Undecided Question

Going on five days ago I fell while snowboarding resulting in all of my body weight coming down on a rail on my right knee. Instantly there was massive swelling and eventually some bleeding from the skin (no lacerations, however). 4 days later I went to urgent care to see what was up, as my leg is going numb and my kneecap feels like it is on fire and getting worse. They took an xray but didn't find anything and want me to do an mri. Doc thinks that I most likely blew my meniscus and because of the numbness down the front of my leg screwed up some nerves. Anyway, I don't want to pay thousands for an mri.. I have an apt. with an orthopedic doc in about a week to get a second opinion. What will happen if I don't get the mri, will the meniscus eventually heal itself? is there any other way to check this out without spending the money on the mri? Anyone go through this and just deal with the pain, without surgery? Any input appreciated, thanks!