Have you been considering knee replacement surgery or know someone who’s been putting it off? It can be scary to think about the unknown so we hope Joe, our June patient of the month, can shed some light on the recovery process in physical therapy.

Meet Joe!! This physics teacher brought his educational lessons to physical therapy and proved you can rehab a knee post surgery using the same principles!

The First Law of Motion states, "A body at rest will remain at rest, and a body in motion will remain in motion unless it is acted upon by an external force." This means that things cannot start or change direction all by themselves. It takes some force to make a change, and Joe did just that. His continual hard work made his knee surgery a success, and he breezed through rehab with a smile on his face!

Watch out for Joe, as he can’t be stopped now!

~ Dr. Wortman PT, DPT

IN HIS OWN WORDS...

1) List three words to describe you: Effort, Motivation, Attitude

2) What brought you into physical therapy? Rehab for knee replacement surgery

3) How would you describe physical therapy to people who don't know what it is?  Physical therapy is working with caring and knowledgeable professionals who understand how the body works and coach the patient through a strengthening and rehabilitation program. The goal is getting the patient to a point where he or she would physically like to be to once again participate in the activities previously enjoyed.

4) What would you say to someone who’s living in pain and putting off physical therapy? In life there are choices and how we deal with pain is one of those choices. We can give in to pain and allow it to keep us as a prisoner within our own body, or we can strive our best to overcome the pain that prevents us from being the best we can be. Often it is necessary to work past the pain in order to experience the good afterwards. The linchpin is the help of a therapist-partner to overcome the limits of our physical pain. It is true we can exercise on our own, but physical therapy supplies the personal plan, the encouragement, the listening ear, and the words "Two more", that I hear so frequently from my therapist and encourager, Dr. Marnie Wortman, that gets me through the point where I would have stopped on my own.

5) What activities are you most excited about getting back to? I look forward to enjoying the maintenance work around my house without all the pain that has gone with it for years, going to The Land of Make Believe, Sesame Place, Turtleback Zoo, and vacation with our grandchildren, without everyone waiting for me to keep up.

6) What did you enjoy most about your PT experience? I truly enjoy the friendly atmosphere at Iron PT. I have met a lot of interesting patients, as well as the Midland Park Iron PT Crew, Katherine and Joanna. But what is best of all, is working with Dr. Wortman and trusting her completely. I have come a long way with her help in the last several weeks and I see and feel the improvement of what I originally could not do and now can do. So...props to you Dr. Wortman, but we’re not done yet. “Two more.”