On injuries…Part trois

July 23rd and still no running. I went through three sessions of prolotherapy, however, none improved the condition. It was finally time for an ultrasound and it showed what I have been dreading: labral tear AND two hip spurs (one on each hip). That in essence means my running is over for the rest of the year.

An MRI was scheduled and completed this past Wednesday (July 18), so now I’m just waiting on the official results and the plan. However, while running was off the table, I got to ride a speed bike for the first time (any bike for that matter in seven years). It felt great and not as strenuous and painful on the hip. It seems I have found a new cycling coach too! While he’s aware of my situation, he will be helping to get a recovery plan together with my doctors and possibly a sponsor! I’m excited about this new opportunity and it’s really a motivator to take care of myself now and a quick recovery.

I was making the mistake of running every once in a while even though the hip was hurting. I said: “if it hurts not doing anything, might as well give it a reason…” Yeah, I know. I’ve stopped of course and understood that if I keep running, my recovery will probably be longer.

Hopefully this week I’ll get to find out the results and what the next step will be. I was told labral tears are only fixed with surgery, but maybe I’ll get lucky. Who knows.

 

On injuries…Part deux

Here we are in May 2018 and I have not run since this past March (I ran about two miles on my birthday as a gift to myself, but probably shouldn’t have). My hip pain started around July or August of 2017 when I started training for my first 50K. The pain only occurred after I was done running. Around mid-December, it began to bother me all day, even as I tried to sleep. Currently, sitting is hell.

I had seen a chiropractor who diagnosed me with greater trochanteric pain syndrome. In February I followed up with a doctor who only took an X-ray and went along with my trochanter report and was going to give me a cortisone shot. I switched jobs; I did not get the shot since I had no insurance. After I became eligible for insurance in the new job, I decided to see an osteopathic doctor and so far has done wonders and the pain is less in intensity, however, it is still there. My doctor has started to think that there may be something else going on – a possible labral tear at the hip – (that’s the bad news), or some other ligament/muscle problem which they will treat with prolotherapy.

Again, the availability of information on the ‘interwebs’ is amazing, but also not good for me as I begin to look for information and videos on what these procedures look like. The labral tear repair is through surgery – recovery is 4 to 6 months long. F*ck. The prolotherapy is done in one day but also depends on how many sessions you need. The process, however, looks painful. A dextrose solution is injected with a huge needle around the hip in multiple locations – according to the article linked above, 38 locations or punctures. Bruising begins immediately. The upside to that torture is that you can resume normal activities that same day (not exercise – don’t get jumpy), and the pain is said to go away.

I have my appointment for May 25th to get my hip area punctured with dextrose. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that this will work. As any runner or athlete out there knows, downtime is torture. Running is my stress relief; it’s the thing that brings up my endorphins and I miss the joy of running with my dog Susan (I’m sure she misses running too).

If anyone is going through an injury, check this blog on The Value of Injury. What I took from it is that I need to stop feeling sorry for myself and just focus on healing my body. Easier said than done, but I am trying.