Another Long Blogging Gap

It has been almost another year since I have made a post.  No excuses, just life getting in the way of things you "want" to do.  Things stay the same, yet changes are always occuring - such is life.  Staying the same: enjoyment of riding!  I made a trip last March to California and did 220 miles climbing over 20,000 feet on a rented Giant carbon road bike.  A 65 mile group ride, and climbs up Mts. Hamilton and Tamolpais were highlights.  It was great to get away and get in shape for the upcoming biking season.  I anticipated racing in the Battenkill in April, so it was a vacation with a purpose. 

As I was returning, however, I found out that one of our dogs had to be euthanized.  It was an agonizing decision, but had to be done.  Also, work was not going well and my tinnitius and knee osteoarthritis were getting me down.  I lost my mo-jo!  While road and mountain biking were still being done, it was with pain and without total mental engagement.  A highlight was doing the FANY ride across NY with Donna - 7 days in a row, 532 miles, camping out with a group each night - all without any rain.  The break from work and total focus on riding and being outside every day was wonderful.  We were so into riding each morning that the day we got back we did a 30 mile ride from home before breakfast just to keep the feeling going.

However, life returned.  Work was still more of a challenge than I could handle and even though the riding helped my knees, a new ailment emerged.  It seems that the saddle time compressed my sciatic nerve and I developed numbness in both feet.  I was due a check-up and Dr. Borgos confirmed my diagnosis and Rx: stay off the bike for awhile.  Which I did, but then my knees started to get stiffer, my brain and therefor my attitude became worse from lack of cardiovascular fitness activity, and a downward spiral ensued.  At this time I seriously considered having the total knee replacements done.  If I could hike, walk fast and do some "normal" things with my legs other than biking, my quality of life would improve.  Plus, dealing with knee pain for more than 8 years and not being able to do what I want to do with Donna (hike, walk) were taking a toll on my mental health.

So, I started researching and seeing Osteo Surgeons.  We decided on trying a series of HA injections that should grow more synovial fluid between my bone-on-bone knees.  Three injections a week apart in each knee.  After the second injection I broke out in hives.  The allregic reaction was not a good sign, and the week following this injection my knees felt worse than ever.  As I discussed it with the PA who was going to give me the third injection, we decided that the risk was not worth the reward.  I quickly got in touch with the OS that I wanted to do the surgeries and saw him.  He and I were born on the same day as we discovered because your birthday is used to confirm your ID on every visit.  He worked with me to discover what I want to do with my knees and supported doing both at once (bilateral).  A date was set (12/28/10) pending getting the patient specific prothesis from the MRI back in time.

So, now I am preparing for a major surgery as if it were a race or upcoming athletic event.  I am on the stationary bike and using weights (bought a Total Gym) and doing calestitics.  A on-line forum (BoneSmart) has been a great source of information and support.  The decision seems to be a no-brainer, but it is normal to have doubts and second thoughts about doing such a major surgery.  We made some changes at work that have me doing things that are more alligned to my strengths than before.  So, addressing the physical and mental issues with positive actions has me feeling better.

So, I may have time during recovery to report how I am doing.  I hope to be able to do things I have not done in a long time after investing 6 to 12 weeks of hard rehab.