Bootless (ver. 2.0)

>> Saturday, May 14, 2016

On Thursday, I headed back to the Doc. My leg wasn't feeling any better in the boot, and actually, over the previous week, it started feeling worse. When I first had the boot on, I had it on for 2.5 weeks, and my leg started feeling a lot better over that time. This time, it had been on ANOTHER 2.5 weeks, and it wasn't doing much. I realized that I was having NEW pain a few inches below my initial pain, and I was afraid it was something like atrophy because of being in the boot (that's already my weak ankle from a bad sprain 2 years ago). So those issues took me back to the Doc on Thursday.


Posted on Instagram while waiting in the Doc's office: "Hoping to be out of this boot SOON."

Basically, he said I could have an MRI to confirm it's a stress fracture, but if since everyone's so sure it IS a stress fracture, I might be wasting my money. (Yes, we have good insurance, but MRIs are still spendy.) So we left it where I can just call back and ask for an MRI, and it'll get set up. If I'm not healing well over the next couple of days/weeks, we can have a look inside my leg to make sure it really is what we think we've been treating.

So I'm supposed to try not being in the boot now. I sent this text to my wife:



I put the boot back on as I cheered for Pharmie at the TC 1 Mile on Thursday night, and I'm glad I did because my leg was SORE even with it on by the time we got back to the car. Friday (yesterday), I was out with the boys for 4 hours in the morning, and it really was as good as I could have hoped for: it hurt with most steps, but it wasn't bad. It ached once we got home, but again, not bad. There were no big SHARP moments of pain all day.


After the Y, we had Henry's speech therapy appt. Here's Charlie and I
playing with Mr. Potato Head glasses during Henry's speech.
(After that, we went to Menards and stopped by preschool too.)

It still hurt yesterday (and so did the random spot lower down my leg along with even lower in my ankle), but it feels like it's getting stronger. I think the boot was hurting it - the pain was just a bit lower than the top edge of the boot, so anytime I moved in the boot, the sore spot may have been treated a bit as a pivot point which would be BAD.

It still hurts with most steps, and I really have to watch how I move so I don't upset it, but it IS getting better. I try not to be on my feet too long at a time, and I make a point to walk slowly. After a few days out of the boot, I'm leaning towards an MRI just to make sure it's what we think it is, and just to make sure we don't need to be worrying about those 2 other pains lower down my leg. (I would only get the MRI if they could do my entire lower leg from my initial pain higher up down through my ankle.)

Still no biking and no PT leg exercises, but I hope to start those shortly. I MAY go water running on Tuesday. And then maybe back to PT in just over a week or so. That is, if it keeps slowly feeling better. For now, I'm just happy to be out of the boot!

Back with my wife's TC 1 Mile race report shortly. Happy weekend!

2 comments:

Kristin 5:12 PM, May 14, 2016  

I forget, have you done a nuclear bone scan? We did that to confirm my stress fracture a few years ago and I guess it is cheaper than an MRI.
Unfortunately there's not much to do except let it heal. :(

Steve Stenzel 5:31 PM, May 14, 2016  

I brought that up to the doc too, but he wanted to jump right to an MRI. It'd be worth another discussion with him...

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