Damaged tendons/ligaments behind knee

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dakotaandcoffee
Posts: 3
Joined: Fri Dec 07, 2018 1:03 pm
Location: Washington State

Damaged tendons/ligaments behind knee

Post by dakotaandcoffee »

I'm hoping for some advice. While practicing lotus, I was given some poor instruction to use my thumb to pull the knee out away from the body by hooking the thumb under the knee and pulling out. Two months later the back of my knee is still sore. When I completely rest it, no hip stretches like pigeon, and ice, it gets better. Then when the pain has been gone for a bit, I'll jump back into some hip work and the pain comes back.
Should I refrain from any yin stretches like swan, etc.. and just completely rest it, or is there helpful things I can do in yin for it. I am getting a bit frustrated at the length of time it is taking to heal, considering the damage was done in one practice and there wasn't pain at the time.
Bernie
Posts: 1293
Joined: Sat Sep 23, 2006 2:25 am
Location: Vancouver

Post by Bernie »

Hi - I am sorry to hear about your needy knees! Ouch. What does your doctor say? If you haven't seen one, it may be your best bet. But, if you want my thoughts, here goes!

Let me start with a bit of background stuff: Lotus is one of the postures I define to be “high risk/low reward., I have written about its dangers elsewhere, and you might enjoy this article: Lotus Pose: Destroyer of Disease, or Destroyer of Knees? . If you want to continue trying Lotus, I would ask “why?, What would be your intention is doing that pose?

If your intention in all the external hip rotation postures you mentioned (Swan, Lotus, etc.) is to increase your range of motion in external rotation (which is often referred to as “hip openers,, although this also could be used to describe increasing abduction range of motion), then the next important investigation is to ask yourself “What stops me?, What prevents you from going deeper in those directions? If the answer to that question is tension, then there may be value in trying to go further, but if the answer is compression, then you have reach the limit of what your body can give you and there is no point or benefit in trying to go further. Sure, you can still do these poses to keep what you have and gain the other benefits of your Yin yoga practice (mindfulness, energy work, etc.) but once you feel the bones hitting, don't try to go further.

With all that as prologue, let's look at your main question: your knee is injured. When should you go back to postures that stress it? I would say-wait until there is no pain! Yes, let your knee heal. Again, what does your doctor suggest?

I can speak from some experience that it takes a while for the knees to heal, depending upon what you did to it. You can, indeed, tear your meniscus and ligaments while holding a pose even for a minute! And, it may take surgery to repair it. These tissue can be very slow to heal. You can read about my journey in this Yin Yoga for the knees article and via this Forum thread. And, here is another thread on a particular yin sequence for the knees that you might find helpful.

So, lots for you to study up on. Let us know how it goes!
Good luck
Bernie
dakotaandcoffee
Posts: 3
Joined: Fri Dec 07, 2018 1:03 pm
Location: Washington State

Post by dakotaandcoffee »

Thanks for the reply Bernie! I have not been to the dr yet. I'm in the US, with horrible insurance and so I was hoping to not have to go. I'm going to completely rest and ice for the next few weeks and see how it goes. If it is still a problem, I'll head to the dr.

That article was fabulous! Thank you for sharing!
Bernie
Posts: 1293
Joined: Sat Sep 23, 2006 2:25 am
Location: Vancouver

Post by Bernie »

Good luck! By the way, recent research shows that ice doesn't really help with healing although it can help reduce pain. This used to be the standard approach to treating inflammation - the acronym is RICE: Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation. More recent studies of cryotherapy has shown that ice is actually not effective. Today the process recommended is called MCE: mobilization, compression and elevation. Gentle mobilization of the knee may still be effective. There is another option to reduce inflammation: earthing. You can read more about it in his newsletter article.

Cheers
Bernie
dakotaandcoffee
Posts: 3
Joined: Fri Dec 07, 2018 1:03 pm
Location: Washington State

Post by dakotaandcoffee »

Thanks for the links to the articles! I have been using a TENS machine and that seems to be helping greatly. I have heard a lot about earthing, will look more into that. Thank you for your input Bernie
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