Well I don’t actually like the Rolling Stones, hence the Liz Phair cover. And the tag line is really the only part of the entire song that fits our situation, and yet for some reason…
I can not get that line out of my head today, as I blog about me & Whiskey: “What a Drag it is Getting Old”. Of course we each have our own issues. Mine is my knee, something I will be gratefully going in to have operated on tomorrow. This is arguably an age/lifestyle related injury: yeah mushers with a knee injury, go figure. But Whiskey’s is simply the undeniable incurable old age.
Whiskey napping
He is curled up at my feet in his little dog bed as I type this, a much frailer and more subdued version of his earlier self. Oblivious to the fact that he is the topic of today’s post. At his age, and having lost his eyesight, he is oblivious to a lot. But he still manages to sniff out his toy when he wants it, and enjoys barking at a good random noise. The plan is to support his health and happiness as best we can, for as long as we can. And I hope you will join me in thinking good thoughts for my Little Man.
Now the knee. Anyone who spent any time with me recently (OK in the past year) knew I was having problems with my knee. Assuming it was a minor injury I did what I knew to do, rest, ice, stretching, massage. All excellent things to be sure, BUT sadly not things that would fix the problem my knee was dealing with. And as this injury was impacting my quality of life it was clear that something had to be done. After navigating the scary world of insurance companies and medical families, an MRI, and some fancy tests for strength and joint motion the names of which I can not longer remember but they were long and impressive sounding, my chronic knee problems now has a diagnosis and a game plan for fixing it.
I have received so many wonderful emails wishing me well with my upcoming procedure, but also questions and concerns. And I realize in my push to make sure everything was ready at home, and appointments and such I have been bad about keeping everyone up to date, So
- I am dealing with a torn meniscus, and with an a outpatient arthroscopic procedure they can remove the damaged parts, restoring pain free motion to the joint.
- I am working with a group of people whom I feel very good about. Sports Medicine Fairbanks has a long history of working with athletes and I am confidant that they understand my personal goals.
- I have been diligently doing my per-operative tasks, appointments, prescriptions, and generally making sure I have everything I need ready for post-op and physical therapy
- I am going in tomorrow for the procedure. YES I am looking forward to having this ongoing issues taken care of. YES I am a bit nervous. *Which is only natural right?
- I am very committed to my post-op physical therapy and care. As this is the one area where I can actually Do Something Positive. So much of our medical procedures are done to us, we are the vehicle and there is a first class mechanic there at work. But when it comes to the PT that is where I can take control and have the power to really make a difference in the outcome.
- I DO plan on running Iditarod 2015, and I have every reason to believe (based on the info above and my quirky optimism) this is a realistic goal.
- And like I told my Doctor when we first met:
“To get myself mentally prepared I have been watching the Six Million Dollar Man on YouTube, and if they were doing that kind of work decades ago, I expect great things now”
Mush Thanks to everyone for your care and concern.
