6 Weeks Already

Okay, so I'm a little late writing this one again!  Life keeps getting in the way!  6 weeks post- op and feeling great.  I went to the orthopedic on 11/4 and they gave me the elliptical.  No arc trainer, but who's complaining?  Beggars can't be choosers.  They updated my orders for PT and sent me on my way.  1st stop, the gym for my 1st 5K on the elliptical since pre-surgery!  Woo-hoo!  The pictures below are from 11/10 exactly 6 weeks post-op.

                                   
                              Look at that, I can finally engage my inner quad muscle!

Physical therapy is going great now that I have the "great" PT's "I" selected and am doing more strengthening exercises.  They did inform me that the the orthopedic wrote NO RUNNING for 3 MONTHS on the new PT order.  Probably because they could tell I am getting antsy and wanted to reinforce that running is still a no-no!  I was actually talking to my PT about this.  My knee does feel great, but it doesn't feel perfect.  I know that there is no way that I am ready to run yet.  I am really paying attention to my limitations.  After trick or treating and a few trips to the mall, I now know I have about 60-90 minutes of walking in me before I need to stop.  Not because I can't walk any longer, but because I can hear my knee saying "Enough is enough."  I know that I can handle 60 minutes of cardio broken up between the elliptical and the bike.  I know that I can now put minimal pressure on my knee on a mat, but not on the carpet.  I know that even though I am feeling great, I need to proceed with caution because 6 weeks post-op is when most people re-injure themselves because their knee feels "great".  My PT said to me it is our job to pull people back when they get too ambitious....myself included of course.   Surgery was the easy part, (pain med complications put aside).....patience with the whole recovery is the hard part!

Weeks 4 & 5 Post-op

4 weeks post op was on Thursday the 27th....with the power outages I am just now getting around to updating.  This will probably be a long post because today is November 3rd and it's officially 5 weeks post op.

Let's start with 4 weeks post-op....everything is going great.  PT is helping, but is boring as hell! I've been on the bike at least 4X a week since I received the okay.  I am so happy with the progress I have made.  My physical therapist informed me that I'm at 140 degrees for ROM and my good leg is at 150 degrees.  So basically I have 10 degrees to go.....  Woo Hoo!  Here's a few pictures of week 4 before I took my massive wipeout....  What wipe-out you ask?  The one I took on some black ice, the day of the freak 1 inch snow fall, outside of Slade's school, right in front of a couple of his friends!   It was pretty bad.  I fell right on my bad knee and twisted as I went down. Worst part, I heard it pop!  Literally hobbled into the truck and called Keith crying.  I was convinced I had re-torn it!  Off to the orthopedic again to find out whether it would be a glass of wine or a bottle of wine kind of night.  Luckily, everything seemed to be intact, I just had a lot of swelling.  Thoughts being that the pop I heard was probably just some scar tissue!  Crisis averted and I did enjoy a nice glass of wine that night!

Week 5 post-op.  Not much has changed.  All my bruising is finally gone, my ROM is still at 140, the swelling is going back down and I'm still on the bike 4X a week.  I am going back to the orthopedic tomorrow.  My hopes are that I will be allowed some variety when it comes to cardio. I'm so over the bike.  I go from the upright bike, to the spinning bike to the recumbent bike.  That's about all I get for variety these days.  I am also hoping that I'll be able to start some light strength training on my own....God how I would love to be done with PT.  I know how important it is, but honestly I feel like it's an insult to me with some of the wimpy exercises I have to do!  Maybe I was just a bit annoyed with my therapist today because she was whining about how sore she was from running!  Witch!  Yes, jealousy may have got the better of me!  But really, not the place to be talking about running!  :) Or maybe it's because she treats me as if I'm just a number on the conveyor belt!  No variety for her, just cookie cutter PT!    There are 2 other therapists that I really like and truly seem interested in my recovery.  If I must go back, I am so going to hand pick my physical therapists.  Knowledge is power!  And I plan on using mine! Here are some pictures from today!

    I am finally able to start contracting my quad muscle.  Not completely, but it's getting there!

              Incisions are looking good.  A bit redder than before, but I did just fall on them!

No more bruising! Took exactly 5 weeks for it to disappear.

3 weeks Post-op

Can't even believe it's been 3 weeks already.  My knee is feeling good.  I even wore heels last night to Wine Class.  They were low heels, but a step up from my daily sneakers and UGGS!  I'm still learning what normal is when it comes to my right knee.  I get paranoid when it feels different, but it should feel different, because it is different....I have been continuing my time at the gym on the bike and PT is going well.  PT is boring, but the electrical stimuli is really helping me get back my quad muscle contraction abilities.... Here are some pictures from today.

                                    Still a bit swollen, but it's improving.  You can see
                                       where my quad is still looking a bit deformed.

                 Bruising is subsiding, but according to Shealyn it's turning into a rainbow!

                           
          I'm amazed at how minimal the scarring is.   I'm still using Vitamin E to help though!


While at PT today, I overheard some of the girls chit chatting and I was amazed at how negative this one girl is.  I could tell on my 1st visit that she was uber negative, but her conversations today were unbelievable.  A good friend of mine once told me "you'll receive more with honey than vinegar."  Clearly this girl was pouring on the vinegar and it's no wonder people are not treating her the way she wants to be treated.  Ever since I was given the diagnosis of Thyroid Cancer this time last year, my priorities and life have changed significantly.  I remind myself to be thankful on a daily basis as well as letting the little stuff go.  Easier said than done, but overall I am happy with how far I've come.  As far as I'm concerned misery loves company and I will not allow myself to be dragged into it anymore.  I have way too much to be thankful for......

2 Weeks Post-Op

I should have posted this on Thursday the 13th, but I have had a crazy busy week and did not even have a minute to get to it.  Let's start with some pictures though.  These were taken on Thursday, exactly 2 weeks post-op.

                                                        
                                   The incisions are looking great and healing nicely.

         The swelling has gone down significantly and my knee is starting to look normal again.

                         I still have some nasty bruising on the back, which I was told is the
                                         residual blood from the drilling they had to do.


As for my recovery....it's going great.  Much better than expected.  I can walk upstairs no problem and downstairs slowly.  I have been going to the gym and gradually working up my time on the bike which I can now make complete revolutions on.  Still icing every time I have the chance.  I also started PT this week.  They were surprised at how well I'm doing.  Before PT on Thursday I went to the gym and hit the bike for 40 minutes....apparently that is a lot for  2 weeks post surgery.   I'm not pushing it, just listening to what my knee is saying.  I was taking Advil during the day and a Naprosyn at night, but I'm even done with that.  I woke up this morning thinking, I forgot to take both my Advil and Naprosyn yesterday....oh well, just thinking of it as another milestone on my road to recovery.  I'm not being naive, I know I still have a long road ahead of me, that may have a bump or 2, or 3, but for now I'm taking it day by day.  I'm happy with where I'm at and looking forward to my active future.

Post-Op News

I had my post-op appointment yesterday morning and it went terrific!  Lost the crutches, lost the brace and most importantly lost those annoying compression hose.  Dr. S. says everything looks fantastic and I'm a bit ahead on recovery!  Yeah me, Rockstar patient!  Overall, pain is minimal, swelling is down, and incisions look great. I will be starting physical therapy Tuesday.  Yes, I did ask about the gym.  I got the okay for the bike only,  as tolerated because my range of motion still isn't anywhere near where it will be.  He said I should see some more improvements over the next couple of days.  I was thrilled, so I left his office and headed straight to the gym.    Headed to the bikes and was a bit disappointed when  I could only make it around less than 2/3 of a rotation.  I couldn't even make the machine turn on because I was so slow.  I didn't let that stop me though, I did what felt comfortable and only lasted about 7 minutes!  Better than nothing though right?!  I then hit the weight room and did a quick upper body workout and abs, then called it a day.   Here are a couple pictures of my knee and my battle wounds!

By the end of the day my knee was a bit swollen and sore.  I did ice on and off throughout the day though and I think that is going to be a part of my regular routine for the near future.  Feeling great again today, but plan on trying my spinning bike and getting on the CPM machine for a few hours. Might as well use it until they pick it up!  Off to enjoy this gorgeous weather!

Me & My New ACL

Well, I am finally back.  My ACL reconstruction and meniscus repair took place on 9/29/11.....surgery went well according to the nurses and surgeon.  I was a bit incoherent, so I'm not too sure of the specifics, but I will be sure to get them at my 1st post-op appointment.  One thing I learned last year from my thyroidectomy, was that I do NOT do well with anesthesia.  This held true yet again! Let's put it this way, I was the 1st of the morning surgeries and the last to be discharged.  I won't go into details, I'll just say it wasn't pretty!  Here are a few pictures of my knee from surgery day.  And yes, I did get a pedicure for the occasion!

The weekend was tough.   My knee was feeling good, pain was manageable thanks to my fantastic husband, who made sure I had constant ice and that my pain meds were given to me with saltines at exactly 4 hour intervals as prescribed.

Apparently, I am no better with pain meds than anesthesia because by Saturday I was so violently sick and dehydrated that I should have gone to the hospital for some IV fluids.  Luckily, with the help of some Herb Ox Chicken broth we managed to get me back from the edge.   Coming back from what feels like death is a slow process.  Keith was sent out for more chicken broth, white pasta, white rice and saltines.  I fought the nausea all day Sunday, even after cutting my pain meds dosage in half the night before.   The mandatory bland diet was wreaking havoc on my body as well.  White carbs and sodium are things  I rarely consume and my body must have been thinking "What the heck is she doing to me!"   I took my last narcotic pain med Sunday morning and refused to take anymore.  I would rather be in pain than deal with the nausea.  I swapped to Naprosyn that afternoon and it was the best decision I could have made.

By Tuesday, Cabin Fever was in full swing and I went for my 1st supervised drive with my Dad to pick up the kids at school.  Wednesday was my 1st day driving on my own and God it was wonderful, pouring rain and all!  Today is officially 1 week post-op and my knee is feeling great....my knee is up to 90 degrees on the CPM machine,  I can weight bear with the crutches and I am only taking Advil during the day and Naprosyn at night.  My follow-up appointment is tomorrow morning and I'm very excited.  If all goes as expected I will be able to lose the crutches and brace. I'm also hoping that I'll get the okay to hit the ARC trainer on 0 incline and low resistance.  If not, I'll resign myself to the Upper Body Bike and a good upper body workout, although my arms and shoulders should be looking good after all the stairs I've been doing with these crutches!

Finally Ready!

Well, tomorrow is the big day.  Surgery at 7:30am and I am ready!  I have been so busy the past few days getting ready that I haven't had much time to worry.  My OCD projects are complete, the house has been cleaned, beds have been stripped, my nails and toes are done, my hair is blown out straight (for easier management post-op) and I bought a cute post surgery outfit for myself. Just because I may be feeling like crap doesn't mean I have to look like it!  :)  Last night I had a much needed dinner out at Burton's with a couple of great friends.  No better combo than good friends, laughs, bitching, a bottle of wine, a few martini's and a Smore's dessert.   Tonight I'm going to bed once the tooth fairy comes.  Shealyn lost a tooth yesterday, and that damn fairy forgot to come!  She must of been preoccupied or something.

My workouts have been more consistent than ever and I am honestly feeling great.  Today's workout was bittersweet and I was left with mixed emotions.  I hate the unknown and this whole recovery thing is truly throwing a wrench in my plans.  I hate not knowing.  It would be so much easier if they told me today you can do this, tomorrow you can do that and next week we'll work on this.  Yes, they have given me the general parameters, but it's not enough for someone like me.  I am just going to have to roll with the punches and hope for the best and not worry about when I'll be able to get back in the gym even part-time.....I keep repeating my new mantra over and over in my head..."Be a Rockstar patient, Be a Rockstar patient....."

My final pre-op workout looked like this:

50 minutes/ 2.25 miles on the ARC trainer
7 (25) abs
3 (12) side bends each side
3 (12) modified squats
3 (12) step ups each side
3 (12) Leg presses
3 (12) Calf raises
3 (12) Leg Curls
3 (12) Leg Extensions
3 (12) Inner Thigh Machine
3 (12) Outer Thigh Machine

I have worked hard and have managed to get all my weights up to where they were pre-torn ACL/Meniscus.   I am hoping all this strength training is truly beneficial to my recovery.  I've really had a lot of time to think while working out and I'm only now seeing how this journey is relative. When looking at the big picture of life, this journey will be only a blip on the radar.  Living healthy and working out are a part of who I am....it's going to take more than a torn ACL & meniscus to keep me down.....I enter surgery knowing that I am truly blessed with an amazing husband, 4 beautiful kids, a great family and some pretty terrific friends.....Life is Good!