Have you ever had a job where you had a co-worker that you didn’t like? You would disagree with everything that person said or did. Even if that person did something good, you knew that person was just doing it for recognition or some other self-serving benefit.
I know I’ve worked with that person. I know I’ve also been that person – probably still am. “Oh, Michael is talking again. He’s probably saying something critical and/or being a-hole-ish.”
Don’t worry, not liking someone isn’t good or bad. I would argue that you should not let your feelings get in the way of understanding that person, but that is a conversation for a different day.
Back to the co-worker I’m talking about, the one that you are stuck with – your knee. Or shoulder. Or back. Or neck. Whatever, pick a body part. What’s the potential consequence of this type of thinking? Well, if you keep calling something bad, it will always let you down. It is a self fulfilling prophecy.
On a daily basis, not just in the clinic, I hear people say “I can’t do ____ because of my bad knee(s).” The knee may contribute, but a bigger contributor is usually the avoidance of that activity. It typically starts with something as simple as going up or down stairs. A few weeks later you get to a flight of stairs, expect the knee to hurt, and of course, it does. ANOTHER few weeks later while planning a trip where you know there are stairs, you start to think about your knee pain and realize it is still there. After that, just the thought of stairs makes your knee(s) hurt. As time goes by, you realize how little you’ve used the stairs.
Name one activity that you actually get better at the less you do it?
Right, not many.
There are also people that take the opposite approach; my knee hurts when I do this, I’ll just fight through it. Oh by the way, I’ll go ahead and walk around NYC for 3 days, then wonder why my knee hurts more.
Both of these are on opposite ends of the spectrum. Obviously there is some irritation to the knee that requires some type of management. The first example, the Avoider, actually needs to slowly do more and more as frequently as possible. The second example, the Coper, needs to rest a bit, then slowly do more and more until you get back to your previous level.
Despite pain being present, there are very few activities that actually damage the knee, and those usually involve trauma.
But Michael, I have a medical diagnosis of “_______,” that’s why my knee hurts. Maybe. Unfortunately it isn’t that easy and often times we don’t know why something hurts. And depending on the actual medical diagnosis, many people without pain have that exact same thing.
There are some situations where you have to get your knee checked out, like locking or constantly giving out, or loss of range of motion, especially into extension/straightening. Constant pain, regardless of activity, can also be a reason, but that is less consistent as an indicator of something being wrong. And typically you’ve had the other two symptoms first. Otherwise, there are ways to avoid and even improve your situation.
1. Stop calling it bad
You can’t turn something bad into something good unless you identify the characteristics that need to change. So a find a different word to describe your knee. I like “untrained,” then you can start training it. I’m even okay with “weak,” then you can make it strong.
2. Are you an Avoider or a Coper
Figuring this out is a good place to start. The key to recovery is consistency, so you need to find your start point. An Avoider has to get started. A coper will have to slow down (maybe stop) for a bit. Both will need to progressively do more at a REASONABLE pace to build up the tolerance to specific activities.
3. Stand up for yourself
When you see a medical provider and they tell you something that sounds negative (this is the worse knee I’ve ever seen) or scary (it’s bone on bone), tell them “I understand what you are trying to say, but you should really work on your bedside manner because your way of explaining things is very negative and not helpful to people.”
4. Squats and deadlifts
In other words, start training. Training can be more (or less) than squats and deadlifts, it is just exposing yourself to the activities that you constantly do, or know you will eventually have to be ready for. Start walking more. Start taking the stairs more. Knee down then get back up.
Start with one rep. See how far you get.
3FN 