The Knee is Just Fine
My doctor looked at my Xrays, looked at my knee, and declared me just fine. "Go ahead and do anything you want and get back to riding," he said....with only my pain to stop me. He figured I might want to wait a while to ride again, but there was no physical reason I couldn't if it didn't hurt too much.
I love this guy.
His intern thought the boss would tell me to get out of the wheelchair, but the doctor himself said that if the chair helped, it was perfectly OK. He also said I wouldn't do any damage by walking on my leg either, so it was all up to me.
On the downside, he did say it would be probably six weeks before the knee would be fully healed. No biggie on that either because "Good" is rather relative at this point. I will definitely be walking on it with no crutches much sooner than that and then we'll be back to just stiff and sometimes a little sore like the right knee is now.
As to the ligaments...I was 100% right. The anterior and posterior cruciate ligaments are gone (my ACL was gone anyhow, so that's no loss) but the medial collateral and collateral ligaments are there and I probably strained the medial collateral (Inside of the knee) in the fall. Everything else is perfectly funtional and my knee bends and straightens just fine. The rest of the pain is either from bruising or interior swelling, as I figured.
I was easily able to get down the two steps out of my house on my crutches and can walk pretty well on them, so I now feel able to get out and about on my own. Since it's my left knee and my car is an automatic, I can drive with no problem. I did have a friend go with me today since the drive was very long and I wanted the option of the wheelchair. Mark was a big help and we had a lot of laughs on the trip. Fortunately I had a minimal wait at the doctor's office and it took less than an hour for Xrays and the consult.
More later about my discoveries traveling about in a wheelchair. Despite claims to the contrary, "Fully handicapped accessible" is not exactly an accurate term. I have a lot more to say about this, but I will save it for a later post.
For now, I have the "all clear" to get into more trouble. (I'll try to be good, Muriel. *S*)
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That's very good news. Just try not to come off on your knee again . . .
ReplyDeleteGood news! I'm happy to hear you didn't do any real damage. I know you'll be doing things ahead of schedule again but please be careful.
ReplyDeleteGood news. I wish we could rate our doctors. He will get a 5 stars ^-^
ReplyDeleteBrilliant Doctor, becuase he is positive and heals you just with the positive mind set.
I hated (sorry strong words) when teh previous doctor told you that your knees were really damaged and that suddendly you stopped doing things you were doing before.
A doctor should be realiste but positive and give trust in the patient own abilities to heal.
Take it easy ... be good *grin*
Hugs
Whew thank goodenss for that!
ReplyDeleteC
This is very good news, indeed!
ReplyDeleteI won't waste my breath warning you to behave. What's the point of having bionic knees if you're not going to get into trouble, anyway? *G*
I am very, very glad to hear this! Now behave yourself and stay out of trouble!
ReplyDeleteSounds like you're doing pretty good, despite the fact that you have no major ligaments in your knee to support your knee of keep it stable or from swinging all over the place. I had no idea a person could, or would want to live a normal, self-sufficient life without those ligaments in the knee. I would be worried about stepping the wrong way and torqueing the knee. And not having the ligaments to keep your knee stable, might cause the leg to bend at an odd angle and put too much force on the tendons, muscles and even bones. The doctor hasn't suggested surgery to replace your ACL or PCL?
ReplyDeleteMy ACL injury also happened on my left knee, and it's been 3 yrs since the surgery, but I still don't completely trust my left knee to support all my weight, especially in fast movements, on hills, and even while mounting. I always mount from the right side and use a mounting block, too.
My doctor was pretty honest, while also being encouraging. He owns and rides horses, too. So when I asked if I could be riding in a few weeks, he encouraged me to keep up with my physical therapy after the surgery, but was also honest that it would take 6 months or more.
Sounds like your doctor is a positive thinker. Nothing wrong with that. But, please be careful and listen to your body most of all.
~Lisa
I'm just catching up... yay! good to hear! Hold back on the dancing for now though.
ReplyDelete- The Equestrian Vagabond