Femur Spiral Fracture

Hi

I had a skiing accident 3rd April 2010 causing a spiral fracture from about 6 inches below the hip to about 6 inches above the knee. I was operated on the same day and had a rod inserted wih 2 screws inserted in the bottom an dthe top. The sweling and pain was immense at first. I could not walk wihtout a walking frame and was not allowed to put any weight on the leg. The Andorrian consultants were happy with the progress I made and was discharged back to the UK.

I returned to the UK (6 days after the episode) and was seen by a consultant here. He spoke to me about 2 minutes. New xrays were taken and I was asked to come back the next week to take the staples out. The consultant said:

'how did it happen' - I explained
'is is a very serious fracture so I should not put any weight on the leg. only move my knee, ankle and hip for now'
'there is always a chance of a second operations and infection' - great!! just what I wanted to hear....!

Now, about 10 days later, the pain is getting better and the swelling is slowly reducing. The bruise is still spectacular - blue, green, black and yellow!! The medicine I'm using is heparin for the clots, paracetamol for pain when required and ibuprofen for inflammation. Pain is worse at night when I lie down.

My questions:

What do I need to do to speed recovery up? I am a very active person and find this sitting still business very difficult.
I have read some horror stories on the forum here - is that normal? I thought that only 1% of cases suffer complications?
What type of exersize can I do with the muscle to strengthen them?
Is there any medication I can take to stimulate bone growth? And is this a good idea?
Up to last night I've had some severe nightmares and sweating. I know sweats can be a sign of infections but is it normal to suffer some anxiety after the episode that can possibly cause these?
I am (was) a very healthy person doing boxing, running, swimming etc etc. I eat healthy and hopefully this will help recovery. What else can I do to speed things up a bit?
How common is second operations and infections? How does this influence the prognosis?

Hope you can help!!

J
xxx