Warning--whining and self-pity ahead!

So I did a triathlon way back in August, and in the process of training I fell and knocked my SI joint out of alignment. The injury wasn't immediately apparent--the pain was minimal in the summer and got progressively worse over the fall. I started PT in November and ALL of my former training time was devoted to just getting myself healed. So while I worked on getting this joint healed, the rest of me was getting soft and lazy and my cardio conditioning was going down the tubes.

I "graduated" from PT at the end of January and started back into regular workouts. Slow runs on the treadmill, biking on the stationary bike. I still had some ligament pain, but was assured that the pain would diminish now that the bone that was out of alignment was back in place. I kept up with all of my PT exercises too.

On Saturday I went to the pool for my first swim since the triathlon. The pain hit in my ligaments as soon as I hit the water (I think from the cold) and then when I actually started swimming, the pain became intense--almost as bad as it had ever been, and not just the ligaments, but the joint itself. I made it one length, hoping the pain would work itself out, then made it back the other length of the pool only using my upper body.

I had hoped to do a short triathlon in April, but now that isn't looking likely. I'm signed up to do Iron Girl again in August. I'll be back at the orthopedist next Monday and then probably back to PT. I'm wondering now if swimming will ever be possible again. I'm kicking myself for registering for another triathlon before knowing if I'd be physically able to, but I never imagined that this injury would bother me for so long. And who knew that swimming would be the one activity to exacerbate it? Cycling, fortunately, is the one activity that doesn't hurt at all--if anything, it feels better than just sitting still. But I hate it that I hurt all the time. I hate not being able to do simple things like carry a basket of laundry upstairs. Making my kid's bed hurts. I hate it that I've put on 10 pounds in the past five months and my clothes don't fit. I hate it that I went from healthy and fit and strong to weak and overweight and tired in such a short time. I've never been injured before (except for a pulled growth cap when I was 13, but I bounced back from that in six weeks) and I'm having a hard time dealing with it mentally and physically.

NNTR--I just wanted to whine.

Sarah