For Karla

This post is for a woman maned Karla who left a comment on my blog, but I have no other way of contacting her...

Karla, I am sorry to hear of the need for a second surgery and the possibility of radiation. It sucks. There are a lot of other people who have similar stories to yours. There is a very large group of people on facebook, about 200 of us, who have or are dealing with PVNS in many different ways. Everyone there takes comfort in having support from each other and also feel good because there are opportunities for us to encourage and help one another. If you have facebook, in the search bar type in PVNS is Pants. (Apparently an English term for saying PVNS is crap!) You may find support and help there from other people.

You asked about knee exercises... I got a list from going to physical therapy. THe CPM machine was not a joke for me... I believe, without it, I would not have regained the range of motion that I have. It is monotonous being in that thing for several hours a day, but it does help. If you don't have a machine, one way you can work on bending your knee further is sitting in a rocking chair and as you rock, gradually bring the heel of the leg you had surgery on closer and closer to the chair and eventually kind of under the chair and as you rock forward you will feel it... when it hurts a little, hold it there for a while, then rock back and repeat... my doctors swore that being able to straighten my leg was as, if not more important, than bending it... so make sure you are doing some exercises to do that... if you can sit with your legs straight out in front of you, put something, like a light dumbell on your knee (with cushioning) and sit with it for a few minutes at a time while pulling your toes toward yout body (Flexing your foot.) This also works if you can use a foot stoolso that gravity helps pull the back of the knee toward the floor.

Email me anytime at Ihavepvns@aol.com