Annette Blane

After 20 years of progressively worsening knee pain and decreasing knee function it was decided that my only option was to have bilateral patella-femoral joint replacement surgery (i.e. replacement of both knee cap/femur joints). Having both knees done at once has its pros and cons but it would not have been open to me if I had not been able to prepare effectively with Tim. We worked hard to build up the strength in my legs and arms – legs to aid recovery and arms so that I would be able to support myself post-surgery. You cannot appreciate how important upper body strength is until you lose the strength in your legs!

Post-surgery I had a lot of physio and also gym-based re-hab with Tim. Tim has spent two sessions a week with me starting from when I was still using two walking sticks and could barely do anything. Less than a year on from surgery, my right knee is better than it was pre-surgery and my left knee is not far behind. My flexibility is a good as it ever was (which is unusual after such drastic surgery). Hours and hours of patient attention from Tim (plus some sports massage – much less painful than physio!) have meant that I am on-track to achieve my end of year goals including being able to run, jump, dance, climb the stairs to the gym and lift the whole stack on the lat pull-down machine! Next year I should be able to ski, snowboard and surf again.

You can read elsewhere about Tim’s professional knowledge and infectious enthusiasm, but for me his greatest quality is his patience. We have been doing variations of the same boring rehab exercises for nearly 2 years now – but he still counts every one and changes the exercises so I do not get bored. He remembers better than I do how far I have come in my recovery and reminds me of it when I am ready to give up. And I would have given up a long time ago without his support and encouragement.

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