Thread: Scared that I've really injured myself

Posted this in the Student Center before realizing that it probably belonged here.

I went to a 2 hour oriental style workshop this weekend. There were no mirrors and it was very fast paced, so I was not able to be as careful as I usually am because I had to focus all brainpower on keeping up with the choreography.

The next day I had pinching pain in both hip sockets, which became more severe if I moved from side to side. It was not sore muscles- I know that feeling quite well and this wasn't it.

I gave myself a couple of days off exercising and dancing to try to heal. Yesterday (Tuesday) I put on a CD, warmed up, and tried some gentle, internal moves like small hip circles, snakes, etc, and ZAP! The hip pain came back and hurt terribly. I had to take Tylenol to fall asleep. This morning I still have pain.

I have never, ever, gotten pain like this before from dancing- even in 4 hour workshops that leave me panting and dripping. I am almost ready to go see a sports medicine doctor because I'm so afraid that I've seriously injured myself and won't be able to continue dancing. That is a terrifying thought for me. I may not be a pro but I love belly dancing!

Have you experienced anything like this? What was the course of your recovery? Did you get treatment?

It seems unlikely you would have injured something major and skeletal equally in both hips, so it is probably not a condition that will require double hip replacement or anything more dramatic than some tests and a few weeks of physical therapy. What you may have done is exposed a weakness in your posture or physiology that would benefit from an evaluation with a trained medical professional...and that resulted in a short-term injury requiring REST to heal. Sometimes, no matter how much you want to dance, you have to stop and give your body time to fix itself. I can't tell from your description if your "ZAP!" means that the pain came back sharply and quickly, or that it felt like an issue with the base of the spine and nerves, but either way, that's a case for someone who is treating you in person, not well-meaning strangers online.

I had a minor but similar thing happen years ago when I first started dancing and attending workshops. It was mostly a soft-tissue strain that resolved itself with time and taking it easy, but the underlying problem was skeletal (congenital foot and knee issues), and I'm still sorting out the impact of that.

Originally Posted by Tourbeau

but either way, that's a case for someone who is treating you in person, not well-meaning strangers online.

I had a minor but similar thing happen years ago when I first started dancing and attending workshops. It was mostly a soft-tissue strain that resolved itself with time and taking it easy, but the underlying problem was skeletal (congenital foot and knee issues), and I'm still sorting out the impact of that.

I know- I'm not trying to get diagnosed online. I was just wondering if maybe someone had experienced something similar and could share. Did you go to a general practioner first or did you go directly to a sports medicine doctor?

I called my GP and asked for a referral to an orthopedist. The orthopedist was not terribly concerned about the condition, and did a simple exam without any x-rays or MRI. He recommended Advil, a heating pad, and rest, and said to come back for more diagnostic testing if it wasn't better in a couple of weeks, which ended up not being necessary. (It might have been something different than what you have. Mine was only on one side.) The only peculiar part was that he admitted he was unfamiliar with what "belly dancing" actually was, so he asked me to demonstrate for him and the nurse in the room so he would know exactly what I was doing and where/when I was having the pain.

Have you ever experienced sciatica? That can cause a very sharp and stinging pain and can occasionally occur in both sides depending on your bone structure. I would certainly suggest going to the doctor though.

Originally Posted by AnalaDances

Have you ever experienced sciatica? That can cause a very sharp and stinging pain and can occasionally occur in both sides depending on your bone structure. I would certainly suggest going to the doctor though.

Had sciatica while pregnant, and this seems different. The sciatica pain was excruciating, while this is merely uncomfortable and seems limited to the hip rather than shooting down my leg.

Originally Posted by Tourbeau

The only peculiar part was that he admitted he was unfamiliar with what "belly dancing" actually was, so he asked me to demonstrate for him and the nurse in the room so he would know exactly what I was doing and where/when I was having the pain.

That's part of what I was worried about when going to my GP. He's Middle Eastern, and you never know what his opinion might be of belly dance. They might love it or think rather poorly of you for it...

Going to a doctor & specialist and being told to rest and use a heating pad is ideal if you have insurance. You can rule out anything serious.

For me to see a doc and then a specialist would probably cost upwards of $300 and result in a grocery deficit for the month -- and perhaps a year or more of paying off balances if they wanted me to have Xrays and MRIs -- so I personally would try rest, ice and anti-inflamatories FIRST and go to the doc only if it seemed to be worsening rather than mending after a week or so. Paying 300-1000 to find out I need to take some Tylenol and put my feet up is unacceptable for me.

My go-to support person for musculoskeletal issues is a brilliant and very experienced (20+ years) sports massage therapist. She can usually identify my issue easily just from hearing a description of the pain. If she advised me to see a doc, I would. Usually she can fix me and it costs $60.

I would also do what you're doing here -- ask people who engage in similar activities whether they've ever had similar pain. If 5 people all say 'yes, I had that very thing, it turned out to be ________ and __________ fixed it' that's a strong clue, IMO. Not a diagnosis, but a strong indicator to take into account when deciding whether to see a doc.

Three things come to my mind other than sciatic pain.

1) sacroiliac issue (but that's usually more of a dull ache that radiates up into the center of the lower back)

2) periformus strain - tiny muscle deep inside the hip. That pain will often radiate up the flank and into the lower back and IME is felt when sitting still as well as in movement.

3) The sharp pinching nature of the pain you're describing reminds me of a time I hurt my periformus muscle by overshortening it rather than overlengthening or overloading. It was a very different kind of pain, pinchy and sharp. This would only be caused by opening the hip too wide, like sitting in an uncomfortable straddle. Might you have done something like that during your warmup/cooldown?

Originally Posted by Jungleflowers

That's part of what I was worried about when going to my GP. He's Middle Eastern, and you never know what his opinion might be of belly dance. They might love it or think rather poorly of you for it...

I don't think you can worry about your doc's opinion. First of all, even if he is Muslim, he's probably pretty progressive if he lives in the US. (most scientists, including doctors, aren't fundamentalists in any religion and many are atheist/agnostic).

Secondly, though many Middle Eastern men wouldn't want their daughters/wives being professional bellydancers, they're accustomed to the women around them dancing as a hobby among each other.

And third, even a pretty conservative Muslim man has a WHOLE different set of standards for American women than for Muslim/Arab women.

I'm guessing he'll either be amused and mildly pleased by it or think nothing of it whatsoever.

Lauren, thank you for understanding about insurance. My group health is about to go away. If I get diagnosed with something before I can be approved for individual health insurance, the new insurance won't cover treatment and will probably raise their rates on me.

I felt a twinge start in the workshop when I was doing big flashy mayas, stretching the hip out to the side a long way. My usual range of motion is much smaller and I try to keep my movements really internal and not push out too much- but this workshop was really fast paced and didn't allow a lot of "check yourself" time. Now, anytime I push out to the side with my hip (even to carry my toddler or counterbalance a bag of groceries), it hurts again. All the pain is directly in the hip joint- no radiation to the back or legs. My husband massages my hips, which helps ease the muscle tension AROUND the area, but not directly where the pain is located.

I think I'll take a week off exercise and dance and then start up slowly for one session and see what happens.

I actually slightly dislocated my hip in the past, and it was very painful, but the doctor diagnosed it as bursitis. I was not correctly diagnosed until I saw a physical therapist, who helped me pop my joint back into the right place. To be fair, I might have had bursitis also, but the larger issue was the dislocation.

If the doctor is not helpful, try another doctor or get a referral to a physical therapist before your insurance runs out! Better yet, buy personal insurance or COBRA if you can...you don't want to be without insurance while dealing with something like this.

Originally Posted by da Sage

I actually slightly dislocated my hip in the past, and it was very painful, but the doctor diagnosed it as bursitis. I was not correctly diagnosed until I saw a physical therapist, who helped me pop my joint back into the right place. To be fair, I might have had bursitis also, but the larger issue was the dislocation.

If the doctor is not helpful, try another doctor or get a referral to a physical therapist before your insurance runs out! Better yet, buy personal insurance or COBRA if you can...you don't want to be without insurance while dealing with something like this.

Hey da Sage, mildly off topic here, but is that a photo of Marilyn Monroe from the movie Monkey Business?

Google "piriformis stretch" and look at some of images. You might wat to gently get down on a carpet or rug and approach one of the stretches SLOWLY and see what happens. If you get an obviously angry response from the butt musculature, you have probably irritated your piriformis on both sides, or maybe one of the other tiny deep hip muscles.

The piriformis is deep and tiny, so you might not recognize pain from it as muscular in nature.

Since no one can diagnose you online I'd recommend the two-week off trial for sure. Dont' keep using or trying to stretch something that's injured!