ron thomas
On Nov 8th I was preped at Samaritan Lincoln City Hospital. Time to replace a worn out part and get my body up to operating specs again. The left knee had deteriorated from Osteoarthritis to the point it had no cushion left to protect the joint from the jarring effects of everyday life. Loss of this cushion also gave a Texas style bowlegged appearance to my gait. It was uncomfortable to say the least. I went to my Dr. and he referred me to a specialist in Lincoln City ... I'll call him Dr. Steve.
After his examination and some xrays, Dr. Steve confirmed the diagnosis above and while he was at it he also said the right knee might be even worse, certainly as worse. The upshot was I needed two knees. I chose to get one at a time. So when this one is up and running fine I will go in and get the other one done.
I have a friend in CA that has a nightmare story about her knee replacement and her now permanent disability as a result of that and to be fair an airplane crash she unwillingly participated in the wilds of the Saw Tooth mountains in Idaho. On the other hand I have a friend here at Long View Hills and she had both of her knees replaced... Her simple statement that she feels as if her life has been given back to her. That rang a chord in my soul as I have physically been deteriorating as this osteoarthritis has robbed me of even the most basic day to day living things like a walk on the beach or a stroll around the park. To get it all back and then even more is what Bev Garvey told me about. I wanted that operation and maybe I would gain back those lost abilities .... Maybe even improve in some areas.
So, that is the beginning of this series on the phun of the knee replacement... tune in later for the next installment... If you are contemplating this operation you can follow along and see how it is going.
