Step by Step: My Journey Through Foot Injuries and Healing 👣
I am Minal, a person Foot Injuries are not new to me. I have dealt with them ever since I was a teenager. Ankle twist, Muscle tear, Tissue tear, Hair line fracture and proper fracture, you name it and I have had it all. Despite this I have loved spo…
Foot Injuries are not new to me. I have dealt with them ever since I was a teenager. Ankle twist, Muscle tear, Tissue tear, Hair line fracture and proper fracture, you name it and I have had it all. Despite this I have loved sports all my life and like to keep an active lifestyle.
Before I go ahead, and write about my injuries its important to understand what prompted me to write this article.
The above lines are what prompted me to think, and think again; what is God trying to teach me. We shall come back to the highlighted lines, before that lets delve into my past and
It all started when I was in 6th grade, I used to play basketball. While I would jump to get the ball, I would land awkwardly on my feet resulting in some or the other injury. I still remember in those days, doctors used to recommend hot compress (instead of cold compress these days). And my mother would get hot water and towel to do the hot compress and help heal my aching foot.
As I reflect on those formative years, I started liking the smell of Volini/Moov/Himalaya pain relieving gel more than deodorants or perfumes. And this stands true till this day.
From the numerous injuries on my foot during my foramtive years., I specifically remember 2 injuries.
7th grade( Year - 1997)– Muscle tear in my foot.
I specifically remember this injury for 2 reasons. 1. Because I was a critical player out of 5 players in the team. I still played in spite of my swollen feet while wearing a bandage on my foot. Despite my best efforts to perform good for my team, we lost that game to opponents. 2. Just post the injury, we as family had to go for a pre-planned trip to Golden temple in Amritsar .I remember I got ready in the morning wearing my favorite grey hoodie that day. Now at that time, my foot was in lot of pain, and we had to go around the Sarovar.( For non-Punjabis, when we visit any Gurudwara, its considered pious to go around the little lake constructed in almost every Gurdwara). I pleaded with my mum to walk with me, so I could hold her hand and seek some support. Yet, the pain proved too overwhelming, forcing me to halt after just a few steps each time.
My mother noticed that and started walking in front of me, probably 5 steps ahead of me. I was in pain and every time I would reach her; she would move a further 5 steps ahead of me. That was my first less for endurance. Till this day, when things get tough in running, I remember that day very vividly.
8th or 9th grade ( Year - 1998 or 1999)- Fracture on my right foot
Another injury which I can never forget happened in one of these classes. So, during another Basketball practice session, I injured my foot. By this time, I was quite use to these regular injuries. Following the familiar protocol, we treated it at home with a hot compress, applied Volini, and bandaged the affected area. But after 15 days while I was walking in the market with my mother, the pain was still there prompting us to seek medical advice once again. To our surprise, the doctor revealed a startling diagnosis: a proper fracture in my foot, with the bone improperly aligned, resulting in a noticeable bump beneath the skin. He was quite amazed at my pain bearing capacity at a young age.
the little bump is because the bone is wrongly joined after a fracture
However, doctor recommended against correcting the misalignment, suggesting instead that we leave it as it was. With a two-week plaster cast secured around my right foot, the doctor assured us that the pain would gradually subside on its own. And indeed, as time passed, the discomfort began to ease, eventually fading away altogether.
Fast forward to my adult years, and I found that the healing process for my injuries had become considerably slower.
March 2016 – Left Ankle Twist
The memory of this injury remains vivid in my mind, perhaps because it took a full six months to recover from. I resided on the third floor of an apartment in London at the time, and my mornings were a rush to catch the 7:45 AM train from Ealing Station. On that fateful day, in my typical fashion, I found myself running late. Hastening down the stairs while preoccupied with my phone, I missed a step and tumbled down. In the blink of an eye, I not only missed my train but also realized the gravity of my fall.
Despite in pain , I mustered the strength to make my way to the station, albeit slowly, and caught the next train. By lunchtime, my foot had swollen. I limped to the pharmacy to get pain relief medicine and an ankle support, pushing through the workday before returning home.
I recall it was a Thursday, with a promising long weekend ahead, and I had eagerly planned my first outstation trip from London to Scotland. However, my injury dashed those hopes. I had paid all the money for train tickets and stay in advance. Because of my foot injury, we had to cancel the plan. The pain of my waisted money was equal to the pain of my foot that day, but all I did was delve into books and movies to distract my mind. Infact till this day, I have not visited Scotland.
Our London Home
Keeping myself engrossed in book and Movie
Amidst the hustle of work and caring for my toddler, Sarah, I could not afford an extended break. Consequently, the pain in my foot persisted and became chronic. It would not pain much, but every time I would run to catch a bus; pain would resurface. Also doctors and physiotherapists are costly in London, so I could not get it checked properly there.
Ultimately when I visited India and got it check by my cousin brother (who happens to be an orthopedic doctor), advised me to do hot and cold compress and also advised me to buy a physiotherapy device and do it myself . And that is after which my foot completely healed. But believe me, it was a long wait. And in those 6 months, all I could feel was that I probably may have to live with this pain for the rest of my life and will not be able to run without pain. But I was naïve and did not understand, NOTHING LASTS FOREVER.
Young Sarah at that time
In November, 2018 we decided to return permanently to India from UK and thus began my running journey and hence numerous foot injuries.
February 2019 – Ankle twist in the foot
This injury is so long back, that I don't even remember the exact details of this. But after going through old conversations, I realized I twisted my ankle and had to rest it out.
December 30, 2019 - Muscle tear in the foot – swelling
I was just sitting on my bed supposedly looking at my phone (or reading a book, I can't remember exactly). I was quite tired that day after a tough workout. The doorbell rang and I hurriedly got up and put my left foot down. And as I put my right foot down, I fell with a big thud. I realized my right leg was sleeping and it could not bear the weight of my body as I kept it down. It took several mins for me to get up and drag myself to the door to open it, but only to realize later that I had muscle tear in my foot as it swelled and became double its original size.
26th July ,2021 – Right foot toe Fracture (little finger was fractured)
I am not used to having a sofa around my house and till this time we have never bought a sofa (ever since I got married). Somehow, for some time my cousin sister had to vacate the house and needed a place to keep her sofa. And it happened to be our home where she placed the sofa. As i walked mindlessly in the house , I struck my right foot at the foot of sofa which resulted in a fracture on the little toe.
I remember, on August 5th, on Sarah`s birthday; I had to hire a cook from outside to prepare food for birthday celebrations as I still hadn't healed enough to stand for long time to prepare food for all the guests.
Sarah turned 7 years old that day
April 15 ,2022 – Left foot toe (little finger was fractured)
Moments after taking the above video in the Taj Mahal, I struck my foot against an iron pole lying on the ground. The impact was instant, and I sat there in pain on a pavement overlooking "The Taj Mahal" for some time to come out of the little shock. I saw the whole Taj Mahal limping and realized something was amiss. I took some painkillers to get through my cousin`s wedding (the reason for me to go to Agra) and later was diagnosed that I have fractured my little toe. It took me nearly 6 weeks before I could start running again. And it's always an ugly wait.
Raghav and myself at the wedding
June 18, 2023 - Ankle twist in the left foot
This one was bad. No, it was not the injury, which was so bad, but I had just recovered from a major injury just 1 month back and was getting myself back into running when I fell and twisted my ankle. I cried that day and I cried loud and hard. The pain of thought of not able to run for some more time felt too profound.
With this injury something in me changed. I decided to workout in whatever way I could till I started running. Read more about it here.
March 17, 2024 – Ankle twist in the right foot
This is the latest injury. Wednesday`s generally we do all body conditioning exercises. So, in the park, while we were doing simple exercise and running, I placed my foot on a small pit and fell. While I lay there sitting, I had pain in my feet and for a minute or so, I could not make myself get up as I was not able to put weight on my feet.
After a minute or so, as I tried to walk around, I still could not put weight on my feet. I could only be hopeful that there was nothing serious and walked out of the park to go home and ice.
Lessons from the Injuries
Nothing last forever
The workouts during your injury periods help you once you resume working out post injury
Its ok to cry and get sad
Its ok to seek help and share your sadness
Find a partner to workout during injury
Express your sadness more often
Your vulnerability helps you connect with more people
Coming back to the pages in this book again, Despite the above lessons that one thing which I still fail to understand and is trying eagerly to understand is : What is God trying to teach me through these repeated injuries? Is there something, that I need to learn/understand? Is there something that I am overlooking? Do i need to follow a different approach towards sports?
Thanks for making it this far.
Any message/comment/view ( also would love if you would like to share your experiences or your approach towards injuries) is highly appreciated.
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