Knee Surgery Went Well

@moffittjc (118221)
Gainesville, Florida
March 28, 2019 7:01pm CST
Today was the day. D-Day. Or in my case, Knee-Day! I had surgery on my right knee to repair a partially torn MCL and torn meniscus. Everything went smoothly, and the surgery actually took place ahead of schedule, which was nice because it meant my daughter didn't have to sit too long at the surgical center waiting to take me home. As soon as the surgery was over and most of the effects of the anesthesia had worn off, the surgeon had me up and walking around (with the aid of crutches of course). Either they gave me some really good drugs, or I can handle pain much better than I thought. They said the effects of the painkillers would wear off between 5-6pm, and it is now close to 8pm and I still feel very little pain. I'm going to try and go as long as possible without taking any painkillers at all, although I know at some point I will need them. I know the lingering effects of the anesthesia probably have a lot to do with it. Anyway, several of you were aware of my upcoming surgery and had asked me to provide an update once the surgery was over. So here it is! I still have a long road to recovery ahead of me, anywhere between 6-8 weeks, but so far I'm off to a good start!
47 people like this
52 responses
@Juliaacv (48236)
• Canada
29 Mar 19
I hope that you continue to be free from any major pain and that you heal quickly. But....enjoy those 6-8 weeks off, your body will need to that to fully get back to normal.
6 people like this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
I will only be off for one week, then it's back to the grind. But I will be on limited mobility for 6-8 weeks while undergoing intense rehab.
3 people like this
@andriaperry (116876)
• Anniston, Alabama
29 Mar 19
Yay! I am glad that you are okay, tomorrow you will feel that knee more and not in a good way.
4 people like this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
I'll be ready to load up on the painkillers tomorrow morning when I wake up! {or tonight if the pain wakes me up in the middle of the night}
3 people like this
@andriaperry (116876)
• Anniston, Alabama
29 Mar 19
@moffittjc Be a man and take none. Bhahaha, I laughed while I typed that.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
@andriaperry I'm the biggest baby in the world when it comes to pain. Not gonna lie about that! But then again, aren't all us men big babies when it comes to pain?
3 people like this
• Valdosta, Georgia
29 Mar 19
I am so glad it went well, God is good! I will be praying recovery goes just as well for you.
4 people like this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
Thank you Jennifer! Your prayers will be greatly appreciated!
2 people like this
@nela13 (55684)
• Portugal
29 Mar 19
I am glad it went well, the worst part is done now take it easy during the recovery.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
I thought the surgery was the easy part, and that the recovery is the hard part!
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
@nela13 They say my recovery will take 6-8 weeks. I have a paintball tournament in 7 weeks that I'd like to play in. I'm going to do everything in my power to heal quickly!
1 person likes this
@nela13 (55684)
• Portugal
29 Mar 19
@moffittjc yes, usually the recovery takes a lot of time.
1 person likes this
@oahuwriter (26786)
• United States
29 Mar 19
So relieved to know you are alright and everything went smoothly with your knee operation. Soon you'll be able to win tournaments! Good luck and speedy recovery for you! Take care. Soon April Fools Day. Again so glad you're alright and not much pain!
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
Thanks! I'm definitely looking forward to getting back out there and winning tournaments! Gotta take it slow and steady though on the recovery! It was interesting though, my surgeon was fascinated when I told him how I hurt my knee playing paintball. He and I talked for quite a while about the sport.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
@oahuwriter My daughter is making out the best here! She gets to watch me tonight, which is easy because I'm in no pain. My girlfriend will get me tomorrow, and I'll probably be in lots of pain then!
1 person likes this
@oahuwriter (26786)
• United States
29 Mar 19
@moffittjc Your family must be so relieved too that you're doing fine and hardly any pain too! You take care and again speedy recovery and stay well.
1 person likes this
• United States
29 Mar 19
glad it went well, rest up! keeping my fingers crossed for a quick recovery. i'm like that with pain pills too, i don't want to rely on them if i can help it.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
@isweartokira What were you doing dropping an intake manifold on your foot?
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
HI Bree, and good morning! I did really well last night until 4:00 in the morning. I woke up in such pain and agony that I thought I was going to die. But since I didn't want to take pain pills at all, and especially on an empty stomach, I loaded up a bunch of ice packs to wrap around my knee, propped it up on a bunch of pillows, and cried myself back to sleep. When I woke up at 7:30 this morning, my knee felt good again, so I'm thinking I must have just turned over wrong in my sleep or something and bumped it, or maybe tried to bend it too much while sleeping.
2 people like this
• United States
29 Mar 19
@moffittjc good morning to you too :) ouch! sometimes ice does the trick. last december i had an intake manifold fall on my foot, the end of my bed was always wet because of the ice bags. nothing like knee surgery pain but i still know that feeling of crying yourself to sleep because it hurts :( i'm happy to hear that it's not hurting so much in the morning
2 people like this
@LadyDuck (454979)
• Switzerland
29 Mar 19
I am so glad it went well Jeff. Take the pain killer if you feel pain, resting and sleeping well is important. Follow the doctor suggestions for the next 6 to 8 weeks, do not "charge" your knee.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
I had one bad pain episode with the knee last night at 4:00 in the morning, but was able to manage the pain by wrapping lots of ice packs around the knee and propping it up on pillows. Was able to fall back asleep without taking any pain pills.
1 person likes this
@LadyDuck (454979)
• Switzerland
30 Mar 19
@moffittjc The ice usually works and I am glad you were able to go back to sleep. The worst of the after surgery pain should be over.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
30 Mar 19
@LadyDuck I am already feeling much better, and started doing my pre-rehab stretches. I also started walking around a little bit this morning without the aid of crutches. All things considered, my knee is feeling really good right now.
1 person likes this
@simone10 (54192)
• Louisville, Kentucky
29 Mar 19
Glad that everything went well with the surgery. How are you feeling today?
1 person likes this
@simone10 (54192)
• Louisville, Kentucky
30 Mar 19
@moffittjc I am so glad to hear that you are haven't been in a lot of pain. For me, the pain has always been the worst a few days after surgery. Moving around is the best thing you can do.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
30 Mar 19
@simone10 Everybody tells me the third day after surgery is going to be the worst. So today is day 3 for me. And honestly, I feel really good! I continue to get up and move around every hour; I do the pre-rehab stretches they gave me to do; and I keep the knee elevated and iced every 2 hours as directed. I have yet to take any pain medications, so I feel like I am really blessed in y recovery so far!
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
So far, so good today. Pain has been at a minimum, and I've been getting up and moving around on it more than I expected. But I can still feel the dull throbbing pain, it just hasn't been too bad yet.
1 person likes this
@DianneN (246452)
• United States
30 Mar 19
I thought of you on Knee-Day as I said I would. I'm so glad you provided an update and hope your recovery goes smoothly and quickly, Jeff.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
31 Mar 19
Thanks Dianne! Your thoughts are greatly appreciated! So far so good with the knee, it has been hurting a lot less than I thought it would. I hope that's a good thing.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
31 Mar 19
@DianneN I sure hope my sense of humor and attitude carry me through! It's been working so far.
2 people like this
@DianneN (246452)
• United States
31 Mar 19
@moffittjc So glad you don't have much pain. I think your sense of humor and attitude will get you through this in no time at all!
2 people like this
@just4him (303392)
• Green Bay, Wisconsin
29 Mar 19
That's great the surgery went well and you're up and walking around, with crutches.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
The knee is sore and throbbing today, but not unmanageable pain (at least so far). I'm impressed with myself that so far I haven't had to take any painkillers yet. I don't like pills, so I do my best to avoid them if I can. But if the pain becomes unbearable, I will take the painkillers, but I'm hoping I don't have to get to that point.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
31 Mar 19
@just4him I just made up my mind early on that I didn't want to take them unless I absolutely needed them. I'm sure after my rehab appointment on Monday I'll probably at least need some Tylenol or Advil, but so far I've been managing without them.
1 person likes this
@just4him (303392)
• Green Bay, Wisconsin
30 Mar 19
@moffittjc It's good when you don't need them.
1 person likes this
@cintol (11278)
• United States
29 Mar 19
Good to hear all went well with the surgery, now hopefully you will follow orders and let it heal. I wouldn't wait too long for those pain pills, you don't want to have to wait for them to take effect if it gets really bad.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
I can't take the pain pills on an empty stomach, so lo and behold I woke up at 4:00 in the morning with my stomach growling and my knee in excruciating pain. It was hurting too bad to get up and go to the kitchen to make food, and I didn't want to wake my daughter, so I just wrapped a bunch of ice packs around my knee, propped it up on a bunch of pillows, and laid back down. It must have worked, because next thing I know it was 7:30 in the morning when my daughter came in to check on me. So far so good this morning, and still haven't taken any pain pills, even though I would have consumed a whole bottle of them last night at 4:00 am if I didn't have an empty stomach! lol
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
30 Mar 19
@cintol I had a great night last night, and slept all the way through the night without any major pain episodes! This time, I woke up each time I wanted to turn over, so I could do it slowly and comfortably without risk of hurting my knee. I felt like a million bucks when I woke up this morning! Okay, really I felt like $12.98, but I'm well on my way to feeling like a million bucks! haha
1 person likes this
@cintol (11278)
• United States
29 Mar 19
@moffittjc Yeah, thats gotta be hard to keep it still without doing normal motions in the night. You were probably dreaming about that rope swing and tubing down the river, see what happens!!! I hope you have a better night tonight and good thing to keep those by the bed with some water just in case you need those pills tonight.
1 person likes this
@kobesbuddy (73903)
• East Tawas, Michigan
29 Mar 19
No, I didn't know that you needed surgery, but I'm glad that everything went smoothly. It's amazing how fast and accurate our modern methods have become, with surgical procedures! Pretty soon, you'll be as good as new:)
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
I'm hoping that pretty soon I'll be as good as new, so I can get back out in the world and hurt something else! haha just kidding, I'm hoping I can go for a while before having any other injuries.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
@kobesbuddy I am safe from the microwave in this situation! No heating pads allowed at all. It's all ice, ice, ice!
1 person likes this
@kobesbuddy (73903)
• East Tawas, Michigan
29 Mar 19
@moffittjc With your strong determination, you'll be healed and raring to go in a little while. Just don't forget and microwave your hot-pack, more than one minute! lol
1 person likes this
@Hannihar (129095)
• Israel
29 Mar 19
@moffittjc I am so glad it was successful. I am glad your daughter did not have to sit and wait for you along time. Take care and I hope each day you get better and better.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
Thank you! The recovery is going to be a long and slow process, so I just plan on taking it one day at a time.
1 person likes this
@Hannihar (129095)
• Israel
29 Mar 19
@KlyliePot Me too wishing him to get better and better each day.
1 person likes this
@Hannihar (129095)
• Israel
29 Mar 19
@KlyliePot Yes, so so true.
1 person likes this
• Northampton, England
29 Mar 19
back on the surfboard soon
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
30 Mar 19
A friend of mine sent me pictures of the waves this morning at the beach. Nice big swells, great for surfing. I hope to be back on a surfboard in a couple of months.
@Tina30219 (81441)
• Onaway, Michigan
29 Mar 19
Glad your surgery went well my boyfriend had total knee replacement in October of last year and he is doing a lot better now. He has to have his other one done eventually but we are going to hold off as much as possible though. I wish you well and a speedy recovery
1 person likes this
@Tina30219 (81441)
• Onaway, Michigan
29 Mar 19
@moffittjc Wow bothbat the same time ouch . One was bad enough with my boyfriend and physically therapy on top of it
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
@Tina30219 I probably would have wanted both knees done at the same time if I had the choice, so that I would only have to be in pain once.
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
Thank you! I hope my recovery is speedy too! My next door neighbor had a total knee replacement in both knees, and he did them both at the same time. Not sure how he managed that one, but I feel bad for his wife having to care for him while he recovered!
• United States
29 Mar 19
Glad your surgery was a success! Have a smooth recovery Jeff!! Don’t let the pain meds wear out though? I heard it’ll hurt more if you wait it out!
1 person likes this
• United States
31 Mar 19
@moffittjc Ha-ha. Hey you haven't been posting lately too but I think you still pop in .I would never leave myLot permanently. I have been packing., unpacking, cleaning........ moving soon :) more update later hehehehe that's what I have been up to! I hope all is well! I'll still be around of course :)
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
Am I dreaming? Is this a hallucination? Is this really my favorite Michelle popping in to say hi? I'm so mad at you! You left myLot and didn't tell me, and didn't give me any way to keep in touch with you! I'm so happy to see you! I thought you were gone forever, without even saying goodbye! Haha, honestly, though, I have really missed you. Where have you been?
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
31 Mar 19
@infatuatedbby I was hoping that your absence had more to do with buying a house and getting married more than just up and quitting! But I'm really glad to see you back here! Keep me updated on the move and all the other great things going on in your life! I miss you!
1 person likes this
• Peoria, Arizona
29 Mar 19
Wooh, knee surgery is a doozy. It seems you are already doing pretty well! I had knee surgery a few years ago. My mpfl ligament was completely in half and my knee cap was actually ripping into a tendon and my knee cap was pretty much sideways so they had to move that around and the ligament and tendon were replaced. They didn't actually think it was that bad until they went in and so a normal half hour surgery ended up being 2 hours haha At least there are some pretty neat looking scars! I hope you have a speedy recovery!
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
Oh wow, you did have a doozy of a surgery! I'm sure you were in much more pain that what I'll be in. I only had a partial tear of my MCL, so the surgery to repair that and my torn meniscus was fairly quick and simple, comparatively speaking.
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
1 Apr 19
@DesirousDreamer Sounds like your knee was really messed up, for them to want to go into knee surgery so fast like that! My surgeon told me that while he was in there working on the MCL and meniscus, he discovered some issues with my patella that he addressed, as well as smoothed out some rough spots on the tips of my bones from arthritis. Definitely still nothing compared to what you went through.
• Peoria, Arizona
1 Apr 19
@moffittjc That is a common injury, not as common as an ACL but still an easy surgery. My grandma had the same thing done on her and she was up and walking just fine. And yet she was trying to compare her surgery with mine when mine was completely different. I finally got my surgery done after 7 years of wear and tear literally because my knee dislocated at least 2-5 times a year but all doctors said I didn't need surgery until just One doctor saw my knee, didn't even say hello or introduce himself, he saw my knee and was like, "So when is the soonest you can be in for surgery?" Haha!
1 person likes this
• Rupert, Idaho
29 Mar 19
Glad to hear the surgery went well...and you were not feeling too much pain! Hopefully that will continue, or the meds help enough :)
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Mar 19
I'm going to avoid taking the painkillers as much as possible. I'm not a big fan of pills, so I will avoid them if I can, but I'm not too stupid as to not take them if the pain becomes unbearable. Today will be a big test to see how well I handle the pain.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
30 Mar 19
@MommyOfEli2013 I'm starting day 3, and so far so good with the pain! Still haven't had to take any pain meds yet. And I got a chance to move around a little this morning without putting all my weight on the crutches, so this afternoon I will try taking a few steps without the aid of crutches. The surgeon wants me up and walking around as much as possible.
1 person likes this
• Rupert, Idaho
30 Mar 19
@moffittjc I hear you, I don't like pills either so I'd avoid them if possible. That sounds like a smart plan though, to take them if it does become unbearable though. Hopefully it won't!
1 person likes this
@florelway (23097)
• Cagayan De Oro, Philippines
4 Apr 19
I hope for your speedy recovery Dr, Hope.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
4 Apr 19
You want to know the funniest thing? Today is "National Day of Hope." So it's quite the coincidence that I self-labeled myself as Dr. Hope! I had no idea it was National Day of Hope!
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
4 Apr 19
@florelway Wow, that's a tough job for me to live up to. I hope I can handle all that responsibility.
1 person likes this
@florelway (23097)
• Cagayan De Oro, Philippines
4 Apr 19
@moffittjc By virtue of the celebration of National Day of Hope. I now officially proclaim you as Dr. Hope. As Dr. Hope you are to become an inspiration to all hopeless romantics lol.
1 person likes this
@Nevena83 (65287)
• Serbia
30 Mar 19
I'm glad the operation went well.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
31 Mar 19
Thank you! I'm feeling pretty good right now, the pain is not as bad as I had expected. I started some basic rehab stretches today, so my knee is pretty swollen right now, but nothing a little ice won't fix.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118221)
• Gainesville, Florida
2 Apr 19
@Nevena83 Thank you! It's slowly getting better with each passing day! I can walk short distances now without the help of crutches.
1 person likes this
@Nevena83 (65287)
• Serbia
31 Mar 19
@moffittjc I hope the knee will be better soon.
1 person likes this