yet another injury.

Spraining my right ankle in October 2006 has made me learnt many lessons the hard way. If anything at all, the most important rule I've learnt is to focus on not having a recurrence of injury and instead on treating the injury effectively.

I was playing street soccer last Sunday. I shouldn't have. I wasn't paying attention to what my body was trying to tell me. I wasn't paying attention to God's signs. I woke up that morning with a very dry throat, a symptom which I knew was very likely going to have me down with flu in a couple of days. It has been statiscally proven. But I disregarded it and went ahead with my impulsiveness. And sure it did, and I had to even take medical leave from work on Wednesday.

God sends signs for a reason only He knows very well and you have to face the consequences if you fail to read them. This was how I got injured: as I was about to half-volley the ball, the defender attempted to block it. If you freeze that moment, I would be air-borne, right feet in contact with the ball and the ball in contact with the defender's thigh. As an analogy, imagine having a ball against a wall, and kicking it with full force. As a result, the ball got blocked and I got slammed to the ground with inertia.

There were two points of injury for my right knee, the first was the impact my right knee suffered when I was about to half-volley with full force but got blocked, and the second was when I crashed to the concrete ground with my right knee. The defender got injured and walked off the court. That was something I should have done. It was probably another sign from God that I should do what that defender was doing, to walk away and rest. But I continued on. And for that, I had to pay dearly.

For the rest of the day, I was having muscle aches, which was normal. But I woke up on Monday, not able to bend my right knee. Or rather, it was very painful to do so. Praying Fajar namaz was almost impossible, but I did it slowly.

At the same time, Daohua was gathering response for a soccer match scheduled on today, 17 Feb, when Sean replied that he got injured with an ankle sprain and he HAD to add this: "i don't think i should play even if i feel better, become recurring injury also no point". That was another sign from God as far as I see it.

That made me determined to abstain from any activities that exerts the knee, including my only regular pastime - running. It is a sacrifice, but one that is worth it (insha-allah). I've seen drawn up a comprehensive rehabilitation programme for myself, with inputs from my knowledge about rehabilitation from my physiotherapy experience last year.

A message to myself:

Zeya, you must know that your knee will get better with regular rehab only if you listen to your body. You should not indulge in any activities like soccer and running for this period of time, until your knee gets back in good shape. You should also not be disheartened when it seems like your knee doesn't show improvement. Just keep on sticking to the programme and all will be worth the effort. You must have every confidence to believe that your patience will pay off, since having done all the correct rehab training will ensure that the injury is fully healed and won't recur again. Your knee will not suffer what your ankle did. Do not give up and do not give in. Keep your heads up high. You'll be the victor at the end of the day.

My 10-weeks rehab programme.