@Helpful Hannah
I'm incredibly sorry for the fall you took at home resulting in multiple injuries, not the least of which is your blown knee ligament. (The ortho knee docs in the hospital from which I retired all referred to torn knee ligaments as "blown.")
A little advice for you: make sure you're referred to a Sports Medicine surgeon who performs many knee surgeries; and, make sure that this surgeon has performed at least 400 knee ligament repair surgeries. Why 400? Because you really don't want your repair accomplished by someone who has just completed their residency with or without a Fellowship in Knee. I'd much, much rather go for a doc pushing 50 than one nearly 40. Why is this? Because once a doc has completed medical school, then a Residency, followed by a Fellowship in Knee (and any knee doc worth anything will have done a Fellowship in Knee in Chicago, Cleveland Clinic, you name the big ones in Ortho.)
As a patient, you are your own best advocate, so ask about numbers; e.g., how many ACL repairs has Dr. Smith performed? This is an extremely valid question! Look this doctor up on the internet. Find out all you can. I do this all the time. Boy oh boy! I just found out that a hand surgeon I was referred to has the absolute worst reputation in the city in which I live. He's apparently a decent surgeon, but does not listen to patients nor does he answer questions. Frankly, I have no time for such ego maniacs and I bet you don't either.
Also, ask your surgeon what technique is going to be used to replace your blown ligament. There are options and you need to know them. There's the standard technique using your own tissue, but also another, which is also available, which uses donor tissue.
Though many physicians hate for their patients to educate themselves on the internet, I say "go to it." You need to know what's going on inside you, options, expectations, the surgery, recovery, the whole nine yards. It's actually rather nice to just sit there and read about it without anyone spewing this very important information in your face at what will probably be a somewhat emotionally charged appointment and they always seem to do it at warp speed!
You and some here may wonder why I've carried on in such a manner. Well, this was my favorite part of being an RN. I simply thrived in conflict, when I had a patient or patient with family with major surgery eminent and all were clearly upset - many times in tears. It has never ceased to amaze me how insensitive physicians are to the needs of pre-op patients and families, especially in ortho and neurosurgery. At times the information is simply dumped. This is especially so when it's a matter of a traumatic injury (you fall into this category). I would then try to squeeze in as much time as possible with the patient (and family) answering every single question, if I could.** Sometimes the patient would ask for me to pray with him/her in closing. I always walked out of those patient rooms knowing those patients would at least go into surgery without a "load" on their minds, which is so important physiologically and psychologically.
So...#1 is be kind to yourself. Don't do a blame game regarding your home accident. #2 is educate yourself via the internet. #3 is insure that your knee surgeon has the credentials/experience that will give you a warm fuzzy feeling - confidence. #4 Take a look at the interior of your house/apartment and know right now that to be kind to yourself after surgery, some shifting about of furniture and/or temporarily storing some thing out of the way will provide you with a safer environment.
God bless you now, during your surgery and recovery.
(**Sharing a really good example here. Boating accident on a busy California lake. Family in boat taking turn waterskiing. At the time of the accident, 14 y.o. daughter on skis in the water doing fine. Dad made a wide turn to avoid water traffic. With the force of the turn, the teen daughter lost her grip and went into the water. She had a flotation device on and was swimming around to re-orient herself, waiting for her dad to return in the board to pick her up. As it was learned later, dad had too much to drink (DUI in a boat on a lake) and drove the boat over his daughter's lower leg. Fast forward to the ortho floor where I was working. Accident occurred on a Saturday a.m., Monday was a day off for me, so I'm now in on a Tuesday and this patient assigned to me. My first sight of her is of her being wheeled away on a guerny, clearly to the O.R.. I checked her chart to catch up. Carried on with other patients, then noticed 2 women seated on a love seat in an alcove and crying. Went up to them and asked if I could help. Here's where the system really failed this family: the 14 y.o. teen was being taking down to the O.R. for her second debridment due to serious propellor injuries to the right leg below the knee. Staff had simply prepped her in front of her mother and grandmother and whisked her away, all while the mother attempted many times to find out what they were going to do with her daughter. For all she knew, and I quote, "Are they going to cut off my daughter's leg?" I found a chair and sat with them for 30 minutes, after making sure my patients were covered. Unbelievable.)
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