I fell last night, and dislocated my kneecap. It sat on the side of my

[radwriter0555]

knee for almost 1.5 hours as I YELLED and screamed my way to the phone, screamed for 25 minutes on the floor while my doctor friend raced over, and yelled and screamed all the way to the hospital in the ambulance so the VERY LARGE HANDSOME DOCTOR at the ER could pop it back into place while I yelled and screamed again.

Then everything was ok. Instant relief.

I leave at 11:00am for BEIJING, today. Gonna go climb that great wall of china with crutches or a cane DAMMIT.

The docs were impressed and said I was a major toughie for just knocking it on with the popping into place without drugs or whatever.

Ouch.

Hope they can find me a comfy seat on the plane. Good thing I got trip insurance! We'll see if they turn me away at the gate.

Ouch.

[GOPisEvil]

1. Ouch!!!

I hope you're still able to make your trip!

Ouch!! That just SOUNDS painful!

[radwriter0555]

2. Gop CHILDBIRTH was far more pleasant than this little event, I swear

by all that's holy or not.

I would rather give birth again, than have my kneecap stretched back up over the bone there.

Thank goodness for Vicodin and good friends.

[GOPisEvil]

3. How, pray tell, did you manage to do this to yourself?

*wincing*

[radwriter0555]

4. LOL! I was 'shooing' the dog out the back door. Slippery kitchen

floor? Bad timing? Gods of the fates putting me to the test?

The right timing of a swift kick and connection on the dogs butt while she wasn't cooperating or something.

I have bad knees to begin with. Did the same thing years back to the other knee.

[GOPisEvil]

5. *cringe*

I hope your ass isn't bruised - if so, that's a long flight to be sitting on a bruised ass. Eh, there's always pain pills. ;-)

[radwriter0555]

6. Vicodin is my dearest friend at this time. Does it do well with martinis?

Let's hope.

[GOPisEvil]

7. LOL! Oh yeah. Vicodin and martinis work great together.

Especially if you want to be comatose! :D

[Interrobang]

8. I have three words for you:

Physiotherapy, physiotherapy, physiotherapy!

I've done that twice now (left knee), 11 years apart, and the *only* thing that kept me from being a terminal repetitive case was physio. I knew a girl in high school who'd dislocated her one knee so often, they'd taught her how to fix it herself, and she was almost always on crutches. (That said, she had an abusive father who wouldn't have pushed for her to get it *really* fixed, and always took her to a local Emerg *known* for its utter shittiness...)

What you need to do is strengthen the muscles on the inside of your knee, and the tendons that go across your patella -- I'm sure you can feel exactly which ones I mean. Some exercises you can do on your own are:

1) Sit on the floor with your back against a wall and your legs straight out in front of you. Put a light weight on the ankle of the affected knee (you can use a bag of rice or something), and then raise your leg, keeping it straight, as high as you can. Start with six reps twice a day (once in the morning, once at night), and go up from there once that gets easy.

2) Start as in #1, with your back against a wall and your legs straight out in front of you. Wrap a short towel or tea towel around the foot of the affected leg, and then bend your leg while gently pulling on the ends of the towel. Bend your knee as far as it will go plus a little stretch. Do in equal numbers with #1.

3) Lunges: Start by standing with your feet slightly apart, then take one giant step back with the unaffected leg. Bend your knee, stretching your leg back as far as it will go. Do this in equal numbers to #s 1 and 2.

[commander bunnypants]

9. Ouch and I am glad you are ok

Some words. Be careful, mixing Vicodin and martinias, Hard on the liver and kidneys.


DDQM

[Lefta Dissenter]

10. YIKES!

That sounds horrible!

Good luck on your trip - maybe you should look up a good acupuncturist while you're there!

(not a good acupuncturist => )