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This week, a month out from Knee Surgery, I participated in a Knee Freeze.
When the Surgery Scheduler introduced the technique early on in the Medical Trek, I felt rushed and checked the Yes Box. But, actively participating in the procedure, I regretted not having more information. However, surfing the Web doesn't always do much more than stir up an overwhelming avalanche of optional directions, so I often decide to anchor as I go to fill in Data Deets.
I arrived for the scheduled appointment, which I thought would be a simple check-in, only to learn I was in for a mysterious forty-five-minute Knee Freeze I knew so little about.
Now I know that freezing nerves before surgery is a procedure called cryoablation or nerve block that can help manage pain. The somatic experience is all about signals, vibration, and frequencies — essential to the music that scores Inner Treks. My basic blocking techniques range from arm shields and walls to whitewash. I typically use a jackhammer, heat missle, or a broom to clear Signal Pathways. But nothing prepared me for the handheld device repetitively puncturing my skin, delivering liquid nitrogen or argon gas used to lower the nerve's temperature to around -70°F., damaging the nerve's myelin protective layer, which prevents it from communicating pain.
