Your Life Safe and Sound

  Friday, manipulation day.  Woo hoo!  We decided yesterday to go ahead with the procedure, and try to get all the motion I can while I'm still off.  I ate dinner about 9 last night, and went to bed about 10:30.  Of course, I didn't sleep very well.  Can't have any pain meds either.Not food or water after midnight, for a noon procedure.  Dumb.   So, here I am really thirsty, really hungry, and it's only 9am.  We have to be at the hospital by 11, so Kym is rushing around, getting everything ready.  They told me I would be there for a 23 hour hold after the procedure.  I will try to hold them to that.  Looking at the pictures from the last one, I think I was there for 2 days.  That leg was way more swollen the whole time, so I'm hopeful that this stay will be shorter.    It's almost time to go, and I'll try to write from my phone. IMG_6036.jpg 1.6 MB

  Thursday.  This morning my knee was sore, pretty much every morning.  I think most of it is from trying to straighten the knee.  I usually end up with the ice bag on to sleep.  I long for the day when I can sleep in a position other than on my back.    I thought I made progress yesterday, but when I got up this morning, it was still a crooked leg.  I got up and had breakfast, it was another warm sunny day, I think officially a record for the day.  I tried the bike this morning, and went off to PT at 11.  We measured first, and then Cassie, one of the PT girls started doing massage.  She worked a lot on the back of the knee, hamstrings are a lot of the reason it won't straighten enough.  By the time she was done, I think I picked up 10 degrees of extension.  They say you want to get to 0 degrees, but 3 or 4 is ok.  My left knee is at 4 degrees, and my right one ended up at 8 today.  So close, it's hard to tell...

  Wednesday, it's Christmas!  I slept until 8 am.  Making up for being awake in the night again.  My knee was pretty sore this morning, all the weight work I guess.    This was probably my worst point emotionally in this whole experience.  I don't ever remember feeling this way with the last knee.  I'm not sure what's so different this time.  Maybe because I was expecting this one to go a little easier.  The doctors always say that the pre surgical range of motion and everything is the best predictor of post surgical results.  I know that the bending isn't really improving very rapidly, and I guess I figured that would come with time.  That's kind of how it worked with the left one.  I even saw improvement when Anderzej came to work on the right one.  It's the extension, or straightening that isn't getting better.  I really need to be able to stand, and do a lot of walking with what I do at work.  The way ...

  Tuesday, Christmas Eve.  This was the day we have Christmas at home with the kids.  We sleep in, have a nice breakfast, and open presents from each other.  It's nice to not having to go anywhere for a day.    I didn't get much sleep again, you never know.  We had a friend from church who is a PT guy come over after lunch today.  He stopped on his way home from work, to take a look at my knee and see if he could offer any hints on what else I could do.  He told me on Sunday about putting weight on top of my unsupported knee.  I've been using a bag of flour, and he brought a proper weight that velcros around your leg.  He did an exam, and listened to my account of what everyone else has been doing with me for rehab.  No earth shattering developments, just small adjustments.  So we keep working until Thursday morning.... All in all, it was a good day.

  Monday, Christmas Eve Eve.  Andrezej came today, and we gave him a new measuring tool.  It got broken the other day, and I thought would get him a new one as a gift.  He won't take any money for coming, he keeps saying that I'm his research project.   We did the massage and measured.  My left knee measured 115 degrees, and the right one came to 93,  The right one started at 83, and after working on it, measured 93.  The problem is that I can't get it straight enough.  I got in to see Jessica about an hour after he left.  I tried to explain as well as I could what he was doing every visit.  I wonder what she's really thinking, but she can tell that I'm doing better than the last time we worked together.  One more session on Thursday, and then the manipulation happens at noon on Friday.  I feel like all the work on minimizing the scar tissue will help minimize the trauma from the manipulation, and make the recovery bette...

  Sunday before Christmas.  We had some good family pictures before church this morning.  I was another bright, sunny day if Plano, I think it got up to 50 degrees.  Not your regular first day of winter.   I talked to a friend at church who is also a PT person, and he gave me a couple ideas to try this week, to maybe work on the extension mostly.  He is going to come by on Tuesday after lunch, and see if he can think of anything else that might help.  I'm sort of resigned to the prospect of doing the revision, but if we can skip it, that would be great.  It's good to have friends that care about you.  One thing he suggested was a 10 pound weight on top of my thigh, with my foot on a chair.    One funny thing from last night.  I didn't sleep very well again.  I put the special lotion on, and applied an ice bag to get to sleep.  I think I laid awake for an hour and a half before I went back to sleep.  About 4am...

  Saturday.  I feel more resigned to the fact that I'll be getting the revision next Friday, but I think with the progress I'm making, the recovery won't be as bad as last time.  I feel like I'm getting a little more bend each day, but it's really hard to not lose it by the next day.  Actually I feel like the extension, or straightness is the bigger problem.  Bending I can work around, but if your leg doesn't get straight, it's really hard to walk properly.    So, Andrezej gave me some different things to do.  Mostly the supporting my leg, and letting gravity bend it.  Now I have some weight hanging on each foot to help the bend.  I can also use the heating pad on my thigh before I do the work.