Case Summary  |  my old football acl injury still not 100%

In high school I loved to play football. It was great being with my friends and going out on the field it was really one of the highlights of high school for me, but like so many other i got injured playing the game I love. I personally wasn't extremely talented or anything so I was second string running back for our team, the Knights.

One day we were really winning the game and it was the last quarter so the coach decided to give the starter a little rest and give me a chance to get some experience during a game. So i went out thinking this was my chance to really prove that I had some untapped potential that no one could see ,but was unlocked by the spirit of competition. The first down came and there was a hand off to me and I ran I was lucky because my good friend was a lineman and he tried really hard to block and I made it up the field a little way. He fell in front of me and I tried to pull some heroics and jump over him and I leaped and as I flew through the air I put my leg straight out to land ,but at just the wrong angle and it jammed my knee and injured my ACL ligament. Some much for Football.

I remember thinking it was bad because I could hear a popping noise every time I tried to bend it. I did learn that the ACl is short for The Anterior cruciate ligament and that it is crucial for feeling like you have a strong knee to support your weight. After seeing the doctors and receiving an MRI to to see the full extent of the damage they decided to that it wasn't a full tear and I could opt out of surgery and do physical recovery. I had to wear a brace for over a month and refrain from straining the knee. After that I had to continue with special exercises and physical training to get back use most use of my knee. A few years ago a friend of mine suggested I try acupuncture to stimulate ligament growth so I tried it and it really seemed to help with general feel of the knee and it made the throbbing and occasional popping much less. Today, ten year later, I still would be afraid to run really fast and change direction or do any really intense leaping. It is mostly healed I would say 80-90% better ,but i can still feel a rainstorm in my knee. Weird!! I hope it doesn't later turn into arthritis. Oh! well I guess it was worth it for my moment of glory .