Got WebMD?

So, doctors must hate the Internet.

After tearing up my Achilles tendon, I naturally started to Google my brains out trying to get info on my injury and the proposed treatments. I was also looking for other folks who were blogging about this issue and documenting recovery times and the like.

Not surprising there was a lot of info out there, but it took some time to sort through it to find common themes and issues, as well as to sort through current studies along with older info.

To my surprise, there is a fair amount of controversy over the treatment of Achilles injuries, some doctors saying that non-surgical treatment is just as good and significantly less invasive than surgical treatments. Some very current studies also seem to support this.

Of course, armed with all this wonderful info, I attempted to have a conversation with my orthopedic surgeon about this. Have you ever seen folks get that tight little smile when you bring up an uncomfortable subject? Suffice it to say, he was not too keen on listening to my brilliant medical opinions based on a day of surfing the net. Now I don't necessarily blame him, and he was very professional about it, even strongly recommending that I get a second opinion to address my concerns, which I did.

Ultimately, because of the specific nature of my Achilles injury (it had detached from the heel bone), I selected surgery, and used this specific doctor because of his skill set in this area. Interestingly enough, he has been much more forthcoming and informational since my initial pushback on his treatment suggestions, and I feel that I'm getting the reasons behind things rather than just "orders from the doctor".

The bottom line is, you are the customer in this scenario and you should be as informed as possible when making decisions about your health and treatment. Doctors may or may not be appreciative of this, but ultimately it's your call. Use the internet. Talk to friends. Get a second opinion. Knowledge is power.