Wow, that sounds spectacular in the way you never want, Vali. I am glad to hear prognosis is good, because that is what matters in the end. It is weird how able you can feel when there is something majorly wrong, and even vice versa. I wish you the smoothest of recoveries and I am sure this has impacted your life and view on your athletic career.
Did you find medical professionals who had experience with equestrians, by chance?
I have had two negative MRI’s - one was before surgery (surgery then found a meniscus tear and plica syndrome). One was after surgery, which is when I got re-injured (5 mos post-surgery, during an athletic event that I probably wasn’t ready for).
I have been re-injured from that injury by a doctor. No one believes me and it’s been very hard to get additional treatment. I saw my surgeon and 2 specialists after that doctor, which was after my re-injury. I had a bone scan, which showed re-uptake into the knee but they could not tell me why it was happening (um, because I got injured! Haha) and they also remarked that my knee had no arthritis but looked not like a knee for “someone my age”. I have no idea what that means- it sounds cryptic and useless, like most of what I was told.
When I lost my ability to walk, which was about 5 months after my re-injury and 10 months after the surgery and 3 months after the doctor made it worse, I decided to take matters into my own hands and I started my own version of a PT program. (I had already been through 2 PT programs and 7-8 doctors.)
Only by immobilizing my leg and staying off it for 3.5 weeks, against medical advice, was I able to start standing again. I worked in the PT and within 8 weeks, I was walking again. Then it continued to get better through a very gradual and painful process which took about 5 months.
Then I got to where I could do something new one day, then not again for a few weeks, and then I could do it regularly- such as climb stairs or jog or swim. After enough time of thos yo-yo’ing, and continuing my own PT program, I started being able to resume athletics. Of course, by this time my muscles still had a long way to go from all the time off.
I thought I was finally back- and then I re-tweaked it 3 weeks ago. At that point, I started doing research again into what the he** could possible be going on. I know you all might think I am crazy, but 15 months of living with this and 3+ years of living with an injury to my knee (from the original incident) and all the amazing pain and hardship I have gone through, from being a huge athlete originally with no injuries…I have learned to do my research, and I am now confident I know exactly what happened. The good news is that it is totally fixable without surgery, and I was able to modify my PT/add on more exercises which is resulting in positive results faster. So I think I am doing really well. I have decided to give up riding, with no plans to return anytime soon, and I feel very relieved to understand what has been the bane of existence for so long. I will make a full recovery and I should be able to be in a good place even a few weeks from now if I am lucky and diligent, thanks to work I did previously on it and I think the re-tweaking was not as bad as it was initially painful.
On an emotional note, I miss riding and horses so much, and I had to turn down a great offer at a very nice show barn, which was sad. Horses have been part of my identity since childhood, and to give them up is something I have struggled with for the past 3 years. First I gave up riding racehorses, then I gave up riding my personal horse (a boisterous huge TB), and then I gave up jumping, and I even rode without stirrups for 6 months-- until finally I have given up on riding all together. It’s been a weird theft of what I love. But it is worth it because I need my life back, and maybe one day, I will be able to ride again. I purchased different things in hopes they would help me- lighter stirrups, a different saddle, etc. - but in the end, the only thing that will help me is staying off and away from horses. I will get my fill from facebook friends and The Chronicle, and focus on my career and professional goals. I don’t feel I will ride again, I have trouble imagining it after the length of time in which it has caused me pain. I don’t know how the kind of problems I have had will ever be gone 100% if faced with the trauma of riding again. I do think my problems will be gone 100% for other sports that I do. Has anyone else on here given up riding?
J
My left ankle was absolutely trashed and then surgically repaired several years ago. This past November I made the drastic error of wearing stiletto heels to my birthday party – ankle gave out, the leg broke, and I did some soft tissue damage. I’d been healing quite well, but was riding a rambunctious youngster last week who decided to spook and do an interesting horizontal leap: I jammed my heels down and felt searing pain. Long story, short: the doctor says I re-tore the ligaments. I cannot take time off work (riding), and am wondering what sorts of things might help me do my job. I used to tape my joints in college when I played soccer. Can that work under tall boots, or will the sweat (I live in Florida) make traditional sports tape unravel? I tried the Sprenger 4-way irons after my first ankle surgery but felt like they didn’t offer enough support – the ankle kept giving out. Is there another stirrup option? Ugh.