Mobility aids - crutches?

[calluna]

I am struggling a bit at the moment, the pain is worse than it's ever been. The last few weeks have been a bit stressful and I've had to be a lot more active than I'd normally contemplate, and I think that (perhaps because of this?) the remaining mesh has moved somewhat. Moving the right leg and in particular putting any weight on it is very painful, to put it mildly. I've been using an old walking stick for quite a while now, and it has been very helpful having something to lean on when there is a spike, but I have reached the point now where that isn't enough. So, reluctantly, I'm considering crutches.

And I have no idea which sort to choose. The ones which prop you up under your arms? Or the ones with a cuff around the upper arm and a handgrip? And there is another sort very similar to that with an open cuff instead, forming a sort of cup for the back of the upper arm to rest in, and a handgrip - easier if you have a coat on, I'm sure, because you don't have to thread your arm with coat sleeve through the cuff - but on the other hand, more easily dropped. Coats are, however, a bit essential at this time of year.

Any advice? Advantages or disadvantages? What works for other people?

Also, who do you think would be the best person to advise about something like this? I've had a telephone conversation with the GP this afternoon and she only wants to talk about pain meds, because what I've got running just isn't touching it .... yes, that needs sorting, but I could do with some immediate practical help here.....

[Karyn]

Hi Calluna,
What are you feeling and where, when you put weight on your leg?
I use a cane to help me get around, but I have no experience with any type of crutches. I'm very sorry you're in a position where you have to consider this.
Hugs,
Karyn

[calluna]

I have neuropathic pain in the pudendal distribution on both sides, worse on the left which is where the original damage was.

On the right I also have pain which I believe is from the remaining mesh which has not been able to be removed. This particular piece of mesh was originally placed running along the pelvic floor from just behind the vaginal opening in the direction of the back passage, at which point the sheet of mesh was divided to run either side and continue for several inches. This was not easy to put in, I gather - two stab incisions in the buttocks used to grab the ends and pull them backwards - and it has proved impossible to remove.

I have severe pain along a line which seems to be the outer right-hand edge of this mesh. It is palpable from the outside as a hard line. When I move my right leg there is very sharp pain like a knife cutting, when I put any weight on the right leg it gets worse. And when this all gets going, the nerve pain gets worse too.

I'm also now getting low back pain on the left, I think it is because of all the awkwardness when trying to walk, and that's starting to become a significant problem in its own right.

It is all a darn nuisance. I hate the idea of crutches, admitting that I needed a stick was bad enough in the first place. But I need to take my weight off the right leg completely and I can't think of any other way of managing to do this other than using crutches. Maybe I'll be able to manage with just one....?

[Karyn]

I wish I had an easy solution for you, Calluna. What you described sounds absolutely horrible. I can relate to your despair about needing the walking stick. I felt the same way about the need for a cane. To me, it was like one more testimonial of my disability. I've since some to peace with it, but still ...
Here in the US, there are frequent TV commercials sponsored by lawyers seeking victims of these mesh repairs.
Do you have any idea what's catching on the mesh to cause you this horrible pain and disability?

[Rosemary]

I've been using an old walking stick for quite a while now, ..

Sorry to read that you need this calluna.

I just wondered if a different walking stick would make a difference. My dad got one through his gp service that had a good shaped handle, was quite thick and had a wide rubber base - he was able to lean on it much better than an ordinary walking stick.

Rosemary x

[calluna]

Hmm that's a thought, it would be nice and stable. I need to not put any weight on the right leg. So I need something that will enable me to support my body weight another way. I don't think I've got the upper body strength to do that using a stick - but I wonder if I could?

[calluna]

Karyn, I've just realised that I didn't answer you. Unfortunately no, I have no idea why it is as painful as it is. The surgery was rather out of the ordinary run of things in the first place, so there aren't many precedent cases, and none exactly the same as mine. But instances of pain following mesh surgery seems not to be uncommon, as you say. I can well imagine that there are lawsuits in the US, over here this doesn't happen so much if at all...

With regard to a cane/walking stick I have found one of the main advantages is that it warns other people that all is not quite right, so they make allowances for slow progress and so forth.

And I wonder what the difference is between a cane and a walking stick? I'd call a blind person's white stick a cane - something not intended to take any weight. And I'd call it a walking stick if the person actually uses it to help with walking. Maybe it is another case of being divided by a common language...?

[Karyn]

And I wonder what the difference is between a cane and a walking stick? I'd call a blind person's white stick a cane - something not intended to take any weight. And I'd call it a walking stick if the person actually uses it to help with walking. Maybe it is another case of being divided by a common language...?

Well, I guess I picture a walking stick as something without a "handle". I imagine the stick one, a straight staff-like thing. A cane has that curved handle. Like a candy cane!
I'm really glad you wrote back. I realize you described your leg pain in relation to the mesh, but I'm having a difficult time understanding where exactly your leg is affected.
Sorry to be such a pest. But is it the lateral thighs? Medial? Anterior? Posterior? Calves? Is it a stabbing pain? Shooting? Both?

My dad got one through his gp service that had a good shaped handle, was quite thick and had a wide rubber base

That does sound intriguing! Would you happen to have anymore info about this particular product, Rosemary? It sounds more stable than my whimpy little cane.
Hugs,
Karyn

[calluna]

My leg is not affected at all. I have no pain in either leg, and both legs work perfectly.

Except that moving the right leg causes the pain from the mesh to increase, and putting weight on that leg makes it increase even more. I don't know why it does this. The pain is sharp, stabbing. It feels like a knife. And when the pain along the mesh line starts to increase, then very soon the nerve pain (which is always there in the background) starts to increase too. The nerve pain is more of a burning, like a hot ache if that makes any sense. It is the sheer level of the pain that makes it so hard to walk. Just the pain.

The fact that I have no biomechanical problem with my legs is why I've just lost my Blue Badge....

And by the way, it appears that we do indeed have a language difference with regard to walking sticks and canes! - an exact reversal, in fact. My walking stick is similar to this - mine is quite a bit more substantial, it is a good inch thick and has a rubber ferrule. This is what I'd call a cane - more decorative than functional. What you describe as a staff, I'd call a thumbstick, they are usually about four foot tall and have a decorative V shaped bit at the top which also works as a thumbrest....

Rosemary - I'm picturing your dad's walking stick as something like this ...?

[helenlegs 11]

I would say it depends on how much support you need.
In standing situations I LOVE (love, love) my under arm crutches but they really get on my nerves when trying to actually move. But they are just fab (propped up) in one spot.
If you need to be mobile, then go for normal elbow ones. I can't bear even a stick to perambulate. It just totally gets in the way and drives me nuts, but it comes to a time where I can do no more unless propped up.Under arm are delightful BUT if walking is necessary elbow is the way to go. Still annoying, then again people in shops are SO nice to you.
Hx