[MsAttitude]

Fight, my dog is also in a haze of muscle relaxers after his fall. He seems quite happy w/ it... http://boards.dietwatch.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif

I'm so glad that you're healing up properly. Just play it smart & you'll have plenty of time to enjoy the Summer fun. You should be good as new by the end of June abouts, right?

[fightingit]

Thank you for all the replies, I forgot I had even posted here in the cloud of muscle relaxers I was in. LOL

I guess I had the middle grade tear, because I had those symptoms exactly.

I'm off of crutches now, and getting better everyday.

THANKS http://boards.dietwatch.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif

[Ketzel]

Some tearing does require surgery so get thee to a doc post haste. AND definitely put in for a WC claim. You don't know what the injury entails yet and you don't want to rule out the possibility that you may need it. So file the report post haste!

[MsAttitude]

I was guessing about 6 weeks healing time as well. That seems to be my magic number for healing most of my major ouches.

Hope it goes fast for you, Fight. Do what the doc tells ya.

[Pryl]

OUCH! You poor thing...don't you wish you had a fabulous story to go with the pain (I was running from a mad elephant...) Anyway, here's what I found. I'm guessing that yours is a grade two injury-I sincerely hope that it's not a grade three.

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS
With a grade one hamstring strain the signs may not be present until after the activity is over. There may be a sensation of cramp or tightness and a slight feeling of pain when the muscles are stretched or contracted.

With a grade two hamstring strain there is immediate pain which is more severe than the pain of a grade one injury. It is confirmed by pain on stretch and contraction of the muscle. A grade two hamstring strain is usually sore to touch.

A grade three hamstring strain is a catastrophic injury. There is an immediate burning or stabbing pain and the athlete is unable to walk without pain. The muscle is completely torn and there may be a large lump of muscle tissue above a depression where the tear is. After a few days with grade two and three injuries a large bruise will appear below the injury site caused by the bleeding within the tissues.

TREATMENT
The immediate treatment of any muscle injury consists of the RICE protocol - rest, ice, compression and elevation (never apply ice directly to the skin). This is aimed at reducing the bleeding and damage within the muscle tissue. Resting may be the common sense approach, but it is one that is often ignored by competitive athletes. This is unwise, since it does not take much to turn a grade one strain into a grade two, or a grade two strain into a grade three. As a general rule, grade one hamstring strains should be rested from sporting activity for about 3 weeks and grade two injuries for about 4 to 6 weeks. In the case of a complete rupture, the muscle will have to be repaired surgically and the rehabilitation afterwards will take about 3 months.

Regardless of the level of the injury the treatment in the first five days is the same. The hamstring should be rested in an elevated position with an ice pack applied for twenty minutes every two hours, if practical (never apply ice directly to the skin). A compression bandage should be applied to limit bleeding and swelling in the tissues. After the first five days have been spent resting, more active rehabilitation can be started.

You can find more at this site (http://www.physioroom.com/injuries/leg/hamstring_full.shtml)

Hope you heal fast!

[Laluna13]

Hi, Fight, sorry to hear about your hamstring. It sounds like you did well in a very extreme situation, that could have been potentially dangerous - so well done on that score. You might have to "baby" the hamstring for a while. I pulled a hamstring doing yoga once - I think it was the instructor sitting on my back while I was doing a forward bend that did it in, and it took some time to heal. The main thing is that you can get off crutches as soon as indicated by the Dr.

[MsAttitude]

Oh Fight... ow ow ow. I don't know how long it takes for a torn hamstring to heal. But I'm sending you pain-relief vibes {{{Fight}}} to help you get through the next few days.

Can you not work w/ crutches?

[fightingit]

I tore my left hamstring at work, and now I'm having to walk on crutches.

The casino I work at had just removed an old air conditioner unit, and didn't have time to reseal the holes when a Tornadic thunderstorm came through, FLOODING my office, auditing, and leaving non-smoking knee deep in water.

I was hurling 40 lb boxes off the floor onto tables...they were full of bingo paper that could not be damaged...and then "rip"...I felt that muscle stretch out WAY far.

Next day, I couldn't walk on it, so I made an appointment with my Dr., who said my hamstring was torn and to use crutches at LEAST another 3 or 4 days, maybe more.

I've gotta get back to work! I don't want to do the Worker's Comp thing...how long does it take this type of injury to heal?