Amazing, The Power of A Second Look

A cascade of once-in-a-lifetime events and circumstances surrounded a Tuesday afternoon.  I cannot go into too much detail about the 'who' and 'where', but be satisfied that this Dr. and his staff are more than highly qualified.

I will get right into it (sorry no novelistic story on these):  The second opinion stated that the "tear" was not really a "tear". But rather, an edge of the labrum was "frayed", and that this, in and of itself, should not necessitate surgery.  In addition to this, however, The Second Opinion discovered that there was "fraying" of the supraspinadus muscle of the rotator cuff - and that this is the likely source of the majority of my pain.

Prognosis: 6 - 8 weeks continued Physical Therapy, coupled with restricted upper extremity exercise; Therapeutic Anti-inflammatory regimen.  If, after these 6-8 weeks, my condition does not improve - or worsens - another MRI/Arthrogram and potential surgery would come into play.

So what does all of this mean? I am grounded. Literally. No water-born activities. Training, for the foreseeable/near future, will consist of punishing the lower body on land.  Cycling. Running. Cycling and running. Punishment in the gym on the lower body. Followed by more punishment on the lower body. And maybe run a little bit more. FUN!

Another good thing to come out of the new prognosis, is the potential to rejoin the US National team on its trip to South Africa for the ISRC at the end of March - not as a water specialist, but as a beach event specialist.

We'll see how it goes.

Setbacks and Future Aggressions

More details will follow this post, along with more stories in the ongoing adventure that is my life.

I have had the great fortune of training, traveling, and competing with some of the greatest people on earth. Throughout it all I have been even more fortunate to have done it all relatively injury free.  Obviously, with a heavy workload, and dynamic conditions beyond human control, some minor hitches occurred - but these are to be expected.  

For the first time I face an unknown.  Last week I had an MRI Arthrogram performed on my right shoulder. From these films, my first Orthopedic visit resulted in not-so-nice results.  A partial tear of the superior aspect (the top) of the Labrum shown on the semi-grainy plastic films. 

To get the immediate question out of the way - Yes. Surgery is an option.  No. This is not the only option. 

I am currently in the process of seeking 2nd and 3rd opinions from other Orthopedists, and will determine my route of treatment after these consults.

As a result of the circumstances, and the uncertainties accompanying them, I have elected to suspend my planned competitive trip to the Gold Coast of Australia. The potential for worsening the damage by training the way I would in that environment is too great to ignore.

No matter the course of action, I am confident that I will return to the competitive forum stronger and hungrier than before.

"Never Never Never Give Up!"

~Winston Churchill