Well I had my physio appointment today and I was all set to pretend that my return was going better than it was, but it turned out I didn't need to. My physio explained that as long as it didn't hurt when I run (it doesn't) I can expect some degree of tightness, discomfort and even pain as my leg adapts to being used again. She was pleased when I described how it went my first two times out and said that I can get off the grass track and hit the roads, explaining that it might be tender for the next fortnight. I feel that I am really close to the end of this now. I have a program of exercises and stretches to strengthen my leg and ankle and I will continue with physio (ultasound, interential and frictions) for the foreseeable future. The podiatrist will see me again when I have been running again for 8 weeks and then I will have a final assessment to see if orthotics could help in the long term. Today I passed the hopping test too. I havd to hop on the ball of my foot on the injured leg for two minutes without my injury hurting. That's harder than it sounds! It was difficult to tell if the injury hurt as my calf muscle was killing me, but this time I managed the whole two minutes. Happy healing to the rest of you! Claire xxx

LOL, well that crazy thought crossed my mind when I read of your difficulties, you'd be a most welcome house guest. In America, it's almost the complete opposite of the system here. Here with a tiny population and these clinics desperately trying to drum up enough patients to stay afloat - they try to get you to have as much PT as possible on ACC so that you will keep coming. ACC is Accident and Compensation Claim, it means that the government pay for all your treatment costs and is relevant for everything not caused by illness. They are so desperate though that they really stretch the parameters of the word 'accident'. For instance my orthotics would be free even if it was a biomechanical defect from how I was born. They would say that this defect could cause me to have an 'accident'. What we need is a super great American PT/podiatrist to join RA and then offer free treatment on a roving basis to you all! I really enjoyed my session yesterday as it turns out that the receptionist (must be in her late 50's) is a runner and has done at least 8 miles a day for the last thirty years. We had a fab chat about what running means to us and discussed how she struggled with a stress fracture last year. It was so cool meeting someone in the real world that has a passion like all of us. I must admit to a little jealousy that some of you get to run together on occasion! That would be such fun. Oh, well. I'll have to wait for one of you to take a holiday here I guess! Claire xxx