Castaway! No, not a movie starring Tom Hanks and a disturbing relationship with a piece of sports equipment... my cast is gone. Gone precious, gone! I have to admit, I was happy to get the thing in the first place, since every bump and movement was sending my arm into paroxysms of pain. But it quickly got old, especially in those dreaded moments when you have an itch underneath (coat hangers are your friend).
I got a new set of X-rays yesterday and everything is healing up amazingly well. I have pretty much no swelling at the site, the joint looks great, the tendons all look fine, and the bone is healing nicely. Best of all, the doc who took a look at it gave me the green light to move around as much as I feel able, just cautioning me to "let pain be your guide". That's always a sticky wicket with me, since my pain tolerance is freakishly high (I once famously told my midwife I was worried that I wouldn't know when I was in labor. She laughed. Until it came true.) Still, I figure as long as I proceed with good caution and don't do anything stupid, I'm going to be able to train, at least in a moderate fashion. That's WAY better news than I heard from Doc #1, whose mantra seemed to be "Wait 6 weeks" to do ANYTHING.
I don't know how much of what I did after the break influenced the healing, but here's my regimen for speedy bodily repair:
- Big doses of calcium and vitamin D (as per Doc #1)
- My old standby, Wobenzym, for soft tissue repair (this is the one supplement I use when training hard as well, just because it helps me be so much less sore after intense workouts)
- As much sleep as I can make myself get
- No NSAIDS (doc #2 says that now most docs believe they're contra-indicated in bone healing anyways)
- Lots and lots of dog kisses
- Positive visualizations in which I mentally send big glowing balls of healing energy light down my arm to the broken place and visualize my bone and tissues repairing themselves.
That's it, that's my magic formula. But speaking of dog kisses, here's something interesting. Since I've gotten my cast off, my dog Sophie has been coming up and licking my arm constantly. I wonder if dogs know that something is injured even if there's no outward sign. She doesn't lick my good arm, just the injured one. As you can see, just trying to get a photo of my cast she kept interrupting with more puppy kisses. She obviously believes I need more love in my life, what a sweetie!
5 comments:
That's amazing that your arm has already had this much improvement. I think the visualization has a lot to do with it. And the dog licking....I wouldn't doubt that there are some healing enzymes there either. But maybe even some of it is the prayers that have been prayed for you. Your God knows the love that you have for the outdoors and I think he wants to see you out in his Cathedral, running the race. :)
Thanks, you are so right! I feel so fortunate to have such support from good friends and even this little bit of movement in my arm does feel like a gift from God.
Glad to hear you are healing up!
I really enjoy your blog. I'm an amateur triathlete, having enjoyed the marathon for many years. I have been into it now a year and a half. My last race last season, I have a full tire blow out (not tube) and now I am spooked to get back on the bike at such high speeds. I thought I'd start back on a trainer. What kind do you use? My husband bought a Blackburn but it doesn't seem to work properly. I'm also afraid of shredding my tires. I appreciate your opinion!
I use a CycleOps Fluid trainer that I really like. It's basic, but it has been very reliable, and folds up so you can easily move it out of the way.
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