It’s been a full year, almost to the date, and it looks like I am finally finished dealing with a torn hamstring.
I had a follow-up visit from the PRP injection with my sports medical doctor yesterday. He typically wants a gradual return to exercise and a visit 8 weeks after the injection. But I needed more information. I was tired of waiting for answers. I didn’t want to play any more guessing games. I needed to know: am I healing as expected or do I need a second injection? Am I doing too much too soon or is my fitness where it is suppose to be ? I need guidance because, let’s face it, I don’t do well on my own. I don’t always recognize the signs of trouble brewing and I certainly do not want to end up back at ground zero. So I asked, maybe begged, and he agreed to see me after the 4 week point.
I truthfully didn’t know what to expect. I was a bit worried that he would want to start to treat the left tuberosity, where there were some minor tears, because I am noticing that side more than my right. So my son drove me to his office – just in case he was wanting to do another PRP injection. Dr. Bentley asked me a few questions and he examined by strength and movement.
“Your hip is jammed up again,” he commented . I felt my shoulders sigh. “You’re going to have to keep up with physio or Chiro care – probably twice a month – to keep your pelvis aligned.” I had already been prepared for that as a life-long need; I know that it has helped and I know that I am going to need regular maintenance.
Then I asked my questions:
(1) Is my left side sore now because my right is stronger and I am just hyper-sensitive to what is going on with my hips? “You’re in tune with your body,
he said. ” You’re quite aware of what is going on so, yes, it’s a bit of both.”
(2) Is this tightness, the achy-ness that I have just part of aging? Dr. Bentley smiled. “You’re getting older. And you’ve have some issues with your hips. But it’s not like your severely arthritic and your hip is waiting to shatter. You’re going to be fine.” So, yes, I need to get use to feeling sore. Fortunately, I am in a line of work that doesn’t let me sit for too long; for me, being busy and active is key.
(3) Do you think I’ll be able to get back to distance running? Dr. Bentley told me that more is better for me, which ties in with the “don’t sit still” approach that I have adopted. “You’ll have to cut back in intensity,” he said. “You can train the same way during each session but not as often.” Basically, I need more non-running days to give my body a break from pounding the pavement. Instead of running 6 days a week, I’ll have to run 4 or 5; double-run days, I’m fairly certain, have become a thing of the past.
“You’ll have to keep up with physio,” he repeated. “But I don’t think I need to see you again. If something changes, just call me and set up an appointment.”
When I got back to the car, I said to my son, “I have graduated. I am all done. He doesn’t need to see me again.”
“You’ve graduated?” he asked.
“Yup. I suffered, I researched, I did everything I was expected to do, and I have passed. I am done with rehab. I have graduated.”
When I got home, I celebrated (of course) with an easy 3-mile run. Last night, I started my plan of training to train and today, I can begin to start chasing my dreams.
