Post surgery: Three weeks on...

It's been three weeks since the surgery and I feel that things are going well. I have graduated to a single crutch to help with walking and weight-bearing but I could pretty much limp about around the house.

To give a bit of background about what brought about the injury and subsequent surgery, my knee popped during a takedown session in class around late January from a botched outside trip that I tried doing. I have re-injured the same knee when I tried to come back two weeks after from a poorly executed single leg takedown from my training partner. MRI findings showed a torn ACL, MCL and meniscus. Several months of physiotherapy failed to address the pain and knee instability (knee gives way 1-4x a day) and I was referred for arthroscopic knee surgery.

As perverted it might seem, I was actually hoping to go under the knife, sooner rather than later. I have read several literature regarding ACL injuries and most have said that these type of injuries tend to develop more complex and chronic knee problems further down the line if no surgical intervention was made. Physiotherapy can help with strengthening the muscles around the knee but will not heal a torn ligament. Furthermore, having a partly-working ligament means that the other structures around it works harder to compensate for the loss/decrease in function, and could lead to other injuries.
Going for surgery means longer time off the mats but at least I will come back healed and stronger and less worried about the state of my knee, like a ticking time bomb. In any case, during the surgery, the surgeon found out that my patella has a full chondral lesion (grade 5 tear), as well, which could account for the pain in front of my knee that I've been suffering, too.

The doctor gave me a month off for rest, recuperation, and initial rehabilitation. Rehab exercises started the night after the surgery and have been doing them 4x a day. I must say, these exercises are a  b*tch. I never thought that raising a straight leg off the floor can make you cry out in pain. Good thing is I have made friends in the first two weeks of rehab. They are called Codydramol and Ibuprofen. They have been very supportive during these trying times.

Next time, I'll write about how I've been keeping myself busy.

Catharsis

Hey

Been a long while since I have posted something in this blog. Things were a bit busy at work and at home, so wasn't able to find time to sit down and write.
In any case, I find myself at home, off work for a month due to knee surgery, so here I am.
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I think that one of the reasons why I stopped writing was because I could not think of a great topic to write about that the reader would find exciting and thought-provoking. At the start, I had these grand ideas in my head about how I am going to talk about great things about jiujitsu and maybe even do a bit of instructional (snorts!) here and there.
But obviously this blog isn't what I thought it would be and now that I think of it, I'm fine with that.
From today, I am just going to write what's on my mind, be it random silliness or something thought-provoking. No pressure, no deadlines.
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Like this blog, I started jiujitsu feeling all motivated and obsessive. New gi, new rashie, coolest gadgets, seminars, etc. But then, my motivation waned. I lost interest and it started to become a chore. I wouldn't admit it. I thought I was just being lazy. Then work got busy. My motivation and energy was refocused into something else - something I thought was more important that my hobby. There was a time when jiujitsu became a constant thing that I did thrice a week. Then I started missing classes. I tried to go back to the normal routine but then I got injured. I kind of lost steam. One injury after another left me with thoughts about the bigger picture. I can't have a debilitating injury that could affect my ability to work. There are a lot of great things about jiujitsu and doing jiujitsu but there is one thing it can't do (to me, at least), it can't provide food on the table for my family.
Don't get me wrong. I am not quitting jiujitsu. The fact is, my seven year-old daughter has been going to jiujitsu classes now for several weeks. All I'm saying is, I need to get my priorities straight. I will still do jiujitsu because it's fun and it's part of a healthier lifestyle for me. No more obsessions. From my experience, I can't have my motivation to be shooting up 100 miles an hour only to have it come crashing down like before. I want it nice and steady. No pressure. Just flowing with the go.
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