Friday, October 14, 2011

Blown Away

I Am Free!!

I visited my surgeon, Dr. Purtill,  this morning and the news was amazing!! No more physical therapy. he believes just walking and my everyday activities will be the best treatment for me from now on.

I can drive. I can do anything I want to do and....

I can ride!! He sat down in front of me to show me how my legs would be when I was astride a horse and warned me that I might be sore on the inside of my knees--pointing to the spot--but said not to worry as that would be normal.  Otherwise, go for it!

I can do barn chores including lifting grain bags if I want to, but my knees would "tell" me what I could and could not do, so I should "listen" to them.

He told me my old knees were REALLY bad and stressed it. Apparently it was kind of surprising I was able to do anything at all on them.

On the even more plus side, I am "Way ahead of the curve" as far as recovery goes and a "Superstar!"  I think my surgeon is truly enthusiastic about my recovery status. My knees have essentially normal bend and the swelling will go away on its own so I should not worry about it. I will have good days and bad days now and then, so I should not get frustrated.

He did tell me it takes a year and a half before the knees are actually fully healed, so I can expect less than perfection until then, but overall, I have had an incredible recovery.  He complimented me by insisting most of that success had been my doing and my determination.

What a refreshing and exciting appointment it was. Dr. Purtill has such and upbeat and positive approach to the whole experience, fully believing his patient can do almost anything with their new joints. He made me feel there was no limit to future activities.

I am no longer on the warfarin, so I don't need to worry about what supplements I take--including aspirin which does always seem to help my aches and pains. I do have another prescription pain medication if I need it, but it may well be I won't have to resort to that.

Dr. Purtill said further PT could actually hurt with the stretching of the leg, etc. so it was better to just stop now. I have one more appointment tomorrow so I will do the exercises and get a nice massage, but not have the therapist do any other work on my legs.

Chance is still lame, so I can't ride him, but I plan on waiting until I am a little more sure about the stiffness in my knees before I do try to ride. I want to do some exercises off the horse first to prepare and I will not get on unless I have a knowledgeable horse friend here.

Christina put a new poultice on Chance's foot today but there is no sign of any kind of abscess yet. Guess it's just a matter of waiting.

On the bummer side--I drove my car to the pharmacy and on the way home, the "Check Engine" light came on. Last time it was a major bit of repair work required. That is kind of painful at the moment because my budget is pretty tight.  I hate to do it, but I guess I have to take the car in ASAP for a "health exam."  *sigh*

At least I can drive it there myself!

8 comments:

  1. YAY! i would think all that swimming paid off, and generally, my experience is that the more activity one does, the better the end result - IMHO the people who don't recover well are those who dont' do anything because it hurts, and won't push themselves that little bit further every time!

    well done .

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  2. Awesome news!One day you will reach the point of forgetting about your knees entirely. Sooner than most, it appears. I hope that your car just needs something minor.

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  3. Anonymous6:47 PM

    Great news! I think that physically active people like you do much better than average in recovering from things like your surgery - you're so active and moving anyway that PT isn't really all that useful as you're doing your own. Hope you're back in the saddle again soon (when you're ready).

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  4. Great news to be sure! Congratulations on being a superstar. Hope the car only needs the check engine light turned off and it's nothing major. I'm sure Chance will come around soon if it's an abscess.

    Again, great going with the new knees. You'll know when it's time to ride and when you're ready. Good idea to have a friend handy for the first few. I'm really impressed with how quickly you've adapted to the new knees.

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  5. Wow Jean - this is so good to hear! I am not surprised that are ahead of the curve - you are a very intelligent, realistic and determined person. All who read this blog are sharing in your excitement tonight!

    I sure hope the abscess resolves soon - maybe your car has one too.

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  6. Hooray! Awesome news about your knees. Hopefully all the rest resolves itself quickly!

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  7. WOOHOO!!! Well done Woman! Horse people are tougher than others or highly motivated and determinated.

    Well done!
    I hope you enjoy your nice massage. And what a pearl that Doctor is. Really good approach of the patient!!!

    It is alos a great example of how we should be regarding our horses (or kids) when they are in pain.

    Inspiring!

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  8. Brilliant news, Jean!!!!!!!

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