How did your first week of June go?
My knees are pretty much always front and center in everything I do — but that week, my right one decided to make itself known in a big way. I was mid-squat when I paused and thought, “Huh. I think my form might be garbage.” 😅
I haven’t done a serious lower-body workout in a while. The last time squats were part of my routine was four years ago — before my right knee replacement, before my left foot surgery, and definitely before my right shoulder repair. Somewhere in my head, I expected my body to just remember how to do it all. But that’s not where I’m at physically anymore.
And that’s when I noticed it — a shift in my right knee. Not painful exactly, but weird. And honestly, it triggered me. It felt a little like my old ACL injury from 20+ years ago.
My brain didn’t hesitate: Is my implant coming loose? Did something go wrong?
Even though I’m nearly three years post-op on that knee, I still went straight to the worst-case scenario. Because that’s what we do. Something unexpected happens, and we assume it’s the implant. It’s the last big thing we did, so our minds grab onto it.
But here’s what actually happened: I brought it up to my shoulder PT, and once we walked through everything, the dots connected. After my left foot surgery, I spent six months in a boot and never got sent to PT. That completely threw off my gait. Without even knowing it, I was compensating — putting more pressure on my right leg, especially the outer edge of the knee.
And now that I’m finally relearning how to walk properly on the left, my right knee is saying, “Hey, you’ve been leaning on me for a while — can we fix this?”
This is the kind of stuff that pops up way past the “normal” recovery window. My left knee is six years post-op. My right’s almost three. I’m technically “healed,” but these little nuances still show up. They’re sneaky. They make you question everything. And yes — I made a call to my ortho surgeon just to make sure. I have a picture-taking appointment coming up, because I want to know for sure.
This is exactly why I’m building the Knee Replacement Hub (https://suzieqandrade.com/the-hub - probably italize it too) to follow the lifespan of my own knees. Because healing doesn’t stop at the 12-week mark or even the one-year mark. We need support at year two… and three… and six. The deeper into recovery we get, the more layers there are to work through — physically, emotionally, mentally.
Here’s what helped me regroup:
1. The brain loves a worst-case scenario. But fear doesn’t always mean failure. Getting curious changes everything.
2. Going back to basics works. Ice, rest, massage gun, my oils — I already had everything I needed.
3. Strength sticks around. Even if it feels lost, it comes back when you show up for it.
2. Going back to basics works. Ice, rest, massage gun, my oils — I already had everything I needed.
3. Strength sticks around. Even if it feels lost, it comes back when you show up for it.
So if you're further out from surgery and something new pops up, you're not alone. These things happen. And no, it doesn't always mean something's wrong. Sometimes your body’s just asking you to pay attention. That's why I'm mapping this all out in the Hub — so you're never left wondering if you're the only one going through it. You're not.
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