A knee knows

I tore the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in my left knee skiing at Mt. Wachusett in central Mass. on January 18, 2007. This is a common injury to weekend warriors like myself, so I thought others might like to know what happens once you've done something unfortunate like this to your body. Maybe you've injured yourself too, and feel like the game's over. However, you can return to your sport -- you just need to stay focused and do the work.

Here's where it started...



Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Post-op day 4

Yesterday, walked without crutches to and from the kitchen, slowly, but steadily and with no pain. I wouldn't do this, of course without the knee brace, which helps stabilize the leg and gives me some confidence that it won't collapse under me.

I had two 800mg ibuprofen tabs yesterday, one in the morning, one at night. Otherwise no pain meds necessary at all. Now and then I do feel a sharp twinge at the incision highest on my leg, but if I stay relaxed, it doesn't bother me at all.

Back on the CPM this morning, my butt is getting permanently numb. Even so, my goal today is 70 degrees. With the ability now to walk around, I'm thinking rehab should probably include some walking with crutches on a smooth surface, like at a mall, so I'm going to check with my PT tomorrow.

I'll be seeing how well I can get in and out of a car today, including a test to see if I can drive. Our Subaru, which is a manual shift, is out of the question, but the Corolla should be no problem.

I have always hated being injured, but this is a little different knowing recovery is long term. I just hate crutches -- these things will kill you.

2 comments:

Tamara said...

Took Stephen's path and just used extra strength Tylenol during the day but felt like I needed the Percoset at night to get comfortable. Walking with both crutches around the house today. Not exactly painful, but the knee gets stiff and uncomfortable. The incision seems to hit the brace right below my knee. Up to 40 on the CPM. I think Stephen was in a lot better physical condition prior to surgery. He's tougher than me.

Stephen Gilson said...

Hey Tamara, don't shortchange your toughness. Every knee and every knee procedure is different. You'll find what works for you, I'm sure.