Yesterday, I woke up with a bum knee. I’d like to say I blew it out scoring the winning goal in that night’s soccer match. Alas, somehow I just twisted it in my sleep. I imagine I was kicking someone’s ass in my dreams…. You should see the other guy.
I’ve been living on borrowed knee time anyway. My grandma had both of hers replaced. My sister Jenny did blow hers out skiing and required surgery —two of them. Mine have always been rickety. Kneeling for prolonged periods of time is uncomfortable. Even sitting in a the theatre gets dicey. Having my knees contained to a 90 degree angle for a play duration can have dire affects.
I often sit with my legs extended as if I’m a tall lounging cowboy. The person across from me at a restaurant looks at me puzzled when I apologize for having my legs in their area. I’m a short gal with a short inseam. I know it’s odd that I need to stretch out of my designated zone.
Thursday, I woke up hobbling more so than usual. Initially, I just thought I was old lady stiff. After a night sleep, my body needs a big stretch. I got through 16 of my 24 sun salutations and realized I was aggravating my knee. I dumped a prescription level of epsom salt in the tub and had a morning soak. I dressed for the weather in my 2014 Arctic collection. This included wool socks and my snow boots. It wasn’t going to snow but the temps were a bitter 4 degrees. My heavy boots kept my toes warm but created a limp on my right side.
I have low pain tolerance. I’m not a big pill person but by the time I got to my office, I was all-in on the epidural. In the agency first aid kit, I bypassed the standard Ibuprofen for the intriguing generic red-blue pills marked “maximum pain relief.” I don’t know if they helped but they didn’t hurt anything. My job is primarily sedentary but I kept getting up to walk around. Stretching seemed to bring extra relief.
I also went to yoga during lunch. I was surprised how many poses I could do with my temporary disability. I adjusted my warrior stances to protect my knee. My instructor Mindy suggested I do my balance pose on the wall and with minimal weight on my right knee. The only two poses causing me too much grief were the chair pose and clutching my knees to my chest. To be honest, the chair pose always causes me grief but the knees-to-the-chest is usually a gentle stretch. It puts my knee at a 45 (or less) degree angle and yesterday that hurt. So, I stopped.
At the urging of a classmate, I went back to the office and iced. I kept it on for a couple hours. It helped significantly. I didn’t run home but I didn’t limp either. I canceled my play for last night and stayed home to coddle my knee. I watched the Oscar nominated “Nebraska.” (I didn’t like it at first but the characters unfold in a genuine and sweet way). I went to bed early.
I woke up this morning. My knee hurts but less than yesterday. It feels fine stretched out on my ottoman with my feet crossed. It hurts when I pivot it into an angled position. It’s amazing how you notice the smallest and most ordinary movement when there is unusual discomfort with it.
Ice, ice baby!