The trouble began in high school. I was on drill team for four years - loved it so much. If you had told me that I was going to have knee troubles in middle age, I would have scoffed. I felt fit and flexible, and young and strong. And drill team was my LIFE.
Here I am perched in a tree. If you look very closely you can just make out an ace bandage on my left knee. I distinctly remember twisting my knee during the finale of a halftime show. Did that keep me from climbing a tree? No, and no one told me not to. My mother, an x-ray tech, took me to get it x-rayed. "Normal" said the radiologist. In actuality, I had probably torn a medial patellar ligament.
In college I injured it the same way, again. And it started happening more often. Brushing it across something unless it was fully bent could cause it to shift to the outside. Eventually, my kneecap was tracking laterally all the time. Over time I had damaged the medial ligament so much the lateral one could yank it harder sideways. Then in August of 2014 I tore my meniscus and went through a month of searing knee pain before I could see the doc. During this time we lost Hubby's sister, bought a car, got the boys ready for school, and sent The Girl back to Waco for her last semester. I was too busy to have it slow me down for long. But I saw an orthopedist and made plans to get it repaired.
So that's what I did in October. Eight weeks of pain, followed by surgery that should have about a two to four week recovery time. A meniscus repair, and a lateral patellar tendon release.
Unfortunately when the doc got in there he found bone on bone and quite a mess. My patellar groove on my femur was very shallow, adding to the problem with it tracking normally. It was as bad a knee as he had ever seen - but he didn't rule out a knee replacement in the future.
what.
The cat never left my side. My Hubby made me breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the first week or so.
No one warned me not to look under the ace wrap!
My ankle was ridiculous.
As the days passed, the bruises came more and more to the surface. The big one here must be exactly where the tendon was cut.
Eventually I got my stitches out and my days became filled with: eat a very tiny amount, take drugs, sleep, eat a tiny amount, take more drugs, sleep, text, drugs, sleep, pee, don't forget to try to eat, cry, cry, cry. Gradually, I moved to the front room so I could sit at my computer. My sister said sorry for your luck, read the Gospel. People were tired of me crying about my knee, for sure.
The PT took charge and got me a shower chair and a TENS unit.
HALLELUYAH.
My ankle swelling went down and some bruises starting disappearing.
I started crying less, trying hard, working on my home program
It was getting better every day, that knee o' mine.
I just had to give it time to heal.
Eventually, my leg muscles remembered how to contract, I went from two crutches to one, then cane, then returned to work, working on gaining strength.
Update 10 years later? My knee has its days, but I am able to do all of the things I did before and I feel strong.
Gina
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