How it began...

This is told from my point of view (I'm  Mom).  I hope to get Trav to write here but we will see.

  Its Oct 2010 and Trav has been playing in a rec basketball league with his friends.  Sky View team tryouts are about 3 weeks away.    Not sure the exact details of the play but he went for the ball and a big kid from the other team came down on his ankle. My heart sank as I watched him on the floor.  I was hoping  it was nothing but a simple sprain but in my heart I knew it was more.  Went to the ER that night, nothing was broke so that was a good sign.  The next week still no improvement so I got an appointment with a local foot Dr.  Trav got to wear a boot and crutches for a while. 

 November rolls around things still are not improving so I schedule an appointment in Salt lake with a orthopedic Dr.  Few days before that Trav is in physical Therapy and has a new pain which turns out to be blood clots.  We get scans done to diagnose that and find out how deep they are.  Also get a MRI  to check on the ankle.  Travis's main dr. starts him on blood thinners.  what a treat for anyone but a kid this sucked!!!  Shots every 12 hours and then basically feeding my son rat poison pills.  Not a good feeling. :(

We get into the new dr. and he says everything looks great.  Basically Trav has a 3rd degree high ankle sprain.  Should have blown his ankle out but he has very loose ligaments and that saved him.  No reason as to why he got blood clots but it can happen.  he should be good within a month to go back to basketball.  So for the next few weeks he does all he can to strengthen and get back.  He has a late tryout for the school basketball team and on the 2nd day he rolls the same ankle off another guys foot.

So we are back to the Dr. and in the boot.  Looks like no basketball for his junior year.  Its Christmas and its the worst we have ever had.  The one thing about Travis is all he has wanted since he was maybe 5 was to play ball in high school.  He has worked daily at the gym and in the front yard on his game.  He played other sports but basketball is and always has been his first love.  he feels like it has all been taken away and what could get worse.

Well it does get worse.  He develops more blood clots.  So back on blood thinners for 3 months minimum.  So even if the ankle gets better no sports. We go back to the ankle Dr. after a few weeks of no improvement, if anything its worse.  Its swollen and sore.  Why isn't this getting better?  he mentions a rare condition called RSD or CRPS.  But doesn't want to do anything yet for it.   So I am not one to just wait and I research it on the internet and talk to his primary care Dr. about it.  He has seen it and says it sounds like it could be that.  we get into the local pain clinic the first of Feb. to have it looked at.

The local pain clinic has seen this and he is positive that its RSD/ CRPS.  Our next step is nerve blocks.  The faster you can treat this condition the better your chances of remission are.