Hope on the Horizon
I got to see my insides, at least as they apply to my lower leg and -- yikes! -- it wasn’t pretty. All those bones and tendons sure make the foot and ankle look far more complicated. One slide in particular caught my attention, as well as the doctors’, and that’s the one with a significant tear on the upper portion of the achilles tendon.
The good news is it’s only a partial tear. Had I not stopped running when I did on Halloween and beyond, I would have severed it by now. Instead, the continuous rest, ice and compression have helped, but there’s still a noticeable gap on the MRI screen. Surgery is the standard course of action for this injury; however, we’re going to give it another month of rest, ice, naproxen and, now, heating and specific stretches to see if the tendon can heal on its own.
As with previous health care providers, we talked a bit about my running history and the M.D. and R.N., both former runners who didn’t quit when they were ahead, gave me hope that I will be able to run again. I’m also 100% healthy otherwise. As such, I declined to wear the boot again. I hate the stares when I'm out in public. So, I won’t be lacing up the new Nikes for awhile, but I’m not using them to do yardwork either. More like rowing at the gym and riding Penelope to the beach, all starting Jan. 1, 2010.
The good news is it’s only a partial tear. Had I not stopped running when I did on Halloween and beyond, I would have severed it by now. Instead, the continuous rest, ice and compression have helped, but there’s still a noticeable gap on the MRI screen. Surgery is the standard course of action for this injury; however, we’re going to give it another month of rest, ice, naproxen and, now, heating and specific stretches to see if the tendon can heal on its own.
As with previous health care providers, we talked a bit about my running history and the M.D. and R.N., both former runners who didn’t quit when they were ahead, gave me hope that I will be able to run again. I’m also 100% healthy otherwise. As such, I declined to wear the boot again. I hate the stares when I'm out in public. So, I won’t be lacing up the new Nikes for awhile, but I’m not using them to do yardwork either. More like rowing at the gym and riding Penelope to the beach, all starting Jan. 1, 2010.
