Ain't No Sunshine When It Hurts

So much has happened since I last posted. It seems like life flies by me these days. We certainly have been busy.

About a week after my last post, this happened:

 

Crutches are helpful when one cannot walk. Courtesy of the ER.

What? I never get injured. Running, at least. I seem to be rather sturdy that way. I couldn’t believe it. Really. I was astounded. It went down like this—my ITB (iliotibial band) was bothering me for several days, but I was encouraged by my last race and preparing for the Long Beach Half Marathon, which had been my focus race for months, and which was in less than two weeks. My ITB was so bothersome that I kept putting off the workout that I had planned for the week, hoping that one more day of easier running/jogging would make the difference. But it didn’t. So I cut a day in half—meaning I jogged 4 miles instead of the 8 I normally would. And I eliminated doubles. This was on a Friday.

The last time I'd used crutches was Halloween 2006, when I broke my leg (yes all the way through) surfing and had a full leg cast for 2 months!

The next day was Saturday, which meant a day of soccer—I’m the assistant coach for both of the little ones—and waiting to see how my leg/knee felt. And it felt great! So, when we were done with soccer and my sister and brother-in-law arrived for a visit (babysitting! And no dreadmill!), I decided it was time to go for another easy jog.

Soccer time! Goooo Pirates!

Now here’s the thing. Sometimes I forget I’m 40, which is a good thing—sometimes—not so much others, like on this occasion, when I forgot that when I start my run I usually ease into it on a flat trail. This is something, I believe, that helps me stay injury free—easing into it. Warming up and cooling down on workout days makes a difference too. Another issue was that I had let my parking pass expire and parked on a hill by the beach, which meant I had to run down the hill to start my run. Normally, this might not have been an issue, but on this occasion, in the early evening (and really here’s where I start to feel really dumb) I jogged a little down the hill and then paused to stretch my ITB—at this point I noticed the bugs swarming when I stopped. Unfortunately, I’ve had the experience of the mosquitos swarming at this very time and place before and I barely walked away after taking 35 bites! So I freaked out—I ran fast down that hill, trying to escape those mosquitos and in the process heard a rip/popping sound and felt extreme pain in the back of my knee.

And that was it! I couldn’t stand on my knee or straighten it without that extreme pain. (Funny how I no longer cared about those mosquitos.) My first thought was—oh no, how am I going to get to my car? And it was less than a quarter mile away from where I was standing. Lucky for me, immediately following that thought, some kind strangers drove by, slowed down, and asked if I needed a ride? Yes! Somehow I managed to drive home and hop into the house and survive the night until the next day when my husband, Claron, told me I needed to go to the hospital, and that I was being ridiculous.

Turns out that helped a lot. They gave me some crutches to use. And the emergency room doctor moved my leg around and tested for a few things. He decided I had a possible torn meniscus and ordered set up an appointment with a sports medicine orthopedic doc. I feel like I was lucky to have seen the doctor I did that day as he did 2 things that helped me heal faster than my Claron or I ever thought possible. He slowly and carefully straightened my leg for me, which I had been unable to do up to that point—it had been bent for almost 24 hours. Also, he encouraged me to move around and use my leg and see how it felt, but at the same time be careful and smart about it. Good advise doc. By the next day, I had managed to wean myself of one of my crutches. The following day, I was down to zero. Yay. The next day I was jog-walking around my neighborhood at a 15-minute-mile pace. By Friday the 13th, I had managed to push it to a 9:30 pace for 6 miles.

The whole week was like a miracle. I couldn’t believe how much better my knee felt with each new day. And I could believe the rate at which it was healing. I had thought I was going to be out for 6 months or more. And maybe have to have surgery. Of course, I wasn’t in the clear yet. I still had my appointment with the specialist on Monday. But, I had told the first doc I was going to run in a half marathon on Sunday, and he hadn’t said I couldn’t. Of course, I knew I wouldn’t be able to run the sub 6:20 pace I had planned, and I didn’t even know if I would finish, but Claron was going, so certainly I wasn’t going to sit at home and miss out. Besides, my friend and teammate Rosario, was going, and I knew it be fun to see her.

The race went amazingly well. I ran better and faster than I thought I’d be able to run (I had managed a 7:06 avg. with a fast finish for the last 4 miles). I didn’t even know if I could finish the race when I started. It was fun to be able to participate. It’s funny how an injury can change your perspective. I was just happy I could run. It was also fun to run a race and enjoy the people who came out to cheer and hold signs. It’s amazing how supportive these crowds can be. The Long Beach Half Marathon is a beautiful course, and it’s always organized and well put on. I was so glad I went, even though I was sad that I hadn’t been able to even try to meet the goals I had set for myself that day.

"Testing" out my knee at the Long Beach Half. I know I look in pain, but really I wasn't--this is my 6:11 avg. sprint to the finish! Photo by, Run More--our local running store here in San Clemente.

Needless to say, the following day, I had my appointment with the specialist and he decided to order an MRI because I was borderline for a torn meniscus. After having the MRI and going back once again to see the specialist, a week later, we found out that I had degeneration of my meniscus (which was normal for my age and activity level) and a possible tear of my meniscus on the inside of my knee. However, since it had been improving and really, no longer hurting, the doc said I was good to go! I couldn’t believe it!

Whew! I felt like I’d avoided major disaster! The whole experience, though, provided me with a learning opportunity. I since have been more careful to pay attention to the signals that my body is giving me. Also, I’ve taken rest more seriously—taking two easy days between hard workouts, for the most part, and getting enough sleep each night. I was also reminded of just how important the simple act of running is to me on a daily basis and how much joy it brings me. It certainly is something I cannot take for granted.