it all started with New Year – on 1st Jan I woke up – and decided to head out for a jog, only 2.4km.
never finished the 2.4km - the sharp pain was too bad and i ended up barely with 1.8km. I’ve been generally been full of pain for a while now. Every day – i’m like using medicated plaster like nobody’s business. Its amazing ESPECIALLY because I haven’t exercised. And I never used to get toe cramps until very very recently. Toe cramps are such an uncomfortable feeling – coupled with the rest of the constant pain.
Last week (or this week, I’ve forgotten), I bought myself a 
Patella Wrap (when I bought my badminton shoes) for $13. I’ve used knee guards/braces etc etc. But as the pain is very specific I think this may be better as I can adjust the pressure applied – normally its a slip-on.
Hopefully this works. I only bought one even though i have two knees; let’s see whether this works. I tried using it when I was walking around at home, the pressure is helpful.
Lets move up from the knee to the … hand! (My fingers ache as I type this. The finger which feels the most uncomfortable is my ring finger, right hand. My shoulders are sore and oh …. I’ve been feeling giddy)
We all know about my ganglion(s) that have been with me for about 13 years or more. Let me share with you what the internet says about it…
In the hand, a ganglion is a particular type of lump which shows up next to a joint or a tendon. Inside, it is like a balloon filled with a thick liquid. It may be soft or hard, may or may not be painful, and may get bigger or smaller on its own. It may also be referred to as a mucous cyst, a mucinous cyst or a synovial cyst.
Normally, joints and tendons are lubricated by a special liquid which is sealed in a small compartment. Sometimes, because of arthritis, an injury, or just for no good reason, a leak occurs from the compartment. Now, the liquid is thick, like honey, and if the hole is small, it can be like having a pinhole in a tube of toothpaste – when you squeeze the tube, even though the hole is small and the toothpaste is thick, it will leak out – and once it is out, there is no way it can go back in on its own. It works almost like a one way valve, and fills up a little balloon next to the area of the leak. When we use our hands for normal activities, our joints squeeze and create a tremendous pressure in the lubricating compartment – this can pump up a balloon leak with so much pressure that it feels as hard as a bone.
The lubricating liquid has special proteins dissolved in it which make it thick and also make it hard for the body to absorb it when it has leaked out. The body tries to absorb the liquid, but may only be able to draw out the water, making it even more thick. Usually, by the time the lump is big enough to see, the liquid has gotten to be as thick as jelly.
While ganglia can follow local trauma to the tendon or joint, they usually form for unknown reasons. Occasionally, ganglia are early signs of arthritis that will become more obvious in the future. Painful cysts may be painful because of underlying problems other than a simple cyst. Although uncommon, pain associated with a ganglion may be due to underlying arthritis, bone tumor, ligament injury or fracture.
I have seen various people from age 10ish till about 19 - due to of course my parents great concern at always being in unecessary pain at a ridiculously young age. In a chronological order (based on my fading memory) and excluding GPs : Chinese sports physician, Mt. A’s orthopaedic surgeon, Hindu horoscope reader, malay urut aunty, another Chinese shoulder expert, priests in temples … from the point of 10 years till about 19. From 19 till now, I have been more jaded and have seen only a TCM last year – occassionally a GP to get painkillers and I tried massage. Next week - I am going to try yet another form of treatment, something that I can afford now as opposed to >2 years ago when I survived mainly on my parents money: CHIROPRACTIC.
I decided to ask my mother, about my horoscope when I was born. She said that when i was 30 days old, it was foretold I’d have “bone sickness” (directly translated from Tamil).
Karma.
