Rehab Begins

I knew atrophy would be a bitch. It really is. A few weeks or something would be one thing; even a couple months. Coming back from nearly four months of non-use and everything is complaining. Sometimes the simple act of walking just HURTS. I’m back on regular use of ibuprofen to help with both the pain and the inflammation. Things swell – a lot. From puffy ankle, to spots that get a big edema, to my knee swelling up, life is just plain old uncomfortable. Tendons and ligaments are TIGHT, and they are NOT happy about having to work. Life hurts.  Even when I’m resting, it usually hurts on some level, or I’m stretching it, moving it, something or it’s just had a long day and is mad. But, that’s part of rehab, and so be it.

Things are still moving along, don’t get me wrong. I’m a couple weeks into PT, and if anything, there’s probably more I should be doing, but I’m also still working, taking care of the house, and back to my “regular” work schedule, so time is an issue. While I’m WAY more mobile, I’m still slow. I get around without the cane as needed, but it’s nice to have that when I’m trying to cover more ground, plus my gait is a little better with it than without most of the time.

Being tired and weird sleep patterns is rather frustrating. I get way more tired just doing “normal” things which makes getting up early enough for the gym an easy thing to skip. Let’s just say I haven’t been to the gym since my work schedules went back to normal. It’s an excuse, really, but only sort of – I haven’t been sitting in front of the TV that much, either, other than for an hour or so when I eat my dinner, so it’s not like I’m watching TV for hours on end and skipping the gym…

At this point, while I wouldn’t call any of this fun, for the most part it’s not “surprising” either. I knew it would hurt. I knew it would take time. I knew it would suck. Honestly, other than the “tiredness” factor, things are kind of what I would have expected.

At least I can ride, which has done wonders for me mentally even if it’s not as “fun” as it was (mostly because, well, it hurts!!).  But, it still serves the purpose of getting me out of my head, and even if for only very brief moments, there are moments of pure freedom as the bike accelerates and carries me on its wings, in that moment I don’t think about having a bum leg. It may only last until I need to shift, but even that second of freedom is worth more than I can express.

I have my first trackdays coming up this weekend – I know my leg is going to give me problems, but I’m still excited to get out there. It’s going to hurt, I’m sure I’ll be frustrated, but I’ll be on the new bike, and hopefully there will be a lot of those “moments” that’ll have me smiling through the gritted teeth.