We were in the final minutes of the noon time basketball game on the hardwood of the big court at LeMoyne College's athletic center. The game had been lighthearted. This run was not too intense. I had the ball on the right edge of the lane. I had the height advantage over my defender. I decided to drive toward the hoop. Suddenly my right foot landed on top of his shoe. My ankle had stopped, but my momentum forced the rest of me forward.
The ankle turned inward. I could feel the sharp and painful stretch of ligaments. I crumpled to the floor as I heard someone ( I think it was me) screaming profanity at the top of his lungs. As I fell under the basket time slowed to a crawl. I quickly considered all of activities and events I might miss due to an injury that was sure to take a long time to heal.
The other players showed genuine concern. They offered a ride home. They even ended the game. My ride home was hindered by the pulsing pain in my swelling ankle. My body focused all its energy on the injury. A short time later I was at Urgent Care. X-rays were negative. Orthopedic surgeon Dr. Brett Greenky confirmed the high ankle sprain and the ensuing six to eight week recovery. A nurse wheeled me back to my care late that afternoon armed with a mega-dose prescription for Ibuprofen. Rest, ice and elevation would being the healing.
I hobbled around the house for the next couple of days taking every bit of sympathy I could find. While anchoring the news I often had the ankle elevated on a chair or on the set. The next week I was improved enough to get into physical therapy to speed up the recovery.
The physical therapists at Mary Lou Corcoran's in Fayetteville have helped a great deal. Drew and Kelly taught me exercises to improve range of motion and balance. They stimulated the ankle and iced it with the cryo-cuff. They've worked on the swelling and counseled me on when to use the aircast brace.
Three weeks later I returned to Dr. Greenky's office for a follow up. Everyone from receptionist through the nurse to the doctor remarked how much better I was moving since the day I first came wearing my gym clothes, rolling in the wheel chair and grimacing through the pain in the ankle.
The progress has been good, a slightly better track than average. Dr. Greenky was kind enough to remind me that the sprain might have healed a little quicker if I was still ten or twenty years younger. I laughed and thanked him from pointing out.
I'm still a month removed from returning to the basketball court, but I am walking without a limp. It's time to start getting moving again in other ways - anything where it's unlikely I would turn the ankle again. Just thinking about turning it still makes me wince and hear that guy yelling in the gym as he crashed to the floor.
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