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TKR Two (almost) matching knees at last!

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Oh, and one of the festival volunteer golf-cart drivers had her right knee done in March 2012 by the same surgeon who did both of mine--she's scheduled to get her left one done in March 2014 (that's how long the waiting list at Northwestern has grown. I suggested she ask him if she can get in sooner at Skokie or Glenbrook). He's no longer taking new patients, so we slipped in just under the wire!

Today my PT 'scrip expired, but seeing as how I took a 3-week break from it, I might inquire about getting authorization for several more sessions. Now that the swelling's down and the ROM's increased exponentially, it might be time for a bit more strengthening & balance work.

Wednesday night is erev Rosh Hashonah. So L'Shana Tovah (a good and sweet year, with virtual apples & honey) to all!
 
Was so busy getting ready for Rosh Hashonah yesterday (and had only 6 hrs. sleep the night before so couldn't take my Arthritis Formula time-release acetaminophen yet when I awoke) that I realized last night when getting my night & morning meds together that I hadn't taken them--just used some Bio-Freez on my back. Last night I wore one of the two new knee-length dresses I bought at Target a couple of weeks ago--and it hangs on me. Felt a bit nervous about not wearing pantyhose--it was still hot out and besides, I'd been a slacks-or-long-dress-and knee-his gal for two years when it came to dressing up. And I was nervous about my scar grossing folks out.

But no problem. Hem covered my scar. Used my slim hiking cane rather the big bronze disability one when walking from the parking lot. (Opted for reserving a spot in the temple lot, since the remote lots require using school-bus shuttles that are murder when it comes to descending their front stairs). Needed that cane during services because my seat was an armless chair and while we Jews don't kneel during prayer we certainly do a lot of standing and sitting (lather, rinse, repeat).

Cheated on "dead-animals-and-leaves" last night because it is our custom to celebrate "a sweet year" with challah bread (baked in a round loaf to symbolize the circle of the cycle of a year) and sliced apples dipped in honey. Not exactly low-carb. But it was worth it!

This morning, for services I wore the other new dress (just a different color). But it wasn't till I got out of my car in the temple's lakeside lot that I realized the potential error of my ways. The wind had shifted overnight, the temp. had dropped into the low 70s, and my dress was definitely fluttery. Made it through services (twice as long as last night) okay--lucked out and got an armchair. But had forgotten about our post-service custom of "tashlich."

"Tashlich" is the act of symbolically casting off one's sins by projecting them spiritually into pieces of bread and throwing them into open water, not only to expiate them but also in the hopes that bread will nourish someone (or in our case, the voracious seagulls that often caught them mid-throw) in turn. Hence the phrase "bread upon the waters." But I realized that one of my particular sins was one of omission--carelessly (without reading a weather report) donning a garment that threatened to re-create a Marilyn Monroe subway-grate-scene "Seven Year Itch" moment. I threw that particular piece of bread as hard as I could, despite the prevailing onshore winds guaranteeing it wouldn't get very far into the water, if at all.

It was then that I realized the value of quad-and-abductor/adductor strengthening PT exercises--I was able to keep my dress' hem successfully between my knees sufficiently to keep it from blowing upwards. (Also, those "uneven terrain" walks in rehab with my therapist came in handy walking along the shifting sands of Thorndale Beach adjacent to the temple).

The Lord works in mysterious ways indeed. Anyway, next week finds me worshipping Yom Kippur Eve in a small synagogue in semi-rural Jackson, TN because I will be playing at a nearby (Humboldt) guitar festival the next day. (That I will be performing and thereby entertaining and gladdening others' hearts is a mitzvah that I hope God will accept as partial mitigation of the sin of my not attending services on Saturday. But that's show biz. At least my rabbi says it's too soon post-op for me to be allowed to fully fast on Yom Kippur).
 
Sandy, thanks for sharing a bit about your religious traditions along with your knee journey. I enjoy learning about other religions and appreciate when people explain the history of those traditions.
 
Hi, everyone! It's the three-month anniversary of my LTKR and I can't believe how far I've come (though far to go as well). Tonight I am in a nice hotel (thanks, Priceline) in Mt. Vernon, a mid-sized town (but still small compared to most suburbs) in southern IL. I'm halfway down to Humboldt, TN (midway between Memphis & Nashville), where I'm playing Guitarfest at the Crown Winery on Saturday (and worshipping in nearby Jackson tomorrow night). It's a 5-hr. drive down I-57 from Chicago to Mt. Vernon; and except for a maddening number of construction areas (none of which caused traffic jams, just mitigated my lead-foot tendencies) fairly pleasant and painless. Nice non-smoking room, but I must walk the gauntlet through a corridor of smoking rooms. (Why do they ALWAYS put those nearest the elevator)? Cane did come in handy....for commandeering a baggage cart since there's no bellhop at this price point (3 stars notwithstanding). There is some sort of seniors-with-pets-convention going on next door: never saw so many cute dogs and kitties in carriers outside of Petsmart. Am heavily fortified with antihistamines, eyedrops and inhalers.

Had nasty crosswinds till just past Champaign-Urbana, where I briefly flashed back on a nasty spinout my singing partner & I had just south of there on an icy road buried beneath a rapidly falling snowstorm (neither of which had been forecast). We'd ended up flying off the road, over the shoulder, through a barbed-wire fence and landed in a snow-covered cornfield, without a scratch anywhere but on the bumper. A kindly state trooper came by and towed us back up on to the shoulder, smiling as he said "third one tonight" and advising us to pull into the nearest motel we could find, which we did (easily two hours short of Mt. Vernon). Our guardian angels were definitely working overtime. When we got to Memphis the next night (Mardi Gras), a friend of ours from Orlando drily quipped, "where I come from, people pay good money for a ride like that."

But right past that spot today, the winds died down and the threatening clouds parted. Sunny and in the low 80s the rest of the way. I stopped at 2 rest areas for the usual, as well as refilling my water bottle; plus a trip through the drive-thru at a Starbucks for a breve cappuccino (only my second cup of coffee since morning). Had a hearty high-protein breakfast so I didn't need to stop for lunch--subsisted on a handful of nuts, an Atkins bar and a couple of vending-machine pork rinds...which were SO spicy that I immediately threw the rest of them into the litter bag and guzzled half the contents of my water bottle. Made it down to the hotel's restaurant tonight in time for a nice low-carb dinner: grilled salmon (hold the bourbon glaze), steamed veggies and a glass of an okay Chardonnay. Friends, a word of culinary advice: lobster in Maine, bison in Wyoming, pan-seared brook trout in Idaho, prime rib in Omaha, steak in Montana, grouper in Florida, shrimp in Louisiana, ribs in Memphis, chili in Texas, bratwurst in Green Bay, pizza in NYC or Chicago and fried chicken anywhere you have to walk in, sit at a table and be served (or at a Morrison's Cafeteria anywhere down South)? All good. Grilled fish in a small, landlocked southern IL town....in a hotel sports bar? Baaad idea. Especially when the cook admits he's a burgers-and-wings kinda guy. (Almost went for the wings, but do I want to show up in temple and onstage with orange cuticles, especially after just having had a manicure)? It was as dry and chewy as a chicken breast. They good-naturedly grilled me another one, which was merely very overdone, but I decided to be just as good a sport. Looking forward to a nice big free made-to-order breakfast tomorrow morning (and hoping to get in a steak for dinner between checking into tomorrow's hotel and heading to temple....will fast at least from services to overnight).

And I have reached another milestone: thanks to low-carb, I am now 35 lbs. lighter than late Jan., and 50 lbs. lighter than when I had my RTKR in June 2012! (Tomorrow night I am going to attempt to don pantyhose. Wish me luck). Sunday I head up to Sparta for some more work in the studio all day Mon. and Tues. morning, and then head home. If anyone had told me a year ago (3 mos. post-RTKR) --when I could barely get around the river cruise ship without the elevator and struggled trying to do my on-shore walks on uneven legs--that I'd be doing this at the same point after my LTKR, I'd have sent them straight to the shrink.
 
Can't believe I made it through today! Skipped lunch yesterday and finished a big dinner (the "small" cut of prime rib was roughly the size of a side of beef) by 5:15 so I could dress and make it to temple before sunset. The temple, B'nai Israel of Jackson, TN, starts its service an hour earlier (7pm) than my home temple, Emanuel. My GPS was having a nervous breakdown and by sheer luck I made it there just as the setting sun was making it tough to drive. Lovely service, warm welcome, terrific people.

Decided to see if I could carry my fast the full 24 hrs--nothing but water, meds and black coffee (for my lungs and to prevent a headache). Amazingly, I did! Then headed up the hill for the VIP tent, where we were treated to some delicious wine and food pairings--all the grapes were estate grown here in TN! Seeing as how I'd fasted, I relaxed my low-carb rules a bit. (Back to dead-animals-and-leaves tomorrow). We'd played a couple of short sets during the afternoon (I played guitar, dulcimers and harmonica, and then guested on dulcimer & harmony in the evening concert during a set by a virtuoso uke player from Rome--what was more amazing was that the song was "Lawyers, Guns & Money"). What truly surprised me was that I didn't really need my cane for the undulating terrain--just the climb up from the stage through the amphitheater to the hilltop tent, and I wasn't even winded. Gotta credit the new knees and the 50-lb. weight loss equally. (Going downhill was tricky till I lengthened the cane and used it like a snow-bunny uses ski poles). All these years I'd been insisting that it was possible to be fit yet fat? I have to stop kidding myself--I'm much fitter now that I'm thinner--but still technically obese. All the more reason to keep losing weight!

My singing partner was getting tired after that so we headed back to our motel--we each have long drives north tomorrow, though his is longer than mine. I managed to score one of only two Jacuzzi-tub rooms in the place, and darn it, I wasn't going to leave without trying it out. Never mind that my previous attempt at a tub bath was two nights before my LKTR--the first time I'd tried kneeling on my not-quite year-old right knee, and the first tub bath at all I'd attempted since 2006! (Four food-and-wine pairings instilled a bit more confidence than usual--or was it just bravado)? Filled up the tub, turned on the jets, climbed in, lowered myself down and had a long, lovely soak. Before I got too relaxed to exit safely, I turned off the jets, said a little prayer, got on all fours and--kneeling instinctively on my new left knee--stood up in one easy motion! Getting out was a tad tricky, what with the tub edge , tiles and me being equally slippery; but I sat, swiveled, and managed to "hit my mark" safely on the bathmat. So on my bucket list of home improvements, I can cross off "walk-in tub" and substitute "two-person Jacuzzi."

There was a jam going on in the room next door and I was tempted to join, but I didn't want to get dressed again and haul my instruments out of the by-now-cool car trunk. It stopped just as I began to type this, so that's my cue to hit the hay for tomorrow's early checkout and drive up north to Sparta. Stopping first at the winery sales room, of course. (Sangiovese, Chardonelle--a clone of Chardonnay vinified oaked and dry but full-bodied with a caramelly bouquet that will go great with both sautéed soft-shell crab and creme brulee--and a beautifully balanced methode champenoise sparkler). Actually, move the Jacuzzi down a notch on the bucket list, and get a decent dual-zone wine fridge! Hoping to hit some farm stands on the way north tomorrow--my hosts don't drink, but some fresh tomatoes and peaches would be a nice gift (along with espresso beans from home).
 
Hi Sandy, it is 2:48 here but can't sleep so was cruising Bonesmart. I guess you are on a different times zone. It sounds like you are really enjoying those new knees! Loved to her your hot-tub success story! Sleep well! Joyce
 
Loved your successful journey and kudos to you on your weight loss. I too, have been losing weight over the past year albeit slowly. I've kept off about 30 lbs., hope to match your 50 lbs eventually. I'm not trying to do it quickly, but slowly with healthy changes in amount and type of food. I was able to get in and out of our tub but I did kneel on my non-replacement knee to get out. I walked all over Navy Pier yesterday, and the non-replacement knee was the one who was hollering, so it made have to be done next year.
 
Thank you Dulcimer Diva. While awaiting my surgery I have read your entire thread and am so grateful you wrote about wellbutrin and alleve and nsaids. My primary doc INSISTS I stay on wellbutrin although I have complained about it. My ortho doc wants me on aleve and tramadol, etc. I never told one about the other and of course never read the warning given with prescriptions. No wonder I have felt so ill. Anyway, because of your posts i now know a lot more and will inform each doc. I am also from the Chicago area.......but I too am from the southwest side (Garfield Ridge, Oak Lawn, all of the Palos') and have been very happily settled in the Palm Springs, CA area for many years.
Your journey is inspiring. I hope mine goes as smoothly and positively as yours has. :) :thankyou:
 
Hi sandy. I am also Jewish and loved reading your holiday stories. I see your partner is from Madison. I live in Waukesha wi. Do you ever perform here in Milwaukee.
 
Oh My!!!! Madison, WI.....we had a summer cottage near Fort Atkinson, Lake Koshkonong (also did summers at Lake Geneva and Powers Lake and Rhinlander). IMO, lakes in the Wisconsin, Minnesota area are some of the most wonderful and although I am now near the ocean to me it just does not have something that the lakes in the midwest have. Even though I do love the ocean the lakes in the midwest are so beautiful and calming.
 
Hi Sandy Dulcimer Diva! I like your thread. It was fun to read and showed that one can have ups and downs and come out well after the TKR. I forgot the @ when I answered your post on my thread a week? ago. So here: "I saw those claw marks on the tarmac at SEA when I went by there a couple of years ago! Well they might have come from when the infrequent snow plow dug a little deep. We had this amazing ice storm a couple of years ago. I too love it here! We lived near the Fox Valley (IL) in the late 80s right before my husband retired from the navy. He was stationed at Glenview NAS. I wish I'd known about the festival - love music festivals. We lived in Great Lakes navy housing. Now that I'm retired (and becoming more mobile) maybe I can go to more festivals. I have attended some here and I probably haven't scratched the surface. The ones at Seattle Center are too big."

Enjoy!
Linnae
 
Hi!
Tweet25, I'm hoping to get either a house concert or a gig at The Coffeehouse in Milwaukee. Played the Bremen a couple of years ago, but even though we did well a noisy rock club is not for me (unless I'm playing bass in an equally noisy rock band)!

Crystal, one of my favorite places to play is Cafe Carpe in Ft. Atkinson. Don't get to do it too often, though, as it's in high demand by many folkies far more famous than I.

Linnae, Glenview NAS is long gone, having been replaced by townhouse/McMansion developments and upscale strip malls. Darned sight quieter without the jets landing & taking off, though. The Bumbershoot festival at Seattle Center is huge--and generally doesn't hire acts at our particular level of "visibility" on the acoustic music scene. We're headed out to the Bay Area in Oct. 2014 for a music conference, and will probably approach it from the north--probably playing at a winery in the Columbia Valley on the way there and maybe heading north through the Napa Valley on up the coast afterwards. But that tour is still in the "conceptual" stage.

Back to the LTKR. I asked a LOT of my knees this past weekend--walking through airports and shopping malls (Tysons Corner and downtown Arlington). Restaurant meals (though delightful for the most part) required much sitting with my knees bent for long periods of time, and I gave that hotel ice machine quite a workout. The "movie sign" never happened--we found a theater where the seats are great big cushy recliners with lie-flat back-and-footrests. Sunday was a tad more difficult, as the wine-and-food event we attended turned out to be so poorly managed that the lines for the wine and food stations were long and seating was largely improvisational (for the first hour we had to commandeer three chairs--two for seating and one as an impromptu table). Similar complaints abounded all over the place.

And when I got to Dulles, there was NO promised "fly-by" security lane that was supposed to be a perk of Southwest's Business Select fare and which had sped me through TSA at Midway (at least according to the chart on the website). I stood in line nearly 20 minutes. No cane (it was packed, folded, in my carry-on). But amazingly, I didn't set off the TSA alarm--seems the agents who operate the rotary body-scanner machines are trained to recognize orthopedic hardware and bra underwires. Did score another exit row seat, though I did get the fish-eye from the other 5 occupants, all of whom were over 6' tall. I didn't let on WHY I at 5'3" needed the legroom, lest I be deemed insufficiently fit to assist in the event of an emergency. And I walked all the way to baggage claim (where Bob met me after I fetched my other two suitcases) and then to our car in the parking garage. He dropped me off at our favorite neighborhood restaurant so he could park in our garage with my larger suitcase safely locked away out of sight of prying (and potentially thieving) eyes, We walked the quarter-mile home, no problem (after killing off a bottle of champagne between us because we weren't driving).

So my left knee is letting me know it's not done pestering me just yet. The skin feels kind of tight over the scar, though my ROM is as good as before my flight. I am noticing a bit more pain during the night when sleeping on my side with my knees bent, but not enough to keep me awake any longer than it takes to roll over and let my sinuses drain. My left quad is aching a bit too, as much as it did during the 2 weeks I was on a statin, so perhaps the statin was not to blame. But what I am noticing mostly is an occasional very sharp, almost burning, "zapping" pain along what is probably the line of my subcutaneous incision. Proves that nerves can reawaken even this long after having been cut. Nothing that makes me want to take any more analgesia than my usual twice-daily pair of Arthritis Formula Tylenol and my half-tab of Norco 5/325 at bedtime.

And with our holiday album release being delayed yet another year (thanks to not enough time for new photos and decent graphic design--but we will be giving DJs and venues a limited-run sampler called "Yule, Shmuel" at a couple of folk conferences this month and next), the expected promo gigs never materialized. So I'm doing the Bar Show again this year. Hope I can still get that coveted 3rd floor dressing room reserved for us oldsters. That's plenty of stair-climbing (especially seeing as how the green room and orchestra pit entrance are in the basement). I have once again been excused from having to do any REAL dancing.
 
Tonight is the eve of my LTKR's 5-month anniversary--what a difference 6 weeks makes!

My pain relief is now limited to a pair of 650-mg. time release acetaminophen at bedtime and 12 hrs. thereafter. Only if insomnia hits do I reach for that half a Norco 5/325--and as often as not, it's just a single Target brand diphenhydramine, a/k/a generic Benadryl, instead. I haven't filled an opioid scrip since late July!

When last I posted I was 50 lbs. down and had just dropped a bundle on a Chico's shopping spree. Well, within a couple of weeks even those clothes (their size "3") were getting a tad roomy. Had fun going through Target, Chico's again (now a "2" mostly, but was able to fit into a size "1" swing jacket), and a couple weeks ago the sales at Carson Pirie Scott and Ross Dress For Less. Wearing a pair of size 14 jeans as I type this--and all my jeans are either straight or "skinny" and now have zippers (not at the ankles) and sit below my waist. My "mom jeans," as well as all my size 2X, 3X, and 18 thru 22s are now either in my housekeeper's church's "clothing bank," en route to my sis (only the colors she prefers to wear) or going into a box tonight for donation to Typhoon Haiyan's victims. Oh, and the official count since my RTKR? 60 lbs.! Not only that, but I'm 1/4" taller than last year, thanks to my left leg being made the same length as my right during the course of the surgery.

One unfortunate side effect, though, is that my derriere is somewhat deflated. In other words, my twerk don't work. (Yes, I've written the song). Still trying to get used to working a zipper and waistband button when I go to the loo: can't just latch the stall door and "drop 'em." Made for some interesting moments at highway rest areas of late. But the cool thing is that I can honestly tell people I wear a size 2…..only if met with extreme skepticism need I mention it's a Chico's size 2 (equivalent of a std. 12-14, but after all those years of 3x and size 22, I'll gladly take it). Sadly, there's still nothing at Victoria's Secret that fits me (at least not above the waist). My bra size can still be mistaken for really bad arena rock concert seats. Still need to bra-shop at Intimacy, or online from Bare Necessities or FigLeaves.com. But I did get a huge discount at Intimacy for donating my old too-big bras.

About those highway rest areas: in the past 3 weeks I've taken long-distance drives to two Folk Alliance regional music conferences: first, FARM (Midwest) in St. Louis and then NERFA (Northeast) in Kerhonkson, NY (at the last remaining Catskill Mts. "Borscht Belt" resort). In fact, just got home from that one at dinnertime tonight--welcomed by 1/2" of snow on my deck and porch, but a good couple of hours before the black ice set in. Drove solo to & from FARM and in tandem with my singing partner to & from NERFA. Biggest challenge at both conferences was not to my knees, surprisingly; but rather to my diet at those brunch & dinner buffets at the meetings, and terrible motel breakfast bars (if we were lucky, there were strange reconstituted eggs or rubber omelets) en route. Laid in a supply of Atkins bars, as well as strawberries, celery sticks, and string cheese. Had my little espresso machine (a Nespresso, which fits in a tote bag) with me so I could be sufficiently and palatably caffeinated to go fetch coffee in the mornings. (Don't get me started about hotel-room coffeemakers--and the Catskills resort didn't even have them). The knee-recuperation gods were kind to me: ALL my hotel rooms at both conferences (and en route to & from NERFA--FARM was only a one-day drive each way) were within a few yards of the elevator, and in totally non-smoking hotels!

We're well into rehearsals for the Bar Show. I'm in 7 scenes (two of which are separated by a very brief number), so I'm already mentally plotting various locations backstage where I can stash bits of clothing for quick costume changes. That's the most challenging part of the show, IMHO--even more so than the two flights of stairs to & from the dressing room. Meanwhile, the choreographer has remarked how much more fluidly I'm moving, and she's putting me downstage for the group numbers instead of hiding me in the back with the halfhearted arm-wavers. No deep knee bends or kicks, though (whew--dodged THAT bullet).

So I'm about to shed my sneakers, pull on my UGGs, sweep away some snow and scatter some ice-melter. Wish me luck!
 
What a fantastic post and well done on your huge weight loss. And you're even taller. What a bonus. It does encourage people to read such positive posts as yours and see what an end result can be. So good luck and good to hear from you


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I agree with robynhood. Congratulations on the weight loss and the great recovery. Your update helps those of us whose surgery was after yours. It is inspiring.
 
60 lbs is great! Sounds like you are having a great time. I'm here at 11 weeks postop and wondering if it will get good enough to go downstairs and ride my bike in a couple of months by my next postop visit with OS (Jan 7), or will I want to go the arthroscopic route. Too early to worry about that yet... I do have energy to audition for the Bremerton Symphony (2nd violin please) on Thursday. You pay to join them, not vice versa, so maybe I'll be good enough. Practicing some Mozart excerpts. I need to look back on your thread when you were 11 weeks postop and see if I should hope for something similar by 5 months. Can you ride a bike? Linnae
 
So good to read your post! I know you've been busy....then again, you always are! Drive through your neighborhood when we head north to Evanston for football games since Sheridan is messed up. Glad you're doing well. I scarcely give my knees a thought any longer, which I never thought I'd say. Have made it through airports and even went to the movies yesterday. For way too long I was unable to sit in one position long enough to see a movie. Congratulations on your weight loss....that's something I have to get back to!!
 
Had what I hope is only a minor setback tonight. We were rehearsing for the Bar Show, but at a large conference room in the CBA (Chi. Bar Assn.) bldg. because we don't get the theater itself till Dec. 1.

We were running Act I and re-choreographing one of the production numbers. I was supposed to sort of scurry from upstage right to downstage in a crowd, but this time re-blocked to end up way downstage center next to the number's soloists. Worked great the first time, but the second time the choreographer suggested we act a bit more "windblown"--twirling and reeling as if buffeted by a blizzard. Consequently, there was a traffic jam en route and before I could hit my mark, the pileup knocked me off-balance and down I went. (The floor was carpeted and I was wearing oxfords with thick rubber soles--inertia is powerful). Everyone knew my orthopedic history--heck, I'm still afraid to sit on the floor--so after I was helped back up on my feet they kept asking if I was okay. I assured them I was. (Half the cast also asked if I needed a lawyer). Didn't want to seem like a wuss, as our vocal director (having gone through two foot surgeries in three months) was doing the entire show--including performing--in a cast-boot and moving faster on crutches than most of us do unaided (and she's a year older than I am).

At first I was sure I'd injured only my dignity, so I brushed myself off and the number continued from that point. But the next move was to move quickly across to stage left. Before my tumble I had been able to trot quickly in rhythm (while holding a high C) and still get there in plenty of time. But this time as I moved I noticed twinges in my right knee, and stiffness and what felt like "rug-burn" in my left. (I was wearing denim skinny jeans, sort of a giant Ace bandage, so I doubted the skin was broken). Faked my way through it okay, as I did for the remaining numbers.

At the break about an hour later, I ducked into the restroom and discovered that despite the pain, there was neither swelling, bruising, nor abrasion. Popped a couple of Extra-Strength Tylenol; I'd had my morning time-release 650s at least 8 hrs. prior and I figured the new ones would wear off in time for my bedtime dose of 650s.

But I did the math and realized that'd put me at 3600 mg. for the day, which is more than the new recommended max of 3000. When I got home, after several rounds of Bio-Freeze, icing & elevation, I asked Bob if just this once I could take an NSAID plus a single Norco at bedtime (bringing my daily APAP total to 2625 mg, only 25mg over my normal intake and still being less than 3000) and he said that was a great idea--just resume my regular regimen of time-release acetaminophen on arising. He also gave me the go-ahead to cut a Flector patch in half and put a piece on each knee directly over where they hurt.

Now, I'm pretty sure nothing serious is going on. Nothing seems to be loose (although my right knee feels a tad weak, the implant still feels intact). I no longer have ACLs to tear, and I felt nothing rip; so I'm pretty sure there's nothing more serious than a strain--a sprain would have manifested in swelling if not also discoloration. I'd thought of messaging my OS, but he recently retired (he & his wife just got back from two weeks in Tahiti) and I'd have to be seen by one of his partners. Lord knows I don't need the radiation from more X-rays--just had a full dental set last month--and I don't have the time for an MRI.

Hoping "RICE," anti-inflammatories, and tincture-of-time helps. Tomorrow we run Act II, which involves choreography that resembles organized walking-and-gesturing more than it does actual dance. At least no scurrying, scampering, pliés, trotting or stationary bouncing (not jumping) on tiptoe. Last thing I want is to have to do the show using a cane (although I do play a geezer in one of the numbers). One performer on crutches is bad enough! Wish me luck.

And those of you who've taken spills post-surgery and come out okay, please let me know!!!
 
Hi Sandy,

I fell for the first time last August, so 20 months post op. Fortunately I didn't land on my knees. I landed on my elbows as I shocked through all the rotator cuff which took a few weeks to settle down, as did the bruising in the elbows. TKR didn't even swell. Then I fell again almost two weeks ago in a shopping mall. This time the outside of my knee ached for a couple of hours, but not enough to stop me shopping!

Lets keep fingers crossed that you've merely aggravated soft tissue that will settle down very quickly.
 
Thanks for the reassurance, Margaret! Best I can recall (it happened so fast, and I was hauled upright even faster) I think I landed not on my left knee itself but on the outer thigh. What worries me a bit more is that the bottom of the fourth toe on my left foot grew increasingly sore over the evening. Didn't think I'd fractured it because it wasn't red, swollen or twisted and I was wearing sturdy closed shoes and socks; but Bob looked at it about 1 am and said it definitely looked bruised on the bottom. So now it's "buddy taped" to the middle toe so that I can continue to walk on it tomorrow....when absolutely necessary.

Toughest thing was to not feel sorry for myself when I got home and "treat" myself to a no-no. But I thought it through and realized that:
1) Ice cream, candy, fries or cookies don't have the power to heal an actual injury; and
2) The process--after eating junk comfort food--of insulin release, glucose and fat storage doesn't come to a screeching halt just because one is injured, depressed or anxious. Neither does metabolism ramp up in response thereto.
So I had a decaf espresso and little square of bittersweet chocolate, did an extra crossword puzzle, and breathed a sigh of relief that I'd rescued myself just in time from the kind of dietary "magical thinking" that wrecks many a figure (including mine in years past).

Jean, I thought of you when I heard about yesterday's twister hitting Frankfort, just south of Tinley Park. I have a friend in Frankfort--nobody on his block lost so much as a roof shingle; yet three blocks south, the tornado flattened everything in its path for nearly a quarter-mile. Hope you're okay. Called my engineer down in Sparta, since there was an elderly couple killed in New Minden, just about 30 min. NE. His current house, & studio (and mom-in-law's mobile home down the street) were unscathed--as was his ancestral home (a huge brick house that his wife turned into a B&B) and farm about a half mile away. But he & his wife were headed up IL-4 to a concert in Mascoutah and had to turn back because they couldn't stay on the road. He reports having seen pickup trucks off on the shoulder, their drivers having given up trying to plow a straight path through the winds. And he also saw a huge array of dead blackbirds--about 75 or so. Probably a flock caught in a downburst. We had some wrought iron chairs hurled to the opposite side of our deck, but not even any broken tree branches. And a bit southwest of us (in the city), there's a church steeple tilting precariously, causing a half mile of a major arterial to be closed until the steeple is either braced or topples.
 
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