For a little while now I've been struggling with severe knee pain at night. The pain has caused me to lose a great many hours of sleep over the last 4 weeks and my weight loss has come to grinding halt as a result. I've done my best to not let my knee be an excuse, but that hasn't stopped me from losing my momentum.
Since then I've been looking for something, anything to use as a catalyst to get me back on track. Today I might have found it...
This morning I had an appointment with an orthopedic specialist. The guy was great and we had a conversation about my knee pain and my x-rays. The good news is that there is no signs of major damage and he suspects it's just an arthritis flare-up. He gave me a cortisone injection that he says should allow me to start getting some decent rest again.
The bad news... I'm 42 years old and have arthritis in my knee. I'm too young for regular cortisone injections so he told me I could only have one. I didn't realize the injections actually accelerate arthritis so you can't just go on forever getting injections.
The doctor firmly believes that my lack of sleep is preventing me from healing properly from this flare-up; this one injection should make me better and then I have to just take care of my knees.
After he gave me the injection we talked about what I need to do moving forward. In a nutshell my only option is to lose weight. There are no pills, no treatment, no special exercises; nothing, but to lose weight. He told me that when I go up and down the stairs I'm putting 8X my weight onto my knees. If I can lose the 100 pounds I'm shooting for, then that would mean 800 pounds less stress on my knees!
So step #1 is to get a good night's sleep tonight. Then I get up in the morning and start fresh toward taking 800 pounds off my knees. 127 Days are in the books, on to Day 128.
-Stay Strong!
Showing posts with label knee pain. Show all posts
Showing posts with label knee pain. Show all posts
Monday, May 11, 2015
Wednesday, April 29, 2015
Day #115 - Desperate Times
Last night was the worst since my knee has been acting up; I might have gotten 3 hours sleep... maybe. Clearly whatever is wrong with my knee is not healing on it's own so I'm starting to feel like this is a desperate situation. I'll have to go back to the doctor again, though given my last visit (no idea, let's take some x-rays) I'm not expecting anything more than just to pay more money for more tests; probably an MRI next.
In the meantime I'm trying to explore other possibilities. I've noticed my lower back is a little sore on that side, maybe it's a nerve thing? I've stopped keeping my wallet in my back pocket and tonight I'm sleeping in a different bed just in case my bed (which is old and lumpy) might be causing the problem. Maybe I should see a chiropractor, but I hate going there because I always feel like they are trying to sell me on regular visits. What do you think, could my knee pain be coming from my back?
Short post tonight so I can go to bed early; I need 10 hours to get 5 hours of sleep these days.
Stay Strong!
In the meantime I'm trying to explore other possibilities. I've noticed my lower back is a little sore on that side, maybe it's a nerve thing? I've stopped keeping my wallet in my back pocket and tonight I'm sleeping in a different bed just in case my bed (which is old and lumpy) might be causing the problem. Maybe I should see a chiropractor, but I hate going there because I always feel like they are trying to sell me on regular visits. What do you think, could my knee pain be coming from my back?
Short post tonight so I can go to bed early; I need 10 hours to get 5 hours of sleep these days.
Stay Strong!
Thursday, April 23, 2015
Day #109 - More Pain Arrives
It's bad enough that I'm still struggling with pain, but now Mrs. FogDog is right there with me. Yesterday she rolled her ankle out in the yard and now she can barely walk. The doctor told her it's just a bad sprain, nothing broken, but she'll be hobbled for the next couple weeks. As for me, I'm still battling the knee pain at night, but it does appear to be getting better; I only woke up twice last night with knee pain instead of my 4-6 times each night.
Of course this isn't helping us to get the ship righted, we are both still struggling. I won't say we're doing terrible, but again we're not doing great either. I would be amazed if either of us lost any weight this week.
This last week really has me beginning to question if I really have changed. After about 6 weeks of hard work I can now feel my resolve slowly slipping away. So have I changed or was I just telling myself that in hopes that I could hang on longer before falling on my face? If I'm serious about my health then I need to put the excuses away and get back to it:
My knee hurts at night - Got it, so why does that keep me from eating healthy during the day?
Because I'm tired all day from not getting good sleep - Ok, that makes it harder, but not eating healthy also makes me tired; maybe that's why I feel tired.
Yeah but I'm also not exercising out of fear that my knee will get worse again - Great, how long are we going to milk that excuse? I didn't realize that all exercise requires vigorous use of the knees.
Ok, but Mrs. FogDog is hurting now too so we both enable each other to eat junk to feel better - Mrs. FogDog knows just as well as me that eating junk food only makes us feel better for a short moment to then be followed by feeling worse about doing it.
Fine, but we've struggled for almost a week now, one more day won't hurt - Yeah it won't hurt, but it won't help either. One more hour, one more meal, one more day, one more weekend, one more...
I have to go now, I need to continue this conversation with myself in private. Day #109 is in the books; on to 110.
Stay Strong!
Of course this isn't helping us to get the ship righted, we are both still struggling. I won't say we're doing terrible, but again we're not doing great either. I would be amazed if either of us lost any weight this week.
This last week really has me beginning to question if I really have changed. After about 6 weeks of hard work I can now feel my resolve slowly slipping away. So have I changed or was I just telling myself that in hopes that I could hang on longer before falling on my face? If I'm serious about my health then I need to put the excuses away and get back to it:
My knee hurts at night - Got it, so why does that keep me from eating healthy during the day?
Because I'm tired all day from not getting good sleep - Ok, that makes it harder, but not eating healthy also makes me tired; maybe that's why I feel tired.
Yeah but I'm also not exercising out of fear that my knee will get worse again - Great, how long are we going to milk that excuse? I didn't realize that all exercise requires vigorous use of the knees.
Ok, but Mrs. FogDog is hurting now too so we both enable each other to eat junk to feel better - Mrs. FogDog knows just as well as me that eating junk food only makes us feel better for a short moment to then be followed by feeling worse about doing it.
Fine, but we've struggled for almost a week now, one more day won't hurt - Yeah it won't hurt, but it won't help either. One more hour, one more meal, one more day, one more weekend, one more...
I have to go now, I need to continue this conversation with myself in private. Day #109 is in the books; on to 110.
Stay Strong!
Thursday, April 16, 2015
Day #102 - That's All I Can Stand
I reached the tipping point with my knee last night. I have gone 3 weeks now with very little restful sleep. I couldn't take it any longer; I've tried everything I can think of to help with this pain. I asked my wife to find me a doctor and make me an appointment as quickly as possible. To my surprise she found one that had an opening today so I went to see the doctor about my knee.
Actually I saw a PA, but that's fine I knew where I was going to end up regardless... getting an x-ray. The PA said she has never heard of knee pain that only comes at night and then goes right away in the morning. However, she said everything else I described pointed toward a possible torn meniscus. She prescribed a stronger pain reliever that I'll be on for the next 2 weeks and then she sent me to get an x-ray (told you).
I still refuse to let this be the source of an excuse to give up. My depression has returned a little in these last 2 days but I think I'm just really tired and need some rest. 102 days down and I'm in a rough patch; here's to better days ahead. I will survive this and hopefully I can get a good night's sleep.
Before I leave for the night, I wanted to take a moment to say Happy Birthday to my sister Mindy. Growing up I never let my sister out from under my shadow; I'm pretty competitive so I had to beat her in everything and for the most part I took the limelight from her any chance I could. However, recently Mindy turned the tables... Over the last few years she's made an effort to lose weight and to date she's dropped more than 80 pounds! That's an incredible feat and I am extremely proud of her especially since she's a single mom to boot.
So Happy Birthday "little" sister. Enjoy the limelight for a while, but you better not let up because here I come.
Stay Strong!
Actually I saw a PA, but that's fine I knew where I was going to end up regardless... getting an x-ray. The PA said she has never heard of knee pain that only comes at night and then goes right away in the morning. However, she said everything else I described pointed toward a possible torn meniscus. She prescribed a stronger pain reliever that I'll be on for the next 2 weeks and then she sent me to get an x-ray (told you).
I still refuse to let this be the source of an excuse to give up. My depression has returned a little in these last 2 days but I think I'm just really tired and need some rest. 102 days down and I'm in a rough patch; here's to better days ahead. I will survive this and hopefully I can get a good night's sleep.
Before I leave for the night, I wanted to take a moment to say Happy Birthday to my sister Mindy. Growing up I never let my sister out from under my shadow; I'm pretty competitive so I had to beat her in everything and for the most part I took the limelight from her any chance I could. However, recently Mindy turned the tables... Over the last few years she's made an effort to lose weight and to date she's dropped more than 80 pounds! That's an incredible feat and I am extremely proud of her especially since she's a single mom to boot.
So Happy Birthday "little" sister. Enjoy the limelight for a while, but you better not let up because here I come.
Stay Strong!
Wednesday, April 8, 2015
Day #94 - Rough Night, Strong Day
Last night was another rough night with knee pain. It has got to be the most frustrating thing to wake up every 1-2 hours because of a nagging pain. It wakes me up, I get up and walk around, the pain goes away, and I lay down and go back to sleep. I bet in the last 2 nights I've only gotten about 6 hours of sleep total.
However, I got up this morning determined that I'm not going to let this stop me from being healthy; it will NOT become another excuse. I might be tired, but I had another very strong day eating well, getting my water in, and of course my 10 minutes of strength training. No walking (it was raining and cold today anyway) and I wore a knee brace all day even though my knee doesn't hurt during the day. I'm trying to do all I can to keep as much weight off my knee is possible.
Short post tonight, eventually I'll just sleep through the night out of sheer exhaustion. Another day is in the books, here's to day #95.
Stay Strong!
However, I got up this morning determined that I'm not going to let this stop me from being healthy; it will NOT become another excuse. I might be tired, but I had another very strong day eating well, getting my water in, and of course my 10 minutes of strength training. No walking (it was raining and cold today anyway) and I wore a knee brace all day even though my knee doesn't hurt during the day. I'm trying to do all I can to keep as much weight off my knee is possible.
Short post tonight, eventually I'll just sleep through the night out of sheer exhaustion. Another day is in the books, here's to day #95.
Stay Strong!
Tuesday, April 7, 2015
Day #93 - A Tough Decision
I'm giving up walking! No, not permanently, but for at least a week. In fact I'm also going to stay off my elliptical trainer as well. I made this decision today after another miserable night's sleep. About 15 days ago I talked about having some pain in my left knee. It only comes at night when I'm sleeping, the rest of the day I'm fine, but it wakes me up and I can't afford to disrupt my sleep.
I think I strained it while I was remodeling the bathroom. During that week I carried a lot of heavy things up and down stairs and that's when it started hurting. For the last 15 days I was hoping it would start to improve but it hasn't. I didn't want it to be an excuse to not exercise, but after 15 days and no improvement, it's time to try something different.
I have noticed that it hurts more on the days that I walk more. Yesterday I walked about 2.5 miles plus did a mile on the elliptical and I was in agony all night long, waking about every hour to put some Icy Hot on for temporary relief. I'm going to try to rest it for a week and just see if it improves. If not I may have to go to a doctor.
However, I have not forgotten my commitment from yesterday. I'm not going to walk but I can still get at least 10 minutes of exercise every day. I'm not going to be able to do cardio as I only have an elliptical and treadmill and both require knee movement. Instead I will just focus on strength training with nothing that requires loading my knee (like squats or lunges). Today I did my 10 minutes; I picked 4 weight exercises and did each one for a minute. I did all 4 in a circuit and then took a 1 minute rest. 2 circuits and my 10 minutes were done. The nice thing about this mthod is that I can do 3 or 4 circuits when I have more time and don't have to change anything.
This situation is not ideal, but I would rather miss my walk for a week than I would continue on waking up each night with knee pain. Hopefully this will work. Unfortunately my rest begins tomorrow; I didn't make this decision until my walk at lunchtime. On to Day #94.
Stay Strong!
I think I strained it while I was remodeling the bathroom. During that week I carried a lot of heavy things up and down stairs and that's when it started hurting. For the last 15 days I was hoping it would start to improve but it hasn't. I didn't want it to be an excuse to not exercise, but after 15 days and no improvement, it's time to try something different.
I have noticed that it hurts more on the days that I walk more. Yesterday I walked about 2.5 miles plus did a mile on the elliptical and I was in agony all night long, waking about every hour to put some Icy Hot on for temporary relief. I'm going to try to rest it for a week and just see if it improves. If not I may have to go to a doctor.
However, I have not forgotten my commitment from yesterday. I'm not going to walk but I can still get at least 10 minutes of exercise every day. I'm not going to be able to do cardio as I only have an elliptical and treadmill and both require knee movement. Instead I will just focus on strength training with nothing that requires loading my knee (like squats or lunges). Today I did my 10 minutes; I picked 4 weight exercises and did each one for a minute. I did all 4 in a circuit and then took a 1 minute rest. 2 circuits and my 10 minutes were done. The nice thing about this mthod is that I can do 3 or 4 circuits when I have more time and don't have to change anything.
This situation is not ideal, but I would rather miss my walk for a week than I would continue on waking up each night with knee pain. Hopefully this will work. Unfortunately my rest begins tomorrow; I didn't make this decision until my walk at lunchtime. On to Day #94.
Stay Strong!
Tuesday, March 24, 2015
Day #79 - Knee Pain
As I get older it becomes very clear that I will have knee issues. For starters, my mom has had knee replacement on both knees due to arthritis and my grandmother has had both her knees replaced twice! There is a hereditary component, but also add on to that I played a lot of sports as a kid and the fact that I have been severely overweight my entire adult life and the fact that I have started to see signs of arthritis should not be surprising to anyone.
I must have overdone it during my vacation week because I've been going through this strange problem. My knees really don't hurt during the day, but then around 3AM I wake up because my left knee has a dull ache to it. No matter how I move it or switch positions it just keeps on aching making it very difficult to fall back asleep. I've tried every OTC medication for pain, but none stop it from happening. It's frustrating because I already have enough sleep problems I really don't need something else waking me up.
I'm hoping that I've finally recovered from this as last night was the first night that I didn't wake up with knee pain. My hope is that it was about all the stuff I lugged up and down the stairs while I was remodeling my shower. There's still plenty to do, but all the heavy lifting is over. Anyway today I'm just grateful that I got one good night's sleep.
Today was an OK day. I was in training all day that included lunch so I chose to make today a normal carb day instead of tomorrow. I ate more than I probably should have including the cookie, but no soda; I stuck to my gallon of water. The rest of the day was right on plan for food. No walking either I wanted one more day to rest my knees... I'm hoping I'm now out of the woods.
Stay Strong!
I must have overdone it during my vacation week because I've been going through this strange problem. My knees really don't hurt during the day, but then around 3AM I wake up because my left knee has a dull ache to it. No matter how I move it or switch positions it just keeps on aching making it very difficult to fall back asleep. I've tried every OTC medication for pain, but none stop it from happening. It's frustrating because I already have enough sleep problems I really don't need something else waking me up.
I'm hoping that I've finally recovered from this as last night was the first night that I didn't wake up with knee pain. My hope is that it was about all the stuff I lugged up and down the stairs while I was remodeling my shower. There's still plenty to do, but all the heavy lifting is over. Anyway today I'm just grateful that I got one good night's sleep.
Today was an OK day. I was in training all day that included lunch so I chose to make today a normal carb day instead of tomorrow. I ate more than I probably should have including the cookie, but no soda; I stuck to my gallon of water. The rest of the day was right on plan for food. No walking either I wanted one more day to rest my knees... I'm hoping I'm now out of the woods.
Stay Strong!
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