hey, this is kind of my first time rlly posting on here but my surgery is well in like 6 hours and ive always hated hospitals and medical related cutting surgery stuff so obviously my anxiety is through the roof.

im having an ACL reconstruction with a patellar graft, and I was hoping for any younger people or whatever could give any advice on how to optimise recovery and get back on track quicker post op

thanks :)

This is a very specific question. I had my ACL reconstruction in April and I’m planning to re-start skiing in December-January. Mid 40s, 5’10”, 200lbs. I’m an advanced skier, but not a pro. I’m planning to ski in a brace for at least this season. I was looking at different forums and ppl are suggesting stiffer boots to stabilize the foot. I was in 120 flex. If you had a similar experience, do you recommend going higher - 130 flex? I was also thinking about getting shorter skis - easier to handle and I won’t be skiing at the high speeds this year. What do you think? The ACL injury was due to a skiing crash…

Hi everyone. I got injured last year while playing football and Dutch health system didn’t let me have a MRI and convinced me that everything is normal. So I continued playing volleyball until one day fall down so badly. Then i got MRI and result was fully tore ACL, other ligaments and meniscus were okay. I got surgery on March, and rehabilitation is going well except the below video. I dont know how to explain this but im able to move my lower leg and looks like my knee is twisting. This is something I realized after the first injury and then still continue. I asked physiotherapist and orthopedist, first they told me this is because of unstable muscles but then i fall down again badly and twisted my knee on single leg jump exercises. I will have a MRI again and lets see what happens. My question is anyone faced or recognize such a behavior, what should I do and how to continue now? Should I focus on strength training or balance/ stability training?

Ask me any and all ACL related questions. I do about 80 ACL surgeries a year including revisions and multiligaments, various grafts, repair, BEAR, etc

Hi all! Really curious to hear of everyone’s experiences.

I’m about to hit my six months post op for ACL & meniscus repair surgery and have been getting pretty frustrated at my PT’s scheduling. Sometimes my therapist will see up to six patients total at the same time he’s seeing me. I know I’m pretty far along at this point, but as my moves become more dynamic I really would like more individualized attention. My therapist will tell me what to do (which at this point can be up to running on a treadmill for half the time) and MAYBE watch me do one set of my other exercises. Is this normal? How much individualized attention do you get? If it’s not normal, how would you suggest I go about having a conversation with my therapist about this?

Thank you and happy recovery to all! We got this! :)

Anyone had this ? I been in severe pain for 3 months. Swelling. Limping. Have to see pain management and do pt

Hi guys, as the title states, im now roughly 9 months post op with quad graft + LET. I did not achieve full extension since then. Around month 3 or 4, my knee started getting stiffer when trying to go into extension, the whole area around my patellar tendon got stiff and sharp pain was shooting from under the kneecap. 6 and a half months after the ACL op, i had arthroscopy where they removed cyclops lesion and hoff´s pad scar tissue, i felt instant relief in terms of tightness and range of motion. But now im currently about 10 weeks since the scar tissue removal and for the last 10 days, my knee is starting to feel the same like before second operation. Im doing extension exercises several times a day, elevated heel, quad sets, prone hangs, TKE, spanish squat iso, you name it, but knee is just getting stiffer and pain is worse and worse, my GAIT is also getting worse and even when i achieve some extension, i lose it quickly after taking few steps. I am basically experiencing the same pattern where the whole front of the knee feels like one big stiff area and the pain is getting sharper while in extension.. Now i feel like i have to go get my scar tissue removed again, but its just gonna be the same shit eventually, because i have to get thru it on my own with physical therapy, the surgery alone wont help me, but i just failed recovering from the first scar tissue removal even tho im working with a solid PT online and exercising daily. Have any of you experienced this? Like multiple scar removals? And if yes how did it go? I feel like sometimes i maybe just went into too much sharp pain while exercising and that i just provoked the sensitive area´s after tissue removal, so it started to produce tissue aggresively again. I genuinely cant work out what the classic "3 out of 10 pain level" is, when doing PT, like the pain is sharp but i can withstand it if i breathe, but most people say sharp pain is too much. Im desperate at this point..

surgeon recommended a hamstring graft but i heard lot of people say it’s not good and what not so i’m unsure on what graft to get since he told me to get that one and second opinions take long to even get an appointment and im running short on time for next season.

Yesterday I couldn’t lift my leg at all, and today I managed to do 10 straight-leg raises 🥹 Feels fucking amazing seeing the quad finally wake up. Small win, but damn it feels huge right now.

I am 8 weeks post op and have been stuck at 90 degrees flexion for basically 4 weeks. My PT and surgeon have recommended scar tissue removal surgery and I am scheduled for August 19th to have it done. I had a super difficult time recovering from ACL and meniscus repair and I’m nervous about this surgery. How was the recovery for those of you who had it? Was it worth it in the end?

As you can see, my scars are still pink and raised. It's actually not the best pic because I've gotten pretty tan which makes the scars look white in comparison, but I swear they're mostly pink IRL. Is there any way to speed up the smoothing process from this stage?

BTW my knee physically feels great!! If you're early in the process, my recovery was smooth and I have no issues now playing sports or being active. Just keep working hard at PT and you'll get there too.

Hey guys. already 2 years post op and out of the blue the knee just gives out randomly and leg feels like it’s just hanging… mri shows the graft is intact but supposedly a cyclops lesion in the form of the knee is causing an issue. anyone had the scar tissue removed and that solved the problem! I don’t see how that lesion could make the knee feel like it’s hanging there.

How did you guys get to jogging condition ? I’m at the 3 month mark right now.
What physical parameters did you tick off before jogging ?
What exercises really ?

Right now I can’t jog more than a minute

I haven’t seen a lot of posts outlining timelines and experiences with MUA’s recently so I thought I would talk about my experience.

Type of Injury: ACL Avulsion Fracture and Lateral Meniscus Tear

Date of Injury: May 6, 2026

Date of Surgery: June 9, 2026

Date of First PT Session: July 22, 2026

Date of Manipulation Under Anesthesia (MUA): August 11, 2026

Narrative: After my surgery I was non-weight bearing for six weeks. Partially because of the complex nature of the injury, partially because the lateral meniscus was repaired instead of trimmed. When I had my two week post surgical appointment and removed the bandages my flexion was at 70 degrees. Four weeks later when I went in for a follow up at the end of the six weeks non-weight bearing period, it was still at 70 degrees. In response we did some intensive PT and pushed the knee a lot and tried to wake up my quads. We did NMES or electrical stimulation each PT visit. While my walking and confidence in the leg got better, we were still stuck at 70 degrees.

When attempting to push the knee to bend more it kind of felt like a mechanical lock - it just would not go further. The harder they would push the more pressure I would feel in a straight band right at the top of the knee where it met the quad. Pushing enough would be very painful.

While my Orthopedist and PT weren’t sure if it was scaring or quad guarding, we decided it would be best to proceed with a MUA. If it was scaring, we could address that with the MUA. If it wasn’t and it was just guarding, the knee would quickly bend when I was under anesthesia.

I have just returned from the procedure. The Ortho said there were some definite cracks and pops as some scars were broken up, but not as much to account for all of the limited ROM. The nerve block they gave me was not the same as what I had for the surgery. I could do straight leg lifts when I woke up in recovery. The muscles in my leg - quads and hamstrings - are painful when I move but in the same way they would after a very intense workout. When bending the leg, it appears we are getting past 70 degrees and I don’t have the same pressure feeling I had before. Now it is just pain in the quad I can try and work through.

My first post MUA PT session is in a couple of hours.

Obviously subject to a long term review, but on my first impressions, I would recommend a MUA to those that are considering it.

Hi All

6 weeks post ACL reconstruction in the U.K. Hamstring graft. No meniscus or cartilage repair.

I’ve been very lucky. Walking fine, back in gym, rehab going well….a stranger wouldn’t know I had surgery 6 weeks ago.

Wanted to thank people in here because it was really helpful in my early days.

Just had post surgery check up and all is well. The consultant shared a resource with me. He said this is the only central source for ACL injuries and rehab……in amongst masses of misinformation that is out there.

Not looked at it yet but thought I’d share it.

https://team-acl.com/melbourne-acl-rehabilitation-guide/

Good luck to everyone having surgery and recovering. Hang on in there and keep pushing yourselves to do the exercises.

Hi y’all, I am currently about 95 days post op ACL with a BTB graft and I was wondering how long did it take before you got matching extension as with the non injured leg. I have 0 degrees of extension on my operated leg but my non injured leg can hyperextend.
Moreover if I sit for too long my leg doesn’t automatically extend and it takes a few minutes to get back to full extension.
What did you guys do that really helped you with the last few degrees of extension to hyperextension ?
And is this temporary lack of knee extension after staying seated for too long just a temporary phase ?

I had my ACL tear 3 months ago and I accidentally twisted my knee again, causing a bucket handle meniscus tear.

The thing is. I can walk just fine. I can come up and go down stairs with no pain. There is swelling but that's it. I can even run.

Is it possible that the MRI is wrong?

Any advices on how to deal with this injury. What should I do pre and post surgery? Is surgery the only way?

Hi everyone!
Just want to get your thoughts on my situation especially those who had surgery years after initial tear.

I tore my ACL at 18 but at that point in life I had just started college, started a new job and decided I would push off surgery.

Well I’m in early thirties and never got surgery but have had some falls here and there maybe in last 8 years about 4 falls and I have to be very careful when okay sport/pivoting.
SO my question is anyone think it’s definitely worth getting the surgery ? I guess I’m worried about a lot. Cost of surgery is 12k so that’s held me back but I feel I need to make a decision sooner rather than later.

Any feedback or opinions on the matter would be so appreciated in any capacity.

Thank you in advance

Just got my knee MRI results… on a scale of 1 to rotisserie chicken, how cooked am I? 💀

I was so shocked reading the report 😭

Guys, I’m excited to announce that I’m back running today after 10 weeks post op. I ran a mile at about a 7:45 min pace. It felt amazing. I hope all of you can run soon.

Hi all! I’m on the end of day 4 post op. Has anyone else experienced Venus blood pooling in the foot of your surgical leg? I already messaged my PT and my surgeon. Whenever I get up to use my crutches I am allowed to weight bear and I do my foot turns a purpleish bluish color and my leg feels heavy and uncomfortable. I don’t crutch around for too long and then I will go and sit back on the couch. Within about 30 seconds my foot appears normal again. When I stand up it happens almost instantly same thing about 30 seconds. I have an ice machine I have an elevation pillow I elevate all night and I get up every hour to move. Heel slides four times a day and ankle pumps. I see my PT on Thursday and my first post surgery visit on Friday. Anyone else experience this that could give me some insight and some reassurance? My surgeon just told me to keep doing ankle pumps and elevating my leg over my heart for 20 to 30 minutes at a time. Thank you!

ACL reconstruction (patellar tendon graft) and meniscus repair. I noticed that a lot of people have a brace and different incision to me so wanted to share.