"A Real Pain in the Knee"

One of the biggest challenges I have faced in my life

Involves an inherited trait that has caused me much strife.

Bowed legs seem to run on my mother's side of the family tree

But never have they proved to be a problem--then along came me.

It's not like having bowed legs are necessarily problematic,

But frequent exercise and activity can turn it traumatic.

Because I was always running, playing soccer or basketball,

My knees were constantly in pain, thanks to my legs above all.

I met with a few doctors, who agreed my bowed legs were the source of the pain.

I now had to make a decision as to how I wanted to approach this cause of strain.

My orthopedist told me a surgery would be beneficial if I planned on remaining active

Throughout my life; if this wasn't the case, I didn't need to bother with it--I would live.

I wasn't thrilled about the prospect of having surgery, of course,

But I love athletics too much to cut myself off with full force.

I decided, as an eighth grader, that the surgery to correct the shape of my legs as I grew

Was my best option if I wanted my knees to be pain-free for years to come while doing what I love to do.

An X-Ray portraying the kind of procedure I underwent--two screws and a plate in the growth plate of the knee!