Painful March

In my last post, I mentioned that I was having some health issues.  Well, I went to hopefully my final doctors appointment for a long time last night and was finally given a DIAGNOSIS!!!  The first week of March my right heel area was starting to become very sore.  I was talking to my mom about it one day and she was like why don't you call and make an appointment just to get it checked out.  So, luckily I did because that night I woke up around 3:30 in the morning to go to the bathroom.  When I got back in bed my right ankle begin to hurt & I mean like I have never been in so much pain in my life, it was a shooting pain and was going all the way up to my knee. I told Michael that we might need to make a trip to the ER.  We ended up not going, but when I got up to get ready for work my right ankle was completely swollen & I wasn't able to walk.  I called my principal and told her I wouldn't be making to work.  I had my first appointment that afternoon March 9th.  My doctor diagnosed it as an Achilles tendon problem.  He gave me a medrol pack that I was to take for 6 days & some exercises to stretch out my tendons.  So I did all of that and the problem seemed to disappear.  However, a few days after my medicine ended I started feeling the pain again.  The Wednesday of Spring Break my ankles begin to swell, the next day they were even bigger.  Thursday night my foot looked like this...

I sent those pictures to my dad & he was like ummm I hope you are going back to the doctor!!  The morning of Friday March 25th, I called and left a message at my doctors.  They called me back & set up an appointment for me to come in that afternoon.  I didn't see my doctor because he was on vacation so I saw his partner.  She x-rayed both of my ankles and then said I had some kind of soft tissue problem.  She said I needed to see an orthopedic surgeon.  I also was given more medicine.  On Saturday, my ankles looked like this...

My parents & Michael said I was not allowed to move on Sunday. I woke up, went to the living room & propped my ankles up all day long.  I went to work on Monday and my right ankle looked like this...

I sent this picture to my mom & she freaked out!! We went back to the doctor that night and he wanted to do blood work.  He was worried about rheumatoid arthritis & lupus among other things.  I didn't go to work for the rest of the week.  On Tuesday I had blood work done.  On Wednesday I went to the orthopedic..he said I perplexed him.  He tried to aspirate my right ankle...he stuck a needle into my right ankle and tried to drain fluid.  This was by far one of the most PAINFUL things I have ever had done to me!!!  He said he wanted to do an MRI.  I had that Friday morning.  On Monday I got the results for my MRI.  Basically all that was seen on my MRI was edema, which is inflammation and it was obvious that I had inflammation without doing an MRI.  I was very thankful that rheumatoid arthritis & lupus were ruled out, but frustrated because I still didn't have an answer.  I was suppose to call my regular doctor on Tuesday April 5th. I did & never heard back, so on Wednesday morning I called and just made an appointment.  This is what my ankles looked like yesterday during lunch...

I went to my appointment and my doctor gave me a DIAGNOSIS!!! He said he believes that I have Erythema Nodosum....and that is what?!?!?!  Basically it means 1 of 2 things.  1. I caught a viral infection, most likely being strep throat which is very highly likely considering what I do. Basically, this means I caught a viral virus and never showed symptoms for it and this is just how my body dealt with the virus inside of me.  2. My birth control. He said usually it is seen in the shins, that is why he didn't really think about that in the beginning.  So my first question was do I need to stop my birth control?!?! He said no. He wants me to take predisone, a stronger version of the other 2 medicines I have already taken. If it goes away then awesome, if it comes back then I will stop my birth control and we will see how it goes.  So as of this morning, I was able to walk without pain..without my tennis shoes on!!  I am so thankful to finally have this diagnosis, I am excited that I am starting to feel better.  This has been one of the most painful things that I have gone through.  I have felt guilty because I have literally not been able to do hardly anything.  Michael has been great and has been doing things for me & around the apartment.  I am hoping and praying that the medicine works and that this problem goes away quickly!!  I have a few weddings this summer and I don't think my tennis shoes will go very well with the dresses I have!!