"Awsome, isn't it, those crutches?" Now that Marie-Anne is walking on crutches for the umpteenth time, she can hardly respond nicely to countless well-intentioned comments. She explains it in her blog.
Good intentions
Marie-Anne: The biggest problem is that everyone means well. People would like to know how you are doing or may think that you are socially isolated and are in need of a chat. And so you stand – uncomfortably hanging on your crutches – for the umpteenth time, often explaining for minutes what exactly is going on. But you usually don't have the patience for that, don't feel like it or even worse:hate it. But what should you do? You don't want to offend all those sweet, interested people… I don't think this sounds very nice, but I'll try to explain it.
calculation
A little math shows me that I have now moved on crutches for a total of well over a year of my life. It's not that noticeable at home, but I also have to go out sometimes. You may have walked with crutches or wore an eye patch or something, but one thing stands out:everyone is talking about it. That is of course sympathetic in principle, but after so long I sometimes get a bit tired of it. You see:that sounds very unkind again.
Sexy
If parents at school or fellow villagers in the supermarket did not ask about my knee condition, that might just be unkind, it is never good either. I would certainly do it myself:'Gosh, you have to be on crutches for a long time. Clumsy, isn't it!' I usually mumble a bit 'Yeah, it's those damn knees again' but sometimes you can't get away with that. For example, if the school door is still closed.
Meniscus sure?
And here it comes:I usually get the question:'Meniscus are you sure?' ('Just like my sister-in-law, neighbor or great-grandfather'.) And that's the crux of the matter. No, my menisci are both completely intact. My story is a lot less easy to explain and is certainly not sexy. I have a cartilage problem. A damn serious cartilage problem but this requires some explanation. And sometimes you don't feel like it, also because walking on crutches requires a lot of energy anyway. At the end of the afternoon at school you'll be through it for a while and you'll be happy if you manage to get your bloods from school yourself without getting unscathed and hearing their stories.
Some explanation needed
My cartilage is broken. Been quite a while and now on both sides. It has major damage (grade four for those in the know). The reason for this is not entirely clear to the doctors. A previous skiing accident has to do with it, but there are more factors in which heredity may play a role. Somewhere along the way, my anterior cruciate ligament was also completely torn off and I now have a fake one.
Operations
A dozen operations have ensured that some holes have been closed, but there are always new injuries and the condition of the knees is not improving. Damaged cartilage can never fully recover, but science does not stand still and new techniques are constantly being added. Fortunately, my orthopedic surgeon is also a professor of reconstructive medicine, so I'm in the right place with him. In fact, I wouldn't want to be treated anywhere else. If this doctor doesn't know a modern treatment method, it hasn't been invented yet. He is also known as 'The cartilage guru'.
On crutches again Recently I was allowed to go under the knife again and a method that had not been used before in the Netherlands was applied. Complications have arisen and I have to rehabilitate for a long time. I have been on crutches for almost two months now. Undoubtedly, I am again receiving well-intentioned advice on a large scale in the corridors. Forgive me if I don't go into too much detail. Unkind? Certainly! Sorry! Really.
Who is Marie-Anne? Marie-Anne, 48 years old, is married and mother of three daughters. She has a serious cartilage problem. It all started after a skiing accident, but hereditary factors and factors that doctors still don't know much about also play a role. Every other week she blogs about her (patchwork) family, the care in the Netherlands and her knee, which she recently had surgery on for the ninth time.
Read all of Marie-Anne's blogs>>
