debster913
Well-known member
Hi, all---
Many of you know my long, convoluted story post-op. For those of you who don't, here's the Reader's Digest version: Eight months post-op, my right foot turned cold. I found out that I had scar tissue inside my femoral artery at the groin (from the heart-lung bypass port access). My cardio did a balloon angioplasty. This was three years ago. After a few ABI tests, MRAs, and a lower-extremity study as follow-ups the past three years, everything has been fine since with the exception that I get severe leg pain periodically (especially with cold weather).
I've taken up running over the past few weeks in an effort to increase my activity and keep my weight stable. The past few times I've run (about two weeks now), I've had some pain in my right leg. Today was the worst. I went out for my run, and I began having severe pain running from my groin to my calf. It got so bad that I had to drag myself home, almost. I was in tears when I got home which concerned my husband, and he had me put in a call to my cardio. (I'm due to have an exercise ABI in a couple weeks to determine if the scar tissue regrowth has further impeded the blood flow in my artery--this is based on my latest ABI test, which my cardio ordered because I had a day in December when my leg hurt so much that I could barely function).
My cardio called me back, he had me check my foot--it was pink and I could determine a slight pulse--and he told me to stop running. He wants me to walk, but not run. He seemed overall unconcerned, which isn't a bad thing, but he wants me to call his nurse tomorrow if I continue to have pain there tomorrow.
The thing that really pisses me off is that I have not run in nearly 18 years--in high school, my pediatric cardio made me quit track because the stress of running then was affecting my valve--so it has felt like a major personal accomplishment to be able to run again, and now I can't--AGAIN. I hate that I'm 34 years old and have circulatory problems in my leg! I feel like I'm too young to be dealing with this. I hate that I have leg/groin pain almost all the time, that I can't enjoy some activities because my leg will cramp up, that I feel like an old lady because of it. Technically I have peripheral artery disease, and I'm just tired of dealing with this! That and the stuff with my insurance really has me pissed off big time.
I'm sorry to whine--I know there are people out there who are dealing with far worse--but I'm just tired of the constant pain.
Many of you know my long, convoluted story post-op. For those of you who don't, here's the Reader's Digest version: Eight months post-op, my right foot turned cold. I found out that I had scar tissue inside my femoral artery at the groin (from the heart-lung bypass port access). My cardio did a balloon angioplasty. This was three years ago. After a few ABI tests, MRAs, and a lower-extremity study as follow-ups the past three years, everything has been fine since with the exception that I get severe leg pain periodically (especially with cold weather).
I've taken up running over the past few weeks in an effort to increase my activity and keep my weight stable. The past few times I've run (about two weeks now), I've had some pain in my right leg. Today was the worst. I went out for my run, and I began having severe pain running from my groin to my calf. It got so bad that I had to drag myself home, almost. I was in tears when I got home which concerned my husband, and he had me put in a call to my cardio. (I'm due to have an exercise ABI in a couple weeks to determine if the scar tissue regrowth has further impeded the blood flow in my artery--this is based on my latest ABI test, which my cardio ordered because I had a day in December when my leg hurt so much that I could barely function).
My cardio called me back, he had me check my foot--it was pink and I could determine a slight pulse--and he told me to stop running. He wants me to walk, but not run. He seemed overall unconcerned, which isn't a bad thing, but he wants me to call his nurse tomorrow if I continue to have pain there tomorrow.
The thing that really pisses me off is that I have not run in nearly 18 years--in high school, my pediatric cardio made me quit track because the stress of running then was affecting my valve--so it has felt like a major personal accomplishment to be able to run again, and now I can't--AGAIN. I hate that I'm 34 years old and have circulatory problems in my leg! I feel like I'm too young to be dealing with this. I hate that I have leg/groin pain almost all the time, that I can't enjoy some activities because my leg will cramp up, that I feel like an old lady because of it. Technically I have peripheral artery disease, and I'm just tired of dealing with this! That and the stuff with my insurance really has me pissed off big time.
I'm sorry to whine--I know there are people out there who are dealing with far worse--but I'm just tired of the constant pain.