Goodbye Crutches

I have been crutch-free for three - yes, three - days now. I've had thoroughly full days on each and every one of those days, and though my legs have been feeling shaky and I still lose my balance every now and then, it's a glorious feeling to not be relying on a stick anymore, even if my reliance had dwindled down to 5% or 10% of the time. 

To be perfectly honest, it's not even the support the crutch afforded me which was why I kept it for so long... it's the way it acts as a signal to other people, informing them that you're injured so that they offer you a seat or are more patient when you take longer to alight from the bus. And that's what I miss the most. 

I have to be so much more aware of other people - not that I wasn't before - but I can't move as fast as I used to and I can't turn too well either, so that makes getting out of an unobservant person's way that much harder. 

Yes, I'll admit I managed a quick-ish jog across the road when I absentmindedly stepped into the road and noticed a car was coming straight at me, but I was lucky and I know it. My leg still sometimes locks up and my knees are decidedly more achy ever since I gave the crutches up, but that comes with the territory.

I know I certainly don't make things easy for myself. The day I went crutch-free, I had to go into work early, meaning I had to contend with rush hour traffic. I also popped into the gym and did a few minutes on the exercise bike and did a few leg extensions. I brought some of my mail-order Christmas shopping home from the office so I was carrying more than usual, and I also had to go see my orthopaedic surgeon, meaning another trip back out. I was exhausted even before I got to the hospital, and called my boyfriend to let him know that. That's how weak I was feeling. Still, I made it, and even though I was all tuckered out the day after, I still managed a trip to Oxford Circus to get some winter thermals for my trip, and a party in the evening. Needless to say, I'm pooped today!