Achilles Rides Again

Dear Diary,

I am aware that you don't like to hear bad news from me, your primary contributor. But whom else to say it to? Bad enough that I have to put with these slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, but it's that much worse when I have no one to tell about it. Therefore, you win. You get to hear the whole dang gaggle of bad vibes. Lucky you.

It all started ten years ago. I developed a pain in my Achilles Tendon. Didn't seem so bad at first, but then it got going more and more, and at some point, it became obvious that this condition was not going to improve on its own, But you know all this, don't you Diary? The Achilles surgery happened three years ago. You knew that too. You even knew about the long but (until now) successful recovery and comeback.

By now, Diary, you are probably just beginning to suspect that something might be slightly wrong in Dan-land. And you would be right. 

It started a couple of months ago, when I was running every day in Florida. I know. That's a clue right there. But hey, things had been going good at the time. Why not run to my heart's content? But then it  came on: a slight but unmistakable pain right along the incision scar. Just a little tenderness, I thought/hoped/wondered. Now, said pain has only gotten worse. So much so that I am now considering cutting my mileage, and that's a drastic step, especially with the Cleveland Marathon looming.

Could it be some sort of infection (since it's still right at the scar and now it's capped with a more-tender callus)? Or something even more sinister, like a return to the calcium buildup and mis-shaped heel bone? What to do, Diary?

Okay, I hear you. See the doc. Alright - that's what my friends and loved ones are saying as well. Okay, I suppose I will. And oh yes, you're a loved one too.