r/ACL

I’m writing this with an ice pack strapped to my leg and a lot of feelings. I was playing tennis tonight, heard the dreaded pop I know all too well, and I am 99% sure I just retore the exact same ACL I previously rehabbed. I have an ortho appointment tomorrow to confirm, but having been down this road before, I know the drill.

My wedding is in less than two months (late August). It’s a destination wedding in Greece with a lot of events I was planning to fully look and feel my best for.

I know other people have posted about injuries before weddings, but I’m spiraling a bit tonight and really just need to hear from people who have actually walked down the aisle (or rolled down it!) while dealing with a major injury.

Tore my ACL in late March and I’m now 16 days post op, still struggling to get over the fact that someone else’s recklessness is the reason I have to go through all this pain, do a year of PT and spend thousands of dollars while I’m still currently unable to work just to get back to where I was.

I was injured during Wrestling practice by a New training partner I had never worked with, we were in the middle of a shark tank session so I was already gassed and they proceeded to do a highly risky and unnecessary takedown attempt from behind that they ended up botching which resulted in them landing on the side of my Knee which tore my ACL and part of my Meniscus, they did apologize afterwards but I still can’t help but feel extremely bitter and resentful about the whole situation, I had just returned to sport in 2025 after going through a Labrum surgery in 2024 so the ACL tear hit me even harder than normal.

Every time I see videos of myself pre injury or even new videos of my old training partners or even the guy that injured me competing or training it just pisses me off, I know I’m not the only one who has went through something like this so I just wanted to see if anyone had some advice on how they dealt with it.

I had an ACL reconstruction with hamstring graft and meniscus repair on Monday.

I wasn’t given a brace and I was told I can be weight bearing as tolerated which I was a bit surprised about since I had a meniscus repair. Has anyone else had this before? How long until you started walking without crutches? I haven’t had a chance to talk to my surgeon since before the surgery but I’m going to try calling tomorrow since I didn’t get a rehab protocol either. I’ve been doing heel slides and walking around with some weight on crutches but I’m so scared I’m going to do damage.

I am 8 weeks post op. PT suggested i use stationary bike to keep the knee moving. I used it for 30 mins yesterday and since then my knee feels unstable than before.

I was slowly starting to feel comfortable walking heel-toe but now knee feels so weird to walk.

Should i continue with stationary bike or stop and wait till it becomes normal ? is it normal to feel unstable after the first session ?

Hi, I'm new to posting on Reddit, but I recently tore my ACL and I'm having a lot of anxiety about how slowly it seems to be taking to get to the surgery (& recovery) part of this. Is this a normal time frame between injury and surgery? My coworkers seem to be rather outraged on my behalf that it takes so long between appointments, but I don't have any experience with this. So, here's where I'm at:

May 13 - When my accident happened & initial ER visit with xrays. No fractures, and was told to follow up with Ortho.

May 19 - Initial Ortho exam. They thought maybe it was a sprain, but was told to rest, keep the brace on and come back in 2 weeks.

June 3 - Second Ortho visit. There was some reduction in pain by now, but I couldn't bend my leg far without feeling pain and resistance. More serious injury than a sprain now suspected. They put the order in for an MRI.

June 30 - MRI appointment.

I got a call the next day from Ortho to say that I tore my ACL, but before I could ask any follow up questions they told me that I needed to go in for an ultrasound for a potential blood clot, for which I am now on blood thinners.

I checked my patient portal online to see that they finally uploaded the MRI notes, and from googling most of the terms, I think it showed that I fully tore my ACL, have a bone bruise, and a mild sprain to another ligament. Didn't tear my meniscus, but it apparently has some mild signs of trauma too.

My next visit with Ortho isn't until July 28th, and from what I understand is just the "next steps" appointment, although it is with the surgeon this time. But I've been given no indication of when (or if) surgery is happening, or whether or not I should even still be wearing my leg brace! I'm also still using crutches because I can't put much weight on it yet. I can hobble a few steps, but not much more and it starts to hurt a lot. I understand that they were primarily concerned with the blood clot while they called me with my MRI results, but I've been in limbo for 1.5 months now, and still can't fully straighten my leg or get it to even bend to 90 degrees. So, keeping with the current timeline, the soonest I can probably expect surgery is possibly mid-August, (If being on blood thinners doesn't put it out even further) 3 months after my initial injury.

I know I can't control scheduling if my local hospital is that far booked out, but can anyone tell me how common this length of time is, waiting for surgery? I have my regular yearly checkup next week with my PCP, so I'm hoping they can at least confirm if I should still have my leg braced or if I should be in PT already. I am so frustrated by all of this! If you read this far, thank you for reading, and any advice is appreciated.

Wanting to know how people who have recovered, how their knee is now?

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15 weeks post and my scars are still a very noticeable brown and red (hamstring graph). They don’t hurt or feel weird just always seeing people with like perfectly blended scars while being only a few months post op. Am I missing some secret hack or something??

Oils?
Sun exposure?

I (22 F) completely tore my ACL 2 months ago. I went to get an MRI a month ago. The reason I postponed my MRI is that I have a genetic patella issue, which already caused locking and buckling for the past 6 years, and I thought it was a dislocation relating to that (that I have learned to live with)

I am moving countries in a month and a half for my master's, and I have no support system where I will be (Paris), and I will finish my master's in 2027 so I want to be able to do my surgery later.
I went to two doctors, both of them said surgery is necessary; both of them said that if I do physical therapy and take care of not sudden movements, it should work.

But I want to know if there is anyone who has postponed their surgery?

I tore my ACL in 2019, thought I could go without surgery but 5 years later in 2024, I ended up going through with surgery due to instability (ACL rec + LCL rec) Safe to say my knee strength is still really behind, I still can’t kneel on it without feeling like glass is going into it and still can’t sit with my feet planted on the floor without being in pain. I did have a scar tissue removal in 2025 due to not being able to straighten fully. I was with a physio who I felt like I was getting nowhere with, so not sure if that’s played a part too.

Wondering if anyone has been through something similar?

Hi! I tore my ACL at the end of January (full). I had some instability and discomfort for the first several weeks but have been pretty stable and capable since about mid March. After long days at work/more active days it can feel achey and sore, but manageable. I have a surgery scheduled for mid August and the plan is to do a quad graft. I'm nervous because I'm currently experience next to no pain and I know it will get worse before it gets better.

What does realistic recovery look like? How long were you on crutches? How long were you off work? How long did you wear a brace? Scaring? Pain? How long can I not drive?

Just curious about people's experiences. I have a trip to HI planned for mid March 2027. I am nervous that I am going to regret getting the surgury.

Hi, I am currently 1 month and 14 days post OP and I don’t know if I’m scared or if theres something wrong with my knee. But I am unable to bend it past 35 degrees on my own and hanging off a bed I can only go to 46 degrees. When I try and go further I am in immense pain.The day after surgery I had been hospitalized because I couldn’t handle the pain day after the surgery and was rushed to the emergency room because I couldn’t stop screaming and crying. Now my knee is extremely stiff and I am not sure if it’s scarred tissue or my fear of the pain that is stopping it please let me know if anyone relates or if someone can help. (I am taking daily anxiety medication and take a stronger dose before each session and I still can find a way to push through please help!!! Also this is my first major surgery I’ve ever had.)

Hi all :)

I've spent way too much time on this subreddit with all my anxious questions and fears, with the latest one being my inability to do a leg raise and just wanted to outwardly state that this takes time and I'm done overthinking it (for now ....)

It's hard not to compare my timeline with the "average" or other experiences I've seen here but I think there's a point where you need to step outside your head and realize these things take time, and as long as I remain diligent about doing my PT/icing/elevating, then it'll be alright.

Hope anyone else that's struggling is able to give themselves some grace and remember their recovery is unique to them, and things will eventually fall into place :)

On a separate note I cannot wait for this damn NWB period to end <3

17 y/o daughter had this surgery on May 21 2026. As soon as the nerve block wore off on May 22nd, she was in the hospital for 7 days to manage her pain. June 6th was follow-up and brace adjustedto 60°, June 7th PT evaluation and plan. PT began on June 16, 19, 23, 25 and July 2nd.

Daughter was emotionally distraught because the PT Doctor told her she needed to have her knee force bent while under anesthesia. Her knee is only able to bend 35° on her own. He went on to explain how painful tje procedure is and he would continue to force bend it afterwards. He said pt is not helping her, that the brace should be off because she doesn't need it anymore and we should not be icing it anymore because it stiffens the knee. Her knee and quad are weak still. I think she needs it on to protect it when she sleeps. My response was nobody told us we were to stop icing and using the brace. He said a nurse was supposed to inform us. What nurse?

We felt defeated and scared after that session. We will meet a new PT Doctor next Tuesday.

Has anyone been in a similar situation?

MRI Right Knee — Summary
ACL: Complete tear, 7.4mm anterior tibial translation

Anterolateral ligament: Complete tear

MCL: High-grade partial/complete tear (superficial fiber); complete tear (deep fiber/meniscofemoral ligament)

PCL: Sprain with buckling

LCL: Sprain

Patellofemoral ligaments: Medial and lateral sprains

Medial meniscus: Body contusion; peripheral ramp lesion (posterior horn) with meniscotibial ligament tear; grade 2a signal at posterior root

Lateral meniscus: Contusion with complex tear, posterior horn

Posteromedial corner: POL, oblique popliteal ligament, and posterior capsule edema; semimembranosus strain (tendon intact)

Posterolateral corner: Intrasubstance popliteus tendon tear at femoral attachment with bursal fluid; partial popliteofibular ligament tear

Bone: Marrow edema — tibial plateau, both femoral condyles (pivot-shift pattern); osteochondral injury at lateral femoral condyle

Effusion: Moderate, with marked Hoffa fat pad edema

Muscle: Grade 1 soleus tear; biceps femoris interstitial edema