Injury update Feb '09

[IcemanSK]

As many of you know, I tore my right calf muscle while running last March. I want to update you on my progress. For the last 4 months, I've been in a plastic boot cast up to my knee. The doctor hoped it would help the muscle repair itself. It didn't. Every time I went without it for longer than 4-5 hours, I had the same pain I did as before I had the boot. Running a TKD program as the only instructor while wearing one plastic boot & only tennis shoe is far from the ideal situation.

Yesterday, I went back to the doctor. He gave me a shot of a medication (not cortizone) with a steroid that he said might repair the damaged muscle. His next words were so odd to me, I asked to clarify them. He said, "now I want you to go out & test it for a week." I said, "Doc, when I heard "test it" I would tend to treat it like a rental car. Is THAT what you mean?" He said, "Yeah, it's already torn. If this med works, it will be repaired & you won't have the pain. If you have pain, it didn't work. Put the boot back on. & we'll have to do surgery." So I have permission to test it out.

I had planned to teach class (& do it bare foot) for the 1st time in a loong time last night, but then we found out my father-in-law was being hospitalized & was not doing well. So, I canceled class to visit him. On top of this, my grandmother is also gravely ill in a hospital in Chicago. Needless to say, my leg is the least of my worries.

My wife & I would appreciate prayers for our families in this stressful time.
Thanks!

[garrisons2]

It's been 10 months, I think that you need to look for a different Dr. I'm wondering if some portion of the pain has to do with you taking the cast off as using that area. I've seen alot of circumstances where after an area is immobilized for an extended period , the pain has less to do with the original injury and more to moving the muscles /tendons, etc for the first time in a long time.

I'm sorry about your relatives health and wish you the best

[bluekey88]

Hang in there man...you and yours are in my prayers.

[Carol]

Wow Iceman...that is a lot to be going through.

Hang in there and best of luck. You and your family are in my prayers always. :asian:

[Laurentkd]

Good luck, keep us posted.

You'll be in my thoughts and prayers as well.

[IcemanSK]

It's been 10 months, I think that you need to look for a different Dr. I'm wondering if some portion of the pain has to do with you taking the cast off as using that area. I've seen alot of circumstances where after an area is immobilized for an extended period , the pain has less to do with the original injury and more to moving the muscles /tendons, etc for the first time in a long time.

I'm sorry about your relatives health and wish you the best


Actually, this doctor is the only one who's had a clue. In the first 6 months, I saw 2 other orthopedic surgeons who both said, "I don't know what's wrong with you or how to help you." This doctor (at UCLA Cerbral Palsy Center) diagnosed me with a muscle tear in 2 minutes (with the same information the other guys had!)

Thanks for the good wishes!

[terryl965]

I cannot believe it has taken ten months to let you test it. I am hoping for the best for you.

[arnisador]

Best of luck!

[karatemom]

:(

will keep you and your family in our prayers.

[IcemanSK]

Thing are looking good! I went for a 2 1/2 mile walk on Thursday & stretched & trained today &......no pain! Since my whole leg from the knee down was in the boot, I'm cautious to not pull something else, but I'm feeling good about it!

I'm VERY out of shape, but I'm excited to get back to ALL of my training ASAP.

Thanks for your support & encouragement!

[searcher]

Goog luck with that brother. I will be praying for you and yours.

[Sabo]

wishing you the best for your family and your medical issue, sir! I happen to be under similar circumstances. Like my Grandmother used to tell me "this soon will pass."

[granfire]

when it rains, it pours.

keeping you and your family in my thoughts and prayers.

(and for the leg, do some swimming!)

[Dao]

Best wishes for your family. You might want to try taking flax oil it helps with muscle recovery/damage. Body builders use it to rebuild damaged muscles quicker. Also increasing your intake of vegetables should help.

[Aefibird]

Good luck with your recovery and with the training. Keep on taking it steady and do a little more each time and hopefully it will be back to full strength and health in no time.

Best wishes to you also for your difficult situation with your family members. You're in my thoughts and prayers and I wish your Grandmother and your Father-in-Law a full and swift recovery.

[Sukerkin]

I add my words to the above also.

Long term physical injury is tough on the psyche as well as the body. Add in the extra stress from illness in the family and it makes it all the more difficult to deal with.

Fingers crossed that your own hurts are healed and positive thoughts for the health of your relations.

[terryl965]

Tpm I am glad everything is working out for you, you deserve to have things start to turn around.

[IcemanSK]

I want to tell you how well I'm doing, now. It's been a month since the injection, & I feel great!

I really wanted to to get back to running & full workouts, so I made a 5am physical therapy appointment. I think I really threw the guy off because I said, "I'll do anything you want me to do at home, so I'll only come weekly." As a Judo guy, he appreciated the drive of a fellow MAist & gave me a bunch of exercises to do. I've been doing them every day. He figures I'll be back to my full runs in 3 months.

Thanks so much for your prayers & encouragement!!!!

[arnisador]

Sounds like good news! Thanks for the update!

[karatemom]

woo hoo!

:-partyon:


How are things with the family?

[IcemanSK]

woo hoo!

:-partyon:


How are things with the family?

It's been a very hard month. My grandmother died on Feb 9th & my father-in-law died on Feb 21st. They were both surrounded by people who loved them.

Thanks for asking.

[bluekey88]

My condolonces on your family's losses...but yor health improvement is excellent news.

Peace,
Erik

[Hagakure]

Hello mate,

Sorry to hear things are pretty crap now. Ever notice how it all kicks off at once...?

Hang in there, face the problems one at a time, and try not to let it get on top of you. Make sure you get plenty of rest, take care of yourself, it's easy through intensely stressful times to neglect yourself. Best of British mate. Sincerely.

Hagakure.

[KELLYG]

I'm glad the calf is doing better. Almost a year off from training wow~

I am also sorry to hear of your losses.

Hang in there.

[granfire]

Many prayers to your family.

[exile]

I missed this whole story somehow... :(

I'm really glad your muscle injuries seem to be on the road to recovery. Several years ago, when I had a bad weightlifting accident, with full-thickness muscle tears in my shoulder and a fractured scapula, it took me something like eight months, with six months of that doing serious physiotherapy, to get back to normal, and even then it was dicey for a few months more. These soft tissue injuries are the pits, no question—most bone fractures are a piece of cake by comparison. What I find surpising is that the very first doctor you saw didn't order an MRI scan. That would have shown the tear clearly and in detail. It shouldn't be something that people have to guess about, for heaven's sake! Just be careful and cautious getting back into training, eh?

As for the losses in your family... very, very sorry to hear about that. We get to a certain age and stage and this starts happening... it's inevitable but that doesn't make it any easier. Part of life, an important part, is denial of mortality—we couldn't get through on a daily basis if we thought about it much. Makes it that much harder, though, when we do have to confront it... we have to swallow it and carry on, but that's not much comfort, I know. Hope things are going better now for you...

[Miles]

Tom,

Glad you are finally seeing some recuperation in your ordeal.

Sorry to learn of the passing of your family members. We will keep you and your family in our thoughts and prayers.

[terryl965]

It's been a very hard month. My grandmother died on Feb 9th & my father-in-law died on Feb 21st. They were both surrounded by people who loved them.

Thanks for asking.

Tom as always you and your family are in our prayers and I am glad your health is finally getting better.

[Aefibird]

Sorry to hear of the loss of your family members. My condolences and thoughts are with you.

[karatemom]

Prayers for you and your family.

[Kacey]

Tom - please accept my condolences on the loss of your family members, and my hopes that your family, like your leg, will continue to heal without complications.