Injury and Recovery

With my penultimate event coming up this Sunday I am so pleased and relieved that after just two visits to sports massage therapist Vicky Vickery, I have a lot more movement and a lot less pain than I did before my husband told me I had to get something done about my injury. 

It had got to the point where it was excruciating to move myself from any horizontal position. It was pretty weird to get to the point, that although I was able to walk, ride my bike, and run with not much more than a slightly tight reminder that something was not right at the top of my Hamstrings and into my lower butt area. When it came to swimming the message being sent from my body to my brain slowly got more serious and finally, demanding that it have my problem properly in investigated. Whilst swimming, the same slight feeling of tightness intensified to a slight tweak of pain during my body’s long axis rotation, when my right arm stretched out and my left foot kicked down. Then at session after session only the swimming was showing signs of getting worse. It started to hurt pushing off at each turn in the pool, I have got a good push off, I would say, even at my age, it is a good as anybody that I train with; Sometimes my husband will push off in the next lane (fast lane) and will wave at me before his strength and speed pulls him in front of me. 

Crunch time came when a few weeks ago I found that I could not put my left foot to the pool floor to stand or turn and added to that, was a very painful spasm period on any attempt at trying to stand up straight. Once I was fully standing the pain would ease off after a few steps. At that same time, I was finding it difficult to get out of bed, both in the night and in the morning, again having to support myself and very slowly lower my left foot to the ground whilst straightening up slowly. 

I admit that I did start to think that maybe this was not anything that could be treated and that it was just yet another sign of old age creeping on. So putting a time scale on this; I had my first treatment last week, that was according to Vicky just trying to loosen off all my leg and butt muscles and see how than went before ‘Delving Deeper.’ 

On the Friday evening of that week I did a swim-run-swim-run-swim, just a mini event that was a test and almost everything seemed better apart from the fact that it was hard getting out of the pool, but no after effects. The next day, Saturday, I biked with Steve and it was still ok, apart from the getting out of bed lark. Saturday evening I swam, the swimming was fine but it was still impossible to put the foot down or get up or turn without hold the side of the pool. Sunday I did our usual hilly hard 10km run and took no longer than I had any time over the last couple of months. Monday 6.30 am swim again. It was still painful on stopping and standing. 

The ‘Deeper Delve’ came later on Monday morning and that did hurt. Any time I stop talking through a massage is a clear sign that it hurts. Vicky said it would be a bit tender and to take it easy for the rest of the day and let her know how it felt later in the week. Well it was tender on Monday and Tuesday although we did take a test bike ride, when it was fine. During this period I have found that the only position I could sleep in, was flat on my back with a pillow under my knees. During the night I got up twice. I am a recovering insomniac from the years of caring for Steve’s Mum during her late eighties and nineties. What I do when I wake now, is a little routine: go to the toilet, walk into the kitchen and look at the moon, maybe make half a cup of hot chocolate, or drink a few sips of water, read a page or too and then do a bit of deep breathing, when I now do fall asleep again. 

Last night I woke, slipped slowly down off the bed; our bed in ridiculously high, almost 3 feet, but that is another story. I stood straight up without the painful twinge, the same again later and no problem getting up in this morning and not a problem swimming either. I know that I am not quite out of the woods yet but I see a huge improvement and feel sure that even with a more challenging event looming at the weekend, I am greatly relieved that I can start thinking that sooner or later I will see the back of an injury that knocked my confidence for quite a long time. 

It is not just at Harvest Festival time that I sit quietly now and again and give thanks. I give thanks for my wonderful family, I give thanks for all the friends I have accumulated over the years, I give thanks for good health and for all the things in my life that make me happy. I would like to give thanks for world peace, but that ain’t happening just yet. I also give thanks for those who advised me to get treatment and go to Vicky Vickery for her fine work.  Even when I am feeling down I still think about the good things in life, because although waking up in pain is not ideal, it’s a whole lot better than not waking up.