Life in the Slow Lane
Posted By Ardellis on February 15, 2008
Three weeks ago — no, maybe it’s four weeks now, I was getting up out of a chair at the end of a meeting, and I felt a muscle in my foot go twang. I didn’t twist my foot or bend it any more than usual. Just normal getting up motions.
Huh, I thought to myself. I seem to have pulled something. It didn’t hurt too terribly badly, though it did make me limp a bit. Being me, I thought very little about it and went on with my life.
A little over a week later was the trip to NY (aka the weekend from hell). I walked on it even though it was still a bit twingey and by the time we got home, I was in much more pain than originally and was walking with a pronounced limp.
Well, I overdid it a bit, didn’t I? I thought, and went on with my life, albeit at a slower, limping pace.
It was the next weekend before I caught on to the fact that maybe I’d actually sprained something. Spent 2 days with it elevated. Plugged in the heating pad. Borrowed a cane from my mother (who has a bum knee and thus many orthopedic supplies).
I’ve been using the cane for a week now, and the foot is feeling much better. Better enough, in fact, that I toy hourly with the idea of NOT using the cane. But I suspect I’d regret that in about three dozen paces if I were so stupid (of course, I don’t have a great track record here, so we’ll see how the scales between brains and impatience balance out in the end).
The doctor’s appointment you’re probably wondering about by now? That’s this afternoon. She’ll probably just tell me to stay off it and such, like I’m doing (now!), but if I cancel the appointment I think my husband will refuse to speak to me all weekend.
This is the husband.
I’ll make sure she needs a cane if tries to cancel the doctor’s appt.
That is all.
This is the Massage Therapist.
The key to treatment is R.I.C.E: That’s Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation. So, sitting with your foot up- Yay! Heating pad at this point: not as good as ice, (even though no one likes to put ice on their foot, especially in the winter). You can alternate as long as you start with the ice, for reasons that have to do with fluid and inflamation and halting the damage, etc. (also, don’t put the ice pack directly on the skin, always have a layer of cloth between you and it.) And finally Compression: Ace bandage, Baby.
Hope you get better soon!
Actually, the nurse practitioner I saw yesterday says the ice wouldn’t do much for me now, as there’s no swelling at all anymore (never was much, or I’d have worried sooner). But I am keeping it up when I can and using an ace bandage, mostly to remind me not to bend it too far. Really, it’s feeling much better. 200% improved since Monday. I’m hoping to not need the cane at all by the middle of next week, but it folds, so I’ll probably drag it along for a couple days just in case, even after I give it up.
Oh good, yays all around that you’re doing better. Darn those sneaky sprains!
Actually, I’m going to respectfully disagree with the nurse practitioner. Ice not only reduces swelling but it shunts away the byproducts of healing and brings fresh material to re-knit tisssue with, it slows down any further unspooling of the damaged tissue ( a muscle injury is kind of like frayed jeans-especially something in the foot which is being asked to do work as it heals- it’s constantly in flux. ) *and* it’s a numbing agent. An injury will respond to ice at any stage.
Glad to hear it isn’t anything too severe!
I have to agree with Barb about the ice. I saw a podiatrist last year when I had a great deal of pain which turned out to be someting called plantar fascitis, inflamation of a particular tendon near the heel. There was no swelling at all, but one of the things I was told to do was rub an ice cube on the painful area for thirty seconds at a time in the evening. It really did help, and 30 seconds is certainly doable, time-wise. Try it. Can’t hurt, might help.