When I was young, I was quite athletic, to the point that my older brothers (who are all musical) would tease me about it at times. I would like to say it was out of jealousy - but it wasn't, it was just what older brothers do. But anyway, for a long time I could always rely on my body to perform, but when I was 16, I got very ill and within a few months I was bedridden and would never be able to rely on my body again. I accepted this and said;
At least I have my brain.
The irony of then having a stroke....
But before the stroke, I have another physical problem which has plagued me, and I always put down to the years of being in bed and doing very little physical activity. My feet and legs. Snowboarding, skiing were impossible due to the extreme pain, and even walking slightly faster brought the same kind of pain. I have tried many things with stretches, massage, physio and toe separators, minimal shoes and the like, but none have had any significant effect on the problem.
It means I avoid walking.
Yesterday, I did a "walking test" in the Oura App, where it tracks 6 minutes of walking at speed (not jogging) and the distance covered to work out heart health and the the like. My total was 660m (720 yards) in that time and my heart health was considered great - but... after 100 meters I was barely walking. My shins had cramped (not shin splints) and I couldn't flex my foot upward -
I was plodding.
I forced my way through to the end of the walk to get the measurement, but the pain was quite extreme. I turned back straight after and plodded home. A minute or two after sitting, the pain was pretty much gone, and my muscles were just tight. This is how it goes and I have been looking for a solution for it for a very long time.
Did I find one?
Dunno.
But once again last night I spent time searching for answers and was reading through streams of old boards where people were looking for various solutions to similar symptoms and I chanced upon one that seemed to match up perfectly with what I am experiencing.
Well, that isn't all good news.
But, if it is this, at least there is an avenue for treatment. It is called a fasciotomy and is a surgery that releases the pressure. I have never had surgery before, and that worries me - but it also worries me what life becomes if this worsens and I can't walk much at all. The symptoms have been holding me back physically for over two decades now and are worsening, so in another decade from now, I am loathe to think what my capabilities are.
Of course, self-diagnosis through the internet is not really recommended, so I am going to have to get a professional in, which I am not looking forward to, as now I have to go through the public side of healthcare and that is never a fast or easy process. But, I think it would be worth it to go through and perhaps get some kind of either relief or closure on it - because it affects me in many ways. Most of us at least take for granted being able to walk without too much effort, and this has stopped me from doing a lot of things that I enjoy a lot - plus has impacted on my cardio ability.
Bodies suck in the sense that when things are running well and aligned, we don't have to actually think that much about them. But, when one things goes wrong, it can cause a chain reaction of events that put a lot of things out of skew. And then, if a few unrelated things go wrong, it sets off an explosion of symptoms which creates a lot of noise and makes identifying causes and therefore treatment, very difficult.
More than one part of me says to just give up.
But where does that end? Will I be content just to stop moving, plodding along like a geriatric well before my years? I don't think so. And as they say, health is wealth, but if I can't think and can't move even close to freely, I am not just poor, I am destitute. I have lost a lot of myself over the years. So if there is a chance to get my legs back, I will take it.
Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]
