I started back with my regular work schedule the same week we put the clocks forward, and in retrospect that was not a great plan. I am so, so tired. I’m doing okay, but I am so tired. I am eating a lot of sugar. (And protein! I know to eat plenty of protein! But also really a lot of sugar.)
Tomorrow I will be nine weeks post-knee-replacement-surgery. It turns out that post-surgical status, like pregnancy and the age of new babies, is counted in weeks, but I don’t know how long we keep doing that. The physical therapist is still counting it in weeks; I saw the surgeon last week and he was still counting it in weeks. (But I wish to avoid being the knee-parent who says their knee-baby is 37 weeks old.)
Although, interestingly/irritatingly, when I saw the surgeon I was one day shy of 8 weeks, and he said I was 6-7 weeks. I was not inclined to keep arguing the point, but what happened is he came into the room and said “So let’s see, you’re about 6 weeks post-surgery?,” and I said “8 weeks tomorrow!,” and he said, “No, the surgery was January 9th [the surgery was in fact January 7th], so you’re 6-7 weeks.” Okay! I mean, even if the surgery had been January 9th, which it wasn’t, I would have been 7 weeks 4 days, but I’d already corrected him once. He took a little video of me straightening the knee and bending it, and walking a few steps, and his voice recording on that video said I was 6-7 weeks, but I was actually nearly 8 weeks. Then he had me bend my knee, and he measured it before I was ready, and he said it was 124 degrees, but I’ve been consistently bending it 134-136 degrees in physical therapy, and ONCE even got it to 140 degrees.
I complained richly to the physical therapist about all this, and she said my surgeon has a wonderful reputation for his work in the operating room, but not so much otherwise. Which we both agreed is the way we’d prefer to have it, if our surgeon can only have a wonderful reputation in one area. BUT I WAS ONE DAY SHY OF 8 WEEKS, NOT 6-7 WEEKS. She also said that what he was looking for was that I could bend it at least 120 degrees, since that was the 6-7-week goal, so he probably didn’t even find it relevant that I could bend it more. She measured it for me, even though she hadn’t been planning to do so on that particular visit, just so we could both look at the 136 degrees and feel a little huffy about it.
Honestly your physio sounds like such a LEGEND. Maybe it’s worth the poor social skills of the surgeon (as long as his actual surgical skills are top notch!) if it’s a trade in to have an empathetic and on-your-wavelength physio, as she’s the one you have to see so often and be vulnerable and frustrated with?
I spoke to a lovely lady on Monday while I was out walking my dog – I commented on her patella brace, she told me she’s having a knee replacement at the end of the month, and we chatted about my knee reconstruction surgery almost 11 (madness!) years ago and the recovery. She’s dreading her op, but we talked about short-term acute pain vs long-term debilitating pain, and I told her I can now run and hike and dance without instability or fear of dislocation.
I do remember how frustrating that medium-term recovery was – it was only 5-6 months later that I could run again and feel relatively normal, and I was a young fit 30 year old. And the scars hurt for a long time if it was damp. But longer term? So worth it. And it sounds like you’re doing brilliantly with the physio and rehab.
Well, I guess that you and the physio are right – you’d rather have a good surgeon whose kind of dopey when not in surgery. But still, how annoying.
TIME CHANGE SWISTLE I AM SO TIRED TOO
Well, I guess it’s better the PT has people skills if only one of them can, but it would be nice if they both did.
Congrats on your progress.
I mean, it is WILD to me that we are discussing a DOCTOR getting the date wrong of a SURGERY when talking about RECOVERY and we are just like, oh well, he’s a good surgeon! Why oh why can’t men be both, FTLOG?
Seconded!
This is so annoying! I empathize completely with wanting to get the time frames and measurements correct, and with not wanting to repeat yourself. UGH.
Surgeons are ridiculous. I saw a weight loss surgeon when I thought my liver diseases had gotten much much much worse (turned out no, it was an MRI overread) and he literally told me I was “screwed” without “massive weight loss.” THANKS
Anyway you and your PT are superstars!
I love your PT.
I once had a doctor’s appointment (the “you will be induced in three days” appointment) and I was chattering because I was nervous and the doctor was very condescending and dismissive and I will forever hold a grudge. Anyway, I’m still mad and this is a) nine and a half years later and b) after she saw me afterwards and said “everything happened exactly as you said it would.” STILL MAD.