Flipping Painful

is the verdict on degenerative Achilles tendinopathy today.

I'm not one for filling Facebook with status updates of self pity like a lot of people when they get a tiny bit of pain. You know the people - we all have a 'friend' who does that. The sort who if they really had a migraine or flu they would be in bed and nowhere near Facebook!

Anyway back to the point of this post. I'm not one to feel sorry for myself publically and this is more of a for myself post so I can look back and see how I felt, not for any sort of sympathy because of how I am currently feeling.

So my story with degenerative achilles tendinopathy started about 4 years ago when I stepped awkwardly with my left foot and apparently ruptured something. I didn't get help for a few months until it got too uncomfortable to cope with. The physio I saw said I had ruptured something which needed exercises to heal but there was scar tissue. The exercises really helped and I was soon back to normal.

Spring forward a few months and my other ankle started niggling coming downstairs and when I got up after sitting down for a length of time. Nothing particularly painful so stupidly I ignored it.

I started running last September and it stayed as a niggle but no more than it had been before. I was hit and miss with the running but got back up to week three of c25k after Christmas and one day I had this burning in my heel and partway up my calf which I stupidly tried to work through but had to admit defeat and haven't run since because it hurts too much.

I went to the doctor who gave me some exercises for a couple of weeks with the instruction that if it didn't improve she would refer me to physio. Needless to say it didn't improve so the referral was made. I also mentioned to her a painful itchy bruise I had on my other calf which wouldn't go away. Turned out it was a varicose vein so I had to see a consultant about that. He decided I needed it treating along the length of my left leg and scheduled the op for the end of April.

A week before the op the physio appointment came through and the result was degenerative achilles tendinopathy maybe caused by overcompensating for the original injury to my other leg maybe not. Plus my hips aren't working as they should either apparently. The op meant that the physio wanted treatment to go on hold until I had the all clear. That all clear came last week and yesterday I went back to physio.

During the time from the first physio appointment and the one yesterday things have deteriorated pain wise and the Achilles now hurts a lot both up and down stairs or hills plus I can feel the niggle all the time so I was keen to start working on it.

The physio gave me some stretching exercises, which I'm not going to lie, are painful, but it isn't going to start feeling better without a little bit of discomfort. I certainly could feel it while I was walking today. Three weeks of these and back for some more complicated ones.

Hopefully the road to recovery is starting and surgery won't be necessary. I've read so much on the subject on the interweb and I don't necessarily think its always a good thing.

I'll report my progress in a few weeks which *fingers crossed* will be positive :)