The Stereotypical Rupture

About 4 months ago when I first found this blog, I had put 118 days to recovery…figuring going the aggresive route should hopefully have me there.  I read/heard a number of stories both on this blog about the incredibly long recovery time, etc.–and that could get downright depressing…so I made conscious decision to do my best to not be one of those statistics.

From a physical standpoint, I am doing great.  When I first get up in the morning the AT is still stiff, and if I run right away I need to stretch it and do some exercises to get it warmed up before hitting the treadmill.  However, if I run later in the day it just plain feels great–in fact it’s the rest of my body that complains, as it had gotten used to couch potato mode.  My calf is still smaller by about 2 cm or so, and strengthening that seems to be the last piece of the puzzle.  I can flex the ankle on my repaired AT to 20 degrees, compared to 22 for my good ankle.  I was at 17 degrees about 2-3 weeks ago, which is considered in the normal range.  My last doctor appointment was also 2-3 weeks ago–and Dr. Askew pretty much said have at it, and that I didn’t need to see him again.  This past Saturday I ran 3 miles at about a 9.5 min pace, which is slow for an “”in shape” me but I was happy with it, all couch potato habits developed in the last 4 months considered.  I can do squats, do leg curls/extensions and lunges just fine.  Toe raises are my biggest focus right now, and I can do those with one foot–I can’t get as high as I would like but that is coming along too.

With spring and a new baby coming soon my posting might be coming to an end, but I may occasionally check the status of people who are at similar stages.  Good luck to all–the new “hello worlds” we see every week, the vets that are almost a year in or past, and especially to those who suffered the ill-fated rerupture.

So, in regards to being “recovered”?   I would say I am about 90-95%, but that depends on your viewpoint, as everyone needs to run their own race.  To quote Kurt Vonnegut: “Sometimes you’re ahead, sometimes you’re behind. The race is long and, in the end, it’s only with yourself.”  I am happy with where I am, and while my journey may not be 100% yet I feel damn good being where I am at.

This morning my regular therapist, DaRinda, was gone so I had another woman who works with her, Jenny, as my PT today.  Jenny had me do some different stretching/exercises (holy cow I have no flexibility in my hamstrings) and they felt great…the hurt-so-good type of stuff.  One was flat on my back with legs straight up–just doing to raises pushing up on a bar that was held down with springs.  The hammies got pinged as I had to keep my legs as straight as possible and head back.  Great though!

However, the most important thing was the use of a little laser device to try to break up scar tissue (it took literally just seconds to do).  I told Jenny that about an inch above my incision there was a 2 inch X 2 inch patch directly on top of my AT that was hard and stiff–and I did bug me a little as I have been doing strength training/running.  So first Jenny rubbed the crap out of it and then said she was a fan of the laser tool and it was worth a shot.  She also told me to pay attention to how long it feels good after I finish PT (it always feels great as it is all warmed up).  It has been 5 hours, including a lot of desk time, and I have never walked so easily or effortlessly since before the ATR!!  Jenny said she could talk to DaRinda and let her know whether or not it helps and continue the process if it does.  Lastly she told me what should have been obvious to me–she said scar tissue gets no blood flow naturally and to encourage the healing process we need to harass it a little–like rub it vigorously (OK, that was funny to type) multiple times a day.  I have definitely added that to my daily repertoire.

God bless DaRinda as she has been fantastic; it was just useful to have a second set of eyes/different experiences to try different things.  To all you fellow ATR’s in similar situations:  inquire about the laser, and at minimum massage the hell out of any scar tissue!!