I wrote about my pain way back when I started this blog (you can read about it here). I had really be resigned to just have pain all the time and cycles where it gets worse and better for the rest of my life without a real explanation. Then towards the end of July (my trip to Europe might have started it) my pain started to get worse. The increase in pain caused me to get a little more emotionally fragile, but I was dealing.

My marathon training increased and I would get some relief after runs, but by the end of the day it would be back, full force. Tight, sore, burning muscles in my middle and upper back, neck, shoulders and in my ribs.

Two weeks ago I broke down. It was just too much to be in so much pain and deal with everything else that was going on at the same time. So I went to see my general care doctor and she gave me all the drugs I asked for - flexiril and a cox inhibitor (though neither of the good ones) and referred me to a Physical Medicine Specialist, Dr. Spencer Tseng.

I saw Dr. Tseng on Monday and he literally spent an hour and half with me talking about all the symptoms that I have had since the accident in 2006. And rather than just saying that I have chronic pain (he did say that), he also thinks that I have sprained ribs and that they have been that way since the accident. That’s why I feel better when I exercise. Everything loosens up and my ribs go back into place. (he’s also going to have me do a thoracic MRI, just to make sure my spine is okay)

Naturally, I google ‘sprained ribs’ and come across “slipping rib syndrome” which is exactly what he described. Basically the ligaments get stretched out and your ribs sublux out of joint. That lead me to reading about joint hypermobility syndrome. It was like reading about myself!

It was really this pdf that put it all into perspective for me.

Too bad I didn’t know to mention everything to Dr. Tseng! I mean, most Brighton Criteria  describe me. I have since emailed him, so hopefully he can come up with a treatment plan.

I only wish that someone would have thought of this when I was a kid constantly complaining of ankle, wrist, and knee pain. Or when I had knee surgery and the doctor discovers really soft cartilage behind my kneecaps, and that my “torn” ligament was only stretched out to the point of being useless.

But, now that I know this, I know I did the right thing by strengthening my VMOs to keep my patellas in place, and my lower leg muscles to help keep my ankles steady. And it also explains my my feet look so weird when I run, why I supinate so badly, and probably why my cuboid subluxed a few months ago!

So now I just hope that Dr. Tseng can get me to a physical therapist that can help me stretch the right way, strengthen the right muscles, and prevent me from injuring myself; cause there’s no way I’m giving up running.

The bad news is that I still have chronic pain. Now I just know why.