Tuesday 3rd September 2019
"We can rebuild him"...that's what they said in 1973 about Steve Austin, the character played by Lee Majors in the TV series The Six Million Dollar man.
And so some 46 years later we are rebuilding humans. Bionic ear implants, sight specifically colour correction, replacement of limbs and internal organs, every day they get better and better. In 2 days I will start my own REBUILD starting with bilateral(both) knees being replaced.
The metals used in artificial knees are alloys of cobalt-chromium and titanium. The bearing portion of the joint is made of a high-grade, wear-resistant plastic. Yippeeee!
How did we get to this? Good question but it started about 3-4 yrs ago. At first it was mild pain that I had well under control with mobility and strength work. But it became a double edged sword. I couldn't stop the degradation of the joint and most of my strength exercises like deadlifts and squats actually helped with pain. As a CrossFitter/Surf Boat Rower I was happy chugging along with mild pain whereby some days were worse than others. By late 2017 it was getting pretty bad and I begun seeing a surgeon who constantly told me that whilst I had the range of motion I had he wasn't going to entertain replacement no matter how much pain I was in.
By late 2018 it was getting bad enough that surfing would soon go by the wayside. The simple act of walking more than 25-50m would give me hell. Yet still no luck with the surgeon until I decided to find another guy who took one look at my scans and asked.. "How the hell do you walk with those things let alone CrossFit and Row?". Exactly!!! And so 7mths ago we started down the path to replacement. It's gotten worse still but knowing there's light at the end of the tunnel gives one a massive boost.
I'm really keen to get in there, get it done and start the rehab. I've stopped squatting and deadlifting in the past few weeks and only swim, row or bike leading into the op. I can't wait to get in there!!!
A big thank you to all of you who have offered well wishes and support.