Sounds like a big surgery. That you are greatly improved is terrific but that you can 'see' the hardware? That would make me feel uncomfortable. What did the doctor say for expectations post surgery? Back to normal? They usually tell you what they think limitations could be. From my reading, they say recovery is actually sort of long for ORIF. 3 to 12 months! I would expect this to possibly still get better. This is a general link and focuses a bit more on the ankle ORIF surgery. But same applies. https://www.healthline.com/health/orif-surgery#recovery Do you do physical therapy? That is really essential after this kind of repair!