Peace of Mind? Priceless

elliptical 35 minutes

Last night, after writing my Zen post for my ankle, my friend Elizabeth came over for tea and catching up. The State of the Ankle being a topic of conversation, I revealed to her the game plan of Marathon March 21st, and that I was still going to try to do the Pilot Half on the 20th of Feb.

She did not like my game plan. Her not liking it caught the attention of the little worried voice in my head that also didn't like my game plan. I poked around my ankle, and found that it hurt above the joint. It could be a high ankle sprain, which I read online was worse and harder to rehab than a normal one. Nothing link the internet to fuel worry.

Of course, I had also forgotten to take my Meloxicam that morning, due to my insanely early wake 5am wake up time.

I went to bed and my ankle hurt. I woke up this morning and it still hurt, so much so that I had to limp to the bathroom.

As I was sitting around on the couch doing more doomsday high ankle sprain reading and more ankle poking and more elliptical good/bad waffling, I decided to take matters into my own hands.

I called an orthopaedist and booked an appointment for 2pm today.

The official, professional diagnosis? Severe Grade 1 sprain to the front most lower tendon. Not a high sprain, and before the word "severe" makes you balk, it was NOT a Grade 2 or Grade 3 sprain. Grade 1 sprains are quick to rehab if done properly, and when asked, he said that my March 21st marathon goal would still be attainable.

He did want me to go for some physical therapy, though. Without it, he said that the chances of repeating my injury within 4 weeks were extremely high. Most people try to rehab these things on their own, and because they don't retrain the actual nerves in the ankle to relink with the brain, and because they rush, and because they don't work on balance and ankle strength exercises, they wind up crashing and burning.

Basically, he described my original game plan. It's not that I didn't plan on including strength training and balance in there somewhere, but I had no idea how to do it correctly. And the internet is no physical therapist.

BUT. He ALSO gave me an unequivocal YES to getting back to the elliptical. I can't do any more damage (unless I manage to fall off it), and it's a good way to regain strength.

Tomorrow AM is my first physical therapy session. No, my insurance is not going to cover it, so it's out of pocket. But I would gladly shell out to invest in my personal health and well being. Most importantly, it's going to give me the peace of mind to continue my rehab confidently and safely.

Who knew that Mastercard could be so spot on? Some things really are priceless.