An OLD break

A

alleycat

0
Hey guys,

I broke my ankle when I kicked someone's elbow (martial arts). This was nearly 8 years ago... but even now, a slight knock hurts it (especially in the cold).

I'm going to be doing some hyperbaric oxygen very soon, hoping it will improve my bone density. And I'm taking some calcium suppliments.

Anything I could do?

Maybe somekind of physio???

Thanks all,

alleycat
 
I'm a kinesiologist in a occupational rehab clinic and I've had a lot of people complain about similar symptoms. I don't want to pump out "no duh" explainations but...... it's gonna do that. Your symptoms entirely depend on the amount of bone and soft-tissue damage recieved and what kind of break it was. Functionality is always the first thing that comes back but pain symptoms can persist for years afterwards. Cold climate is a biggy and will always let you know where you've been hurt in the past. I played soccer and hockey for 16 years while growing up and have sustained multiple ankle and back injuries. Even now at 27, I still ache when it gets cold and damp (doesn't help I live in Vancouver, BC). If you're looking for a way to decrease the pain, I would stay away from kicking people and talk to your doctor.

There are bone stimulators available on the market that apparently increase bone density and healing time but I'm not sure how applicable those are to your condition. Other treatments such as shockwave therapy and reflexology can help but I don't know much about them. What you have is chronic pain and doesn't seem to be going away. First and foremost, talk to your doctor and do your research on chronic pain management strategies. Look into whether or not calcium supplements are what you need (have you thought about vitamin D supplements which affect the absorption rate of calcium) and keep the ankle moving as much as possible. Increase blood flow will not only decrease pain symptoms but will also decrease healing time of damaged tissue (assuming there's still some damage). Hope that helps.
 
Wonderful, I REALLY appreciate the advice! I really don't want to start going down a traditional medical route with this problem... I'm really not sure where that will land me. So I'm looking really for a gradual, steady improvement through alternatives.

Thanks again!

alleycat
 
Hi,

I also have similar problems from breaking my pelvis, legs, arm & spine 30 years ago. Doctors keep telling me to "learn to live w/ it," when I've told them about it, then I got post-trumatic fibromyalgia, too, from the injuries. Along w/ a whole host of other problems w/ that. I finally found a doctor (after 20+ yrs) who takes the pain I have seriously. It helps that I was the 2nd patient of his after he opened his doors & he still does research & is open to learning new things (unlike many of the past doctors I've had that think they already know everything).

One thing I finally did was move to a place where it is very low humidity. Although it does get cold here, the cold bothers me much less w/ low humidity. I already take supplements advised for the fibro & other reasons, so that doesn't help me. Deep heat helps, as well as saunas & soaking in hot tubs. I'm finding that moving in water helps me a lot more than moving outside of water. Have you tried hydrotherapy for it? One thing that really helped when I tried it over 20 years ago was electroaccupuncture. I haven't been able to find anyone that even knows about it now. :confused: I'd even save up & buy my own machine if I could find one--it helped me THAT much! I think I'm gonna leave here & do some more searches, in fact. ;)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top