Sunday, March 1, 2009

A Message From Not-So-SkinnyGurl (aka Molly)


#1 Fan with #1 Dog
Hi, my name is Molly and I'm a PCL Surgery Survivor, too.

I never thought of myself as a stalker. Although I've had numerous unrequited crushes (movie stars, professional athletes, a few politicans, and then there was that bag-boy at Whole Foods), I've never acted on my obsession until now.

So, I WAS a bit surprised to find myself winging across country to visit our favorite PCL-surgery blogger. This was not my usual style, but I was certain she needed me. I was concerned she would never run again, without my help. I wanted her to know that SHE WAS NOT ALONE ... she had a fan base that NEEDED her to run ... I knew that only I could help her.

How could I best profess my devotion? How could I make it all happen BEFORE the restraining order kicked in? Did I have enough frequent flyer miles?

I steeled my resolve with a couple of glasses of good wine and casually mentioned that I was up for a road trip. To my joy, skinnygurl said "OK, let's run."

My life had purpose. I'll let her tell you how it all turned out. Stay tuned for more PCL fun.

Molly

5 comments:

Skinnygurl said...

Molly thank you so very much for your visit. You are a great house guest and it was my pleasure getting to meet you.
The Lake run was awesome and words simply can not express how much our time meant to me.
Keep cycling! Keep marching and most important keep in touch!
Skinnygurl

Unknown said...

Molly - That's cool that you made it out there for a visit! Awesome!

Skinnygurl - Are you done w/ PT?
Did you have much pain when you went for the run? Was it recommended that you should wear the brace when playing sports or in the gym? Can't wait to get out running again too. The things we take for granted huh?

Just wanted to give a quick update of my progress. Its been three months two days post-op. So far I'm at 135. Laxity was measured at 10mm (other knee at 9mm). Working hard at strengthening the leg. Squats, lunges, bike and using the Therabands. Knee is still kinda swollen and a little bit of pain under the knee cap. Overall things have been moving along pretty well. Take care!!
Chris

Skinnygurl said...

Chris,

I'm doing pt at home now.

I was shocked at how bad my quads hurt after my run. My knee got a little swollen but mostly my quads were on fire for like five days. Acute onset muscle soreness. I'm not training just yet but I did want to try a run to see what would happen.

My one year post op is coming up on April 16th and that's when I can ditch the brace for good. It's only used to pivoting sports at this time although I haven't played basketball or anything like that yet. I'm way too chicken.

What I'm looking forwards to is this spring after all of this is behind me and I can once again be a gym rat. Keep something like that in your mind to stay focused and motivated, you know?

It sounds like you're doing great. The pain under the knee is what I experienced too. Sounds about right.

Hello everyone out there! Be looking for a one year post op message from me.

Take care and nice to see you Chris.

loripig said...

Wow, I just found this blog today and it has helped in so many ways that I'm not even sure I know how to say thanks appropriately. My story isn't identical to yours, but there are enough similarities that I can take some strength from your courage.
I had 3 surgeries in Jan. First on Jan 8th was a partial knee replacement. Recovery time was expected to be about 4 weeks. But due to some complications I had emergency surgery on Jan 14th to relocate my knee-cap. This included cutting both the acl and pcl, lengthening one and shortening the other. Recovery time jumped to 4-6 months. And then on Jan 24th they found an aneurysm in my popliteal artery behind the knee. I had emergency surgery again to repair that, which of course added to the estimated recovery time. At this point they don't know exactly how long it will take for full recovery. I had no idea what to expect for the 2nd and 3rd surgeries, but reading this blog has let me know that I'm not abnormal. It's been 90 days since surgery number 1, and 74 days since surgery number 3. I'm at 108 degrees ROM as of this morning (with therapist pressing very hard) which shocked me! I was 98 a week ago. So it looks like I'm starting to turn a corner. I don't use my cane most of the time now - only if I'm going to walk a lot (grocery shopping, etc).
Again, I just wanted to say thanks for sharing your story. It will help more people than you know.

Skinnygurl said...

Lori,

Thanks so much for leaving your post. I'm so glad my blog has helped you. Please update again with your victories as well as set backs. It's a long road but eventually the hard work will pay off.
Oh and wanted to say, if you think it would be helpful, feel free to share this blog with your rehab team. Maybe it could help others like us.