Posted by seattlebill on January 02, 2008 at 08:24:34:

In Reply to: Re: MMA insurance info + victory dance posted by dirtywater on December 21, 2007 at 22:04:43:

Yep...

Well, when I posted my "timeline"...I never thought it would be a general posting of such prominence.

That being said, I think that there are several things to bear in mind about the MMA.

1) YMMV (your mileage may vary). There are many commonalities in what we experience, but everyone is an individual . The recovery is therefore variable dependent and individualized. We all bring into a procedure our bodies with all of our previous health conditions (co-morbidities)...and that gets unmasked with any major illness or procedure. So yes, there is swelling, numbness, etc... and the rates of improvement and total recovery depend to a great extent as to what you bring to the table.

2) Accuracy. The phases are correct, and based in part on an aggregation of posts here and on blogs of MMA vets. It is also loosely based on textbook descriptions of the way people heal and progress from major surgery. The rates of recovery and particulars are , of course, variable.

3). A MARATHON, NOT A SPRINT. Above all, that is the biggest take home message. Don't get locked into time parameters...but expect things to evolve slowly, and find resolution gradually.

4). STAR TREK (Scotty in particular). Remember Scotty ? He always used to exagerate his repair times by a factor of 4 to get the engines (etc) online. LOL...why is this relevant ???

Well...surgeons do the inverse. And this is very honest! Unless they have been through a major procedure themselves, they have the "courage of the non-combatant". For ego reasons, or the lack of day-to-day personal insight, they always are overly-optimistic about how fast people rebound from their procedure (be it an MMA, a back procedure, knee replacement, heart surgery, etc...). The are technically invested in doing a great job. And having done a great job, they are then focused on when drains, arch bars come out, and when your bones are healed, etc... All based on science and in common textbooks. Not being in OUR shoes, many don't realize that there are noticeable(sometimes annoying or lingering) effects that persist long after we have had our last office visit with them.

I have seen this a hundred times to one degree or another. I think it is important to be pleasantly surprised when things go faster or better than you thought...and not be disappointed if you are not reaching higher levels of expectations if you don't. (because staying on "pathway" doesn't matter one iota...it is not a race). The warp engines will fire up in the end...soon enough :-) without a countdown.

5) Optimism is crucial. Stay optimistic !!
The end goal is attainable, and very worth it ! And that is what we should all focus on (very true).

Best wishes, and Happy New Year !!

Bill

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