Okay, so measuring pain within the chronology of this journey so far, it goes something like this:

Prior to the fall: 0/10

Falling off the ladder and impacting the ground in whatever gross and biomechanically unnatural way I did, and the following 20-30 minutes: 9/10*

That evening in the ER, resting on a stretcher but leg not yet immobilized: 4-5/10

In a leg brace for the following 3 nights/3 days: 2/10**

0-24 hrs post-surgery: 6/10

Last night and today (day 2 post-op): 6-8/10

*I could say 10/10 but I am sure there are worse levels of pain/worse injuries than this

**except for the one time I got slightly bumped on the exposed area where my kneecap normally is… that was exceptionally, exquisitely painful

The days between the fall and surgery were kind of fascinating. Almost zero pain. I slept reasonably well and my spirits were up. Sure, my leg had basically no stability at all, and to take off the knee brace to shower (essentially on one leg) was absolutely terrifying, but with the brace on, almost all facets of life were manageable.

But post-op, in a nutshell, has been pretty rough. When I woke up between doses of painkillers last night, it felt like the fall all over again. My kneecap was throbbing and the knee was on fire. I was hot and couldn’t get comfortable. I ‘slept’ sitting up for three hours.

What’s been really unusual and troublesome, has been the occasional reflex action of my quadriceps, which want to flex once in a while – even a few times while I was asleep. The flex tugs my kneecap up and the jolt of pain takes my breath away.

The injured area is still heavily wrapped and braced. I release the brace for a while in bed sometimes (where I’m convalescing 20 hours/day right now), which is a relief for my skin, but not really for my knee. The wrap underneath the brace is so substantial that I can’t even feel an ice pack through it. But I am still diligently icing the area anyway, doing what I can to hopefully limit the swelling – there’s just no relief there.

The drugs are quite effective. I am taking Tramadol every 4-5 hours. The last hour gets progressively more uncomfortable as it wears off, but while it’s working it’s great. The Gabapentin (a nerve blocker) and Celecoxib (anti-inflammatory and pain killer) are also helpful, taking much of the pain away from the kneecap specifically. But not unexpectedly, the medicines make me drowsy and spaced out, which will make it interesting to attempt to return to work later this week.

I left a message for my surgeon yesterday, but no call back yet, so it’s still up to my own resourcefulness and internet research to find after-care instructions. From the material I’ve collected, it’s clear that the first 2 weeks is all about rest and pain management. On the side, I also want to move around a bit and use some of the weights I have at home to keep my upper body going. I did some bent-over rows, biceps, and one-sided shoulder presses today, for example. There weren’t any issues staying off the bad leg, and it seems reasonable to keep that up a few times each week.

I think the pain should substantially diminish after 2 weeks. Between 2-3 weeks is the official follow-up with my surgeon, where I expect he’ll look at the knee and decide how it’s doing and what comes next. If I get the go-ahead, then very early stage rehab can start. A new kind of pain, from what I’ve read, as we rebuild atrophied muscles and teach the leg to bend again. Good times!