Delaney Shah
I want to give a post-surgery update and share some insight to the next few months. After my surgery on October 31, I had to keep weight off my leg for the first two weeks and be confined in a straight brace for the first 6 weeks. The only time I could take it off was to shower. During this time, I used crutches to get around and couldn't start physical therapy until I could start bending my leg. After the 6 weeks were up, I stayed in the brace for another 6 weeks, but could slowly start bending my knee to try and start getting some flexibility back. This was very painful since I had 6 weeks of scar tissue built up and had lost most of my muscle mass in my leg. At this point, I was able to start physical therapy twice a week to help me. During these first three months I could not drive, so to pass the cold winter months I read over 20 books (which is an accomplishment since I haven't read a whole book since high school), completed about ten 1,000 piece puzzles, and watched every tv show and movie on every streaming service you could think of.
On January 24 (3 months post-surgery) I got cleared to finally take the brace off and start doing more flexibility and strengthening in therapy. I was also able to start putting and chipping, as long as there was no rotation on my knees. My parents helped me by set up a putting green in the basement where I could start working on my putting stroke. After three months of not touching a club, it felt really good to start again. During this time we also got a new puppy, a yellow lab named Oakley. It was really nice having her around the house, she was my therapy dog both mentally and physically!
My next follow up with the doctor was on March 7, where he said everything was looking good and on schedule with my progress in physical therapy. He gave me the green light to move back out to Louisville. I was also cleared by my physical therapist to start hitting small wedge shots (inside 40 yards) which was very exciting. The first week of April, I moved to Louisville to get back into a routine of things and living independently again. For the month of April, I nannied for my old college coach’s 2 kids, and also did a lot of short game practice. Going from 5 months on the couch not being able to do much to working a 40 hour work week was a huge adjustment. In May, I felt strong enough to be able to go to the Kentucky Oaks race at Churchill Downs (the day prior to the Kentucky Derby) with some old teammates as a small reunion and it was such a blast! That same week I started working back at the golf course I practice at as a golf shop assistant.
After Derby, I was cleared to finally start hitting full swings, 6.5 months post-surgery. Even though I was ecstatic, since this meant I was making good progress to be cleared, I was very nervous to see how it felt to finally swing without a knee brace for the first time in 12 years. Starting really slow and with the basic fundamentals, I spent the first few days working from a small wedge shot to a 60% full swing with my irons. The one silver lining in having all of this time off is that I had wanted to change some things in my golf swing, so feeling like I am starting from square 1 will help me build good habits and get rid of the bad ones.
It is now 7 months post-surgery and I have made a lot of progress in a lot of things, but still have a ways to go in others. I can walk up the stairs, squat to a chair, balance on one leg, and walk 2 miles flat with zero buckle in my leg. However, I still cannot walk down the stairs, squat to read a putt, hit full driver swings, or walk steep downward inclines.
Looking forward, my goal is to be able to walk 4 consecutive days playing 18 holes by July. I have not committed to any tournaments this summer because I don't want to rush it. I am committed to compete in Q-School which is the last week of August in Palm Desert, California. Since we get to ride in a golf cart, I don't need to worry about all of the walking. If I decide to play in any events prior to that, I will send out an email and also update my website under the schedule tab.
As always, I appreciate all the support