BY Serene Cheong was participating in the 5km Urgent Run in November 2015 when she actually broke her right leg.
Said the 34-year-old lab technician, “My shin area had been hurting on and off before that. I iced it and used a heat rub too. That didn’t work so I went for a sports massage. They told me that those were knots and helped me to relieve the knots. I also rested for five days before the race.”
A regular runner, Serene had been running since 2008, having been motivated by her ex-colleagues to take up the sport. She is a familiar face at local races.
The Hidden Stress Fracture
On that fateful day, Serene admitted that she had not known that she actually had a stress fracture and it didn’t dawn on her that it could be serious.
She said, “I didn’t see a doctor. While running that day, I was still doing an easy pace and suddenly my right shin hurt. I started to slow down. 400m from the finish, I decided to give it a push. But unfortunately my right shin broke and I fell to the ground.”
Serene continued, “I can still remember the sound when my bone broke. My shin broke into a 90 degree bend. Runners were crowding round me to see what happened and some of them called an ambulance. A stretcher soon came and I was wheeled to the finishing line.”
According to her doctors, Serene had fractures of the right tibia and fibula.
Said Serene, “The stress fracture present without me knowing is likely because of my high threshold of pain. I had an eight hour operation and the doctor said they had a hard time clearing lots of debris.”
The Recovery
Throughout the difficult times, Serene continued to stay optimistic about her recovery and running. She said, “I just focused on what I could do then, and looked forward to a full recovery one day.”
She was in the hospital for three days following surgery.
“On the hospital bed, when the curtains were closed, I started doing crunches and leg lifts, to work on my core. Even after I was discharged from the hospital, I did more core exercises at home, since I could not walk for three months.”
During those first few months, she would spend one hour on the yoga mat doing exercises.
Said Serene, “A positive mind is very important during recovery. If you tell yourself that you are useless and hopeless, you will remain useless and hopeless. I woke up every morning telling myself that I can stand up and walk again and I really could walk within six months.”
Her family and loved ones also showed their full support for her recovery. Said Serene, “Every day, my mum would cook healthy, nutritious food for me when I was on my 60-day hospitalisation leave.”
It wasn’t all serious though, Serene picked up a new hobby - twisting balloons, during this period. She said, “I picked up twisting balloons, just by watching YouTube videos and learnt to make different animals and flowers.”
On Her Feet Again
She progressed to walking on crutches after three months of sitting on a wheelchair. She said, “The first exercise I wanted to learn was swimming, so I went to find a coach. Holding the crutches and going to the swimming pool and gym was eye catching, but I didn’t care.”
She also cycled on the stationary bike in the gym for one hour, three times a week. Added Serene, “And when my legs were stronger, I started climbing stairs. My record was 11 sets of 40 levels.”’
Serene was given the all clear to start jogging again in July 2016; this was seven months after the operation. Said Serene, “I was really, really happy when the x-ray showed that the bones were healed nicely.”
This was a lot faster than the doctor’s initial prognosis; her doctor had initially given her a two year layoff from running, but Serene managed to recover in one year.
Said Serene, “The doctor was surprised and said that my healing was fast. Some patients with the same condition don’t even heal. When I could walk, every day I did 30 squats to strengthen my quads and climbed the stairs to strengthen my legs. I believed that my legs could grow strong again.”
Since coming back from her leg fracture, Serene has even managed to come in the top 10 at two running events. At the SwissHotel Vertical Marathon 2016, she placed eighth in her category, and at the Great Eastern Women’s Run 2016, she came in sixth for the 5km event.
Her injury has also made her more aware of her body and thankful that she is able to run. Said Serene, “As runners we tend to be stubborn and ignore those little pains. We should try to manage it and it’s best to rest and let a little injury heal first. Always listen to your body.”
Dear Serene,
Thanks for your sharing. You are an inspiration to many. Your positivity, patience and determination to recover and to run again had paid off.
Best Regards 😀
Great to know your recovery so soon.
Very discipline runner, indeed.