The Timeline of Hidden Truths, Footprints-style!

The dreaded ACL injury.

For those of you unfamiliar with this knee trauma, like what an ACL even is: AMAZING!!! This tells me that you have never had any encounter – – personally, socially, or through the grapevine – – with this devastating knee injury. And I hope you never ever have to experience what it feels like, both the injury itself and the lengthy recovery! But my story will certainly give you a perspective on this joy-filled phenomenon.

Insert <sarcasm> here, with a good ol’ eye roll for good measure!! 🙄 🤣

And yes, that is a grapevine…get it???? 🙃

Moving on……

For those of you who have heard of the ACL and are familiar with how common of an injury it is: CRINGE-WORTHY KNOWLEDGE!! Perhaps you have participated in sports and have witnessed fellow teammates suffer an ACL tear. Maybe you have seen an article somewhere that called an ACL Tear “the Godzilla of injuries.” Because it is a monster to go through.

SIDE NOTE: Yes, this is a real article, in case you want to check it out: https://grantland.com/features/derrick-rose-rob-gronkowski-rise-acl-tears/

Thank you, Neil Gabler, who wrote this article on Dec. 10th, 2013, ONE MONTH after I tore my left, and first, ACL. Such a coincidence and an enlightening article that I definitely read too late in the game. Pun intended…cuz it’s a sports article! 🤗

Back to our chat: Or just maybe you love watching sports on TV and you have seen players succumb to ACL injuries OR perhaps you are involved in Fantasy Football and you see how crazy-often players tear their ACL’s and are out for the rest of the season…. Whichever way it is for you, you understand that a torn ACL is complicated and potentially a season/contract/activity- ending scenario. That you can get rebuilt and make a comeback, YES, but it takes everything you got and then some, especially when returning to a sport.

STORY TIME: It’s terrifying how prevalent this is in football, seriously! I remember three years ago, I was in a Fantasy Football League for the first time (and majorly winning!!!) and then ALL of my amazing players started getting ACL Tears, one by one. And I do feel their pain, trust me, and I even get a strong visceral reaction whenever I hear the words “ACL Tear.” However, I went from first place to fourth place by the end of the season and I was SO disappointed!!!!!! 😫But I digress…🤪

Now, for those of you nodding your head through all of these thoughts because you, yourself, have had experience with a torn ACL, be it from the past or right at this very moment, I say to you: HOLY SHITAKE, I TOTALLY GET IT!! You maybe have had a front-row seat to your own knee, popping like an over-stretched rubber band, or maybe actually feeling the bones in your knee shift out of place, OR trying to stand up and realizing that you can no longer hold up your body weight due to the instability in your knee….It all sounds awful, doesn’t it? It most certainly is. BUT you and I, we will get through this. And even if your injury was years ago and you feel past it and no longer affected, I truly hope that my story and what I’ve learned can still help you remain strong and successful. So you all can live your lives as fully as possible, regardless of the injuries you may have now or even the memories (or hauntings) of past injuries or traumas that you might still be carrying with you. Perhaps unbeknownst to you, thank you, Brain and the Subconscious Mind.

See, I have already mentioned that I have a long list of knee injuries under my belt, and that list isn’t even done yet! And hidden in this list has been vital information (or hidden truths) that I had to learn myself along the way because no one informed me until it was too late. Information that could have possibly prevented four out of the five surgeries that I have had. Of course, I will never know if things could have been different. Maybe, as we speak, I would be dancing another contract somewhere and still living that dream, you know? It is pure speculation and hindsight for me, as to what “could have been,” had I known then what I do now.

But it doesn’t have to be too late for you. I hope you can all learn from me, though my mistakes, failures, and the lack of information presented to me, what to do and what not to do. To be your own advocate and take the time to understand your body and your injury so you have an idea of the protocol that is best for you.

That is my wish for you:

To be better at handling this injury (or any traumatic injury, for that matter) better than I did and to be prepared with this vital information at your fingertips so you’re already 10 steps ahead of where I started. So you can have a smooth and successful recovery so you can return to your life and the things you love to do as soon as possible. So you can make sure that you’re holding yourself accountable to a strength/stretching maintenance program or routine ON YOUR OWN – – – To make sure that this injury doesn’t return and that the overcompensation often created doesn’t affect your opposite knee (or opposite injured site) as well some day….OR that this overcompensation doesn’t create dysfunction in another part of the body, seemingly unrelated, but NOT because EVERYTHING IS CONNECTED.

Once that gets realized, it changes EVERYTHING. Because everything truly is connected, from the tips of your toes to the crown of your head. And BEYOND……. sounds mysterious and intriguing, doesn’t it??? But that’s possible ‘food for thought’ for another day. 😊

✨💫✨💫✨💫✨💫✨💫✨💫✨💫

Before I sign off on this post, I thought it would be important to show you the blueprint of my own knee surgery timeline along with accomplishments that I still managed to achieve despite them.

Why is this important?

Well, only a select few know the extent of my knee surgeries and what they were for. This is another example of those “hidden truths” that I mentioned on the title of this blog, since I have never been so open about my knee struggles, until now. The information I will share might very well be surprising to those that know me.

Also, in order to make it ‘Footprints-style,’ it is important to show that I was still able to move forward and accomplish many self-rewarding and unforgettable feats, even if the odds seemed totally against me. And it is also meant, with high hopes, to inspire any of you experiencing a seemingly never-ending pain or recurring injury, to KEEP GOING. To remind you that you are not a hopeless case, no matter what you have been through, and that there just might be a reason, an explanation, an idea, A BLOG, and/or a new path waiting for you that you haven’t considered yet. Something that will give you hope and make all the difference. So, please be kind to yourself, always have your own back, and never give up on yourself.

Now, without further ado – – – – – – –

MY TIMELINE OF HIDDEN TRUTHS:

November 2013: SURGERY #1 – Left Knee ACL Reconstruction (allograft or donor graft)

October 2014 – February 2015: Returned to my dance career for a 4.5 month cruise ship contract!

March – June 2015: I challenged myself as a runner. A 6-hour race, the Buffalo Half Marathon, and I participated in a series of 5K races! (I won numerous medals for continuously coming in First Place in my Age Group, leading to my First Place Trophy at the end of the series!! It was very exciting. And Twilight-Zone-eerie because I never experienced anything like it before…👽👾🙌🏼)

July 2015: I was chosen for a cruise ship contract that was highly competitive! It was very exciting but it turned out to be my last one.

September 2015: SURGERY #2 – Right Knee ACL Reconstruction and Meniscus Repair (allograft or donor graft)

April 2016: SURGERY #3 – Right Knee Scar Tissue Removal (debridement, synovectomy…huge clean-out procedure)

May 2017: Completed the Buffalo Half Marathon (my third one)

Early July 2017: Completed the 15K Boilermaker Race, Utica, NY (my third one)

End of July 2017: Attended the IDEA WORLD Fitness Convention in Las Vegas, NV

August 2017: Completed my first Tough Mudder at Kissing Bridge (A ski resort near Buffalo, NY) ***Things did not go well, we’ll just say, but I did finish it. I always loved the sound of these challenges, like the Tough Mudder and Spartan Races…and though we COULD (and maybe should) call this a (huge) regret of my life in many ways, I was still proud that I never gave up.

October 2017: Completed my first Marathon in Chicago *** I was unable to run, due to a left torn meniscus (and a half-torn ACL that was discovered later….*cough-Tough Mudder-cough*……so I walked/jogged the race in 6.5 hours. One day I will train hard and run a marathon FOR REAL!!

December 2017: SURGERY #4 – Left Knee Meniscetomy (Removal of a torn piece of meniscus) *And the discovery of my then half-torn ACL Reconstruction

February 2018: Travelled to Naples, Florida for Stem Cell Therapy on both knees – – but main focus was on my Left Knee, to hopefully strengthen the remaining half of my ACL.

March -June 2019: Hiked almost 550 miles of the Appalachian Trail

Summer of 2019: Discovered that I had re-torn the remaining strand of my ACL along with the Medial meniscus in my Left Knee. (Not on the trail, thankfully…but due to an unfortunate encounter with a bench off trail plus my remaining half of an ACL being incredibly fragile by this point)

November 2019: SURGERY #5 – Bone grafts and clean-up in my Left Knee

TBD 2020: SURGERY #6 – Left Knee ACL Reconstruction and possible Meniscus Repair (ACL Hamstring autograft; using my own tissue)

WAKE UP, NOBIE!!!!!!!!

I promise that I am quite finished with sharing my timeline. Did you happen to notice the very roller-coastery track that I have been on?? Lots of high moments and plenty of loooooow moments. And now you know, both of my knees have had ACL Reconstructions and I am in preparation for a third round of an ACL Reconstruction in 2020. This Godzilla injury is a big fan o’ me!!!! 👀 😱😣🤓😛

AND SO, my journey continues to master this ACL recovery, implementing all of the things I have come to learn and realize, and KNOCKOUT Godzilla, once and for all!!

Thank you so much for following along, even if you only skimmed it and checked out the pictures. I understand and I totally appreciate you all for being here!! Details to come on all the ways that I went wrong and how I shall correct these things moving forward. We gotta power through the obstacles and keep those Footprints moving!!!!!!!! 👣

NEVER GIVE UP ON YOU………..

AND CLAIM YOUR EARNED VICTORY!!! – – – The aftermath of your perseverance, resilience, and 110% effort.

All we gotta do is BELIEVE! 💪🏼💫👣✨🙏🏼

❤️🧡💛