Ok, so I’m a dancer and for 14 years was a gymnast as well, so my ankles take quite a good beating. I’ve sprained my right ankle 8 times or so, and the last time was quite serious. I came down hard on the side of the foot, and ripped through two ligaments, while in dress rehearsal for a showcase. My dance instructor, who was also in the piece, carried me off the stage and made me go to the hospital, because my ankle swelled immediately to the size of a grapefruit and turned purple, and she thought it was broken.
I, stupidly of course, wanted to go home, because we were opening in two days for a six-show showcase, and I was in 11 numbers, including 6 I’d choreographed. But I went to the doctors, and they took X-rays. They said I’d torn two ligaments, and sustained a severe lateral sprain. They gave me an Air-cast, crutches, and told me not to put any pressure on the ankle for 10 days, and wear the cast for 14, plus physical therapy with my trainer and a brace for when I could finally get back to dance and gymnastics training, which was at least a few weeks away (and that with limitations). I was devastated.
However, the showcase was very important, and nobody could possibly have replaced me in time to learn everything. So, I took the next day off from dance, and used the crutches during the daytime, but I performed all six shows with the brace (not Air-cast) on. I was careful to follow instructions when I wasn’t dancing, however. I knew it was a bad idea physically, and it was the most painful experience of my life. I rubbed this ointment on the ankle every night that my gymnastics coach had given me a few months before to numb a wrist injury in competition – it made the ankle numb enough to dull the pain a little, and I laced it tight before each number. Obviously I didn’t perform in top form, but it was better than nothing.
I know it made healing longer, and harder, but I had to do it. Afterward, I followed all instructions, went to PT (and got my earful of criticism for dancing), and did everything I was asked to do.
But, it has been a year and a half, and I’m still having problems. The ankle doesn’t hurt anymore just walking or anything, but it swells up every time I workout (because of gymnastics, I got into a twice-a-day workout mode that I haven’t broken even though I don’t practice the sport anymore), and sometimes I’m seized with instability that’s hard to control. I can also, when I flex my foot, move the foot from side to side and feel and hear a definite “pop” on the lateral side of my ankle, like something is sliding in and out of place. My other ankle does not do this, nor do the ankles of any of my friends, so I’m pretty sure it isn’t normal.
Does anyone know what might casue something like this?
Posts Tagged Ankle
I had a stress fracture in my foot about 6 months ago from over training, I was off my foot for about 3-4 months and was in a cast for two weeks, it has been almost 8 months since my injury and my foot feels fine but now that I began running again I have a somewhat different shaped ankle bone on the inside it looks swollen but its not simply different shaped now in comparison to the other and I really want to run competitively again ive also been experiencing a little bit of shin pain right by the inside of my ankle. I stretch and do ankle exercises such as writing the alphabet etc… does any one have any suggestions I was thinking physical therapy but I am desperate at this point, and Im 17 by the way and Ive been trying to do 50 min bike rides and 3 mile runs on and off to stay in shape
I shattered my left ankle and sprained my right ankle by falling off a horse and landing on my feet. The impact was so strong that one of my ankles fractured and the other one resulting in 3rd degree sprain. I’m pretty much in the process of healing for the fractured ankle after 2 surgeries, but I am concerned about the sprained one because I’m still having pain, epecially when I rotate it around.
I also get a sudden sharp pain occasionally whever I’m walking. It’s been 4 months since the accident and I have been going to physical therapy for 2 months already.
Do you think these conditions are considered normal? Am I going to be able to get any better?
I am 23 years old and my job entails being on my feet and moving 12 hours a day, 3 days a week. I spent 17 years of my life as a gymnast and 4 years as a ballet dancer.
I have flat feet, but do not wear shoe inserts as I have done extensive physical therapy and my doctors have told me I have trained my muscles to walk normally without orthotics.
Within the past couple weeks, I have started to notice pain in my left inner ankle. The pain centers around the medial malleous, but the pain feels more muscular. The more I walk, the more the pain spreads partially up my tibia staying medial.
The pain is greater when I let myself walk flat footed (and thus my foot everts). When it is not weight bearing, the pain is greater when I invert my foot (thus engaging that muscle).
The pain isn’t great – I take 400mg ibuprofin and go to work but the pain has been there for a few weeks and hasn’t gone away. I have been taking the ibuprofin and icing and elevating after work, but I can’t not walk around at my job.
Any suggestions on what could be going on? I have had no injuries to the area.
Thanks!
Hi. I have have these pains for a while, but they seem to be getting worse. We have gone to so many doctors and none seem to see anything. A few months ago, we saw an orthipidic. Many x-rays have been taken before but we urged that something must be wrong. They found a small something, and we had an MRI done. They didn’t tell us what they found, but I ended up having to get surgery on my knee and ankle both so they could try and see what was happening. Still nothing. It has been 2 1/2 months since my surgery and my pains have started getting a little worse then before. I have been having a horrible time getting to sleep lately because of it. One thing that is really weird is it only hurts in the evening. All day long its perfectly fine but after 8:00 I start going down hill. Also whats strange is when i went on my vacation, we went to a dude ranch and rode horses at least 4 hours a day. That whole week I felt fine, and no pain whats so ever. What can I do to releave the pain so I can sleep? Doctors have not helped me at all, and I have done chiropractic. Also, do you think physical therapy would help me? Thanks everyone!!
I fractured both tib. and fib. last summer and had originally 10 screws and a plate until I had all the hardware removed. 3 surgery were performed to fix my ankle injury for this horseback riding accident and I have been doing pretty well after a full yr of physical therapy.
I can run now and my range of motion is pretty okay.
UNTIL, this summer, when I first got back on a horse and did some intense training all day for a month, my ankle is in so much pain that i’ve been needing to take advils daily for a week now. I know it’s not the kind of pain i get from re-building up muscles. It’s internal throbbing sensation that is bothering me a lot. and that area is right on top of my scar where I got the surgery. I can still walk around and do things all day, but it’s deff. bothering me. When I move around the ankle, it started to make cracking noise and sometimes feel like the joint is not in the right place.
I have no idea what’s going on in my ankle. I’m so sick of going to the doctor and having to need surgeries, but should I go see the doc again or avoid until it gets alittle more worse?
please help me!
I fractured my ankle on October 3. I was in a cast for 2 months. I got the cast off December 2. Started physical therapy 4 days later. I have been doing physical therapy. I do the simple exercises every day and twice a week I do the full exercises. However, I get this pain in the back of my foot (where my Achilles Tendon is) and a bit on the inner side of my foot. I have to move my foot/ankle in a circular motion until it cracks and then the pain goes away. About 2-3 minutes later, the pain is back and the cycle begins again. Why? I am doing good with physical therapy. I broke my left foot, lower fibula (the ankle). It happened while playing soccer. I am a 12-15 year old female. The doctor said that it is just kinks in the ligaments from being stiff and should go away within a week or two after getting the cast off. Why is this happening? Please!
A player of mine was complaining of ankle pain, so I sent him in to the trainer for diagnosis. He said it was a high ankle sprain, and that there was nothing that could be done to treat/stretch it. This would mean that he will be bothered by this for the remaining 2 months of the season, and I wish to get him healed sooner than that. Is there any type of physical therapy I can do, or are there certain stretches I can have him do? We are taping his foot up really tight and just having him play on it right now. The trainer said this won’t cause further damage, but will delay the healing process.
Left arm and leg partially paralyzed. Have strong muscles.My main concern is the swelling does not go away. The rehab and the home physical therepist tell me to walk on it, but I think I should go to an orthopedist. What do you say?
ok so yesterday (Wednesday 25) i sprained my ankle in track practice and the sports doctor on campus said it was only mild but to stay off it for a while and not to run in the meet this week. but what i want to know is if it will be ok to go back to running again on Monday and if there are any physical therapy exercises i can do. its still a little swollen and hurts some.