Ankle problem

[charyuop]

Can anyone help me out with this one?

10 Years ago I had a car accident and I still carry the memories in me (2 long nails and a metal wire in my ankle). The mobility of my ankle is pretty good, I could say maybe only 5% reduced compared to the other ankle. The problem is it is a little weak and sometimes during Tai Chi stances it hurts a little. For example I cannot do Tai Chi bare feet because without the help of a shoe sole I cannot balance on that ankle.

Is there anyone in here that has some experience in these things and knows a work out/exercise that loosen up the ankles and strenghten them up?

Thanx.

[cjurakpt]

your neuromuscular and connective tissue systems (locally and globally even) may still be "stuck" in an immediate post-traumatic adaptive response; in other words, the muscles and CT reacted to the trauma by "freezing up" and going into an acute inflammatory response; very often, remnants of that action, to varying degrees, linger on, even decades after the initial event, compromising function to varying degrees - what happens is that fibroblasts will tend to reorganize and lay down new collagen fibers along the lines of the traumatic impact and especially if this was a shearing type force, it runs contrary to optimal lines of physiologcal function and the net result is that you get a localized zone of relative hypo-function: blood supply / lymphatic in/out are influenced, local proprioception is decreased (body-in-space awareness, critical for good balance responses at the ankle) and the muscles, being in a chronic state of low-grade contraction, are unable to respond as quickly and efficiently, meaning they don't react in time, and so have to work harder to restore balance, leading to strain over time; this can lead to pain, decreased responsiveness, etc.

solution: go find a qualified, well trained PT (manual therapy trained/certified, especially in either orthopedic and / or osteopathic approach), or a manual based osteopath, or a good acupuncturist/tuina specialist, a good chiropractor or even a good LMT: anyone who, if they read the above, would nod their head and know what to do from there; once you've had a few sessions of hands-on, they should also start doing functional rehab or refer you to someone who does it (PT or an ATC are best at this)

good luck