Leg poll

[gemfyre]

I've noticed that when I sleep on my back (one of the two positions I'm able to sleep in at the moment), my legs flop outwards, i.e. my feet and knees are facing outwards instead of up, which means my leg is twisted around instead of straight. I realised that the outer muscle must be pulling outwards against the inner one. I've subsequently been conciously trying to keep my legs straight in the hopes that it may strengthen that wussy inner muscle just a little. I was wondering if this twisting was normal, or if it's all part of my general knee problem.

[Poll #1107240]

Comments

[jet-ski.livejournal.com]

I don't sleep on my back :P

[stefanina.livejournal.com]

MY family is going through this with may grandmother right now. You really need to keep your legs straight, even if it means using a medical pillow to do so...I will suggest talking to your doctor.

[jet-ski.livejournal.com]

I have another suggestion, get checked out by a good physio who can give you some exercises to strengthen up the muscles that stabilise your knee. Surgery should always be the last resort but I think sometimes docs get a bit overeager about it.

[gemfyre.livejournal.com]

Already been through that stage. My knees have been dislocating since I was 9 years old. I figured it was a teenage thing and I'd grown out of it until the most recent 2 times (which was twice in less 2 months). The fact that it wouldn't go in easily also really alarmed me. I've been not wanting to go the way of surgery for ages, but now I just never want it to happen again and for that I need to get the muscles and tendons fixed up, because at the moment they're buggered.

[jet-ski.livejournal.com]

Yeah that sucks. But still - seems like it's a problem that has flared up more recently. Have your levels of physical activity dropped? I mean before this happened it seemed you were doin lots of birding and stuff, just wondering if there's any correlation between less walking --> less strength --> more likely to dislocate.

Knee recos work wonders for some people - but you have to keep maintaining the activity levels to maintain all the supporting/stabilising muscle. I just thinkin about all the girls who had knee recos in footy - most of them said their knees were better if they did weight training etc so that it all held together better.

[kitfoxx.livejournal.com]

It helps (and is recommended by chiropractors) to put a pillow behind your knees if you sleep on your back. And not put a pillow under your head.

[gemfyre.livejournal.com]

Hrm. Will discuss such thing with the orthapedic surgeon and physio. Problem is, when I'm not stuck in a brace I move position a lot in my sleep. Sometimes I'm on my back, but quite often I could be on either side as well. Actually, I think I still try to do this with the brace, because I wake up and my knee hurts, as if I've been trying to bend it and move it around - which is why I have to wear the brace 24-7 I guess.

[lotus79.livejournal.com]

Pretty much straight, but a little bit out... I think. I don't usually sleep on my back, but they stay pretty straight if I lie on my back and don't attempt to hold them anywhere.

Not that my knees are that great (I know better than to run on them, for instance!) but they don't dislocate.