Things are starting to get exciting!!! I have made it past the FOUR MONTH point of my left ACL Reconstruction Revision process!!!
Do you know what this means???!!!!
Don’t you worry!! This is not a test and I’m going to tell you the answer! 😉 BUT FIRST, a quick backstory:
SO, this is one interesting rehab for me. Mainly because there are so many moving parts and factors that need to be considered as I tread lightly down the recovery path.
First, my left knee is the most-recently-surgeried knee and it has a track record of four total knee surgeries, including two ACL Reconstructions.
Secondly, my RIGHT knee has a bit of a track record as well, which includes two knee surgeries, including one ACL Reconstruction.
Ewwwwww, right??!! That’s A LOT of stuff.
Thirdly, a couple weeks before my surgery in March 2021, I had met with a doctor that does PRP injections. If you are unfamiliar with this therapy, it is a method that uses the plasma in your own blood (Platelet-rich Plasma). The plasma is extracted from a blood sample and then injected into the site of injury or concern. It’s supposed to accelerate the healing process of musculoskeletal problems, using the body’s own healing capabilities.
Which sounded amazing for my abused knees!!!! So I thought, “why not look into PRP injections for BOTH of my knees,??” since perhaps they could benefit positively from this treatment. It’s good to be proactive, right?!
WELL, this doctor kept telling me that it only has a 50% effectiveness rating, which I actually knew because I did my own research, and he also kept reminding me that it is a pretty pricey out-of-pocket therapy, which I already figured was the case. 😐
Something this doctor did NOT realize was that if this treatment had even the slightest chance of helping my knees, which seems to be the case since it is 50% effective, I would still pay for it, for that minimal chance!! Which is why I was there in the first place, you know?? He seemed to be deliberately pushing me towards the “not worth it for you” direction, which I found mighty perplexing. 🤨
And then he performed the usual “knee check” on my left knee – – where the tibia is pulled forward to test the endpoint of the ACL. Of course my left knee had no endpoint, hence the fully torn ACL, and he was super shocked at how lax the joint was. 🙄 AGAIN, massive eye roll because what did he expect??
AND THEN came the kicker. He did the knee check with my right knee, the one that HAS a full, uninjured ACL in there, and he immediately asked me, “are you sure this ones not torn, too???”
😠 Really, Doc??!! You, too, with your unhelpful, destructive, and misguided words and opinions?! I was not amused. So, I left and DEFINITELY did not go back to see that guy and I never did look into PRP therapy again, come to think of it. (I wonder why!!! 😝)
I was in a funk for a while over that one – – it’s not something you want to hear when you’re about to go through your THIRD ACL Reconstruction on the opposite knee from the one in question!! And then I met with my remarkable and down-to-earth surgeon for one of our check-ups. This is when she explained my knee situation in more depth. Here is the story:
The knee is a compact joint and designed to handle a lot of load and stress. It’s where the tibia and the femur come together, it has four main ligaments to help protect the knee from shifting too far in any direction, and it has two menisci to assist with cushioning the joint and shock absorption. And the reason an uninjured knee is tight and compact is because of all of these factors put together.
SO, when a knee starts to get repetitively injured, like my knees, where there are meniscus trims and ACL Reconstructions, the knee naturally loses some of it’s tight and compact qualities. There becomes more wiggle room, if you will. And that means that the knee joint(s) will always feel more lax than an uninjured knee, even if the ACL Reconstruction is 100% perfect and the knee is doing great. And that’s because the structure of the knee is altered by the drilling done to the femur and tibia bones along with the brand-new ACL tissue that is never quite the same as the original. THEN, you tack on any outside damage, like the meniscus trims that I mentioned, and again, the knee joint gains slightly more laxity.
Mind you, this was apparently my reality even before having my left ACL Reconstruction Revision in March 2021. So now, after that ACL surgery, I am now VERY aware that I have knee joints that are more lax than they should be, even though I can’t feel it….and I’m super aware that when someone performs that darn knee check on me, I’m gonna hear about my “lax knee joints!” 😛 I guess that is just where I am now with the culmination of all of the injuries that I have endured and how they affect the integrity of my knee joints.
Sounds kinda depressing, doesn’t it?? I think so, too. But WAIT!!! There’s more and it’s about to get really good!!!! 😃😃😃
Now, when I entered physical therapy post-surgery in March 2021, I was told that returning to the activities that I love and enjoy were mighty questionable, like running and dancing. It was hard to say whether my knees could support my weight like they used to do when doing those higher impact activities. And the only way for me to know was to bide my time in PT, follow all of the protocols, hit all my strength targets, move well with good form, and wait until I could get to the point of rehab where we could slowly and safely test out my knee…….
WELL, that just so happens to be NOW, in MONTH 4!!!!!
And so, here are a few things that I would love to show you from Month 4 of this recovery road so far!!
First, my strength is slowly returning, little by little!!
Secondly, my physical therapist started to give me some drills to execute on the Agility Ladder, to train my knee for quicker reaction times and ultimately prep the body for some plyo (jumping) and some jogging…..hopefully! 🤞🏻
THEN, I was given a teensy bit of plyo to do….and it went pretty well!!
AND THEN CAME THE TRUE TEST. Jogging. This very morning, my physical therapist asked if I wanted to try a little jogging on the treadmill. Mind you, this is the first time that I have considered jogging in over two years!! And of course I said yes!!!!
Wanna see what happened?!?!?!?! ⬇️
And I was so thrilled!!!!! My knees didn’t love it but they also did not collapse or feel unstable so I’m taking that as a major win!!! 🥳 It would appear that jogging is in my future and I am ecstatic!!! 🤸🏾 We shall see if running and sprinting will join jogging as a future activity of mine one day……And then link up with dance eventually as I move along and see if that can be added to the mix in some way, too. YAAAAAAAY!!!!!!
As you can see, I am a big fan of Month 4 and how things are going so far!! And I wonder how far I will get by my next update for you….maybe in 6-8 weeks or so!!! I will hopefully have many exciting things to share with you then – – since that will be around my 6-month point in the recovery process and potentially the halfway point of my full rehab!!!!!
Please remember this, you phenomenal beings:
Even when the odds may seem totally stacked against you, miracles, success, and positive results can still happen. The most important part is that you try and find out for yourself. You may truly surprise yourself. Along with those faulty odds!!!!! 😉😃🤩😍👊🏽🔥❣️❣️❣️