week 1-6
D- day
I surprised myself and was incredibly calm the day of surgery. I had met with the orthopedist the week before which was all relaxed and nice and had confidence in the medical staff. The only thing I was excited about was how I would experience the pain, but I let that take care of itself. My father and sister were with me to the Bergman clinic and before I was picked up we had a good laugh and were relaxed. The moment I was alone in the recovery room, waiting for the infusion, I suddenly felt tension and was afraid for a moment but luckily that feeling went away. I had an epidural with an intoxication and this all went very smoothly. I had to cough a lot during the operation and therefore came out of my intoxication earlier. Found this a bit exciting, but the anesthesia assistant assured me that everything was okay. Was very strange to hear people drilling and doing things but not feel it. Then I was able to go back to the room quietly and have a little dinner and chat. I am extremely grateful for the nice experience I had, which eased the day very much.
Week 1-6 after surgery
The first week
I had surgery on Friday and stayed with my father until Sunday, with my sister. This was very nice and you can't do much yet. I had quite a bit of pain the first few days and it was very nice that they were able to help me. That Monday I saw the physio for the first time and the bending and stretching went very well, I could even lift my leg already stretched. I was given exercises to do at home and did them all as long as my knee and energy allowed. It was nice to finally start the recovery. I was given paracetamol, naproxen and tramadol and only took the tramadol the first few nights for a reasonable night's sleep. Without it I didn't sleep well partly because of pain and the fact that I wasn't tired.
The mental aspect
I had a pretty tough time despite the fact that the knee really went tremendously well and allowed a lot. I found it very difficult that I couldn't walk and run since this always helped a lot when I was mentally tied up. It was also quite heavy and sometimes lonely to train yourself to the limit three times a week. Yet I noticed that when I was training I could influence my own process and I grabbed that chance with both hands. I have an incredibly sweet sister who came to live with me to help me until I was able to function somewhat on my own. I had incredibly dear friends who brought cards, crazy balloons, favorite snacks/drinks and their lovely presence. Each time this was a way to escape the thought circles and have a good sober laugh again. In terms of my knee, it was the best start I could have wished for and, around that, a bumpy ride at times. It helps to just remember that you have to get through it and quitting is not an option, because that won't make the knee any better. Enjoy the process and how much you have already progressed.
Week 2-6
I was amazed at how much we could do at the physio and went to work out three times a week. The first two weeks were very tough because I was not allowed to put any weight on my knee because of a meniscus suture. We trained a lot of core and mobility. It was a relief that I could stand on both legs after two weeks. This allowed us to do other things with training, which is always fun. In weeks three and four I noticed that I was getting really tired of crutches, knowing that I was only about halfway through being able to walk on my own. During this period, I tried to focus mostly on working out and making sure that knee kept going as well as it was going. We were already training more core and hamstring and were already working hard on the BFR. The first three weeks I slept pretty badly, first because of pain from the operation and later because of a lot of stiffness in my knee which woke me up in the morning. I often couldn't find a position where I was comfortable, so I started reading or doing other things. Often I had to go to bed in the afternoon out of fatigue. In week five and six I was allowed one crutch at home, which was really great, because I could finally hold something again. Training is still going like hell and I'm training really hard to regain stability and muscle mass. The exercises are getting more challenging, think standing on one leg and throwing and catching ball against the wall. A day before the surgery was exactly 6 weeks ago I did another squat with bar, which was an immense milestone. I am also sleeping and eating better again which helps immensely with my energy.
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