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Rehab after ACL reconstruction

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josexi
Posts: 267 - Karma: 8
Just got my ACL reconstructed 2 days ago. I went to physio before and he gave me exercises to do, only when I try to do them it hurts a lot.  I don't have the option of seeing him immediately but i was wondering, from those of you who had it,  if the pain is just there and the rehab hast to be done when it hurts, of if i should do it until it hurts. I'm just wondering i guess how much pain is an issue concerning rehab at this point (few days after) thx
Aug 9 2008 9:47PM
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josexi
Posts: 267 - Karma: 8
anyone? its really bothering me iuno if im hurting or helping myself, and thats a scary thought.
Aug 9 2008 10:10PM
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freestyler540
Posts: 13045 - Karma: 18,291
What kind of pain are you talking about...usually pains mean something is wrong. The exercises are supposed to build muscle around the acl. Do as much as you can, but dont over do it

I say call you physician, I can be wrong, your doctor will not.
Aug 9 2008 10:16PM
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josexi
Posts: 267 - Karma: 8
well i thought pain would be pretty normal after surgery.  but it generally hurts when i put weight on it and when i bend it (which is one of the exercises and the one im concerned aboot)
Aug 9 2008 10:28PM
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THEDICKBUTCHER
Posts: 3067 - Karma: 673
the fisrt likie 2-4 weeks of rehab arte a pain in the ass! I wanted to cry on my 1st week, but I promise it gets much much better, once you see great progession in the knee and once you can acctually get your knee around and are good enough to bike in the gym is such a good feeling! like almost as good as skiing haha.

stick to your rehab for sure its a pain in the ass but totally worth it and having skiing in your mind most of the time is the best motivation ever.  Good luck with that and If you have any more questions feel free to pm me.

Aug 9 2008 11:07PM
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C-Burg
Posts: 4729 - Karma: 130

you should call your doctor because he knows what is best for the type of surgery you had. I hada pettlor graft from my left to reconstruct my right and that maybe completely different than what you had so call your doctor

Aug 9 2008 11:56PM
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SkiPat
Posts: 170 - Karma: 14
I had acl surgery on 27th of july. Dont worry dude, it is normal that it hurts the first 4 weeks. Stick to your exercises but watch out, if it hurts, cool your knee down a bit. My doctor and my pt told me I always hav to do my exercises till the pain barrier, but no more. Do not put more than 20 kg on your knee in the first 2,5 weeks and if you are able to bend it till 90 degrees, be happy with it and dont overdo it. The thing is that all stuff will go a lot easier when the swelling is gone cuz this blocks your knee.
Keep on doin well, dont worry to much and like the chick said, think a lot bout skiin` this helps a lot.
Aug 10 2008 4:57AM
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3ski6guy0
Posts: 9201 - Karma: 132
my knee injury isnt ACL but still im sure it all applies across the board...i was told during my exercises that if it's painful, don't do it. but then again im not a doctor so i would suggest talking to your surgeon
Aug 10 2008 9:05AM
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uncleclimax
Posts: 76 - Karma: 41
ya dude dont worry too much, you lose a lot of the muscle around your knee after having surgery and not using it very much immediately afterward. When i was rehabbing mine even straightening my leg hurt a ton and its the easiest shit to do. so ya, your probly just rebuilding some of that muscle.
Aug 10 2008 2:33PM
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kristie
Posts: 1667 - Karma: 214
pain from bending it is okay, but don't put weight on it.  
Aug 10 2008 2:44PM
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Big_Willy
Posts: 2865 - Karma: 6
Good advice, my doc and pt always have told me to hold off if it hurts. It sounds like you have a pretty aggressive regimen for pt, I wasn't able to put weight on mine until 2 wks out, where some walk out of the hospital. I would call your doc/pt, they are always really cool and its their job. Good luck, first 2 weeks suck but it gets better.
Aug 10 2008 7:07PM
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agame4life
Posts: 185 - Karma: 30
yeah dude the pain is normal. It will get progressively better throughout the re-hab. Your only a few days out so don't be too worried. It's gonna take awhile. I'm about 6 weeks out from my surgery and I'm doing great. I had a completely torn acl, a torn mcl, and torn meniscus that they couldn't repair unfortunately.
Aug 11 2008 1:18AM
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heman
Posts: 270 - Karma: 10

Had my 1st surgery 4 acl, and meniscus this spring. The biggest thing for me during the 1st few days, weeks was keeping my knee elevated and iced and if possible in the ROM machine as much as possible. My doc had me off of my knee for over 5 weeks. It sucks in the begining but once you start moving around the rehab gets much easier as you will see improvement quickly. Keep possitive

Nov 8 2008 4:56PM
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k.t
Posts: 47 - Karma: 323
after 4 months I started to do turns again but no more than that. if your knee is still hurting then you probably shouldn't do boxes and rails until you really feel like it can handle it if you fall. Its probably pretty strong by this point but you dont wanna go out there and just re injure it. you lose muscle mass you when have this surgery but you also lose the capacity to react quickly (your muscles forget and it takes time to get that back). I think you should get on your skis and just cruise and see how tht  feels. at some point you'll feel strong and you'll know when its time to try that first box. another thing to watch out for is if you do go cruising around on snow and it swells, well then its too early to do anymore than that.
Nov 8 2008 7:08PM
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k.t
Posts: 47 - Karma: 323
woops sorry i just replied to the wrong thread.. haha
Nov 8 2008 7:09PM
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cobalt
Posts: 1913 - Karma: 12
Sorry man, that sucks. I tore mine last season, and I think 2 days after surgery pain is very normal. In fact, when I got mine I had a cathoder putting medication into my knee for 48 hours post-op.

If you are able to move your knee a bit, that's good. Some people above have said that rehab involves strengthening the knee. This is true, however, at only 2 days out of surgery it's not about building muscle yet. It's about regaining range of motion and flexibility. I'm guessing your therapist gave you mainly motion exercises, like bending your knee etc. You should not bend your knee past the point where it hurts. Also, if it hurts to put weight on it, use crutches to take some of the pressure off of it.

It's great that your trying to get active again, but it takes time. Don't hurt yourself, just take it slow and build up. Slowly but surely you'll get back into things.
Nov 8 2008 7:29PM
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Hertz
Posts: 238 - Karma: 30
when i did mine the year before last i worked super hard before and after
i wasnt in much pain except when there was alot of stretching type activites, like when i had to hyper extend it to regain full mobility
Nov 8 2008 7:34PM
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philly@MT
Posts: 95 - Karma: 28
Hey man sorry on the injury. I tore my ACL and Meniscus last April. I did an accelerated recovery that would allow me to be ready to go allot sooner. I used a machine that would move my leg and bend it for me. It would gradually bend my leg at higher angles. It would hurt bad. i dont like pain medds so i tried not to take as many as i should but with them i still felt pain. With this machine and pain i was walking in 3 days. Of course not a legit walk but i would get around and by the time i went to my first physical theapist meeting i was walking almost 100%. and therapy would kill but not to much. My advise is to push the pain if you can take it go for it. but not to much you dont want to strain anything. The more you work and harder you train and go to the gym and stay off your ass the better you will be. It is worth the pain and struggle. Be sure to use the ice ing system that the doc. gave you i found that it was best to maybe get my knee warm before therapy and to ice after it helps the swelling and alows your knee to feel better.
Nov 8 2008 8:03PM
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AltaByrdSkier
Posts: 544 - Karma: 15
just remember to always be careful
Nov 8 2008 8:11PM
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