knee update

[altagirl]

Thanks for the updates. It helps the see what you are going thru to know what is ahead of me. I have been trying to strengthen my knee while waiting to schedule my surgery, but the last two days the swelling and stiffness has increased. Hope to get in soon so I can start to work towards recovery.

This has kindof become my little online journal. I wish I had notes from my first surgery to remember the details to compare...

Anyway, good to hear you're working on getting your knee strong ahead of time. It really does help. I went through little phases like that in my pre-surgery rehab where it would swell a bit. I think with the extra junk (bits of ACL and whatnot) floating around in there it's easy to irritate it. But keep it up - just remember to ice and elevate whenever you can.

[altagirl]

AG, you are friggin amazing. Keep up the awesome work and we'll see you at Alta when you're ready.

Thanks!!! Is it spring yet???

[powderwhore]

Hey thanks for the call this morning! I love listening to a phone rub the inside of someones pants.

[Particle]

AG--I know how you feel when it seems like you're sliding backwards, having reduced ROM, etc...but my PT always explained to me when I'd get pissed about those days that it's a bit like a rollercoaster--you're always going to have days where your injuries get irritated and you go backwards a tad, but the overall results are going to move forward. It's easy to get upset and then push it too hard in compensation, but sounds like you are kicking ass!

I still have some minor ROM issues in my hip and it pisses me off to no end...

[altachic]

Hey thanks for the call this morning! I love listening to a phone rub the inside of someones pants.

Hey, i just left you a message...call me dude


Keep up the hard work C! You rule.

[altagirl]

Hey thanks for the call this morning! I love listening to a phone rub the inside of someones pants.

, I'm sorry about that. I usually have the keylock on, but this morning I got into the car and heard your voicemail or something coming out of my bag... oops!!!

[altagirl]

AG--I know how you feel when it seems like you're sliding backwards, having reduced ROM, etc...but my PT always explained to me when I'd get pissed about those days that it's a bit like a rollercoaster--you're always going to have days where your injuries get irritated and you go backwards a tad, but the overall results are going to move forward. It's easy to get upset and then push it too hard in compensation, but sounds like you are kicking ass!

I still have some minor ROM issues in my hip and it pisses me off to no end...

Yeah, I guess I know progress doesn't always go in a straight line... it's finding the perfect combo of rest and rehab that's tough. I think now that I hit that 2 week mark, that's where the scar tissue starts settling in and it made a difference all of the sudden. But at the same time, stitches are out now, and I can do a little more aggressive massage with it. She at least gave me a good way to stretch today where there's no chance of stressing the graft, and got me to hold the stretches a little longer, which should help. At least my other knee has 100% ROM, so I have a good history of getting it back.

Keep working on that hip! You're incredibly motivating in coming back from such serious injury and tearing it up again.

[Arnold Babar]

How long did it take before you were driving again? Are you still on crutches? If these questions are annoying just JONG me.

[altagirl]

How long did it take before you were driving again? Are you still on crutches? If these questions are annoying just JONG me.

Not at all!

I started driving 1 week after surgery. But driving is mostly dependent on how soon you're off pain meds. Now I'm just taking Lortab for PT sessions so I can push a little harder on ROM, and we live across the street so I just walk back and forth to PT then. For the first 4 days or so that I was driving, I took the truck because it was easier to get into and my Subaru is a stick shift. But now that I'm comfortable moving my foot around more, I'm back to driving the car. Last time when it was my left leg and I only had the Subaru it was like 5 weeks or so before I drove. But I also had a meniscus repair and was totally non-weight-bearing for 5 weeks. So using the clutch SUCKED for that one. This time it's my right leg and was just a matter of being comfortable and using my ankle/calf freely.

My doc said he was going to be conservative with the crutches - gradually phase them out over 4 weeks - just because he wanted me to be cautious with the graft and let it heal. I'm at just over 2 weeks and I'm just using them now for long distances - the walk to PT, etc. I'm not using them in the house, at the office, or at the gym anymore. My PTs both said that sounds fine to them. I know a lot of surgeons say crutches are only if you need them - so some people only use them for a few days, but at the same time, using them lightly probably helps me get my gait right so I'm not compensating and limping and developing weird habits, so it's not really a bad thing.

[Arnold Babar]

That's quicker than I expected, cool. I live in the woods so everything is a 1/2 hr. drive. I'd like to get mobile asap. I'm sure the hammy graft will increase healing time a bit, though. Thanks again for this thread, it's a big help.

[altagirl]

That's quicker than I expected, cool. I live in the woods so everything is a 1/2 hr. drive. I'd like to get mobile asap. I'm sure the hammy graft will increase healing time a bit, though. Thanks again for this thread, it's a big help.

Yeah, the distance will make a difference too. The farthest I have to drive is like 10-12 minutes for work. The first two weeks you really need to worry about swelling and keeping it iced and elevated. So for me, 12 minutes to get to work, get it up on my desk and iced again was not a big deal. But if you've got to drive 30 min - it might be tougher to take and cause more swelling. Really, it will all depend on how you feel. I was on a lot more pain meds with my hamstring graft for my other ACL. Though I didn't know how obsessively to elevate above the heart that first time either, so the whole thing was more painful and swollen. REALLY elevate for as long as you can - like laying flat with your leg up in the air - do loads of calf pumps and light massage to kill the inflammation - it makes a huge difference.

[altagirl]

Scar tissue sucks.

Went to PT on Friday and it was like starting from scratch again. Got it to 110, but not without a lot of pain, drugs, heat, ice, e-stim and massage. I was there for like 3 1/2 hours. New PT orders are to go to the gym and work ROM on the bike 3x/day (in addition to regular stretching, exercises, etc.) until I'm through this phase. I can get rotations on the bike, but I'm cheating with my hip somewhat. Mission is to go into PT on Monday and be able to get at least 115.

Strength is still going really well, and stairs are getting easier and easier (up is completely normal, down requires some cheating). Can't wait to be able to do some harder strength exercises.

I did my stretching and massage this morning, which I think went pretty well (wish I had a protractor to measure). I'm off to the gym...

[Arnold Babar]

110 sounds pretty damn good for such a short time. I'm raking leaves today 'cause I'll be on my back in a week and a half. I haven't descended a hill or a staircase normally since I did this. I really want to get it over with, but the load of work I need to get done first is killing me.

Keep pedaling!

[altagirl]

Hey well at least you can look at your post-op time as a vacation from housework!

I guess my current ROM is fine, it's just the going backwards that was bad, even if it's temporary. I can feel scar tissue lumping up under the incisions and I know I have to stay on top of it - once it hardens up it can be a bitch to get rid of, and for some reason my surface scars are healing extra fast - so they probably are underneath too - I just need to work it hard. And my extension is feeling really stiff and hard to get today too - ugh. Though I may have gone a little crazy today - I have a couple new little bruises where I was trying to break stuff up. But my last biking session went pretty well and it only took a minute or so to get a rotation. I'm still not happy with it - I can keep my hips level, but not my foot - or I can keep the foot level and my hip shifts. Grrr... But Mr.AG said it looks like I'm getting the 115 I want, so hopefuly I'll be past that at my next appt on Monday. That'd be nice!

Is your problem descending stairs now just a stiffness thing or does it hurt to put pressure on it like that?

[Buzzworthy]

This has kindof become my little online journal. I wish I had notes from my first surgery to remember the details to compare...

Done a few of these myself. It is cool to look back and see what you have accomplished.

I recently read thru my Struggling Hardcore thread and a lot has changed for the better.

Keep up the good work and keep posting the results. The day you are back on skis, come home and read this and it will put an evenn larger smile on your face, as you DID IT!!

[altagirl]

120 degrees! Woohoo!



My therapist gave me a mission to get to 115 over the weekend. I kindof took that as a minimum and was pushing for 120 from the start. The weekend kindof sucked. It was one continuous cycle of massage, stretch, bike, stretch, exercise, stretch, massage, ice, elevate, rest for an hour or two and repeat. Which was fairly miserable, but I guess it worked since I improved 10 degrees over the weekend. At least it was worth the effort!

Mostly doing the same stuff at PT today - quad sets, straight leg raises on the ball, shuttle, mini squats, calf raises, isometric hamstring curls, ball hamstring curls, vectors, bike... I'm still supposed to be only partially weight bearing - though the only time I touched crutches today was to walk to PT. Today I got to test out mini-squats with the ball between my back and the wall, just one set to see how they feel. And I've been doing loads of vectors on each leg (where you stand on one leg and move the other to the side, front, rear) - and I added the body blade to make it more challenging.

30 degrees to go...

[stump832]

Nice AG!

Way to work hard and stay motivated.

[Woodsy]

Keep up the good work C!

I know you will come back strong, cuz well you are you!

as to scars, the woman I love has scars to make yours look like nuttin ( she did her knee then broke her femur on Sunspot)
and for your kickass PT regimin I say

[Ski Monkey]

Rock on C!

Glad to hear it's progressing so well. Sounds like you are beating everyone's expectations.

Keep your eye on the prize...

[altagirl]

I'm frustrated.

I guess I have no real reason to be all this frustrated. I got up to 125 yesterday. But my full extension is gone - I got it to the ground yesterday, but it involved the PT pushing down on it until there were tears in my eyes and I felt lightheaded like I was going to pass out. I got it to 2 degrees on my own power. Problem was that the last few PT visits I just had an assistant measuring extension on the padded bench, she said it was zero but it wasn't quite. Close, but not zero. So I haven't been focusing on it much.

So this weekend I'm doing no strength exercises at all, just walking around and riding the bike and things like that that promote movement and doing either flexion or extension exercises every 2 hours at a minimum. I'm way ahead of schedule on strength, so it shouldn't be a big deal. Just got back from the gym - rode the bike for 20 minutes (once I'm warmed up I can ride normally, but I'm not allowed to do anything other than level 1 resistance), and tried the elliptical for 5 minutes. She said I could give it a shot if I wanted. It works, no pain, but I'm not totally smooth and want to cheat with my hip. Guess that will take time. Time to work extension in a few minutes. I'm really starting to dread doing extension. Ugh.

Just found my old medical record from my first surgery. At 40 days, I was at 0-108 with my surgical leg 4cm smaller than my non-surgical leg. At 55 days I was at 0-120. Full ROM at 84 days, my quad was still 2cm smaller. Wish I could find the earlier reports so I could see what extension was earlier. But I guess being at 2-125 at day 26 this time is not that a big of a deal. And the fact that my quads are nearly identical in size right now is awesome (I just measured and the surgical leg came up less than .25cm smaller).

Goal is 0-130 by Monday's PT.

[Theodore]

Time for some prone hangs!

[altagirl]

Time for some prone hangs!

Yeah, I'm doing a lot of those the past couple of days. I guess my frustration is just that 4 days post-op they told me not to do them because I was getting too much extension (past zero). Now I'm back to doing them and this time they're hell. It's not that big of a deal, I guess. But it's a pain in the ass. (well in the knee...)

[Woodsy]

Yeah, I'm doing a lot of those the past couple of days. I guess my frustration is just that 4 days post-op they told me not to do them because I was getting too much extension (past zero). Now I'm back to doing them and this time they're hell. It's not that big of a deal, I guess. But it's a pain in the ass. (well in the knee...)

Keep up the good work & dont get down,
you are lightyears ahead of somone who wasn't in Altagirl shape would be.

just beat on C when you get frustrated!

keep after it & Godspeed!

[GT40]

Hey AG,

I know most Doc's have a very hard time getting ppl to do the PT stuff. And your's has to tell you not to go too far.

I'm sure if you took 10,000 ppl with this same surgery, you're probably healing faster and stronger than all of the other 9,999. I'm serious.

Just know that we all LOVE you and hope you continue to heal fast. I hope you can find other fun things to do to keep your mind, in a good place. Make Mr AG get you that sled.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

yer doin great AG. I'm gonna have some catch up to do!