Quick story about what I've been contending with -
I've been dealing with tendon dysfunction in my left ankle since July. I'm goofy-footed and my left foot does most of the pushing, ollieing, etc., obviously.
Last year, I was working my full-time, plus had an extra job that was physically demanding, and was trying to skate harder as well. I guess I overexerted myself, and my ankle became weak.
So back in late July I took two weeks off skating to try and rehab it. I didn't seek medical advice, which I should've done. It started to get a little better, but then I started to skate again and tweaked it a few times. This is in addition to all the rushing around and labour of my part-time; at one point, I was limping as I was working, and needed to ice my ankle during breaks.
Maybe the issue was that I continued to skate throughout the summer and fall. I didn't want to stop because I didn't think it was anything severe, and I'm getting older, my responsibilities were ramping up, and time outside to skate is short where I live. I was wearing braces and trying to take it easy, but it still wasn't getting that much better. And it affected my skating - I couldn't skate as hard as I wanted to because I was too concerned about making it worse, and it was weaker (duh). But I foolishly thought skating a little was better than not skating at all.
So it continued to be a problem. I saw a podiatrist, and he told me that I had stage 2 tendon dysfunction, which was one step away from surgery. I also have flatter feet, and my knee is a bit inflamed/has an ossicle (loose bone) floating around. He told me that my flat feet were causing more stress on my ankle tendons, and recommended Form insoles, brace/Oofos sandals. The sandals are great, I wear them every day, and the insoles are everyday use as well.
I also went to an athletic therapist and she gave me exercises to do; my physio did the same. My physio also told me to keep skating and jumping rope and doing what I like to do, but just be very aware of my limits. Also to do the exercises he gave me for 4-6 days per week. Told me that the brace was okay, but not necessary, and that I should try to wean myself off of it. Lots of good advice.
It's almost the end of February now and I'm still dealing with irritation in my ankle; if I press hard on my tendon area, it's a bit painful. Also, if I turn my ankle inward to its fullest extent, I can feel irritation. And when I balance on my left leg, it's a bit weaker/shakier than my right. It sucks, and hopefully this goes away permanently. It's getting a little better each day, and I'm skating a mini better than I ever have (which doesn't say much). I think I'll be good once spring rolls around, and the snow melts.
Anyway, this is a real thing that I wasn't concerned about, so my advice is - even if your life situation is one where you feel like you need to skate through an injury, if it perseveres, definitely stop what you're doing and get medical advice ASAP. And yeah, do the exercises every day you can.
Topic: The Injury Thread (Read 48202 times)