Bad News!

I believe in four years I've only blogged in the off season once. That time it was to brag about my beautiful daughter being born. So you know when I blog this time of year it's going to be big. Unfortunately this time it's not on the good news side of things.

In September I was ramping up my mileage in preparation for the Mankato Marathon. I was feeling fantastic and running better than I've run all year. Then on a lunch run I felt a tweak in my inner ankle. I gingered it back to work and figured I would rest it for a few days. However I had long run with my buddy Ross Weinzierl two days later. On Friday night I was on the bubble but didn't want to let Ross down and I've run through things like this in the past. Unfortunately I'm not 28 anymore and running was a bad idea.

Ross and I ran two 8 mile loops with a ten minute breather in between. It was painful but not unbearable. The last couple of miles were especially bad but I was still able to run even though I was wincing with every step. At the end I thought "thank god I made it through that without making it worse." The ankle felt ok and was fully mobile. Later that night I woke up to go to the bathroom and nearly fell down with my first step being that my ankle was so stiff. I knew then I was in trouble.

I went to Tria a few days later to see if I could salvage it before the marathon. The PA told me it was post tibial tendonitis and I would be out for four to six weeks. I asked if there was anything I could to speed up the recovery. The PA gave me a boot and told me to see the Physical Therapist once a week. I did both but I was not getting much better. So I asked my wife for some help.

I am blessed to be an athlete with a doctor for a wife. She is in residency and doesn't specialize in sports injuries but she does know who does and who's the best at it. She asked her old professor Dr. Knop what it could be and he immediately feared the worst and that I had torn post tibial tendon (at least I think that's what it is). The doc recommended me to Dr. Cotzee who is supposedly one of the worlds best at this injury. In fact that is his direct specialty. The best part is He's at Twin Cities Ortho, no kidding, two miles from my house.

When I called they told me he was booked till March. Keep in mind I called in October. I told them who I was and my sad sob story. I also named dropped my wife and Dr. Knop and that got me in a month later. After examining me for a minute Dr. Cotzee shot me straight and said I had a 5% chance of not having surgery. I kept thinking, "so you're telling me their's a chance." I had an MRI last week and yesterday, my birthday, the doc called me and essentially said it's not bad it's really bad.

So apparently I have a two inch lateral tear in my posterior tibial tendon. Or that's the medical jargon I heard so don't quote me. Bottom line is I'm in a cast for two weeks after the surgery. Then I can swim. I can bike at a month or so, elliptical at 6-8 weeks, yoga in 8 and running in 12 weeks. Or at least that is what I'm shooting for.

For my rant of the week I have to say how disappointed I am with Tria and how thrilled I am with Twin Cities Ortho. When you tell someone your a competetive athlete they should treat you as such. When my ankle is swelled up like a bastard I want you to MRI it and not send me on my way. If I had been satisfied with Tria I may have damaged this thing to the point of never running again thinking it was just tendonitis. Or at least just have been out for three months before realizing it was something more. Luckily Dr. Cotzee immediately wanted to MRI it due to my lifestyle. Fortunately I only lost a month to the incompetence of the PA at Tria vs. three extra months.

The good news is that it's the off season and with my hopeful timeline I think I can get back into pretty good shape for June and the beginning of the season. I'll keep my fingers crossed.