No Rest For Weary Knees

You take a lot of things for granted when you're younger.  At one time, the biggest issue for my knees was skirt lengths.  Now, I spend every day wondering how difficult walking, sitting, or sleeping will be for me.   It all dates back to one moment around 12 years ago when I slipped on wet tiles in my bathroom and tore the meniscus in my left knee.   An operation seemed to solve the problem and I was a very happy camper for many years. Then, trouble arrived.  It turned out that the operation that solved the meniscus tear set me up for future problems.  And the future is now.  My left knee hurts horribly all the time, leading to severe hip pain, because I don't walk properly anymore.  And my right knee hurts, because it feels lonely and wants attention too.  Actually, it's been overworked, compensating for the left knee. I'm sure there are many people nodding their head as they read this, because they've gone through a similar experience. 

My knee doctor (who hates knee surgery) tried all the non-surgical fixes: glucosamine and chondroitin, synovial fluid injections, cortisone injections, lidocaine patches, etc.   Finally, he gave me a prescription for vicodin.  It helps some with the pain, but mostly makes me very sleepy. So, I decided enough was enough and asked to be referred to an orthopedic surgeon.   I want an knee replacement. I want to walk like a normal person, ride my bike, take yoga classes, and go to Italy.  This Thursday I have an appointment with the surgeon, and I hope this is the first step in a more active, pain free life.

You may ask what my bum knee has to do with the fried rice pictured above?  Well, it was easy for me to make as I hobbled around the kitchen (the vicodin helped, of course).  And it helped rid my fridge of some gypsy bell peppers, as well as the last of my sugar snap peas.  That's the lovely thing about fried rice, it's so adaptable.  I've featured fried rice recipes before, one with wild rice, and this one, which was the model I followed for this post. 

If I can make it while limping around my kitchen, groggy from vicodin, yelling curses--think what you could do!

Comments

[Rosa]

I'm sorry to hear about your knee! I hope that you'll soon get surgery and live normally again...

That dish looks good! I love such recipes...

Cheers,

Rosa

[Kittie]

So sorry to hear you're feeling so bad. I really hope the appointment goes well and you're back to your real self soon :)

And I hope the fried rice helped cheer you up - even just a little :)

[Madam Chow]

I'm so sorry to hear about your knee. I've had a lot of injuries, and it's amazing how little thought we give to parts of our bodies until the stop working, Hope you feel better soon.

[Cape Cod Kitty]

Sher,
So sorry to hear about your knee issues, but I am here to tell you that you will LOVE your new knee. I had my right knee done almost two years ago and it is the best thing I ever did. Hip pain was gone overnight, and my leg is now straight! Feel free to e-mail me with any questions. I was back to work full-time at 7 weeks.
The other knee is bad now but I cannot commit to taking that much time off right now so I maintain it with exercise but it is unreliable.
I am sure you will have lots of great feline nurses to assist your recovery!
The best to you!

[Kalyn]

Get that knee fixed up and we'll go to Italy together!

[Patricia Scarpin]

I wish you all the best, Sher - I'm sure you'll pull this through. Hang in there, my dear friend!

[Lynn]

Oh, Sher, that knee sounds like a basketful of woe to lug around with you. I hope the surgeon has only encouraging things to say to you. Keep us posted!

[Deborah]

So sorry to hear about your knee! My husband is going through some issues with his knee because of an accident - he needs a replacement, but the doctors are trying to put it off because he is still so young. But this dish really does sound amazing!!

[Julie]

Knees really do seem to be one of the body's weak points, don't they? But the good news is that knee surgery really seems to help. Everyone I know who's had knee surgery was really glad they did it and wondered why they'd waited as long as they did to do it.

I'm sending you good thoughts for a quick and speedy knee surgery and recovery. (Also: your fried rice looks great!)

[Melly]

My husband feels your pain. He's had surgery on his knee..same problem. He also fell and tore his tendons in his left foot last year. Oh the pain!

He ices it lots....

Best of luck to you with the surgery. They can do so much now with knee replacements! Wish Dave would go back and do it.

[Emily]

Good luck with the surgeon appointment!

That fried rice looks AMAZING (in fact I couldn't stay when I visited your blog this morning because it looked so good it was making me so hungry!) Yum yum!

[Lydia (The Perfect Pantry)]

I'll keep my fingers crossed that the orthopedic surgeon can suggest a course of action that will give you relief from pain. I love fried rice too, because it makes everything in it taste so good!

[DaviMack]

Hope you feel better, and that you don't have to go to too extraordinary lengths!

[MyKitchenInHalfCups]

Here's looking for the orthopedic surgeon to have a knee solution and put you back on track for enjoying things again Sher.
Love the fried rice!

[RecipeGirl]

Oh ick. I hate when people have aches and pains. I have a similar situation with my elbow (broken a few years ago and now is starting to bug me.)

Your dish looks fabulous though!

[Kim]

I have had both of my knees replaced and I can promise you that you will be soooo very happy! The pain goes away, you can walk again, and soon you won't remember what it was like!

Best of luck to you!

[Jen]

You are right...one of the reasons I am on my health kick is because my knees are aching now, and I'm noticing the older I get the harder it is to get up. It sucks!

I hope you find relief soon. It's no fun!