For the past eight years or so, I have been struggling with a bum right knee. I did an MRI on it and I have a torn meniscus, but it’s a root tear, not a regular tear. It’s made it hard to walk. I can go about 1-2 miles and then my leg hurts so bad I don’t want to move. Not that my diet has been spectacular Covid and post-government enforced lockdown but not being able to walk has helped my body gain too much weight. I need to lose about 20-30.
I tried PT and it didn’t help. I have done yoga for years, and it helps a bit. I also weight lifted and it didn’t really help but my left leg is noticeably stronger than my right.
Anyone who’s been around me notices the limp.
I don’t have a lot of luck with the doctors of Las Vegas. The last big issue I had, I wound up with a terminal illness diagnosis (IPF) but it was only running humidifiers in my house. Of course, doing the pre-op for this surgery, the Doc in the box told me my EKG was an Afib. I told him I had done a cold plunge at 55 degrees for 12 minutes and had four cups of coffee before the EKG.
I went to a cardiologist who said I was fine, but no more cold plunges.
Today, we are flying to lovely Chicago and I am going to the guys at Rush. I have had a lot of friends go to Rush for hips, knees, and shoulders with great success. My friends who have done ortho stuff in Vegas have not had great experiences. I thought about going to LA or Phoenix but I don’t know anyone there.
There are a ton of great reasons to live in Las Vegas.
Two of Las Vegas’s biggest downsides are the lack of good medical care and the state of public education. The Nevada Democrats killed school vouchers because they are simply shills for the Teacher’s Union which doesn’t entertain the idea of capitalistic competition.
Once the surgery happens, I am six weeks on crutches. No weight bearing! I am not nervous about the surgery at all but I am pretty nervous about what happens next. I will be in Chicago for a couple of weeks and then I fly home. I don’t think my wife is thrilled about that either.
Don’t know if I will be up to a meet-up there or not. We will see!
The amazing thing is you start physical therapy right away. The Rush guys sold me an ice machine I had used before and those things are revolutionary. We do have a really good PT place in Vegas. Bryce Harper and a lot of pro baseball players go there.
I am hoping to get back to regular blogging and doing some other writing while I am laid up. It really helps me think through things, and I really appreciate the interaction in the comments which are generally thoughtful and pretty good. This is true even when I disagree. It’s rare they are disrespectful. As I said, my house has been chaotic for the last six months and this summer was pretty crazy with two dogs in 625 square feet too!
No golf for a while and my wife will totally control my diet. No wine or drinking for a couple of months either. When we had our kids she was on bed rest, so I think she’s looking forward to a little revenge.
Update:
Dr. Chalha and I post-op. He’s headed to France for a vaca soon. I gave him a restaurant tip.
Thank you very much for all the comments. I really appreciate the support. I am grateful to the people that come here and interact. This blog is free, and I intend it always to be free. There might be some pay-for options in the future, but they won’t be blog posts.
The community that we are building together here is pretty neat. I will try and keep up my end of the bargain. Someday, it might turn into something else. You never know. Maybe someone will meet someone and an opportunity will be created. It happened to me on another blog. Aaron, Jeff, and William know.
The surgery went well. In and out in 40 minutes. Dr. Chahla said it went well too so that’s a good thing. I am now in a brace for six weeks. I keep the thing elevated, pump my ankle, and have this great Breg Polar Ice machine hooked up. I feel pretty good, though my nerve block will end sometime tomorrow so we will see! I am learning a new skill. I have never had to walk on crutches before. The people there were great.
My wife has been a champion. She’s done so much for me that it underlines the “for better or worse, in sickness and in health” line from our wedding vows. I have a hot nurse. She is taking a well-deserved snooze while I write this.
For those who are young and thinking about getting married, here is my advice. Marry your best friend. No doubt at the beginning, you will lust after your partner but lust changes and life changes. But, if you marry your best friend you will always have all the physical things that go with a marriage, but you will also always have a constant conversation with a person you trust more than anyone else.
I have given that advice to a few classmates/friends from my Chicago Booth MBA class, and from what I can gather they certainly did that. Their lives are so much fuller for it. They are truly happy people and their spouses riff off them like a jazz jam that never ends. It’s a pleasure to be around them. Too often, people these days feel like they have to have their ducks in a row. I absolutely did not. I didn’t have a duck and I didn’t know what a row was.
Marry. Have kids. Don’t be fearful of it. I am staying in my daughter and son-in-law’s building. We rented an apartment here for a couple of weeks. I am happy they were able to secure that opportunity for us since it just makes these two weeks go smoother. Laugh, cry. Do all the things.
The best news I received today though is that one of my longest and best friends (we met the summer before fifth grade and still text every day) had a very successful heart surgery today. That made me very happy.
I've heard Italian Beef sandwiches help the healing process...
I had exactly the same surgery at the same place, perhaps with the same doctor, almost 2 years ago. I was hiking in the Rockies 8 months later with no problems - until I tore my rotator cuff and bicep off the bone lifting a suitcase. I give my orthopedic surgeon a lot of business. You are in the very best of hands. I would not go anywhere else! Keep using the ice machine, even when you don't think you need it anymore. And stay away from suitcases.