The producers of The Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman, starring Lee Majors and Lindsay Wagner, respectively, sure had foresight when these two iconic TV series first aired in the 1970s. Who would have thought that just a few decades later, “bionics” would be so commonplace? (Do you realize that Lee Majors is 84? Wow!)
Yes, sir, look out, world! Here we come! We being the Generation Joneses and our counterparts, the Baby Boomers. Nowadays, thanks to evolving technology, we no longer have to deal with aching joints. We no longer have to give up the things we like to do. We are putting pain management pharmaceuticals out of business! We are the bionic generation! Most of us know someone who has either had knees or hips replaced or is on a waitlist. New joints (and not the kind you smoke or visit late at night) and surgical experiences have quickly become a trendy conversation piece among the gray-haired gang. “Who did yours?” is as common as “Who coloured your hair?”
Yes, we have come a long way since the 1970s, and although our new joints may not be quite as bionic as portrayed in television sitcoms, they are amazing.
Carol Courtney, 65, retired three years ago from the 9-to-5 grind and is now semi-retired, working in Group Benefits, providing the best solution for the employer’s and employee’s needs. She just had both knees replaced in June, a mere four months ago.
Carol has always been physically active. For some 40 years, she pitched fastball after fastball and even won gold in the 2005 World Masters Games with the local team, the Saskatoon Fatigues. It was about five years ago that her knees started to give her some problems. “It was nothing that stopped me from doing things, but I decided to stop playing fastball because I didn’t feel that I was useful anymore. I didn’t have the movement in my knees. You have to react quickly when you have a line drive coming at you.” So she took up pickleball. But pickleball can be a tough sport, and there are a lot of stops, starts, and turns that can send even the healthiest knees and hips into a tailspin. It also depends on what type of surface you are playing on. Some swear that a cement playing surface is the worst. Others don’t mind it. Regardless, there is a lot of movement and pressure on those joints.
Carol had both knees scoped over the last 10 years, and just before having them replaced, she had an x-ray that showed a torn meniscus. The follow-up appointment showed she was in dire need of replacements. “I had to pick myself up off the floor. I had no idea I needed two new knees.” And within a month, she had her surgery. This is extremely quick, as anyone living in Saskatchewan, the birthplace of Medicare, will tell you. (The wait time for knee replacements is at least six months.)
“I feel great now. My right knee feels really good, and it was the one that was sore before. My left, well, I didn’t think I had an issue.”
Carol knows it could take a year to get back to normal. She has finished physiotherapy and is back to playing pickleball for short periods. She is going for walks and cycling again.
“The first couple weeks, I was very sad that I did it. You have no movement. You have no strength. Even sleeping is hard because you can’t feel your legs. It feels weird knowing there are appliances in my legs. Weirdly, you don’t have your own knees.”
“Today we aren’t going to put up with the pain. If there is a way to alleviate it, we’ll inquire and then proceed with what’s recommended. My parents never complained about anything. Maybe the extremities of some sports didn’t exist. Everyone wants to live longer and be as flexible in their lives as possible to continue the same habits.”
Like Carol, I don’t remember my parents complaining about much, either. My mom had polio, breast cancer, thyroid cancer, and eventually dementia, but she never complained. Her motto was “Every day is the best day of your life!” She played bridge and went for walks. My dad curled until his knees gave out when he was younger, and then he golfed. Nothing too extreme there.
In Carol’s mind, it is simple. “You can accept the changes available to make life better for yourself, or you can live with the pain. If you have an option in today’s world, most people would rather go through pain and hope that it’s short-term. There’s still no guarantee. If you replace your body parts, you can still get hit by a truck.”
For anyone considering a joint replacement, Carol recommends getting opinions from a couple of surgeons and physiotherapists. “In hindsight, I may only have had one knee done. I’d walk and experience way more pain in one knee than in the other.” And how long should you put it off? Well, based on what Carol’s surgeons told her, if you’re younger, in good shape, and have no underlying medical conditions, it’s good to get it done now.
The numbers are on the rise, but approximately 140,000 joint replacements are being done in Canada alone in just one year. With wait times of at least six months, many are turning to private clinics and paying $20,000 and upwards. What is responsible for this increase? Baby boomers are getting older. We have kept, for the most part, relatively healthy thanks to better healthcare and more active lifestyles. Up until 2019, those born between 1946 and 1964 accounted for the largest living adult generation. Their numbers peaked at about 78.8 million in 1999, making room for millennials, who now represent the fastest-growing population. The number of people in this generation (1981–1996) increased by 8.6% between 2016 and 2021, compared with 5.2% of the overall population. They also tend to be active, like their parents and probably engage in more extreme sports. You can be sure technology will keep up with their demands.
So, no more hobbling around in pain. Thanks to bionic upgrades, we boomers/Joneses can reclaim our lives and our mobility with a whole new lease on life. Aging gracefully takes on a new meaning. It just takes longer to go through airport security!
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Modern medicine, for sure, can be amazing.
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