About 18 weeks Post-Op - Getting Stronger Day by Day

Hello everyone, I took off my casts two weeks ago and things seem to be progressing well. I've taped my feet very tightly for the past two weeks and I feel the strength coming back slowly each day. Below is another image of my feet taped. I've also started to put on scar-reducing strips to help decrease the redness of the scars and I've had to put bandages on the side edge of my feet (underneath my pinky toe) to add a little more cushion. Wrapping my feet so tightly has caused the edges to bruise a little and be sensitive. It is quite funny all the things I have to do in the morning. I do not wear the tape when I sleep so I wrap my feet up early in the morning before I get out of bed.

I've now almost fully resorted to walking without my crutches. I bring them with me to work, but I barely use them. Wearing my sneakers with the inserts have made my feet feel very secure. I've also stopped using the wheelchair as I need to walk more steps to rebuild my tolerance of walking. I've noticed that when I walk quite a number of steps, my feet get tired and swell up a tiny bit. I still walk slow, but Dr. Wu says I can increase my pace gradually each week. I am tempted to walk my normal speed, but my feet tell me they're not ready yet. Below is a video I recorded of Dr. Wu explaining to me how I should be walking. He is teaching me to over-emphasize walking with my big toe, to build strength and also to learn how to walk correctly. 
 

 
Besides walking as described above, I'm also supposed to continue my toe pressing exercises. The toe bending exercises, I do periodically when my toes are not as flexibile. A little bit of stretching every day helps the feet get back to normal. I am still concerned how much the bones may have shifted over this time. I will not know until my next X-Ray, which will be in about 2 weeks. Dr. Wu says they will still shift slightly and I hope it is not too much. This surgery does not guarantee that your bunion area will be completely straight after your recovery and I warn people not to expect that. I even have to remind myself and I have to remember that the ultimate goal of this surgery is not aesthetics, but better functionality and less to no pain. What I believe this surgery will do is to help restore better overall foot function and also get your feet back to within normal degree angles. Let us hope this proves true.

I have tried out driving once, but not yet on a regular basis. I feel that I can drive short distances around town, but again need to build up my tolerance. This is especially so for me since I drive a manual transmission. I use both feet quite often when driving and shifting, so I don't want to over tire them. 

That is all I have to report for now. Here is a picture of my feet sans tape, strips, and bandaid. I hope to post again in another couple weeks.