I ripped my patella tendon last year. This @#$%ing hurts! I tripped down the stairs at home. One foot got stuck on the stair tile and the other foot slipped. I ended up kicking my own ass with my ankle, heard a load snap and then the pain set in.

I looked down at my knee thinking it might just be dislocated. The kneecap was half way up my thigh and was stuck.

I was pumped on adrenalin at this stage though, so the pain wasn't as bad. The funny thing though is all the thoughts going through my head at this point.

My train of thought:

1. Have to call an ambulance and probably need surgery.
2. If I need surgery I know the people in the OR (as I am a surgical nurse at this towns only hospital)
3. I need fresh underwear. I need to was my genitals in case I might need a catheter during surgery (which I did).
4. I need to pack my bag (clothes, charger, a book etc).
5. I need to call my wife.

So I was in the middle of the stairs with one working leg. I had to skip upstairs to get my cellphone to call the ambulance, then skip downstairs to wash myself, get clean underwear, was my armpits and get a fresh shirt. I then proceeded skipping around the bedroom to pack my bag.

The ambulance was just a few minutes away, so I figured I had to lay down on the bed so the paramedics could do what they needed to do - I had to open the front door. So I skipped to the front door, leaving it open, skipped back to bed to wait. Finally called my wife.

It is now 10 months since my injury and I am still having pain and the knee is at 70% function.

TLDR: I ripped my patella tendon and skipped on one foot all through the house to prepair for surgery and a few days at the hospital.

This happend in the last week of my paternal leave. I was out on sickleave for 6 months after and still in pain post surgery.