POP! Goes my other knee

What can I say?

It was deja vu all over again.

I blew out my left knee playing hoops last night at the Moro Lorenzo Gym.

I was in pursuit trying to stop a fastbreak layup when I landed awkwardly on my left leg, twisting my knee. I did get the spectacular mid-air block but I lost my knee in return. I swear I heard it pop just like I did three years ago when I busted my right knee, rupturing my ACL.

Then I started second-guessing myself. What if I just let him go? Maybe I should've let him get away with the game-winning layup and concede the game. But that's not me. Ten times out of ten, I will make the same play over and over again.

In a few days, I will find out how badly damaged my knee is. Right now, hope is bleak and it's looking like another torn ACL for me. That would mean another 6-9 months off the court.

I've no regrets though. I'd still make that play a million times over, in true Gonzy fashion.

Tough as nails

"You play like you've never busted your ACL. You always go all out and never hold back."

That's one of the best sports-related compliments one can ever get. Definitely appreciated.

ACL Surgery: 1 year after

It's been exactly one year since I had reconstruction surgery to my ruptured ACL. Initial observations pointed to at least 8-12 months of post-op rehab before I can play at pre-injury level. Lo and behold, 6 months later, I was back at full contact basketball.

I haven't been the best rehab patient. I wasn't that religious in going through my PT sessions. I feel very blessed, though, that I was able to recover and resume playing way ahead of schedule.

God is good.

Rehab + Supplements

I'm treating my current bout with knee rehab seriously. I just spent a couple of g's on dietary supplements upon recommendation from several people. They were saying that Glucosamine is good for the joints, cartilages and ligaments. Some folks were swearing over this product. Anyway, I hope these things do work.

Next on my list is a new gym membership. I'm looking to get this done by next week at the latest.

Cleared for ball

Took the day off from work today and will be out on Friday as well. Made the most out of today by seeing my orthopedic surgeon and having my knee checked again. Of course, I needed to tell him that I haven't been the best patient - not going through all my rehab sessions religiously and playing ball again without proper clearance.

Good news is that he officially cleared me to start playing again. He thinks I'm good to go (I thought I was good to go since May). But he stressed that I need to continue building up my leg strenght and endurance. I will try to be a good patient and do it right this time. But there's just too many leagues going on now so I'm not sure how I'll juggle rehab and ball.

Let's see how it maps out. I'm checking myself in a new gym soon.

Rehabbed

Had my last rehab session last night. It was undoubtedly the most useless session as well. I'm not even sure if the therapist assigned to me was a real therapist to begin with. It seemed like he didn't know what he was doing. He was asking for guidance from the other people there.

If it weren't my last, I would've walked out or requested for a different therapist. I'm going back to my rehab doctor tomorrow. I hope he clears me and doesn't send me back for another leg of therapy. Chances are, I won't go back anyway.

I just realized that my surgically-repaired knee is far from being 100%. I experienced some discomfort earlier as I played more games that I intended to. There's this sharp pain just above my patella and it's annoying as hell.

Need to get back the lift on both my legs. I have about four weeks to make sure I bridge the gap.

Light workouts

I participated in a couple of basketball scrimmages this afternoon for the first time after a long hibernation. Last time I was in a game was early September 2006, which was about 8 months ago. My ACL reconstruction was last November.

My legs are still weak and I had very little lift. I could feel the exhaustion on both my thighs after my second game.

I'm feeling good about my progress. I think I'm still on track.

Rehab: Day 1

I went to my first official post-op PT session yesterday. I was expecting difficult exercises but I gone relatively simple ones. The therapist told me that the doctor should've prescribed more complex exercises since I was an athlete back in the day. Regardless, my legs were hell tired afterward.

I'm up for two more sessions this week. I'm planning to finish the eight mandatory sessions by month's end.

Rehabbing

After five months, I finally went to my first post-op rehab session. I was able to sneak some time off work yesterday afternoon to go to Medical City and see my doctor. He said that while my leg strength is remarkable, it lacks muscle endurance and it will get easily tired. The biggest thing was that he thinks that I'll never get my full ROM back as there has been a pretty long lull between my surgery and rehab. There is very little chance that my knee will get to the ideal flexion and extension range.

Regardless, he thinks I should be fine. The next 8-10 weeks will be spent in the gym doing rehab work. Hope it turns out good.

Back to business

I'm reporting back to work tomorrow after a three week hiatus. I feel much better now as I can walk normally albeit slowly. The surgical wound is close to fully healing but there's still pain on the bruised areas. Stiffness is very prevalent. It's difficult to flex and extend my knee and leg. With proper rehab, I feel confident I'll regain full mobility in a few months. Overall, I believe I'm just right on schedule.

Anyhow, my gratitude and appreciation go out to the following:

Many thanks to my physicians, Dr. Mikey Bengzon (orthopaedic
surgeon) and Dr. Lea Montemayor (anesthesiologist) for a successful
operation.

The staff of The Medical City, especially my nurses for
the round-a-clock supervision.

My HMO, Intellicare, for footing the bill. I racked up
about 140 g's in total.

My manager, Joan and the rest of WFM for multitasking in
my absence.

My friends, colleagues and family for all the
encouragement and support.

I'm looking to get back to status quo, and it all starts tomorrow.

2nd week post-op

The doctor took out the skin staples on my knees earlier. He expects the incisions to heal in about a week's time. It hurt a bit since he had to take each of the dozen staple wires out slowly to minimize bleeding. There was a stinging sensation that lasted pretty long too.

My knee flexion increased to about 120 degrees. Doc said he expects full range of motion in about 6 weeks. He said I can only start strengthening rehab once full ROM is achieved. The basis of comparison is my other leg. In essence, my right knee should be as good as my left one by mid-January. That's a tough act, but hopefully rehab goes well.

Day 8 Post-Op

I went to the doctor yesterday for my eighth day post-op check-up. Feedback was mixed.

Here are the good points:
- I can drop the crutches and the immobilizer.
- I can put Tegaderm over the incisions which should make taking a shower a breeze. It used to be a bitch.
- He expects me to recover quick as my flexion is nearing 100 degrees after seven days. From experience, he says some folks need about thow weeks to reach 90 degrees.

Now the bad points:
- My skin staples need to stay another week. Damn, i can just imagine how painful it will be once he takes them out.
- The swelling and bruising will remain for about two more weeks.

Overall, I think I'm ahead of schedule. I'm starting therapy soon to regain my full range of motion. It probably will take me about 8-12 weeks to reach full leg extension and knee flexion.

4th day post-op

The swelling on my knee is literally going down as it's now on my ankles. It's known in the medical circles as ankle pumps. My knee is still pretty banged up though, as the bruises are still painful whenever I bend. I can now walk without crutches though I have to do it slowly. Flexion on my knee is about 100 degrees. I'm supposed to ge take therapy next week. Hopefully, I can start walking normally soon.

Stapled by a dozen

I cleansed my surgery wounds (by myself) for the first time this morning. All in all, I have one 2-inch incision and three small holes. These are punctuated by a dozen skin staple wires scattered among them.

Aside from the grossness of my wounds, they keep me paranoid of contracting infection. And it's not a good feeling at all.

Discharge

I just got home about an hour ago. I was discharged from Medical City this morning after three nights of confinement.

I can walk already with my crutches as long as I have my immobilizer on. The doctor also allowed me to bear weight on my right leg. I'll be doing knee bending exercises to help get my range of motion back soon. It's difficult but I think I'll be okay.

Last night

Tomorrow is D-Day. I'm getting admitted at Medical City tonight. Pray for my quick recovery.

Nov 29

That's the date of my ACL reconstruction surgery. I'll be admitted the night before. I've mixed feelings about it. I am excited to finally get it done. On the other hand, I'm scared something might go wrong. Thinking about the long rehabilitation process makes it even worse.

Trivia: It's Barbie's birthday too.

Goin' under the knife

I received word yesterday that insurance will be covering my whole ACL reconstruction surgery. Initially, Intellicare said that the surgical screws are not part of the plan, so they will not be able to cover it. FYI, these J&J-made screws cost Php 30-35k.

Now I only have to worry about scheduling my operation. I'm looking at late November as I probably need to take a couple of weeks off for recovery. December is not a hectic month for the WFM team so I think they can afford to let me take a break. Hmm... come to think of it, they do not have a choice. It's health over work anytime.

I wish Barbie could be here for my operation. It seems highly unlikely though as she still hasn't settled completely in Singapore. Going back to Manila that soon doesn't seem to be a good and practical idea for now.

I miss you too, bu.

an ACL injury is overrated

I was talking to a good friend of mine yesterday. He was a former soccer/futsal teammate of mine back in college. He moved to the States a few years ago, and is now residing in Orange County (Anaheim). Anyway, he was asking how I was upon learning that I busted my ACL. Told him I was pretty much alright, except for some swelling and sporadic pain. Also, I have very little range of motion which affects my mobility.

Our conversation led me to think and believe that an ACL injury is far too overrated. People think that it's all over once you tear it, and that it's like the Mount everest of sports injuries. There are people who think that someone who pops his ACL can't walk. I remember when Larry Fonacier tore up his ACL (and LCL) people were saying that it ends Ateneo's chances of winning in the UAAP. A couple of years after, Larry moves on to the PBA (with Red Bull) and wins the Rookie of the Year award.

An ACL injury is not the worst sports-related injury contrary to what a bajillion people think. It's not even a rare occurrence. I bet there's one dude who tears his as I write this. Also, I'd take several torn ACL's and reconstructions than PBA player Eugene Tejada's spine injury that paralyzed him from the neck down.

So don't ever go gaga over someone who pops his ACL. It's not as rare as you think and it's definitely not the end of his or her world either.