No, not a Pirate salute, It is Me being frustrated with the system. I was scheduled for knee replacement surgery. (both knees Austioaurthritis )(sp) . The Doctor said it takes about 10 months to a year to get to the head of the list. He advised me on several exercises to strengthen and tone the muscles around the knee so that the surgery goes better and recovery will hopefully be quicker. So I started walking. Only a 1/2 block at first, then a little more each day. I have already waited about 8 months so far. Then went in for a blood pressure checkup. During the visit My doctor asked if I had been exercising my knees. I proudly announced that I was up to about a couple miles a day now. Oh says he, then you no longer qualify for knee replacement. Seems that if you can walk more than a 100 yards you don’t qualify anymore. Yep you guessed it, He took me off the list. Doesn’t matter that I walk with a lot of pain and sometimes can’t walk at all. I don’t qualify I’m off the list AARRGGG!.
GnuBee, What a bummer. I know what your going through, thogh not first hand. My wife has battled bad knees for three years. Just recently she had one done and is now waiting for second. Leg and bag is what we rely on. Hope everything turns out all right. Clyde
Gnu Bee
How do you feel? Do you still need the knees or has the exercise made enough of a difference? I hope that it has and you can now live with less pain and your original knees.
Good luck and keep on walking (preferably in a stream or river with rod in hand).
jed
And they have the nerve to call it healthcare?
I’m frustrated for you!
Well when I started this journey the rule was if you had bad Austioaurthritis,you qualified for the operation. I qualified. Then they changed the rules and now I don’t. It was during my 8 or 9 month wait that they changed the criteria. So now I don’t qualify. My cousin had the surgery on his one bad knee and he can now jog every day. I love to walk and used to walk for miles every day but now I cannot go far enough to really get proper exercise. Some days when it flares up I just stay home.
I cannot use a tube for fishing anymore because the cold water does me in quickly cannot wade for the same reason.
The Doctor actually said to me, cheer up at your age the knees will probably get worst and you will re-qualify. Not what I wanted to hear.
Ps. the explanation they gave for changing the criteria was because the waiting list was too long so they changed the qualifications and dumped a bunch of people off of it,Thus solving the problem in one fell swoop. Clever in its simplicity don’t ya think?
Gnu Bee,
I know this is probably little help at all, but have you ever thought of using some of the disposable hand-warmers wrapped inside a couple of elastic bandages to your knees?
If you make sure there’s a sufficient amount of cloth between you and the warmers, it won’t burn you but it’ll help keep your knees toasty while you paddle a bit. Maybe one on each side of each knee. And you could try it before you go out, just to see how much cloth is enough to prevent over-heating.
You won’t be able to go all day, but even for a little while is betetr than not at all.
Gnu Bee Flyer,
What do I know???..but if you make the issue that you can’t walk [whatever distance] without PAIN you might find the indications are there.
gotta love socialized medicine. your only sick if they say you are.
Well I am able to fish comfortably from my boat so its not a huge thing its just a bit frustrating. If I hadn’t eagerly awaited the operations for so long and then to have them come so close I probably would just shrug and say what the heck its part of getting old. Its kinda like getting to Christmas eve then having Santa cancel at the last minute.
again sorry for your situation. but hopefully you can get back on the list, but this time don’t tell the Dr. how good your walking. the knee replacements do work wonders. my father-inlaw could barely stand from a sitting position, get up steps or walk any distance and was severely bow-legged. after double knee replacement he was like a new man. he had no pain and could walk as much as he liked. oh and he grew 2 inches, seriuosly, they straightened his bow-legs.
so have a “relapse” in a couple of months and see the doc, or even a new doc, about getting on the list. shouldn’t be as long a wait as they got rid of all the "non-needing’ people. they, the docs should be about increasing your quality of life whenever feasable not by the budgeted amount.
I hate this healtchare system. It does many things right, but treating people with respect is not one of them.
jed
Hey Gnu Bee Flyer,
I too have osteo arthritis. It really isn’t much fun.G My doctor sent me to a specialist who told
me I was lucky and that he could fix my knees with
orthoscopic surgury. I’d only have about a
6 week recovery time.G He did the first knee 3
months ago. The pain since has been excruciating
even with the happy pills. Walking from the bedroom to the bathroom or kitchen is a major workout.G He started me on physical theropy about a month ago. The knee seems to be getting more painful with each session. I wouldn’t have thought it possible. My doctor still says not to get discouraged. He says that one day I will wake
up and the pain will be gone. He has however revised
his estimate of when. He now says it takes up
to 8 months in some cases. No mention of that before
surgury.G
Be careful what you wish for. You might get it.
Warm regards, Jim
Interesting difference between US and Canadian healthcare system.
I have an arthritic knee and it started “catching” as I walked. Mentioned it during my annual physical and, after sonogram, x-ray and MRI, they called to ask me to come in for knee replacement.
I was surprised at how eager they seemed to be to do the knee replacement. I declined, though, as I am not in enough pain for this yet and have seen how difficult the rehab is for some.
The good news is that the “catching” has gone away. Probably some debris in the joint that has worked its way out. I know the surgery will have to happen some day, but the longer I can put it off the better.
Gnu Bee with resolving this to your best advantage!
rizeye OH gee! Two inches taller huh? I can see it all clearly now, pretty soon everyone who wanted to be 6 foot tall but fell a little short will now want new taller knees lol :lol:
It will be the new wave in plastic surgery for the next decade. haha. Maybe in the future we will see 8 and a 1/2 foot tall basketball stars next?
GNU
like i said he was severly bow legged. you could put a volleyball through them with no problems. plus he is able to stand mor upright now and not hunch over. his rehab went about 4 months with a lot of pain the 1st month or 2 but now no pain and he says is was definately worth it.