Yesterday was a turning point day for my dad.  He finally had double knee replacement surgery.  He is 58 years old.  He has needed new knees for at least the last 5 years.  His knees have been bad for more like 20. 

Every doctor that my dad has seen about his knees told him that it was “just” arthritis and that they recommended waiting until a person is 60 before doing a knee replacement.  This recommendation is based on the length of time the artificial joints will generally last (10-15 years).  This recommendation, however, does not adequately account for the level of pain a person is in.

My dad has, for years, just about lived on OTC pain medications.  He limps around instead of walks.  He cannot walk up or down stairs without supporting nearly his full weight on the railings.  He finally had to buy a cane.  He did all the “necessary” prerequisite treatments that his orthopedic doctors required: cortisone shots in the knees, a gel made of rooster combs (I’m not kidding) shot into the knees, anti-inflammatory drugs.  And he just suffered through.

It was hard for us to watch, and it was hard not to be annoyed at all these doctors who didn’t seem to listen to my dad’s complaints with appropriate concern.  And, had I been at the hospital, I would have had to fight the “I-told-you-so” reaction when his doctor hinted to my mom after the surgery that the x-rays had not given an adequate indication of how bad his knees really were.   But now, finally, after all the time and pain and waiting, he has new knees.  And we are very glad.

We are glad that even though he’s got a long, painful recovery ahead of him, one day soon he’ll be able to walk the entire mall again.  He’ll be able to golf all he wants to without having to sit for the rest of the day because of the pain.  He’ll be able to get down on the floor to play with his grandkids.  He’ll be able to walk up and down stairs and pivot to open doors.  He’ll be able to sleep through the night without pain.  He’ll get to live like a 58 year old man, instead of an 85 year old one.

Yes, we are very, very glad