Torn

First, I want to thank all of you for your concern. I've been bombarded with emails the last week or two with questions about the hamstring. I appreciate the outpouring of suppor!!

Unfortunately, it is not good news. The hamstring is torn. I've been making it worse and worse with each run I've done probably over the last 18+ months. It's not going to require surgery or anything, but it is going to seriously set back my run training for this year. I'm still not sure it's totally sunk in with me. When Dr. Nicola was telling me how long I was to take off from running, in my mind, I had my fingers in my ears and was saying "La la la la la la la" as if not hearing him would mean that I could still run. He kept talking, explaining to me how and where it's torn, how the bone is swollen, but everything was just a blur. I wasn't listening. I couldn't wait to get out of there. This is not the news I wanted to hear. I'm not sure what I expected, but it certainly wasn't this. I mean, if it was torn, wouldn't it hurt like hell?

I went back to physical therapy and handed her the new slip that Dr. Nicola scribbled all over. I asked her to tell me what it meant. She took the slip out of my hand and the expression on her face said it all. I asked, "It's bad, isn't it?" She nodded slowly. Then she said we had to back down from the exercises we had been doing as they were too aggressive.

We started doing some exercises and I asked why, if it was torn, why it didn't hurt more. She then pushed on a part of the hamstring and I about jumped off the table. Holy crap, what are you doing???!? She then did the same thing to my right leg...and it was barely more than a firm push onto the muscle. Apparently, it hurts more than I thought.

If there's anything I can tell you, it's that you should NOT run through pain!! So much easier to say it than do it, but I'm paying for it now. If I would've taken care of this when it first started, I'd be a lot better off. I have a long, uphill battle in front of me.

MRI Monday

Tomorrow is the day. I go in for my MRI on the ol' hamstring. With any luck, whatever damage has been done will not take too long to repair. I go in for the results of the MRI on Tuesday. I'm looking forward to getting all this taken care of because it's time consuming to be visiting doctors and going to physical therapy practically every day of the week!

I don't think I can remember what it's like to run without feeling the pull in the hamstring...

Physical Therapy - Session I

Hold on people, relax!! I don't have to stop running forever! I've been given orders to stop running just until we can review the results of my upcoming MRI. That will be next week. In the meantime, I've already been to a physical therapist so I can put the wheels of recovery in motion.

Within 5 minutes, I decided the woman I met with was impressive. I could tell she knew what she was doing. One of the first things she made me do was balance on each leg. Immediately, she tells me that my left side is weak. Apparently, it drops and turns in to compensate for some weak muscles. I have noticed when I try to do one legged squats, I have a harder time balancing...

Right after the ultrasound, she gave me a short list of exercises to do daily. We did the full round of them in her office and almost immediately, I could feel the burn. One of the exercises is as simple as just standing on one leg while keeping the hips, pelvis and knee in alignment. Seems simple, right? Not for me. For years, I've joked about my poor balance. This definitely plays a part in why I struggle with balance.

So, I'm not hanging up my running shoes...at least not forever. I'm merely taking precautionary steps to prevent what could have been a serious injury down the line. I'm anxious to get the MRI done to ensure nothing is torn, but either way, I'm already on my way to recovery.

Physical Therapy

Well, the good news is that I do NOT have a stress fracture. The MRI shows periostitis...basically a fancy name for shin splints. I've had shin splints before (I'm guessing most runners have). They've never hurt this bad nor this long. So doc sends me to physical therapy.

I've already got a negative attitude going in. I mean, if they're just gonna do a bunch of stretches with me, what the heck do I need to keep going back for? Oh, yeah, I have to do this for 3 weeks then go back to the doc. I am so skeptical, but I have done everything I can possibly do on my own, so I guess I need the help.

Stephanie, my...consultant? Not really sure what to call her, but anyway, she sits me down and starts asking me a lot of questions. She nods her head a lot when I tell her I'm a runner and triathlete, blah, blah, blah, like she's heard all this before. I don't know if I should be upset because I think everyone's case is different or if I should be happy meaning she knows what's going on, so she'll be able to heal me quicker.

I explain to Stephanie that I really want to get this fixed in a hurry so I still might have a chance to be able to do IMFL. So she says she's going to treat me "aggressively." Great. Bring it. She massages the area a little, bends my leg and foot in all directions to see where/how it hurts. Next up is the ultrasound. I never really think that does anything. I can't feel it, so how the heck does it work?

But then Stephanie tells me she's going to go get this "tool" and try something. She then tells me it's going to hurt. Bring it. I want to get better. This tool is a small, metal piece shaped like a large nail file. It's smooth with rounded edges. Stephanie then begins to scrape this thing up and down against my shin. YEEEEOOOOOWWW!!!! I clenched my teeth and grabbed on to the table with both hands and my knuckles were immediately white. "Does that hurt?" She asks. I just said, yes, but keep going. If this is what we need to do, then just do it. I could feel the grittiness she was scraping on. I thought this was the bone, but she tells me it's scar tissue. In the process of her continuing to torture me with the scraping on my shin (I felt like I was going to bleed at any minute), she tells me it will probably bruise. Ya think? Hell, I don't care, just FIX IT! I was sweating and my whole body was tense. It wasn't until she went over to clean the tool off that I let go of the table and had to wipe the sweat off my forehead. I was so happy that was over.

Next, Stephanie hooks me up for some electrical stimulation. While I'm hooked to that machine, she lays a towel over the shin and places a bag of ice on top of that. The ice felt like heaven. The electrical shocks surged every minute, as if just to checking to see if I was awake. They don't hurt, just give a strong tingling sensation. I was almost sorry when that was over and Stephanie took that beloved bag of ice away from me.

Just like that, first session of physical therapy is over. I'm on my way to recovery.