i expected something like this.
yesterday, after getting home from my semi-annual dental cleaning and inspection, i received an unexpected phone call from my knee surgeon. this was good because in my nervous anxiousness in anticipation of my consultation i totally forgot to ask all the questions i’d written down for the occasion.
he tried so very hard to be tactful, for which i told him i was appreciative, but the gist of call was to tell me that i’m too fat for the ACL reconstruction surgery.
it seems that he’s been thinking about me and my knee and talking to some colleagues who have more experience operating on obese (there, i said it) patients. there are logistical concerns which come into play when the knee to be operated on is two or three times the size of an average joint. you see, they don’t yet make super-sized surgical tools for this particular operation, therefore, it would be more difficult and dangerous for him to attempt to rebuild my ligament because of my size.
needless to say, that is exactly what i was afraid of going into his office last week.
but, because i am tenacious and determined, i peppered him with questions and determined that he could still go in there and clean up the mess in my meniscus which would eliminate half of my current knee troubles. then, once that’s all healed up, i could start a weight loss program — complete with exercise i can’t currently do — to drop enough weight to allow him to go in to fix my ACL. he even said he’d give me a prescription for a very spendy space-aged knee brace to help support my knee until it’s operation-ready.
overall, it’s not an entirely dire situation. i knew surgery and recovery would all go smoother if i could drop some weight first. honestly, i was surprised he didn’t seem at all phased by the idea of operating on someone my size. i expected him to say something like “come back when you’ve lost fifty pounds” (which, ironically, he basically said last night) and shoo me off to find some way to do it with a broken knee.
so, instead of one surgery, there will be two. instead of being fixed by this time next year, it may take an additional year to be all repaired. but, there is a plan and my doctor is willing to work with me to get me fixed, even though it’s harder for him, for which i’m thankful.
now comes the hard work. but not until i’ve had my cake. ;)
I’m sorry about the news. I didn’t realize they took size into consideration, though I suppose most people I know who’ve had ACL reconstruction (like me) are those annoying fit skinny people who go hiking mountains as often as authorities allow and make the rest of us feel so lazy.
In some ways it might be good for you to get especially active with the bad leg before the main surgery: my big mistake after my surgery is that I stopped going to physio once I was walking again, but not before I was fully healed. I couldn’t afford to keep going, not that that should’ve stopped me, because this resulted in hip problems and back problems due to favouring the bad knee and getting my body out of alignment. I’ve had to work really hard since then to get my body in a non-chronically-painful state, but if I stop exercising some of the problems reemerge. So yes, pre-surgery exercise is a good idea, and should prepare you for all the boring-ass post-surgery exercise you’ll have to do.
Good luck with all that.
I am sorry to hear that. It must be frustrating. But am glad that you’re not giving up.
We will always be there to help you out. Let us know what we can do. You can always come work out with me, although I don’t think my workouts are as nutty as what you’re used to with Col.
love and miss ya! :)
Way to go for deciding to take what he said positively. Good luck, and let me know if there’s anything I can do to help! *hug*
I’m glad there’s positives with this..and definitely we can refire CFC. We can always hit my pool too as I’ve been thinking about doing more low impact exercise.
I ranted and then I deleted it. Then I ranted again, then I deleted that.
If it’s *your* choice to put off the surgery until you are at a better weight, all the power to you and I can’t wait to cheer you on. If you truly want the surgery now and feel that is a better option for you, I’d get a second opinion.
I’m not all crazy pro-fat girls or anything, just larger than you with a realistic understanding about the added risks with being overweight and the additional damage that can be done to a knee while waiting for surgery if it’s truly bad enough to need surgery in the first place. I’m also dealing with my 4th orthopedic surgeon and my weight hasn’t been an issue with any one of them. I just personally wouldn’t take no for an answer, IMHO.