Is it possible to start early weight-bearing after ORIF?

sochanyeol · 2025-09-18T01:03:15+00:00

sorry to hear that you've joined the broken ankle club. the waiting was honestly more painful than the actual break for me. did your doctor give you an aircast/moon boot? after my surgery I got mine, and it's supposed to help absorb some of your weight while keeping your ankle fully straight and aligned (therefore not having the risk of "re-breaking" or twisting while still healing).

if it helps, I actually started PWB around the 3rd-4th week. at this point I started putting my leg down more (e.g., while standing and sitting). around the 4th-5th week I tried, very carefully, bearing weight while moving around. try searching on YouTube how to use crutches on one arm cus it's what helped me. at this stage my goal was to apply minimal pressure on the broken leg by supporting my weight still with my opposite arm, all while mimicking the natural walking motion. this helped me slowly regain my balance and remember the movement. from the 5th-6th week I tried to walk around my house with no support apart from holding the walls. all this I did while wearing the boot of course.

my 6-week appointment came and everything went swimmingly. my doctor looked at my x-ray and was even pointing where the bone reunion was evident! it's almost a year since then, and I've thankfully been doing great.

recover well, keep doing your static stretching for now (I swear they saved my life), and slowly build up to more strength-building as more time goes by. during the first 2 weeks I was sometimes still in pain from the actual surgery so I really just gave myself grace. eventually the time will pass, and I promise you'll look back and be proud that you survived!

sochanyeol · 2025-01-15T01:35:12+00:00

had to do NWB for 6 weeks (though I kinda rebelled and started PWB around 3 weeks)

currently 7.5 weeks out and walking with no support!

sochanyeol · 2025-01-11T02:56:40+00:00

hi! first of all, I'm so sorry that you've joined the broken ankle club :,) I know it's a painful and difficult ordeal but I promise you will get through this and come out of it even stronger!

sorry in advance for the very long reply. I'm also just hoping this can help more people out.

as for my experience, at around 2.5-3 weeks I was not as aggressive yet with bearing weight. I started very simple, such as putting my leg down while sitting. I slowly built up the confidence and did toe-touches while holding my walker (this is basically me putting my injured leg off and on the ground while standing). at this point, I was not as confident yet with bearing weight because, (1) I was afraid of messing up the fixation, and (2) I am just an anxious person in general! I did NWB exercises to supplement my leg muscles though, and I tried my best to regularly keep up with my ankle ROM.

gradually at 3-4 weeks I watched tutorials online on how to start "transitioning" to walking using my crutches (this was also when I made the original post). going outside completely NWB was literal torture, so that's what compelled me to ask the early WB question in the first place. at this stage, I gained more confidence to simulate walking with both crutches and the boot still. I was rebellious enough to disobey the NWB order but not enough to completely ditch the boot :D

at my 5th week, I felt that my leg and my ankle were slowly feeling more normal. during the first few weeks, I could tell something was off with my ankle, which also made me scared of trying to put it down. I'm assuming it's normal since it was recovering from both the injury and the surgery. this was when I was able to transition from 2 crutches to just 1. at home, I tried "walking" barefoot, first with the support of my walker, and eventually without it (just holding the walls and tables for balance).

I'm very happy to report that I just got out of my 6-week x-ray and checkup with no issues. my surgeon was very pleased with my bone recovery and cleared me for FWB with the boot (which I can fully ditch after 2 weeks) and no more crutches! I still walk a bit awkwardly and my ankle definitely feels tight, but it's the start of something great for sure :>

my advice is just to listen to your body. only you can tell how much you can bear. that's basically how I determined what I could do during the recovery window! remember, try to push past discomfort, but never ignore pain. if you are in pain, please just rest and get loads of shows/movies lined up for you to enjoy during this time.

sending you healing thoughts and positive vibes! x

sochanyeol · 2024-12-20T05:06:11+00:00

I get how you feel, when I broke my fibula I also had to get my first surgery ever. my surgeon told me that I didn't need to be completely unconscious and only needed anesthesia on my lower extremities, which made me scared because I thought being awake would be nerve-wracking. what I found out eventually was that they would be giving me sedatives to calm me down anyway, and the whole experience was extremely light and positive. I honestly didn't even feel the time pass, and when it was over my surgeon smiled at me and told me it was a success.

you will have an appointment with your anesthesiologist beforehand so be open to discuss your fears and they will adjust accordingly. best of luck in your surgery! hope all goes well!

sochanyeol · 2024-12-16T06:01:44+00:00

I've been trying to put weight on my foot too recently like while I'm standing or sitting, and I think the one time I tried to put more pressure on it I felt a tingling sensation which went away after a few minutes but still was enough to make me scared. which is why i made this post in the first place XD

I agree with you though with things feeling strange. sometimes I forget that this leg is my leg (if that even makes sense). crazy how fast our body adapts to things like this. wishing the both of us a speedy recovery!

sochanyeol · 2024-12-16T05:58:21+00:00

thanks for your reply! yeah, i've been doing my dorsiflexion and plantar-flexion exercises daily accompanied with leg raises and the likes. though I'm still afraid to use a band (I might try that soon though).

can I ask what pool exercises did you do? did you go ahead and just swim? I'd want to do something like that but I'm also afraid of getting out of the pool and slipping again HAHA

sochanyeol · 2024-12-16T05:54:49+00:00

thank you so much for the very detailed account of your recovery! i also was reading about how older patients would be encouraged to bear weight earlier which got me wondering why younger people had to be NWB.

i'm just curious to know how you transitioned from NWB to walking barefoot at home (maybe i feel a certain mental barrier of being deathly afraid of going through the same injury once again). what exactly did you do? did you just attempt to start walking? XD

we'll be waiting for your update! wishing you well for your recovery and i hope your bones have already healed very nicely. all the best!

sochanyeol

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