so you can't walk. imagine all the stress on other body parts as you try and compensate as well. its just not good and you will develop bad habits.

i think you should have the doc manipulate you, take xray and mri to see whats really going on. whats interesting is some tears length wise on these bodies will not heal, but add scar tissue and pockets. so the rubber band isn't as tight when stressed. some of these surgeries are simply cutting out the crap and stitching up what is there.

or like mine where things must be mended by being cut, etc.

i got my last surgery at the end of april and am just now doing short bursts of running. lots of walking and exercises but i still don't have my overall conditioning back. aches and pains to complain about every day but i push through.

also the scary part is i'm just a tad short on range of motion although functional. still working on strength training, and balancing.

 

[just52182]

It would generally depend on the nature of the injury. I don't think surgery is necessary in your case but it doesn't hurt to maybe get looked at and evaluated again, at least its better to get a professional opinion.

 

[simodasink]

I had surgery first for a broken ankle which meant 6 pins an a plate. After that my ankle started to swell up everytime I properly trained hard.

in the end I got surgery and it has made a difference-definitely feels better but 2 nasty scars about 4 inches long for my troubles!

 

[Gomar]

I think I will get a diagnosis, hopefully my doctor will let me get an CT scan or mri for this. Thanks for the suggestion, I think I sort of knew this inside but just need someone to say it to me.

I am glad you guys had successful ankle surgeries. I hear that some people come out worst from it cause the ankle is rather complex with many moving parts. And also after surgery there's a break point in the ligament making it more prone to snap in the future.

 

[HockeyBjj]

Mine wasn't from a sprain or muscle tear, but from breaking that fucking top of the foot bone, extending through the joint and then into the Tibia, snapping off the outside chunk and needing surgery to screw that back on. I can give you info on that if you'd think it's applicable

Also, I'm writing this while my right arm is in an immobilizer from shoulder surgery. Fuck hockey was rough on me. Good thing I switched to mma

 

[Gomar]

Your guys seem worst than mine. For me it was just multiple sprains that occurred after a grade 3 sprain which I didn't take care of. Never iced it, hopped and walked around with it and this was the result. Very stupid mistake, that was the first time I realized you don't heal like when you were a kid anymore.

I think I would be able to stabilized and improve mobility of the ankle with exercises, but I almost feel in order to make the ankle more resilient to injuries from throwing kicks or bjj leg locks, I might have to do surgery. Cause strengthen muscle to stabilize is one thing but you sort of need the ligaments to be tight so that it absorbs impact from a kick gradually. Am I wrong here or can you improve fast impact resistance with exercises as well?

 

[ldub37]

Hey all. Sooo this is a super old post i see but by the grace of Google at 1:45 am (cue insomnia per the whole topic of these posts here ), here I am. So I've had likee 4 surgeries on my ankle including a big ol' reconstruction like 10 years ago.

Did fieldwork (Hiking on Steroids) for my day job, pushed it to the max. Body got angry at me (including ankle). Stopped doing fieldwork (for now). Started Muay Thai and BJJ last year after finally finding a good local gym I could afford. Was looking for a looooong time for a local spot to join.

Well low and behold a month into an MMA class I fractured my back.... lol whoops. Turns out I have osteopenia for reasons unbeknownst to me and doctors so far I guess. And Ye Old Ankle is unraveling again. Long story short, there's some scoliosis, low bone density, a fiesty back, and TMJ in which my jaw bones are gracefully turning into an old woman for some reason.

Still trying to address all of those and in P.T. to retrain my back/core etc. for that area, but my biggest physical hangup is Ye Old Ankle coming back to haunt me. Been trying more P.T., steroid injections, bracing, icing, Wim Hoffing, telling myself it's *magically healing*. All the things. In an attempt to be able to get back to at least Muay Thai, which is like my #1 passion martial arts wise. And then get back into BJJ when I figure out why my bones are kind of weird and heal the current issues.

However, in the Old and Crusty Ankle sense, it turns out my peroneal tendon, and other stuff in there, is basically ruined at this point from all of the past injuries and surgeres/wear and tear since lot of Extreme Hiking plus the short year of blissfully starting Muay Thai/BJJ etc. I guess the current biggest issue is the peroneal tendon finally said Nope and is chronically subluxating and starting to micro tear now, and there's just too much calcification and scarring etc etc for any minor repairs to do anything but make it worse. My surgeon says I'm looking at having to get the tendon straight up removed from my ankle and fusing it together (we've avoided it for 10+ years now since the last surgery....) before I'm at the point of not being able to walk at all. He tried to be conservative for a while but it's at the point where even P.T. is just making it worse, so, checking off all the boxes I guess.

He's a pretty O.G. surgeon and believes in doing everything possible to get his patients able to at LEAST do something, with what they reasonably can, so I have faith in him. He knows I want to get back into Muay Thai eventually but he said there's no way to know what I'll be able to do after a final fusion. If all goes perfectly probably modifying everything and maybe some light hiking again one day. Soooo I'm Googling stories of people with fused ankles who found ways to still train Muay Thai in one sense or another after their fusions (after recovery and P.T. etc, of course). My heart is always like "yeah yeah yeah there's a will there's a way!" but my ankle is like "yo, dude. I'm angry lols pls be mindful". At this point I will take anything over nothing, even if it means not being able to fully train but at least doing what I can and being in the Muay Thai community (iykyk) and BJJ etc.

I'm just so curious about all of your stories, fellow Muay Thai/BJJ obsessed practioners with Very Fiesty Ankles - how did things wind up for you all? Esp those of you with chronic injuries and surgeries? Did you end up finding a way to modify Muay Thai training to get back into it sometime, and how did it go? I'm working on finding a gym that, #1. is supportive of having to train with potentially permanent limitations (I'm eternally grateful that I'll at least be able to walk after this, I know a lot of people don't have that privelege), and #2, where I realistically won't get in the way or be a pain in the butt to trainers/other students etc. I'm the same in my stubborn brain where I'm like "mayyyyybe I can at least get a few amateur fights in one day, regardless?" bc yeah, big fan of Muay Thai (it kind of changed my life). But I just dont' know. I'm sure you experienced that it's hard to explain to doctors and physical therapists exactly WHAT training is like, and get clear answers on what you can/can't reasonbly do without destroying the body further. And also the unconventional things that would probably be pretty helpful aren't typically covered by insurance, so, curious if anyone found any alternative, supportive healing modalities to help support ankles etc. when training after chronic injuries and surgeries.

Hoping you all found a way to make it work after and still keep training, without a lot of pain (mental or physical lol). Would love to hear your stories. Yay to ankles.

 

[deadshot138]

No

 

[Phlog]

Hey all. Sooo this is a super old post i see but by the grace of Google at 1:45 am (cue insomnia per the whole topic of these posts here ), here I am. So I've had likee 4 surgeries on my ankle including a big ol' reconstruction like 10 years ago.

Did fieldwork (Hiking on Steroids) for my day job, pushed it to the max. Body got angry at me (including ankle). Stopped doing fieldwork (for now). Started Muay Thai and BJJ last year after finally finding a good local gym I could afford. Was looking for a looooong time for a local spot to join.

Well low and behold a month into an MMA class I fractured my back.... lol whoops. Turns out I have osteopenia for reasons unbeknownst to me and doctors so far I guess. And Ye Old Ankle is unraveling again. Long story short, there's some scoliosis, low bone density, a fiesty back, and TMJ in which my jaw bones are gracefully turning into an old woman for some reason.

Still trying to address all of those and in P.T. to retrain my back/core etc. for that area, but my biggest physical hangup is Ye Old Ankle coming back to haunt me. Been trying more P.T., steroid injections, bracing, icing, Wim Hoffing, telling myself it's *magically healing*. All the things. In an attempt to be able to get back to at least Muay Thai, which is like my #1 passion martial arts wise. And then get back into BJJ when I figure out why my bones are kind of weird and heal the current issues.

However, in the Old and Crusty Ankle sense, it turns out my peroneal tendon, and other stuff in there, is basically ruined at this point from all of the past injuries and surgeres/wear and tear since lot of Extreme Hiking plus the short year of blissfully starting Muay Thai/BJJ etc. I guess the current biggest issue is the peroneal tendon finally said Nope and is chronically subluxating and starting to micro tear now, and there's just too much calcification and scarring etc etc for any minor repairs to do anything but make it worse. My surgeon says I'm looking at having to get the tendon straight up removed from my ankle and fusing it together (we've avoided it for 10+ years now since the last surgery....) before I'm at the point of not being able to walk at all. He tried to be conservative for a while but it's at the point where even P.T. is just making it worse, so, checking off all the boxes I guess.

He's a pretty O.G. surgeon and believes in doing everything possible to get his patients able to at LEAST do something, with what they reasonably can, so I have faith in him. He knows I want to get back into Muay Thai eventually but he said there's no way to know what I'll be able to do after a final fusion. If all goes perfectly probably modifying everything and maybe some light hiking again one day. Soooo I'm Googling stories of people with fused ankles who found ways to still train Muay Thai in one sense or another after their fusions (after recovery and P.T. etc, of course). My heart is always like "yeah yeah yeah there's a will there's a way!" but my ankle is like "yo, dude. I'm angry lols pls be mindful". At this point I will take anything over nothing, even if it means not being able to fully train but at least doing what I can and being in the Muay Thai community (iykyk) and BJJ etc.

I'm just so curious about all of your stories, fellow Muay Thai/BJJ obsessed practioners with Very Fiesty Ankles - how did things wind up for you all? Esp those of you with chronic injuries and surgeries? Did you end up finding a way to modify Muay Thai training to get back into it sometime, and how did it go? I'm working on finding a gym that, #1. is supportive of having to train with potentially permanent limitations (I'm eternally grateful that I'll at least be able to walk after this, I know a lot of people don't have that privelege), and #2, where I realistically won't get in the way or be a pain in the butt to trainers/other students etc. I'm the same in my stubborn brain where I'm like "mayyyyybe I can at least get a few amateur fights in one day, regardless?" bc yeah, big fan of Muay Thai (it kind of changed my life). But I just dont' know. I'm sure you experienced that it's hard to explain to doctors and physical therapists exactly WHAT training is like, and get clear answers on what you can/can't reasonbly do without destroying the body further. And also the unconventional things that would probably be pretty helpful aren't typically covered by insurance, so, curious if anyone found any alternative, supportive healing modalities to help support ankles etc. when training after chronic injuries and surgeries.

Hoping you all found a way to make it work after and still keep training, without a lot of pain (mental or physical lol). Would love to hear your stories. Yay to ankles.

Have you tried taking substances that increase bone density and tendon growth. Certain 'mexican' supplements?

 

[DEVILsSON]

My bad ankle sprain from 20+ years ago never healed completely. What made it better was subcutaneous injections with BPC157 and TB500. But sadly I only stumbled on it decades later. It is worth trying. Reddit has a lot of useful info on it.