Mel On...Strong Knee, Weak Everything Else??

Well, I just got back from another visit with my primary doctor today.  Still no official diagnosis on my knee pain but between the two base doctors I have seen and my physical therapist we have discussed everything from the meniscus, ACL, and IT band to runner's knee, Baker's cysts, angry hamstrings, and inflammation, etc.

I did have several x-rays done this morning and the initial review was great.  The guy said my knee bones looked flippin' fantastic so now it's down to issues with the muscles/tendons/ligaments.  AGH! Not that a bone injury would have been good news, it's just that I feel like I won't ever get an answer as to WHAT IS WRONG WITH MY KNEE.

I've gone from a sharp localized pain and difficulty bending/extending (starting in early Feb) to an all-over achy burn in the entire back of my knee leading up the bottom of my thigh. Within the last 3-4 weeks I've also started experiencing a "pins and needles" type feeling in a 3" diameter in the front of my shin that is annoying the haybags out of me.  It feels like it's asleep and like it's shaking under my skin....AAGGGHH!  I've also lost feeling in my toes randomly on the same leg twice.  Needless to say, I'm taking some time off...

The Tues. after Madrid I went on a final run with a good friend before she moved to the sunny and eversofaraway state of Florida.  It was only about 6 miles, mostly hills, but we walked ALOT (we may or may not have also gotten lost).  It began hurting pretty badly after that.  I didn't run or do any weight-bearing exercises on it until that Fri. when I hit up a FemFusion class and then did a quick 2 mile walk around the village.  Sat. the pain got really bad and by Monday I could barely walk without crying.  It was bad.  I called my doctor but he couldn't get me in.  He told me to call my physical therapist and if I couldn't get seen within a week to go to the ER. (Don't you love the ease of  - and access to - care in a military clinic in a foreign country? Where is sarcasm font when you need it).  I literally sat on the couch alternating between Motrin and Tylenol and icing my knee the WHOLE DAY.

Anyway, I got a hold of my physical therapist and he told me to REST and RICE until he could get me in on Friday (what I was doing anyway).  At the appointment he told me I definitely had some inflammation going on and that I shouldn't do anything other than water walking until I could get back to see my regular doctor and maybe discuss an MRI (you know, the one who referred me to physical therapy to begin with).  

Let me tell you, I hadn't been doing ANYTHING on it anyway so waiting another week and a half would reduce the pain/swelling even more, right?  NO.  Resting it (and I mean complete rest, not just not running rest - no running, no biking, no swimming, no hiking, no walking - RESTING) still did nothing.

I can no longer sit criss-cross applesauce. I can barely walk the quarter mile to the bus stop and back without cringing by the time I get home.  Going grocery shopping hurts. Stairs hurt. Uphill anything hurts.  It's like it's fine as long as I'm resting it (it just feel hollow if that makes any sense?) but as soon as I do anything weight-bearing on it it flares up again and I'm at step one.  AAAAGGGGGHHHHH!

 AAAAGGGGGHHHHH!

 AAAAGGGGGHHHHH!

 AAAAGGGGGHHHHH!

So, I'm sitting here (because I can't friggin do anything else) trying not to cry because the weather is absolutely gorgeous here and I WANT TO RUN SOOOOOOO BADLY but instead I am waiting on a call back from the doctor for an MRI referral... 

AAAAGGGGGHHHHH!

(More updates to come, hopefully they will involve less random screaming...but I can't make promises.  In the mean time...run one for me?!)