From One Step at a Time to Back in the Barn: Her Knee Replacement Journey
“I grew up with horses in South Louisiana. My grandfather had black Angus cattle, and I was in a saddle from the time I was three. Horses have been a way of life for me almost my whole life. And when you have horses, you also have a lot of work. Lifting, pouring feed, catching the horses, haltering them, holding up feet, working with the farriers.
…In about 2003, I can almost tell you the day that my knee started hurting. Before I ever had surgery, I had everything you can inject in a knee injected in both of them, many times.”
“I had the left one replaced, and I knew immediately when I woke up that something was wrong. I started having terrible sciatic nerve pain and back pain, and I had never had that before.
When I found Dr. Couch, I knew I had to do something. He looked at the X-rays, and I figured we would have a discussion about alternatives. He said there is no alternative except to replace this.
And I’ve got to tell you, it was a great experience. The whole way that he does this was so different than my other two knee replacements. There was a lot of prep work ahead of time, including a nerve block.
I felt like he cared. I feel like he absolutely cared. Even in this day of hospitalists, he was there the next morning in the hospital. And the staff over at the clinic… they’re caring, they’re compassionate, they’re thoughtful, they’re all those good things.”
“By the time two weeks were up, I was walking around the house without a cane. I used to feel like such an old lady getting to the stairs and having to take them one at a time. It’s not that way anymore. My back quit hurting. I’m back to being my old self.
It’s like you lose your life and you get it back. That’s what it feels like. I am so thrilled to be able to do those grungy, grubby, heavy, stinky, smelly things that you do with horses. I’m so happy that I can do them again.”
A Second Opinion That Starts With Listening
Some patients come to us after years of trying everything else. Others arrive after a surgery that didn’t deliver the relief they were promised. At San Antonio Orthopædic Specialists, Dr. Couch starts by listening to your whole story, then takes the time to walk you through every step, from prep work to recovery. If knee pain is keeping you from the work, hobbies, or animals you love, a knee replacement with our team may be worth exploring.