The Old Coot explains the ‘knee’ generation

The Baby Boomer Generation was designated as the “Me-Generation” by author Tom Wolfe in 1976. (Me, Me, Me – I want it all and I want it right now!) But, I think it would be more accurate to call it the “Knee Generation.” That’s the subject that infiltrates their conversations. 

My crowd, the old coot generation, has knee issues, but we’re not obsessed with them the way the knee generation is. Our knees creak, groan, snap, ache, and “kill” every once in a while. We wait it out, hope it goes away, and use it to get sympathy.

But not the knee generation. They are experts on the joint between the femur and the tibia. They get technical. “What’s your problem,” someone will ask. “Is it the meniscus, the MCL, LCL, ACL?” 

That’s a lot of “alphabet” talk, the kind that sends me searching for my old anatomy textbook. Old coots simply say, “My knee hurts.”  

I think the me-crowd overreacts to their knee condition. They get Symptom Disease. It’s a condition that usually affects medical students. When they study heart disease they think the next twitch in their chest is a heart attack. The next headache is a brain tumor. Every mole is skin cancer. The more they study, the sicker they get. 

We all suffer from symptom disease to a degree. The pharmaceutical industry exploits that susceptibility, and floods the airways with symptoms that they can cure. Just buy their magic pill. They have us right where they want us, our wallets too! So much so that we hardly pay attention to the possible side effects.

If you discuss your knee ache with a Knee Generation person they will ask about your meniscus, your medial and anterior collateral ligaments. That’s when you need to get up and leave! If you don’t, they’ll convince you that surgery is the answer. 

Sure, some people have an issue so bad it requires knee surgery or replacement, usually after years of chronic pain. But, many others get caught up in the science, fall victim to Symptom Disease. Knee surgery has become a status symbol. It introduces a whole new line of conversation that starts with, “Who did yours?”

The knee is a marvelous, flexible joint, but it gets mad when we mistreat it. And, it lets us know. Old coots know this better than anyone. We don’t know if it’s because of the ACL, MCL or another of the knee structures. We do know how to use it to get out of unpleasant tasks like shopping, weeding, art shows, and operas. It doesn’t seem to hurt when we go to a car show or wander around the golf course. 

Use it or lose it, is our motto. Not the knee, the excuse!

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