u/Chance_Cow4081

I’m 5 months post-op from surgery with a patellar tendon graft. My last post about the mental side of this recovery had some traction, so I wanted to share the checklist I used to prep my house and life before surgery. This really helped me come out of the first two weeks in good shape. Use this in the 2–3 days before your operation.

Home setup checklist:

- Prep meals for the first 5-7 days since you will not want to cook, or find someone to help you with meals

- Pick a spot (bed or sofa) and make sure phone chargers, water, meds, and remotes are in reach since you'll be bound there for at least a few days

- Get a small bag. You need both hands for crutches. Carrying anything without a bag is impossible.

- Move everything you use regularly to a height where you don't have to bend. Bending on one leg while holding crutches is not ideal.

- Sort your ice pack situation so you have at least two so one is always cold.

- Schedule your first PT appointment ideally for a few days post surgery. Book this before surgery day.

- Elevation: Get pillows ready to keep your leg above heart level.

Anxiety the week before:

The week before surgery is difficult because you're just waiting, and knowing what's coming is scary. You might feel fine sometimes and other times feel total dread. This is okay and it's a normal response to losing control.

Preparation is the only thing that helps. Every thing you cross off the list will help you. Focus on what you can control.

One thing worth knowing: The people who do best in early recovery are not the ones who push hardest, but they're the ones who rest properly, ice consistently, and take the first two weeks seriously.

For the people who asked for the link:

I’ve had a lot of DMs asking for the full Notion system I built for the entire recovery process (the PT logs, weekly check-ins, mental hub, etc.). I’ve put the link to the full tracker in my Reddit bio but I'm still happy to answer any questions about the prep or the patellar graft specifically. Good luck to everyone!

I kept rewriting the same ChatGPT prompts for marketing, emails, and content, so I just made a small library for myself.

Nothing crazy, but it’s been saving me a ton of time.

Here are a few I actually use:

• “Write a high-converting landing page for [product] targeting [audience] with a clear pain point and CTA.”

• “Generate 10 TikTok hooks for a business in [niche] that would make people stop scrolling”

• “Rewrite this email to sound more natural and persuasive: [paste]”

• “Give me 5 content ideas designed to get saves and shares in [industry]”

• “Turn this boring product description into something more compelling: [paste]”

These alone have been pretty useful tbh.

If anyone wants the full set I made, I can share it.

I tore my ACL at 18 playing soccer, was doing regionals and state cups at the time, and had a patellar graft.

The physical side is hard obviously, but the mental side hit me way harder than I expected. There were weeks where nothing seemed to improve and I just felt stuck. Watching soccer and feeling frustrated, and people around you kind of moving on.

One thing I struggled with a lot was not knowing what was actually “normal” vs something to worry about. I was constantly second guessing everything.

I ended up making a simple Notion tracker for myself just to stay organized, tracking stuff like pain, swelling, ROM, and honestly just how I was feeling week to week. It helped more than I expected, especially mentally.

If anyone’s going through it right now, I’m happy to share it or just talk through where you’re at. I’m about 5 months in now.

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