Bebounce, find someone who can work with you on strengthening the muscles of the leg.(yes, whole leg, not just certain muscles around the knee.) This would be someone who specializes in this. When a knee is injured, the quadriceps muscles lose somewhere around 3% of their strengh per day when not in use because of the injury. One of the issues of injured knees is presence of unbalanced muscle groups. Many muscles work together to help move and support the knee. If there is in imbalance in the way they work, it can affect the knee, causing stress, even when you are trying to be very careful with technique. Interestingly, this can be a cause of knee injuries or problems more than that "just made a wrong step" aspect.

Yes I can help you with strength exercises (to a degree) because I am having physio on my knees at the moment myself.<P>Firstly you have to make sure that you are standing with correct alignement and not say, rolling your ankles inwards. feet should always be about hip-width apart. Do some gentle squats - not going down too far and using the muscles of the backside while doing this.<BR>Another variation is to do this exercise on one leg while holding onto something - bend and unbend the knee gently, dont allow the knee to lock. <P>These are two exercises which i have been given so far, let me know if you want to have details of any more as I learn them. Hope it helps<BR>

Bebounce - Maggie's advice about seeking professional physical therapy help is excellent. You want to do this very carefully because you want it to be done correctly and therefore, hopefully, not have this problem again.<P>Lots of luck with both your performance and you knee. Let us know what happens in both.

THanks again! The performance went very well, and now (fortunately because of lck of funds) I won't be dancing for at least a week, and I'm gonna call the doctor as soon as I can for therapy. Here's something I wanted to say about the performance though, it's not related to knees at all- but it's humorous. <BR> - I was stretching back stage, and rested my hand on something wooden. SO when I pulled it back, the wood cut it and it started bleeding. I thought it was just a splinter or something- so I just dabbed it with a napkin and went onstage for my 1st piece. Well, it still didn't hurt, but as the music started, it bled more and more. So I was doing pas-de-bourrees and jazz piroutte turns, and blood was flying and dropping all over the place! I was trying not to look at my finger like I was crazy. SO when I get offstage after my first section in the piece is over, I look at my space and there is a nice abundance of blood on the marley! I started panicking (quietly, though). THey had to get a mop out between pieces! But on the good side, I did get the award for being the most prepared and showing most improvement over the 5 weeks!

Good for you Bebounce!<P>I'm so glad you have had things checked...now PLEASE rest and find a good physio and/or Pilates instructor. With physio it's important that the person have some understanding of dance. Check this out thoroughly...sometimes, they think they can treat anything but it really does make a difference when you find someone who specializes in dance.<P>as for the blood all over the stage...was that from your hand? Is that ok now?<P>Take care of you!

Bebounce, congratulations on the performance (despite the finger...) and on your award! Did your knees feel OK while you were performing? I'm glad you have at least a week off now to rest up and take care of yourself. <BR>And, as Mom2 has suggested, it would be great if you could find a physical therapist who has worked with dancers. Hopefully your doctor can guide you, or perhaps your dance school may know of someone. Good luck!

aLso, the doctor told me I had sprained my knee- and I read on a medical website that that has something to do with the patellar ligament, which the doctor also mentioned, but she said it was some muscle, so I'm not exactly sure. That seems to be an area that could require sugergy if it had been major or any worse, do you guys know anything about that group of muscles, and how fast a sprain can turn into a major tear?

These are questions for your doctor, Bebounce, I think. And I would also say that there probably is no definitive answer. Depends on the extent of the sprain, location, and how much the person allows it to heal.<P>The healing part is the most important, because that will keep it from being a chronic problem. The next area of concern is what may have caused the problem. If it was something in the ballet technique - some movement - or perhaps turning out too much, that would be important information to know. Because then you could keep it from recurring.<P>But, all important is the healing. I can't emphasize that too much. Even when it stops hurting, healing is still taking place. <p>[This message has been edited by Basheva (edited July 15, 2001).]

okay, okay I know I'm putting in A LOT of replies, but you guys are SOOOO helpful, and I again thank you for your support. Question:<BR> Have you heard of Benign Hypermobility joint syndrome? It's this syndrome where certain joints go further than they typically go. It can cause pain in the joint and I think general inflammation to a small degree (or something like that). I checked out the symptoms and I have them: hyperextended knees and elbows of at least 10 degrees, thumb able to go over parralel against the forearm, etc. And that could probably explain why my knees give my so much grief, and why my wrists keep feeling sore and infalamed. Hmmmmm...and interesting thought! If that is the case, that would help me and my doctor to know how I need to stregthen my muscles, and my brqaces and stuff that I can use to help my knees. <BR>

Oh boy, yes, I'm familiar with hypermobility syndrome. It's just a fancier name for being loose-jointed. You have to be more careful than most people. Once your dr. gives you the OK, I strongly recommend Pilates. I wish it was available to me back when I was your age. I suffered through many painful bouts of tendonitis because of this hypermobility problem. In one way it's a gift, but in another way, it's a real curse. <P>In any case, don't diagnose yourself. There are other reasons why one's joints can inflame and hypermobility can be just one facet of it. Talk to the dr.<p>[This message has been edited by JM (edited July 17, 2001).]