Almost 6 Months -- MRI pending

I like coffee. I really do. That has nothing to do with my rehab; I just thought I’d share that.

It’s been an unusual past week, week and a half. I experienced some minor discomfort in my knee, the first time I’ve felt something other than the occasional swelling and soreness. I don’t want to overstate the discomfort, but it was a somewhat piercing pain, like a little pinprick on the medial side. This is where my lesions are, though not where I felt pain pre-surgery. Hopefully it’s nothing serious. It didn’t last more than a few moments, and only a handful of times. I think I over-did a cardio workout last week. At least I hope that’s all it was.

Perhaps emboldened by the somewhat normal state my knee seemed to achieve, I did a fairly moderate cardio workout. I spent 15 minutes on the elliptical, followed by 15 minutes on the bike, followed by another 15 minutes on the elliptical. No break in between exercises, with the entire time spent at a level only a notch or two below what I used to do pre-surgery. Too much, too soon? Perhaps. I’ve since backed off, returning to a gentler level on the elliptical. The “pain” has since disappeared.

Now, I don’t want to suggest that by calling my knee, “normal,” I’m close to returning to pre-surgery levels. God, no. By normal, I mean I can walk around without people gawking at me like I was John Merrick. I still lack any athletic prowess, and occasionally resort to the “old man shuffle,” as a friend described my movements at a recent baseball practice. And I don’t see myself cliff-diving in Acapulco anytime soon. But I’ve now reached the point that I feel dirty for parking in the handicap spots. Is that progress? Or just a sign that I’ve developed a guilty conscience?

My knee continues to click/catch at random moments, sometimes even making soft clicks while walking normally. No pain or discomfort, though. And if I walk slow enough, or focus on walking a certain way, my knee won’t click/catch. I still start each morning with a lovely “popping” sound when I finally exit my bed. That’s just my knee waking up in the morning. On the positive side, the back of my knee – popliteus tendon? – no longer aches or pops. Anyway, I’m hoping the MRI reveals the cause of these noises.

Ah, the MRI. I enjoyed the cold comfort of the human test tube on Monday morning, laying perfectly still for 35 minutes. Jack FM – the radio station without DJs – provided the in-flight entertainment. Amazingly, the films were ready immediately after the MRI, though it’ll take a day or so to prepare the actual report. I review the results with my surgeon on Wednesday, exactly 6 months after my surgery. No need to speculate what the MRI will show. I’ll update later.

I suffered an emotional setback recently. Not a death blow. More like Johnny sweeping Daniel-san’s leg. My knee’s healed sufficiently that I can kick the soccer ball in the backyard with my 7-yr old. Nothing sophisticated. Just some simple back-and-forth passing, using my good leg 95% of the time. I tried teaching my son a few dribbling moves, but quickly discovered I lack the lateral movement even to demonstrate them. I’ve got 1-step range, and that one step is R-E-A-L slow. Very depressing. I hope this is only a temporary limitation, but I’m pretty concerned it’s permanent. I never imagined I wouldn’t be able to physically assist my son’s sports development. That’s extraordinarily difficult to accept. Hopefully my mediocre athletic abilities return over the next 12 months as the cloned cartilage heals.