Nothing is more entertaining than a good wipe-out in front of all of your friends. Especially when you land face first in the water of a pool.
I must have pivoted wrong and, in the process of tripping, I twisted my knee in a way that isn’t natural and definitely not recommended.
After the shock of “I actually just fell into the freaking pool trying to catch a ball” wears off — and the hysterical laughter from the deck subsides — a smile from embarrassment can quickly turn into a very painful grimace. Trust me.
In the course of that little poolside trip, I did a little damage to my left knee. I must have pivoted wrong and, in the process of tripping, I twisted my knee in a way that isn’t natural and definitely not recommended. That night, and the following five or so, I was kept awake by the pain in my knee, from every little move I’d make. It was swollen (though kept pretty normal from all of my regular anti-inflammatories) and very tender to the touch. I could put weight on it, but didn’t want to go near it because every time I’d touch it, it hurt so much that I’d get a stomach ache.
I hate that kind of pain! When you get nauseated from another part of your body hurting so much — that’s a sign that something is wrong and/or you are paying the price for an accident.
After about a week now, the pain is slowly subsiding and my initial self-diagnosis (partial tear … sounds official, doesn’t it?) is probably right. I don’t think there is irreversible damage because I wouldn’t have been able to walk to the bathroom just now if that were the case.
My travel schedule and work these past few weeks have been so rigorous that I didn’t have the luxury to go to the doctor right away (although I promised myself that if it didn’t start to get better in a week that I’d have to haul my butt there). Which, in retrospect, was a pretty dumb thing to do. My doctor isn’t a last resort — I shouldn’t have treated him that way.
And trust me, it wouldn’t be the first time — and it ain’t the last — that I came to him after doing something stupid or by accident.
