My Story: A while back, maybe even a year ago I caught the tread of my right shoe in thick carpet. It hung up enough that my knee moved funny and "popped". No pain though....at the time. However, since then my right knee has acted kind of crazy. And over the last couple of months - severe pain, expanding pain up into my hamstrings and down into my arch, and swelling under my knee.
----------- My complaint: For no apparent reason now, my knee "pops" and then swells....it is like the bones have shifted or something and when I go up and down (more down than up) stairs it feels like the bones no longer match together correctly. I catch myself wanting to keep my leg straight, it hurts to bend my knee all the way. ----------- My dilemma: As a massage therapist I can observe and assess from the outside of myself imbalances of muscle, fascia, etc. with clients.....but it is very hard to objectively be your own client. Plus, my knowledge is limited.....yes, I do not know it all. But everyday I do know more - because I am paying attention. This situation with my knee had me baffled. So I sought help from a Chiropractor, because it seemed to be somewhat misaligned. And he told me it was a muscle problem. ---------------------- My disclaimer: Well, these symptoms could accompany several problems with differing solutions. And I am not a doctor, and this is not medical advice in any way, shape or form. I am merely telling a true story about my knee and giving you a couple of video links where I found some information that I found pertinent to MY situation. If you need a doctor, I encourage you to find a doctor. ---------- My fix: Anyways, I recently found out from my Chiropractor that my symptoms, noted above, were stemming from my popliteus muscle. According to him, I had probably "deactivated" it when I originally twisted as the foot caught in the carpet, which then allowed my tibia (the larger bone in the lower leg) to shift. Then as I continued to use my leg without engaging the popliteus. And thus by not keeping the popliteus toned and strong from usage.....the swelling and pain and even more shifting around of structures started. This explained to me why the pain was expanding above and below the knee now. So now the Chiropractor has me doing exercises to re-strengthen my popliteus muscle. And the first two days of 10 reps, I had a terrible time with pain and swelling. But it seems that this was only a small initial rebellion, as everything had gotten used to the incorrect positioning.....because from day 3 until now (day 7)....no pain, no swelling, it is like my old knee is back. ---------------- The first video below is a great anatomical explanation of the popliteus muscle. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcoDfCqTeCU The second video link has the exercises the Chiropractor suggested and that I am doing. The only difference is the Chiropractor has me putting a very slight resistance against my foot. The exercises make "under my knee" feel weird and sort of hot and achy while I do the exercise.....but it is only then, and it seems to be helping my knee. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNJvWhD1xzQ --------------- And I am happy, because my hamstrings are not complaining. My knee is not swelling . The arch of my foot is feeling better. And I am again already running up and down stairs.....on a limited basis. Limited, because I know it takes time to build back to 100%, but at least, I can do it now. Have a great day everyone. Hope this helps someone. PS- I am adding both these videos to the Interesting & Informative Links page on this website.
1 Comment
5/4/2023 08:18:27 am
I wanted to express my gratitude for your insightful and engaging article. Your writing is clear and easy to follow, and I appreciated the way you presented your ideas in a thoughtful and organized manner. Your analysis was both thought-provoking and well-researched, and I enjoyed the real-life examples you used to illustrate your points. Your article has provided me with a fresh perspective on the subject matter and has inspired me to think more deeply about this topic.
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