Surgery Complete

Two days after the surgery and I feel great. I did have damage to both my lateral and medial meniscus (along with the ACL tear), but it was minimal and will have no effect on my recovery. It was the perfect case scenario so I thank everyone for their prayers.

In the preparation for surgery, I was asked 7 times what knee they were operating on. They made sure they got the right side! I remember the anesthesiologist injecting the nerve block into the back of my leg, but I was out by the time he injected the second nerve block in my groin region. When I woke up the surgery was completed and I had the big, bulky brace strapped to my leg. I could not feel my leg at all, it was weird.

Friends and family texted me all day asking how it went and how I felt. I was pretty out of it, but I had no complaints since I couldn't feel any pain. That is until about 1:30AM when the nerve block wore off. Thank God for pain medication though!

The surgery was on Tuesday and since then I have already made strides. The CDM machine is my new best friend. Since the surgery I have been in the machine for 10+ hours (and I'm in it as I write this blog). The machine forces me to bend my knee at the angle of my choice. Following the surgery, I felt pain going up to 30 degrees and was very hesitant going up. Just last night I made it up to 75 degrees!

I just got back from my second physcial therapy session as well. I have been doing heel slides to bend my knee and other exercises to strengthen my quad. I got to 30 degrees with my first heel slide on Wednesday. Today I got up to 70 degrees, and felt great doing it. On Wednesday, I needed the trainer to help hold up my right leg as I was doing leg extensions since my quads were so weak. Today, although it was painful, I was able to do them with minimal help.

My physical therapist said I'm already ahead of the game. I credit this to the pre-hab I did the weeks prior to the surgery and the fact that I started physical therapy the day after the surgery.

I have been blessed with support from friends and family. Packages, brownies, and phone calls have kept my spirits high. My friends came to visit last night and watch the Knicks game with me. That was great, except for the game itself. My mom has gone above and beyond and I cannot even begin to thank her for all she has done. I feel truly blessed, and I have a ton of motivation to keep pushing forward.

Thanks again for all the prayers and support. I'll just keep on keepin' on.

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