Chronic Ankle Injury has now been diagnosed as sever tendonitis
Posted , 3 users are following.
On Thursday December 29th I went to a rheumatologist in Peoria IL for my ankle injury. I will explain it again before explaining the diagnosis I was given and my confusion.
I injuried my right ankle in January and I believe it was the 26th in 2015. That was a monday and I went to the doctors on a Friday because I was still in a lot of pain. The doctor said I had a sever sprain. I thought he was wrong because my foot was severly swollen and would get discolored. I wore an ankle boot for one week and then went back to swiming which was where I injuried it.
Skip to about 6 months later. Well it was the end of August in 2015. I was still in a lot of pain from my injury in january. I had an MRI on my ankle and that revealed swelling in two of my major tendons but the swelling was very minor. I also had a pulled muscle. I wore a ankle boot for 6 weeks and then wore an ankle brace and did physical thearpy. I was doing better and it did not hurt that much.
Then the pain increased a lot. The pain worsened quickly and I wore the ankle brace again because my foot was not that supportive. In about May of this year I had another MRI. We did the MRI after trying to do a quartazone injection into my ankle.
The MRI showed nothing of worry and my ankle looked fine. It puzzeld my doctor who then recomended us to one of the best ankle orthopedic surgeons in Iowa (which is where I used to live). He regreted to say that he could not find anything.
We moved to Illinois just so you know why I went to another orthopedic doctor.
Skip to October this year I was still in a lot of pain that was increasing. I got sent to another orthopedic doctor. This one heard my story and decided he did not want to really deal with my case. HE was going to refer me to another doctor but we already had an appointment with the rheumatologist.
Now we are in present time. We went to the rheumatologist and he checked my ankle. He has diagnosed my ankle issue as a sever case of tendonitis. He wants me to do water thearpy in my tub and see him in two months. They took blood to test for any sort of rumatory arthuritis.
My confussion with his diagnosis is that I had the swelling in my tendons but it was completly healed a year ago. We are approaching two years with this injury and he thinks that the only problem this whole time was tendonitis. Yes that may be the problem but looking back I belive their might be more to the problem. I am only 15 and since I was 13 I have been dealing with this. If anyone has any sort of ideas I really could use them.
0 likes, 10 replies
cindy30526 TonyaBear
Posted
I am sorry you are going through this. I used to run a lot and would get injuries. I ended up with a torn tendon. I got three opinions from doctors. I did my research and asked around as to who was the best orthopedic doctor or physical therapists for athletes. I called a trusted running shop, called the athletic program at the University. I asked where the coaches sent football players, runners, lacrosse or swimmers for medical advice, treatment and/ or get physical therapy. Coaches are highly invested in getting their athletes back in the game. They know who is best in the area. Until then, keep a journal of your activity. Make a nottatiom on days your foot hurts more or less. Listen to your body... when you need to rest, do so by elevating your foot. You can ice it, which I am sure you do already. I wish medicine was cut and dry.... but medicine is not an exact science. Sometimes there is a process of getting the answer. My father always taught me though... that when you need advice you find the best. And, it doesn't mean it's more expensive. I ended up having surgery and on my journey to find the best doctor I could in my area, the doctors name kept coming up. That happens.
Hang in there... and above all, once you find the right doctor or physical therapist and you trust them, then follow their directions to a T! Tendons take time to heal. Hope this helps. It seems like the confusion ( and I totally get that) is bothering you as much as a nagging ankle. Work first on getting a diagnosis where you are comfortable with the advice you are given. Best of luck.
TonyaBear cindy30526
Posted
Thank you. I try to go to the needs of my body but I have been injured for almost two years. I have gained over 100 pounds because of it. I try to rest but it is hard. I was a hardcore swimmer and I loved volleyball and like basketball. Now I can't even swim like I used to. I am trying but it is hard. I know tendons take a long time to heal but is has been two years so yes that might be it but their has to be something else but half the docttors think it is bcause of my weight and others want to help but can't. I am a freshman in highschool and everyone thinks I am a liar and faker. It is hard but I am trying to have hope. I just wish that the doctors could figure this out sooner.
cindy30526 TonyaBear
Posted
I was very athletic. My longest run was 17 miles. I weight trained and was competitive. So, even though I am much older than you, maybe our personalities are similar in that we tend to "push it." You said your ankle was fine and then it started hurting again. Are you overdoing it? It is very hard to be still when you love sports.
Since my injury the weight has been creeping up. Don't beat yourself up about the weight gain. Once you figure this out, things will balance out.
Most importantly, if anyone says you are a fake or liar, don't take it to heart. That is their problem. When someone criticizes me I just say to myself, " I don't own that." Meaning, I dismiss their comments because they don't know what they are talking about. Unless they are in your shoes... there is no way they can have valid comments.
CAn you get into Physical therapy again? Sometimes that helps mentally as well as physically. Also, I do exercises first thing in morning. I do crunches, leg lifts, push ups ( on my knees) and arm exercises. This helps me cope while I recover from surgery. Building up your core will help. If the doc says okay, compression stockings help. Top athletes are wearing them... especially runners... so it isn't an old person thing anymore.
Finally, i know it's 2 years but it certainly can be tendonitis. my hunch is you may be more active than the doc wants you to be. Until you get things resolved, are there other activities you can get into to take your mind off of this? Art, writing? Anything creative?
Oh, one other thing? This is a long shot but do you think your doc would okay horseback riding lessons? I am just trying to think of diversions for you. Don't give up hope. You could be right... it is something other than tendons, but you won't know unless you follow the docs advice to a T. Also, keep that journal so the doc can see in black and white what activities you are doing. A lot of effort goes into healing. An athlete told me he looks at healing from an injury like he's in training for a marathon. It takes a lot of discipline, focus and being on a regiment. That's a tall order for a 15 year old.... but if you tore into those sports with gusto then focus on your healing with gusto. Hang in there.
TonyaBear cindy30526
Posted
I know i did not overdue it because it was a little sore then it got increasingly worse. I have been in and out of ankle boots and I was on crutches for about 9 months to help. I love music, art, and writing. I try to distract myself it is just hard because I can't stop thinking about what if's.
I know I should not take what people say to heart but it is hard because if I was in their possision I would have doubts. It is a unbelievable thing for a 15 yearold. I do think it is tendonitis but I don't think that is all. The doctor is having me do my own thearpy at home in the tub as a form of water thearpy. He is also testing for anything genetic.
I just want to be able to be a normal kid and even some doctors think I am faking. I will try to be disaplined and rest more and ice more to help with pain. I just want answers.
cindy30526 TonyaBear
Posted
TonyaBear cindy30526
Posted
cindy30526 TonyaBear
Posted
Forgot to mention.... make sure you are in good supportive shoes. You may want to get orthodics. Too, I wearing running shoes for support. But, it's important that you get into the right running shoe. I had my gait checked while walking and running and was then given a shoe that helped with keeping me aligned. Also, I have one leg a little bit shorter than the other. I didn't know this until a doctor checked me out for a running injury. The point is... there can be things we don't even think of that contribute to making an injury difficult to heal. Your foundation to healing is being in good shoes and being in alignment.... and that could mean orthodics. I bet the right shoes, orthodics and compression socks could make you feel better. But again, check with your doc. There are a lot of components to healing.
TonyaBear cindy30526
Posted
RichardKen TonyaBear
Posted
I'm sorry but I'm not able to offer you any advice or experience but only to say how rotten to be suffering these problems at a young age. My very best wishes to you for a positive outcome very soon from the UK.
Richard
TonyaBear RichardKen
Posted