Full recovery of soft tissue is really about a year....maybe longer depending on things like the surgeon's skill, our age, and our individual healing capabilities. But a big factor in injuring soft tissue....and this is true long after the full recovery period....is simply doing too much all at once. A lot of people here on Bonesmart have followed a similar pattern: sometime after the initial recovery period, could be two months...four months...six months...whatever, they dabble a toe into the water. Whether it's hiking, biking, running, yoga, dance, they try a little bit. They feel pretty good. So they try a little bit more. Still feel great, so they jump in with their whole body. Full immersion. A half hour bike ride was no problem, so ergo, I must be ready for a 20-miler. A few weeks later, they are back here on the forum worried about the terrible pain in their hip/butt/groin/thigh/knee.
They will get advice here about STOP. Give it some total rest. Wait till the pain is completely gone. And then start back veeeeerrrrryyyy sssslllloooowwwwwlllyyy. But, human nature being what it is, none of us wants to sit on the sideline of life. That patience...or lack of it....makes the difference between a relatively short period of recuperating from a strain, vs months of continued pain while we try to undo the severe tendonitis that has set in.
How much activity is too much? Most of us have no idea until it's too late. How much pain and grief would we avoid if we just continued to dabble that toe just a small fraction more over a much longer stretch of time? And really paid attention to the early warning twinges that we all too often choose to ignore?
I believe in erring on the side of caution. I am certain there are many who sped up the reentry period a lot faster than I am recommending, and did just fine. I only know about the problem cases because that's who comes back to this forum and wants advice. The successes are out there doing. But I do know that there's no downside to patience, and there's a potential huge downside to rushing it.
Acacia, you are younger, and you have been quite active previously, so you have some real strengths going for you. I'm tagging
@alexthecat to give you a realistic time frame about how much, how often, and how to pace yourself.
Sharon
United States
