Tuesday, November 22, 2022

Unexpected news.

 I have a bad knee. I've gotten used to having a bad knee. I have had it for many years now. I had surgery on that knee at least 4 years ago. It solved absolutely nothing, despite the assurances that it would solve absolutely everything. I just made up my mind that it is something that I have to deal with. "This is my life now. I have a bad knee."

When I look around at others, I see people with far greater challenges. I also have a high threshold of pain so it seemed like a manageable, minimal 'handicap'. As long as I was careful about how I set my foot down, the problem was not a big deal. 

Last month, Tim and I were unloading wood and we heard a child screaming bloody murder. It just went on and on. It was a school day. We kept unloading and the screaming kept on and finally Tim said, "We need to take a little walk and make sure that no one needs help."

So we set off down the sidewalk trying to pin point the noise when it happened. My left foot teetered off the edge of the side walk and left my right leg in charge. My right knee said, "Aw hell no, man," and gave way. I went down knee first on the sidewalk. 

It hurt something awful. I thought that I would throw up, it hurt so bad. Tim said, "Your problem is you don't pick up your feet." I didn't say anything at all. I got up and hobbled back to the house to get myself back in order. It was embarrassing, the truth be told. A neighbor was out walking her dog. Probably thinks I am a day drinker. 

Anyway. 

So for the past few weeks, I've been, once again, babying that bad knee. I can't kneel, which is a real pain when one has taken in a feral kitten who hides every single chance he gets. Sometimes it's okay. Other times it's awful. Tim rolled over in bed one night and bumped his knee against my knee and I thought that I would die. 

(Spoiler alert: I didn't)

It just didn't seem to be getting better and so I made an appointment to see my family doctor. Yesterday, I hobbled in to explain the situation.  She chided me for waiting three weeks, but she knows me. She pressed around until she found the place that hurt. 

"Yep," I gasped "that's it."

She continued to press around, trying to gauge the scope of the problem. 

"You've got it," I said. 

She made hmmmm, sounds and looked at me strangely, and said, "Right here?" 

I said, "Yes, that's it, Lindsey, and it would be just super if you could stop now." 

She laughed. I sort of chuckled.  

She explained that where I was having the pain didn't involve the knee at all. She sent me straight over to X-ray.  I texted Tim and drove over. I caught them at a slow time, so I was in and out quickly. 

The x-ray tech doesn't give anything away, but she did say, "When do you see Lindsey again?" I told her that I didn't have a follow up, that Lindsey would call me when she got the results of the x-ray and we would take it from there. "Good," she said.

I was starting to get suspicious.

This morning, I got the expected call while I was making my coffee. I have a leg fracture. 

Late edit: not broken. Orthopedic doctor not even sure what the Dr. who read the x-ray was seeing. I am pretty sturdy stuff but stumping around on a broken leg was quite a bit of a stretch even for me.

39 comments:

  1. Wow! Hopefully it is mendable with rest and not one of those requiring extra hardware.

    I used to have a bad knee too. I had two surgeries to fix it but it would still swell up and hurt after a long day at work. After decades, I finally solved the problem by quitting work. It now feels like it did when I was much younger and rarely swells up or hurts these days.

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    1. It is mendable, no hardware involved. I cannot tell you what a relief that news was. The osteo was not even sure what the radiologist was seeing.

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  2. You're a lot tougher than you realise Debby.

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    1. It was. I'm standing there at the coffee maker listening to them tell me 'no weight bearing'. It did not make sense to me since I have been bearing weight on it for weeks.

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  4. I think Tim is lucky to have survived having made that comment at that particular time. 🤓

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    1. He just pops out with the most helpful things at the most unhelpful times sometimes.

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  5. Ouch. Hope they can fix it soon ... and without pain.

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    1. Too late for the 'without pain', but I'm happy enough with the no serious damage done.

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  6. Sorry you have an injury. Glad you went to the doctor. Hope they can fix you up soon. Take it easy even if you don't like to, Debby!

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    1. Oh, I don't mind taking it easy. It would be a lot nicer if my knee didn't hurt.

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  7. Yikes! Have they said how they're going to deal with it? Do you need to be in a cast?

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  8. At least you know what is the matter now! Hope it gets sorted asap...heal well please!! xx

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    1. It's sorted. I'd do a happy dance except, well...

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  9. And all because you were worried some child might be in danger; I wonder what the fix for the knee will be.

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    1. No fix required. Maybe I'll take up day drinking to get through the discomfort!

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  10. A leg fracture--it's broken? You ARE tough! I agree with Anvil that Tim was lucky to survive making that comment at that particular time. :) Hope the leg can soon be fixed up.

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    1. It's NOT broken, and I'm as glad for that as I can be. Cara and Colin are coming over for Christmas, and I was just sick about the idea that my Christmas might be compromised.

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  11. Well at least it's confirmed you're not a day drinker. Seriously, hope you get the care you need and recover quickly.

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    1. How's THAT for quick? I walk into the Osteo's office with a diagnosis of a broken leg and walk back out without one!

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  12. The same thing happened to my mum. I'm glad you finally saw the doc and something will be done. You must have a very high pain tolerance. I definitely don't:) Hope it heals quickly.

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    1. I gotta say the idea that I'd been walking around with a leg fracture was a bit of a shock. I mean, yesterday, I was loading and unloading a stove from a truck.

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  13. Replies
    1. It's not, thank goodness. He said that it is a bone bruise at the head of the tibia, and that it should die down in another month or two.

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    2. Bone bruising is very, very painful. Take it easy and do as the docs tell you!

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    3. I can swear to the truth of that.

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  14. So after all that, the knee is still causing you the same pain.

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    1. Well, the pain from the bruise will ease back. What he did say is that I am moving from moderate joint damage to servere bone on bone damage. Once the inflammation from the bone bruise dies down, he suggested shots might delay the inevitable knee replacement. So THAT was good news. They offered pain killers, but to be honest, I've never taken a pain killer that didn't have some side effect. I will stick to my OTC stuff and wait it out.

      Such good news though. I was sick thinking that my Christmas might be screwed up.

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  15. Ack!!! Good grief Deb, at least you don't have to get a knee replaced, well, yet!! I sure am sorry you've been in this kind of pain. By the way, where was the screaming coming from?

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  16. I didn't notice. Tim continued on but it just stopped before he figured out where it was coming from.

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  17. Whilst reading xrays is a science it is not an exact science as a lot is open to interpretation. So glad you're not hobbling around on a broken leg although it does happen. A friend did it for a week before deciding to get it checked and then spent months in a leg brace. It does look like a knee replacement is in your future if you are bone on bone. I had one done coming up three years ago and I am so grateful I did. They have much better outcomes these days.

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    1. My brother in law is very happy with his. I will delay as much as possible though.

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  18. Jeepers! How about buying an MRI looksee and see if some connective tissue is ripped around. Glad you could hobble back into the house. (I hate to ask, but what happened with the kid who was screaming? Did they hurt a leg, and your leg provided sympathetic pains?) Linda in Kansas

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  19. Never did find that out. The osteo guy twisted the knee this way and that and made the decision to skip further diagnostics. I am okay with it.

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  20. Wow! You do have a high thresh hold of pain. I hope you have a rapid recovery.

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    1. When you are a mom, you learn to overlook stuff.

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  21. Thank goodness it wasn't broken. You are really amazing. I agree with Red. You must have a high threshold for pain. Ouuuch! If it were me, something would have broken.

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I'm glad you're here!

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