I could go on; trust me I've got a lot to say on the matter. Like for example, me telling three highly trained individuals (physio's) on three separate occasions that I strongly believed they were overlooking something - for none of them to listen; not to mention issues with my GP and similar with the NHS.
And it's still not over. I'm being referred to Glasgow General for my treatment plan as Dumfries Royal Infirmary doesn't have the skill set required.
So anyway, the whole thing has irked me somewhat! The injury happened as a result of an awkward fall during a run and because no-one has listened to me in the time since, it may develop into a more chronic problem with age; think hip arthritis and then replacement!
Looking back over the last 5 years, I've actually had 15 different running related injuries;
Sprained ankle; grade 3 (both) (historical and recent)
Jumpers knee (R) (when mileage is increased dramatically)
Upper back and neck sprain (this tends to happen when I include heavy weight training)
Quad strain (R) (minor problem, happens a relatively few
times)
Hamstring strain (R) (minor problem, happens a relatively few
times)
Achilles tendinopathy (both) (plagued me for years when just resuming running training)
Posterior
impingement (L) (picked up as a football injury and remains
to this day - meaning I have had
to give up fell running)
Achilles bursitis (L) (3yrs ago whilst trying to battle through above injury)
Planter Fasciitis (both) (usually whilst recovering from a long distance
event)
Hip flexor (psoas) strain (R) (frustrating; happens towards end of speed phase)
ITB Friction (both, mainly right) (happens with high mileage, painful, especially
the rehab)
Hip bursitis (both) (only occurred recently due to incident which caused.....)
Hip labral tear (R), (tried to run for 3 months with this due to misdiagnosis)
and of course.....toe nails falling off (regular occurrence with
long distances)
My mate Rob thinks I have a propensity to attract injury i.e. that I have poor biomechanics. That may be the case but I just think I'm unlucky. This injury is a good example, so too is the posterior impingement. That said, there definitely appears to be a biomechanical deficiency with my right side.
No-one likes getting injured
and anyone who has read this blog will know that I have turned every stone looking
for answers regarding how to avoid and inevitably deal with them; it would clearly be
advantageous to get to a stage where I can just train without the burden of
constant injury avoidance.
Having said that, relative to
where I was 5 years ago, before I took running seriously, I’m content with what
I’ve done and I dare say, if I have to give up running, then I’m sure I’ll
reflect on this period of my life with some satisfaction. But there will always
be that question. So;
1.
Does
anyone have words of wisdom they would like to share with me?
I’ve done
my fair share but to date the level of feedback has left me questioning why I
write this blog. I fully believe in the power of collaboration as I know many
others do e.g. John Kynaston and Debbie Consani. I give advice in the absence of strategy but for every likeminded individual (willing
to share) it seems there are 50 or more who only ever want to keep. And don't get me started on those who leech off the insight of others only to palm it off as their own! I get
between 50-300 readers per post (and I know that is miniscule) but I need help
here; how about it?
2.
Should
I simply give up running?
This has
crossed my mind and I think that may have been slightly transparent throughout
some of my most recent posts. However, as with any love affair, breaking the
ties is a very difficult thing to do. I have invested a huge portion of my life
and what little finance I have over the last 5 years. To cut it all adrift now
would be heartbreaking but perhaps it is the ONLY avenue left for me? Then again, it might be of use to know that I have already prepared my plan for a gradual return to running once I have this labral tear taken care of.
3.
Does
anyone know of someone (a consultant) who might help me?
My thinking
here is that there must be some kind of special sports injury consultant
somewhere in this country who knows exactly what I should do to fulfil my
running potential. They can cast their eye over my history of injuries and ‘hey
presto’ I’m given some magic remedy! Surely? For example, what is with this tape
more and more people seem to be wearing over certain muscles and joints? (I
know what it is, I just don’t know if it will help me).
The only thing I have
not done is to have my running gait analysed. So once I am able to run again I
will arrange this. Aside from that, I really don’t know where to look or
what direction to take. I'm also planning to get a pair of five fingers or barefoot trainers and use them to go walking in - often.
The real issue is that I don’t want to go through
another lengthy period of training for it all to come to nothing again. Surely that’s
understandable, especially with two young kids requiring more of my spare
capacity. But by the same token, I’m loathed to give up running unless I know I
have done everything to keep the
dream alive.
Laters.
