Tag: knee

Health report for the middle of 2025

the tooth of the matter

Here is the health report for the middle of 2025.

I received a hearing test in April. My hearing is rather good at most frequencies, and the word recognition was solid. I’ll get it rechecked next year, and maybe I’ll get an aid. When I hear white noise simultaneously, I can listen to words but not comprehend them. That’s normal, right?

I’m having some oral surgery at the end of August. A couple of molars you can’t see are coming out. One – lower left – had been giving me some exquisite pain a few months ago. It has subsided, but it is not salvageable. I’ve had a root canal in the past on those teeth.

A third tooth, which people might notice, is also coming out, but some ersatz item will replace it. I’m not looking forward to this process. It will be pricey, but less than if they replaced all three teeth.

So I postponed dealing with my left Achilles, which bothers me on and off. Eventually, I’ll need some physical therapy.

Taking a knee

Then I MUST deal with getting a left knee replacement because sometimes it’s so achy that I can’t even ride my bicycle without a brace; the rotation is too painful. 

At least it’s not as bad as it was after the Olin family reunion at Nataniel Cole Park near Binghamton, NY, in July. I had long told myself that I didn’t need a cane when walking on a flat surface. But walking on grass, hills, gravel, etc., I SHOULD use the cane. I walked to the bathroom through a grassy area with a slight incline. “Ah, it’s not that far.”

At about 2 a.m., the pain was so tremendous that it woke me from a sound sleep. The agony emanated from one point. If my knee were a map of France and my leg were up on the bed, it would be approximately at Bordeaux.

I was really irritated with myself. The cane was in the car, and the car was nearby, so this was a totally avoidable incident. 

Other than that, it’s the usual aches and pains.

“You’ll know when you know”

the damn left knee

Several months ago, my ortho doctor noted that I would eventually need knee replacement surgery since both knees are bone-on-bone. But when should I decide to go under the knife? He said, “You’ll know when you know.”

Well, now I know.

As I’ve mentioned, I tore my left meniscus on a mountain in the autumn of 1994. For a time, I started wearing an elastic knee brace, which was helpful enough that I continued to play racquetball until the local YMCA closed in 2010. I’d wear it periodically after that when I knew I’d be doing extensive walking, such as attending the county fair.

My knees always hurt. the right knee is probably 1.5 on a scale of 10. My left knee is usually at 3, and occasionally 4. 

Sunday, I went to bed extremely early for me, at about 9 p.m. I woke up in extreme pain around 2 a.m. The best way to describe it is that my left knee had a massive cramp. And not a “boy, that’s uncomfortable” thing but an “OMIGOD I’M IN AGONY!!!” thing. It was at least an 8. 

Bracing

When my wife got up, I asked her to get me the elastic knee brace. But I couldn’t move my leg to put it on. I had to pull my leg up by my pajama bottoms to try to steer my leg into the brace. My wife also got me a cane. But getting downstairs required sliding down a step at a time. I used a walker we had to get around the first floor. I didn’t get much done. 

The next day, wearing the brace, I could walk OK in the house. The only challenge was the steps in the house, specifically going down them. There’s a railing for the top two steps, but at the curve, there’s about a meter drop, and then the railing continues. I needed the cane. Going up, I can grab the upper steps at the turn. 

I used the cane when I went outside. Sidewalks can be uneven. Grassy areas I avoid altogether.   

I’m seeing my ortho next week. He’ll probably give me a cortisone shot. I had one a decade or more ago. I had eschewed them subsequently, but I’m leaning into it now. We’ll talk about surgery, which will likely take place in the summer, mostly so that my spouse can take care of her gimpy husband.

So when you see me with the cane, you’ll know why. 

Ramblin' with Roger
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