4 Days Until 4 Months (post-op)

This Friday will mark 4 months since my surgery. For anyone new to this blog, I tore the ACL in my left knee on April 11th (for the second time) playing women's football and had surgery on June 5th. Since I had already used the patella tendon in my left knee, I went with a hamstring graft from my left leg. Originally, I was comparing everything from this rehab to my first rehab, but now I think I can throw all comparisons out the window.

Sure, the first few weeks showed similarities- lots of quad-strengthening exercises like straight leg raises, which then progressed to leg press and squats. But looking back to my first injury and surgery now, I feel like I am way ahead of where I was 12 years ago, even though 12 years ago I was about to be released at this point in my rehab. I contribute that to the extra knowledge I have acquired since then. 12 years ago, I was a high school sophomore that knew nothing about knee injuries. Now, I am a 6 year-veteran coach with 2 degrees in physical education/sports management. I am much more aware of what I should be doing as far as rehab. I remember 12 years ago, going to PT three times a week, but doing NOTHING extra to supplement the rehab. I was just focused on getting released to play softball as soon as possible. And, that I did, between 4 and 5 months post-op. I was pretty impressed with that, due to the little research I had done on the infant internet back then. Everything said 6+ months to return to sports.

So here I sit now, approaching the 4 month mark of my second surgery. Everything I have read now says that 2nd ACL reconstructions (revisions) are not nearly as successful as the first time around. That doesn't scare me one bit. That just makes me more motivated to come back even stronger. Knowing so much more about ACL reconstructions this time around has kept me motivated with my rehab. For over a month now, I have not been to see my physical therapist. Instead I have been doing my workouts on my own- working out 5 days a week instead of the 3 days a week I was going to PT. At this point, I know I am much farther ahead in my rehab than I was 12 years ago just due to the fact that I am more aware of what I should be doing, and I am actually doing it!

I had two different doctors for my 2 surgeries. This contributes somewhat to the rehab protocol as some doctors are very aggressive with the rehab and others are conservative. I'm not quite sure how to compare my two doctors, as I think alot of it has to do with my maturity level. The goal of my doctor right now is to get me back to playing football so I feel like he is treating me like a hard-core athlete- like he would treat any high school football player that he operated on. So in that sense, I feel like he is very aggressive because I know his heart is in helping young athletes return from injury. On the other hand, there were some things he was very conservative with- like bed rest for 5 days following surgery, to the point of sending a physical therapist to my house so I would not have to be up on my leg. After my first surgery, which I spent one night in the hospital, I was up and at physical therapy the next day. I returned to school less than a week after surgery. I know my doctor this time around would never go for that- one of the reasons I waited until school was out to have surgery.

In other words, I think there really is no comparison in the two surgeries. I was happy with my first surgery and recovery. After all, I had no problems for 12 years. I actually returned to sports at a higher level AFTER my first surgery and rehab. My 1st ACL reconstruction lasted through 2+ years of playing catcher in softball in high school, 3 years of catching bullpen sessions in college, 1 year of playing rugby, several years of playing recreational sports since then, and less than 1 year of playing women's football. Of course, I am hoping that this 2nd ACL reconstruction lasts the rest of my life and will allow me to participate in whatever activity I decide to take up next.

Everyone keeps asking if I am going to play football again. I can't answer that question right now. As good as my rehab is going, I still feel like I am a long ways from being 100%. I still have several more months of strength-building to go. I will not make a decision about football until I feel more confident in my knee. Sure, right now it gets me through my daily activities, but I need to wait and see how it feels once I am fully released from my doctor, which may be a few more months from now. Whatever happens with my knee, I know that I will take up an activity that will keep me active and fit, whether it be football or not.

So, looking back to 12 years ago, I was about to be released to return to softball. I am nowhere near ready to return to football. For now, I'll just keep working hard with my rehab, take things one day at a time, and see what happens.

Keep working hard,
QB13