Tale o' Bitch Rib

I am still being haunted by the consequences of my battle with gravity during the 4th of July 50k....
Rib injuries SUCK....There aren't enough curse words to describe how much. It's a nauseating pain and I mean that quite literally. My husband was confident that I didn't break anything so I was hopeful that one rest day (two max) would suffice....Running business could then resume as usual. After completing advanced medial research (thanks Google), I discovered that one can run with bruised ribs IF they can tolerate the pain associated with their stupidity. Sounded like a challenge and Angela does not back down from a challenge. The first attempt occurred within 48 hours of injury, I slow jogged a three mile route home from work....The whole way, muttering phrases that would make even the most obscene sailor blush. The next day went much better - I managed over ten miles split between two runs. I noticed that the pain did subside slightly after about four miles (not disappear). Flatter road routes proved the safest option.....Hill repeats are tricky when deep breaths feel like tiny internal chest punches. This morning, I braved a hillier route....I was pleased to discover that running uphill offered pain relief due to the normal posturing of the body. However, running downhill was torture....I felt like I was being clubbed in the ribs with every stride. I'm just miserable. Each of the forty miles that I ran last week felt like a battle. I've grown resentful of those runners that I see sprinting along without a permanent painful grimace.

I'm off to the doctor this afternoon per my husband's request just to ensure that nothing is fractured / broken / dislocated...I wake up each morning hoping that the pain will have dissipated but NOPE...The universe continues to kick me in the lady parts.

*Update!

I went to the doctor and after a thorough examination, he's fairly confident that nothing is broken. He confirmed that I can continue to run. Absent a major fall where I just happen to land on the same bitch rib, it's not likely that I will cause further damage. He suggested that I keep to low, flat mileage for the remainder of this week and that I should be 100% by the end of the month. I have a short (10 mile) trail race scheduled for Saturday that may end up being my first "DNS"....I'm playing it VERY day-to-day and run-to-run.... I did bang out a wonderful eight mile run this morning before work so there's that....