{"id":1104,"date":"2026-08-01T21:01:56","date_gmt":"2026-08-02T02:01:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jeniferbenner.com\/life\/?p=1104"},"modified":"2026-08-01T21:20:48","modified_gmt":"2026-08-02T02:20:48","slug":"a-simple-surgery-until-it-wasnt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jeniferbenner.com\/life\/a-simple-surgery-until-it-wasnt\/","title":{"rendered":"A Simple Surgery… Until It Wasn’t"},"content":{"rendered":"

My Foot Surgery Journey: Week One<\/strong><\/h1>\n

So, it’s been one week since my right foot surgery on July 24, 2026<\/strong>. Let me tell you… I was in for a huge surprise when I woke up.<\/p>\n

But before I get to that, let me explain how I got here.<\/p>\n

It All Started in 2021<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The first time I fractured my foot was in 2021<\/strong>. It was my 4th metatarsal<\/strong>. I believe it happened while I was at ChalkCon (the Chalk Couture Convention) in Nashville. My left foot had been giving me problems, so I was putting most of my weight on my right foot. The fracture wasn’t discovered until October. I spent the next eight weeks in a walking boot, and thankfully it healed. Unfortunately, wearing the boot changed the way I walked, and I ended up tearing the meniscus in my left knee.<\/p>\n

More Injuries<\/strong><\/h2>\n

I had knee surgery in February 2022 to repair the torn meniscus. About six months later, I tore it again. Since then, my walking has never really been the same. In the spring of 2025, I fractured my right foot again. This time it was both the 3rd and 4th metatarsals<\/strong>. Back into the walking boot I went for another eight weeks.<\/p>\n

Thankfully, those fractures healed too.<\/p>\n

Then Came London…<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Fast forward to May 2026. Jeff and I traveled to London, and I had an amazing time. Even though both knees and my right foot hurt the entire trip, I wasn’t going to let that stop me. We came home on Mother’s Day. Just two days later, I was walking from the couch to the kitchen to get another drink when I suddenly felt a huge POP <\/strong>in my foot. The pain was so intense that I had to stop walking and catch my breath.<\/p>\n

At that moment, I knew something was very wrong.<\/p>\n

The Bad News<\/strong><\/h2>\n

I called my foot doctor the next morning and was able to get an appointment the following Tuesday. The X-rays showed I had fractured my 2nd metatarsal<\/strong>. My doctor also discovered bruising on the bottom of my foot, which meant I had torn my Lisfranc ligament<\/strong>. This time, I wasn’t just in a walking boot. I was completely non-weight bearing<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

During those six weeks, I also had a CT scan. It showed more damage than we expected, but it still didn’t explain why my foot kept breaking. When I met with my doctor on July 7<\/strong>, he recommended surgery. He told me it would probably take about 45 minutes<\/strong>. He expected to use two small screws<\/strong> and maybe a tiny plate. That sounded pretty simple. \u00a0Also 4 weeks of non-weight bearing was expected.<\/p>\n

Surgery Day<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Surgery was scheduled for July 24 at 12:45 p.m. <\/strong>I was actually looking forward to it because I hoped this would finally fix my foot. Before surgery, my doctor came in and said he had talked with his colleagues. They decided to repair my bunion while they were fixing the fracture. Still, he expected everything to take about 45 minutes<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Well… That didn’t happen.<\/p>\n

The Big Surprise<\/strong><\/h2>\n

When I finally woke up, the first thing Jeff told me was… The surgery had taken FIVE hours. <\/strong>I was shocked. The doctor discovered much more damage once he opened my foot than any of the scans had shown. By the time I woke up, the recovery floor had already closed. They moved me to a regular room where I rested, ate a little, and made sure I could safely use the restroom before sending me home. We didn’t get home until 10:30 that night<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The X-Rays<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Arriving home and getting up the stairs that night was a little scary. I was still groggy from the anesthesia, but thankfully my nerve block kept my foot numb for almost 48 hours. My husband took on most of my weight and we got me up the stairs into the house. \u00a0The next morning, I finally saw my post-surgery X-rays. That’s when I understood why the surgery had taken so long.<\/p>\n

Instead of two screws and a small plate<\/strong>, my foot now had:<\/p>\n