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So I swear this is the 100th injury update either on the blog or my Instagram so I apologise if you are not a fan of them. Over the last few weeks I have had back to back appointments with new physios, podiatrists and with my GP; some of which were helpful and some very frustrating. From the beginning of this injury back in January I suspected it was a tibial stress fracture but with months of questioning GPs and physios I was reassured it wasn’t. However, after a very long appointment with the podiatrist on Wednesday he thought there was definitely evidence of a lower tibial stress fracture, at which stage of healing he is unsure without a scan but the NHS waiting list is endless, so it is very unlikely that I will receive an MRI or CT. Following my physio appointment on Thursday the conclusion was made that I do have posterior tibial tendonitis and shin splints (original diagnosis’), compartment syndrome, a lower tibial stress fracture and mild scoliosis (of which I have been told by every physio).
Compartment syndrome: “a condition resulting from increased pressure within a confined body space, especially of the leg or forearm.” “Compartment syndrome occurs when the pressure within a compartment increases, restricting the blood flow to the area and potentially damaging the muscles and nearby nerves.” Shin Splints: “Medial tibial stress syndrome (MTSS) is an overuse injury or repetitive-stress injury of the shin area. Various stress reactions of the tibia and surrounding musculature occur when the body is unable to heal properly in response to repetitive muscle contractions and tibial strain.” Scoliosis: “Curvature of the spine” Mild scoliosis does not require treatment but causes pain and in my case, poor alignment and therefore poor biomechanics. I haven’t just taken the opinion of one health professional; investigation has been thorough with various health professionals’ opinions, diagnosis and treatments to come to the final conclusions. I am having an ultrasound scan next Thursday to examine my tendon, a steroid injection is also available after, but I don’t particularly want it due to the risks involved, including weakening of the tendon itself. Cross training Up until now I have been cycling, swimming, strength training and recently have been using the XT. However, I have been told that for the next 4 weeks I am not allowed to cycle, use weights for lower body and I need to minimise impact on my shin/tibia - going to be difficult with our school fashion show (dance show in local shops’ clothes) coming up this week. I am going to turn into a mermaid with the amount of swimming I will be doing. I am also going to increase my number of rest days I think. I JUST WANT TO RECOVER, I AM SO FED UP OF IT NOW!! The most frustrating thing is not being able to do the English Schools qualifier in January which means no English Schools in March, although it is not the end of the world it is heart wrenching as I was so excited to try and qualify again. I have not ruled it out but it is very, very unlikely that I will be able to race in January, perhaps March but obviously you would have to qualify in January. Moving forward I have been given various exercises to do every morning to try and strengthen my tendon which has become very weak. Hopefully this will then reduce my intense pain when I walk and eventually allow me to run. I can’t really take all pressure off the tibial stress fracture because that would only make my tendon weaker so I just have to be careful, reduce the speed and amount of walking I do to overall reduce the impact on it. I have also had custom orthotics made which should reduce the load on the posterior tibial tendon by supporting my arches and reducing my overpronation to overall improve my biomechanics. Sorry for the ramble but it is just an update of all that is going on at the moment. Immie <3
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