5 days post op: onto the tramadol which i like > the hydro morphine, I seem to be able to walk without crutches albeit very carefully, GF brought over a pizza last night which gave us both Diarrhea to counter-act the constipation I was already experiencing ... guts feel way better
Awww, I didnt think of that...
There's the perfect takeaway too...
goggling tells me that opiods can give you the hicups, so on-off mostly on I've had hiccups for 6 days, 3days of no shit followed by 2-3 days of the shits, i was jittery, I couldnt think (yeah even worse than usual) like those drug addicts you see on tv, i had 2 beers and the stomach was fucked up
I don't wana do this^^ anymore
I stopped taking the Tramdol ,
getting by ok on 400mg of IBU
You're almost over the hump XXXer...things will start to improve a lot very soon if not already. The first week sucks.
Yea, I was prescribed oxys after my ACL surgery last year, taking them made me understand how people get hooked on 'em and loose their minds. I stopped taking the hard stuff and switched to IBU/Tylenol after like 3 or 4 days. Found that some standard over the counter CVS brand fiber pills helped a lot with the digestive issues too.Quote:
Originally Posted by XXX-er
First week definitely sucks, then it's up from there. Once you start PT you'll see improvements which help to boost the mindset too. start crushin' like 100+ quad sets a day and you'll be back in action before you know it. positive healing vibes dude
so what i learned is even if it doesnt hurt post op get on the heavy duty meds right away cuz when the drugs wear off its gona hurt andd don't forget the laxitive, but then get off the opiates soon as you can, maybe you can handle it with IBU within a week, maybe you might be walking within a week
so its 2 weeks post op I had the first PT appointment
He sez i look good range of motion wise, he has given me exercises to get more range of motion but no strengthening exercises, sez for the next 2 or 3 months I am in the most danger of blowing up the repair so I gota be careful for the next 2-3 months, he exsplained how the surgeon mines a 5-6" piece of tendon out of my knee doubles or triples it up and puts it where the ligament was,
the knee feels good, really tight, no noises no crunching
edit: pretty much off all painkillers in 16 days
crunching will come... ;) The next is a constant paranoia that every time it feels a little funny you'll panic that you've torn the repair
It's a long, slow process. But doesn't look like you're gonna miss much of a season this year so.... :rolleyes2.
6 months post op last week and so I go out all excited with my new Pliometric exercises and immediately tweak my calve on the "good" leg. So now I'm limping on two legs :nonono2:
6 weeks post op seen the surgeon for followup, it feels pretty good, no more pain killers, pretty good range of motion the exercise bike was the best thing for stiffness, walking is fine i still have to one- step going down stairs, the surgeon sez its probably just a matter of strength and that going down is actualy harder than going up, he said ACL was completely done so he did reconstruction and trimmed some meniscus, I think i picked a good surgeon and I'm pretty happy with the out come so far
I see the PT every 2 weeks to find out whats next, buddy sez I am doing really well but keep it reined in, he wasnt that impressed i was out on the Fat bike
You're coming up at the point where the graft is at it's weakest, but you'll be feeling pretty strong. Just start killing your quad and hip strength over the next four months and you'll be there!Quote:
Originally Posted by XXX-er
Stay off the moving bike dood, seriously. Arewolfe is on point about the graft.
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Feel free to shoot me any questions, I’m a Sport’s PT and ACL’s make a pretty high selection of my caseload.Quote:
Originally Posted by ticketchecker
To note, most people don’t recover 95% of their quad strength when compared side to side until at least a year out. That’s with people busting their ass in a research study. Keep that in mind while you’re in this in between period.
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Squats, as well as single leg yoga and quarter squats, all on a bosu ball, ball side down.
Quote:
Originally Posted by arwolfe706
I'm going under the knife Monday morning.
What I've gathered...
First week sucks. Ie tell work I'd be out for the first week for all intents and purposes.
Take pain meds preemptively, but try to kick it asap....
Get fiber pills or something.
Get after Pt and stay on it.
Beginning of next year will be filled with paranoia.
pretty much^^ monday day won't be bad cuz of all the meds they will have pumped into you but its gona fucking hurt on Tuesday at 3am if you are not topped up on meds & laxitive, you wana borrow some crutches for the 1st week and yes you probably wana take the week offQuote:
Originally Posted by grskier
I used up all the hydromorphine & transitioned to IBU a week later, I didn't like/didnt take much of the Tramadol, get off the heavy duty meds soon as you can
I booked first PT for 2 weeks apres the knife job, it was mostly about buddy taking some baseline measurements, giving me some exercises to get the joint moving and telling me what not to do
For the next 9 months you will be an incubator for a tendon trying to become an ACL
I'm just over 3 months post op, i got good motion and it doesnt hurt at all, PT sez i'm doing really well " top of the class mate ! " so i see him once a month
havent ridden the fat bike much at all cuz too freaked about kacking the ACL repair
Thanks. Surgeon said hiking easy trails and biking should be doable by early April.Quote:
Originally Posted by XXX-er
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its hard to say if 4 months is premature at this point but when you think about it tissue only grows so fast, a few people have come up to me wanting to talk ACL, they are not all doing as well as I am and i am still wary of doing very much
I'm not too worried about getting the leg strength back , that will happen on the bike this summer or in the gym
what I AM worried about is fucking it up and needing to start all over again so i am doing what the PT sez, buddy talked about the % of reconstructions that are kacked just by people taking their shoe off the foot using the toe behind the heel it was like 1 in 7 or something.
I ran into a ski/paddle buddy at the pub ( OR nurse so lotsa cred ) he fucked his ACL recon up at 6months, he sez for him now its TWO YEARS to repair n rehab for whatever reason
My experience was a bit different than xxx.
If you're in reasonable shape, it kinda throws your head out more than your body.
I got the shot in the thigh joint that numbed the entire leg for 72 hrs.
Worth every penny. Leg pain was mostly a minor ache.
Unless you're prone to addiction, getting hooked is not an issue, a weeks worth of decreasing painkillers is easy and the pain was minimal and easily managed with the cold water knee cuff.
Start your pills immediately after the operation.
I had the prescription filled prior to surgery and took the first as soon as the doc said to. Iirc, soon after surgery.
Get the Dulcolax going asap. seriously.
Use a walker to start if you can. Mobility is easier and safer.
Crutches are more agile but unwieldy and proper fit is key. Too short or tall will wrack your body.
You will be disinclined to race to the can at 3am. Get something to whizz in at bedside or close.
The process is less of a big deal than I expected, huge for me, but minor in the big picture.
The head game of not fucking it up after is real and hard to shake. I've been carefully edging back and feel that next winter I may feel 99%.
Def overestimated my level last Dec. starting skiing at 7 months from the knife. Felt 88%. Prolly 63% in hindsight.
Eating well, getting into a Phys. therapy program immediately, and common sense will help immensely.
My weakest link in the process has been not working the leg enough to bring it back up to equality. Skiing now is bringing that deficiency to the forefront.
I'm feeling very good all things considered. Good luck and keep us up to speed...
It's day surgery up here in the canuckian HC system so first on the table at 7am and home by 2pm,
did they knock you out OR were you awake when they cut on you, I think I could have opted for staying awake but I went for the big sleep,
it really doesn't hurt much till the initial pain killers wear off so resist the thot that you don't need all them pills they prescribed i
havent heard of a shot in the joint and the bro who brought me home post op was an anesthetist
I borrowed a cryocuff from a biking OR nurse, I tried it once but really didnt find it did much but YMMV
About the same here. In by 7, out by 10, home by noon. In this instance the canucki system is roughly equivalent to a well funded US process...without health insurance, it was about $40k.
The icewater system helped a lot with swelling and pain. Put that thing on and very noticeable decrease in pain.
There's a med term for that shot, I dunno. Guy asked me if I wanted the 24 or 72 hr. one.
He said some folks wanted to get mobile in a day, not me.
Def went under the gas, woke up to the nurse rousting me.
GRS - where are you getting your new acl from?
Mine came from my own quad; A bit of meniscus trimming as well for a slight bucket handle tear. Glad to have an almost complete donut in there still.
I'm 3 weeks out from surgery.
It went really well.
One stitch in the meniscus meant I was non weight bearing with a locked brace for two weeks.
I could take my leg out to do PT and ice. No movement beyond 90*.
I'm off crutches already and can walk without a limp if I pay attention.
Swelling came down tremendously the first two weeks, but slower now as I'm sitting at a desk again.
After reviewing the skiing expectations in this thread and elsewhere.. I've been told 9-12 months, but probably 12 after seeing my 'profile'. I think that means that when I showed my doc the pictures of me tearing my ACL he realized I'm in the too old and round to charge the way I do, so we need to be more conservative. The latest research shows that 9 months (if I remember correctly) is when that full activity profile can be safely added back, as the (in my case) tendon becomes the ligament.
Doing PT 2 days a week for a few more weeks then will go down to once a week. I don't have too much issue doing a lot of these quad sets etc at home and keeping up with it.
4 months post op but not even half way done the rehab !
Cuz I have been told 9 months so I have written this season off as far as skiing, PT sez I shouldnt ride the fat bike either cuz it would too easy to fack the reconstruction and be back to square 1
the PT office is real close by i only do a scheduled visit one a month altho PT said to come in and use the machines whenever i want no charge so I can do leg press/ balance board/ ride bike every day and he is around to ask questions so its a very handy setup
the plan is to get on the bikes in spring/ summer and be fit for next ski season
A year and a day after getting my diagnosis I skied today! Felt good after a nervous run. So stoked to be on skis again. No pain in the knee at all.
FWIW, 3x ACL reconstruction here...back on snow six months post-surgery for the first two, five months for the third (revision, obviously). I understand fully how scary/awkward it is at first, but if you have a good PT and go aggressively (but not stupidly) I think 5-6 months is completely realistic. Skate (roller/ice) as soon as they allow it, that's what seemed to help me most in making the jump from gym exercises to real world stuff and made the knee feel more normal. Once on snow my general advice is not to go crazy out of the gate but also don't ski scared--try to put it out of your mind ASAP. Pretty sure within the first 5-7 days I was skiing almost as if I had never had the injury/surgery at all. (Follow your ortho's/PT's protocol and ignore my blather, I've never even been inside of a Holiday Inn...)
All due respect but this is risky for your average person. You may feel like you are 100% five months out but that doesn't mean the new ACL is. My advice to anybody getting back into skiing is get some good groomer skis that are easy on the knees and ski the blue runs for a month or two. Just enjoy being back on the mountain. Avoid shitfuck conditions and poor visibility that could lead to an unexpected drop and resulting hyperextension. Give it some time to heal and set or you may be getting another ACL reconstruction...or three. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Dexter Rutecki
I subscribe to the theory that if you ski (or do most things) like you're worried about injury, you will probably get injured. My three fully blown ACL's were all a few years apart from each other and went R-L-R, so no issue from rushing things (and they were caused by heavy impact from landing wrong, in any case). I pushed them for quickest possible, but for all three ortho/PT said I was good to go, so...IMO if you want to ski at six months and you rehab aggressively it should be fine (but again, definitely not a PT/ortho, and I wouldn't take random internet medical advice myself, so...).