TLDR: 2 months ago, I tore my Achilles Tendon during a Pickleball game (though I do CrossFit 4 times a week as well). I finally got surgery on it today. Don't be a bonehead like me, and think it's not as serious as it actually is and get a doctor's diagnosis immediately after the injury.

Mid-October: I go to pick up the pickleball during a normal game, and felt like someone had thrown a football super-hard at my calf, and I fall to the ground hard. My body goes in shock. My Pickleball mate brings me over to the bench. I call Kaiser and they schedule an appointment for an X-Ray. The Pickleball organizers ice my calf up. A chiropractor is advising me, saying I would not be able to walk if it's an Achilles Tendon tear. I am able to walk though it feels elevated so I delude myself into thinking it's "just a calf strain." I get an X-Ray and the report said "mild" something something so I delude myself into thinking that scheduling time with a Podiatrist wouldn't be worth it, so I don't take it seriously. When I don't get appointments, I brush it off as no big deal, and keep pushing off scheduling an appointment with a Podiatrist. I go play Pickleball, but take it easier because I can feel my left ankle is weaker. I still go to CrossFit 4 times a week, but don't run like I used to.

We, ourselves, are the easiest ones, to fool.

It has been the standard 2 week-long winter break. A teacher's trick I learned is long holiday breaks (in America) are a great time to schedule medical appointments (Shout out Warburton). After chronic pain of this left ankle, I finally muster the wise spirit (and stamp out my stubborn machismo) to schedule a Podiatrist appointment on January 2nd (day after New Years of course). I was able to see a Podiastrist the day of, and the diagnosis: Achilles Tendon tear from the narrative I told them, and their initial deconstrution of my injury narrative. We schedule an MRI the afternoon of (yay empty holidays). 2 days later: an Achilles Tendon surgery is scheduled for today (Friday). I get the surgery.

Tuesday to Friday the week of the New Years: from Podiatrist appointment to Surgery, bravo Kaiser.

There are 3 ways to fix a torn Achilles Tendon: end-to-end [bringing the ruptured tendon back together, using your own body is the best as the doc says], a cadavar graph to cover longer tears, or attaching some part of your calf muscle to the bottom of your torn Achilles tendon (and my body has been somewhat using this third option organically to help me: the human body is amazing at helping you live). I'll find out sometime soon how they actually went about the surgery because I don't even remember the surgery: bless the anesthesiologist and medical-use pain-killers.

The scariest part of this surgery: the payment (in America) of course. Thankfully, with me being a Berkeley Teacher, my co-pay was...$15! As the clerk is processing my co-payment, he remarks "Berkeley's got good benefits." (Shout out Juliana and Crystal)

All I've been thinking about this entire week, a quote from Tina Marrero of the Bear: "SCIENCE BABY!"