ACLR Monday 21st August

[flatlander420]

Well I am going to get my torn ACL fixed finally on Monday. I know, shitty timing I'll probably miss the whole 06-07 season Anyways I can't wait to get it over with and get back to doing the two things I am deprived of now that I live for, skiing and playing soccer. Anyways updates to follow. Make some turns for me maggots!

[stump832]

Good luck - its not that bad. And six months would put you at around Feb/March, so skiing isn't completely out of the question.

Out of curiousity - why'd you wait so long between injury and surgery?

[flatlander420]

I could give you the long story but I'll just say my H.M.O is why it took so long. Actually in early June I was on a 4 month waiting list to have surgery but it ended up only being 2 so I guess it could have been worse.

[stump832]

Actually in early June I was on a 4 month waiting list to have surgery but it ended up only being 2 so I guess it could have been worse.

Yeah, sounds like thats an understatement. Good luck with the surgery - you've got a pretty good support group here for when you start your rehab.

[truth]

You should be an expert on what ya need by now from hanging around here. Just don't go and tear your achilles 5 months post ACL. Trust me on this one.

[flatlander420]

Well I made it! I am loaded on percocet drinking pineapple juice listening to some tunes, no pain yet but the fem block is wearing off so the fun will begin tommorow i'm sure....................

[upallnight]

awesome, flatlander!!!

your timing may not be all that bad. as folks said above, you may still catch some of the season...but it also may be good in that you will not be tempted to ski too season (i.e. before you're back at full-strength)...so when you *do* get back on skis you can definitely charge rather than pussyfoot around.

i wish you much success in your recovery.

i'm about 4 months post-op (different knee injury), but i'm actually starting to feel really strong. keep that in mind as you go through these first few weeks -- you'll probably be in better shape than ever when you do your rehab.

[flatlander420]

Your right upn. I'll be better off this way.It kinda sucks because I bought a season pass again so not such a good deal this year.Oh well!
Day 2 and I feel pretty good. Had a little "ache" last night that woke me up but other than that I'm not hurting at all. I haven't had any percoset today just motrin. I am rocking the Cyro Cuff, great piece of equipment.

[flatlander420]

Day 3: Had the dresssing changed today and the doc was impressed with the lack of swelling and bruising. I was too! Still not too much pain even with the fem block worn off! I can unlock the brace now and bend my knee which will help with sitting on the toilet! so far so good!

[flatlander420]

Made it to the weekend! Drove for the 1st time yesterday and went to the store. Hobbled around for a while. Really takes it out of you just trying to do normal things like walking. A little sore today but it's a good sore the kind when you are healing well .So far so good!

[flatlander420]

Day10 update: Last few days have been rough.Went through the "shin of fire" for a few days. I guess its's normal with hamstring grafts but fuck does it hurt!! Tha'ts gone now thank god. I took my brace off for the 1st time two days ago to discover a lovely itchy red rash. I guess the foam shit on the inside of the brace irrtated my skin to the point of this super itchy rash!. Went to the docs yesterday and showed her the rash, changed the dressing and adjusted the brace. I get the stitches out next tuesday and will probably return to work unless I have a set back. This is mentally challenging as well as physically.Laying around all day, pretty much useless, is way old and is getting annoying.Thank god for my wife! She has been doing everything for me I couldn't have had this surgery without her. I can't imagine trying to get through this solo.

[stump832]

Weeks 2-6 pretty much sucked for me. My hamstring still pisses me off at 4 months. Getting back to work was okay, though finding a way to set your leg up so that it doesn't balloon up is a chafe. Are you hitting rehab yet?

[flatlander420]

Weeks 2-6 pretty much sucked for me. My hamstring still pisses me off at 4 months. Getting back to work was okay, though finding a way to set your leg up so that it doesn't balloon up is a chafe. Are you hitting rehab yet?

What can I expect, more "shin of fire"? I hope not! as much as I dislike having to work I think going back will do me good mentally. Having something to do wiil keep my mind off of my knee, right now it's obviously very frustrating. I have not started formal PT yet so I suppose my doc takes a conservative approach to that.The PT people are supposed to be contacting me this week. I have been doing leg lifts,quad flexes and heel slides on my own just to see where I am at. Leg lifts are easy and feel good even though the atrophe (sp?) is shocking. Quad flexes are no problem, I can touch the floor with the back of my knee with my ankle on the towel. Heels slides are another story, I can just about get my heel flat on the floor and bring it back about and inch. I'll keep working on that one. Anyways thanks for the input guys

[flatlander420]

2 week update: well it's been 14 days since surgery and I am so glad that those days are past. I feel I have turned a corner as far as the post surgery misery. My knee looks pretty good .The swelling has gone down alot and the pain is practically non existant. My rash is almost gone thanks to a cucumber puree that I have been using. My mobility has improved enought that I can get around one 1 crutch or even no crutch I can drive no problem. So Iam feeling pretty good about going back to work on Tuesday which is going to monumental mentally for me. The stitches come out tommorow also ,so things are improving alot!

[upallnight]

hey, flatlander--glad to read that things are improving! all i can say is that the rate at which you can improve in a month's time is staggering. there were (and *are*) times during my rehab where i say "there's no way i could have imagined being able to do ____ a month ago."

so...if ever you are feeling down or struggling with some little challenge, just remind yourself that the world can look very different in a matter of weeks.

also...sorry to hear about the season pass purchase. as i was buying my pass this year a few days ago, i noticed something that i hadn't before: jackson hole offers a refund (pro-rated) if you get injured and can't use the pass (minus some handling fee).

maybe you should check into that with your mountain. if your doc says you can't ski, they might refund all or most of your $$. then, if you are up to skiing later in the season, you could always buy day passes.

just a thought.

[flatlander420]

3 week update; had my 1st PT session today. I have 95 degree flexion and therapist says knee looks great! She gave me like 5 excersises to do at home twice a day. I guess things are getting better and I am healing more every day day ,so I am stoked to have gotten this far and am feeling good about the whole thing.

[skibuminwyo]

awesome awesome news

[Sassy]

Sorry about the knee, flatlander... I've done both and am happy to say that you'll be out there tearing it up again soon enough.

My only advice is: wait for it... giving it the full six months will pay off in the long run!

Sounds like you are doing great!

[flatlander420]

Sorry about the knee, flatlander... I've done both and am happy to say that you'll be out there tearing it up again soon enough.

My only advice is: wait for it... giving it the full six months will pay off in the long run!

Sounds like you are doing great!

Thanks for the encouragement. I am approaching 5 weeks P.O and my knee is improving nicely. Heal slides against the wall are working great,every day I can go a little further. I can also ride my stationery bike which I couldn't do last week. Today I went in our pool and walked from one side of the shallow end to the other over and over.The excersises the PT gave me are a little boring so I am trying to find more interesting ways to do closed chain excersises. Believe me I am not going to rush back into anything, I do not want go through this again!

[flatlander420]

Week 5: Just got back from PT, 116 degrees of flexion!! WOO hoo! Therapist gave me some balancing exercises and some weight training on the leg press. She was very impressed with my improvement over the last 10 days.I'm stoked!!

[lucubrator]

3 week update; had my 1st PT session today.

Did they give you a passive motion machine? They're supposed to be delivering one to my house in a day or two (surgery on monday, oct 2), and the surgeon has me going to PT on wednesday, and 3/week from then on. 3 weeks seems like a long time to wait for PT.

[flatlander420]

Did they give you a passive motion machine? They're supposed to be delivering one to my house in a day or two (surgery on monday, oct 4), and the surgeon has me going to PT on wednesday, and 3/week from then on. 3 weeks seems like a long time to wait for PT.

Well all I can say is every surgeon has their own protocal. Mine is conservative.I did not have a cpm machine either.If you are going to PT 2 days after surgery and then 3 times a week, I guess that is agressive. Looking back I personally wouldn't want to do anything really untill the post surgery misery is over. That is enough to deal with on it's own never mind having to do excersises as well. I can only speak of my own experience so all in all I am stoked after 5 weeks to be where I am. My PT says I am ahead of the norm as far as building the muscles back and my balance and flexion are coming back rapidly. Don't be suprised if you start questioning your decision to get your ACL fixed about 4-5 days after surgery,thats when all the drugs wear off and it f'ing hurts like hell. Good Luck!

[lucubrator]

Don't be suprised if you start questioning your decision to get your ACL fixed about 4-5 days after surgery,thats when all the drugs wear off and it f'ing hurts like hell. Good Luck!

Percocet won't cover the pain?

[reidhresko]

Did they give you a passive motion machine? They're supposed to be delivering one to my house in a day or two (surgery on monday, oct 4), and the surgeon has me going to PT on wednesday, and 3/week from then on. 3 weeks seems like a long time to wait for PT.

i concur. get the passive motion machine for sure. I had an acl replacement (patellar graft) on aug 2. I was home from the hospital that night and had my leg immediately in the passive motion machine. use it as much as you can stand until you hit 90 deg. i slept with it on, did everything with it on and it made a huge difference in my stiffness and flexibility. I wouold say I was in it 18-20 hours a day for a week. I was in pt on day 3 and went 3x a week for the first month and feel like that made a big difference. at 7 weeks out, extension is 1 deg of hyper and flexion is about 160. from talking to pro PT peeps for the olympic teams down in the springs, their advice was road bike, road bike, and then road bike some more. i ride everyday (started on a trainer in my house on day 9 with 30 mins). now have about 950 miles under my belt in the past five weeks, my thigh is coming back, and my leg feels great though remains a bit sore and slightly swollen. yes, every Dr has heir own protocol, but we are not their 'normal' patients so you have to take that shit with a small grain of sand and recognize you are most likely in way better shape than the average bear. best of luck with the upcoming surgery...

[lucubrator]

Thanks for that. I was wondering if people slept with the iceman and the pcm on. I pulled my road bike trainer out of the closet so I can start using that ASAP. I guess I'll ride the miles to campus as soon as I'm able to do that too. My dad's masseuse has heard of my surgeon, and said he's good, so that's encouraging. If there's any other weird info, post it. I want to get up skiing as quickly as possible.