Shin splints, stress fractures, or just plain pain?

[Colby]

So I have had this injury before, but have no idea what I am feeling. Go up your leg from the ball in your ankle about 3 inches, on your shin bone. On the inside of the bone I am getting a little bit of pain. If I run my palm over that inside part of my shin bone it is definitely tender, it feels like the pain is in the bone.
This same pain happened back in Dec/Jan and it seemed like it turned into a tissue issue. That area swelled up and I had to stop running for about two months. Is this some kind of Shin Splint on the interior part of my shin? A possible stress fracture (I did get an X-ray in Feb, results negative)? Or is this just a weird running pain? Any ideas?

[Kam]

I have the same pain, but no definitive diagnosis.  I'm wearing a compression sleeve on it now, and running more miles on grass, dirt trails and the treadmill to soften things up.  The pain has subsided over the last couple weeks.  Perhaps it's a stress fracture waiting to happen.  Tread lightly! 

[April G]

I'm with Kam, tread lightly. I've had both shin splints and tibial stress fractures.  Stress fractures don't always show up on X-ray--you need a bone scan or MRI  sometimes.  I recently had a shin splint that cleared up very quickly with calf stretching, shin exercises like toe points and writing the alphabet with your feet, ice, painful deep massage, and a little tape.  It was over in less than a week.  Make sure your shoe on that side isn't tied too tight.

[Colby]

 I appreciate the advice, I have been adjusting my foot strike a little bit and that has definitely eased the pain...as well as running in different shoes.