I just finished watching our new President Elect, Barrack Obama deliver his victory speech in front of an ecstatic crowd in Chicago. John McCain had just given an incredibly gracious concession speech, praising Obama’s personal qualities and promising to support him and work with him. Whatever you think of his policies, you can’t deny the man has honor. I was proud of him.
 
For his part, Obama was in excellent form, with soaring rhetoric that struck universal themes, of love of country, of our shared values, of our belief in hope and possibility, dear to the hearts of all Americans. He, too, praised his former adversary, with grace, and recalled the heroic service McCain has rendered to his country. I was proud of both of these men. I was as proud to be an American as I can ever recall. 
 
Despite passionate disagreements on a variety of issues, they were a model for the world, and so were we, the American people–demonstrating the peaceful and orderly transfer of power, according to the democratic will of the people.
 
It’s no secret that he wasn’t my guy, but Obama won a tough race, fair and square. The race is over, now. I was raised to fight like hell for what you believe, but if you lose, you lose with grace and support the winner. And that’s exactly what I’m going to do. 
 
My fears were that he was a flat out leftist, and maybe he is. Time will tell. But the man deserves his shot–he’s earned it.
 
On the positive side, he is obviously a gifted and charismatic leader, a highly intelligent man and probably very pragmatic. He may well be smart enough to choose and rely on good advisors. I suspect he may have a surprise or two in store for all of us. He certainly has a sense of Destiny about him.  If he lives up to his rhetoric, resists the siren call of the far leftists and is a president for ALL the people, I think we’ll be fine.
 
Watching the faces of the African-Americans in the crowd, including Jesse Jackson, and Oprah, among many others, there were tears in their eyes. I can’t possibly know what it must mean to them, barely contained pride and vindication after years of struggle, to have this man, a biracial, hopefully postracial candidate, elected President of the United States by a true majority of the American people — this would have been unimaginable only a generation ago. And yet, it has now happened.
 
As I listened and watched him, I was happy for him and his family. What the man has accomplished, against all odds, is extraordinary. But his was a uniquely quintessential American story, a rise to the heights of power, from humble beginnings, possible only in America. It was truly an historic moment in time… I’m glad I was here to see it. 
 
So, for better or worse, we have a new beginning. I congratulate President Elect Obama and his supporters. If he manages the country as well as he managed his campaign, we’ll be OK. I wish him luck and success in office. Because if he succeeds, we all succeed. 
 
Back to orthopaedics tomorrow. But I couldn’t let such a watershed moment pass, without comment. Til next time, my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill 
 
P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

It’s just after noon on the day of All Hallows Eve and I’m just getting ready to put the finishing touches on the Halloween decorations at the front door. Though we have no kids of our own (unless you count our “hairy children”), we love giving stuff to the kids who come around to play Trick or Treat. We get a big kick out of it and it’s become one of our favorite holidays.
 
This has always been a special night for us, especially here in this gated community. It’s a riot to see tiny little children, all decked out in teensy little Batman or Superman outfits, or draped in a ghostly sheet with strategically placed eye holes, come up to the front door with their candy bags, full of treats. 
 
The really little ones are often driven up to the front door by their parents, in golf carts decked out in spider webs and orange and black. Gangs of the older ones come by later, some in minimalist costumes, others really elaborate regalia.
 
A couple of years ago, a beautiful girl who had to be seventeen or eighteen came up dressed as Queen Nefertiti, floor length golden lame pleated dress, gold pectoral, golden sceptre and flail, and a tall, cylindrical, flat topped white crown of northern Egypt–just stunning. My wife had to remind me that she was young enough to be my GRAND daughter.  Killjoy! 
 
For our part, we have the walkway to the front door lined on either side with electric holographic pumpkins, that bathe the walk in eerie orange light. On the right is a near life-size whimsical witch, riding a broom, with a peaked black broad brimmed hat, right out of The Wizard of Oz, carrying a bag with a black cat and a little pumpkin in it. On the left, a five foot tall dancing skeleton, in a black pin striped zoot suit and hat, that sings a repetoire of rock tunes. In the center, a skull shaped bowl full of goodies on a pedestal, with a skeletal hand that jumps out, if someone takes a treat. Should be good for thrills and plenty of laughs.

This year, we got a ton of candy and other truly horrible non-nutritious treats for the little demons (hey, c’mon– your only a kid once, right?).  Nothing worse than running out and then some little waif comes up and you have to scramble to find something to give ‘em.
 
Now I have to go get a replacement spotlight at Home Depot to highlight the skeleton. The other spot, on the witch, is still working, though. So, we’re almost ready for the onslaught. Most of them will show up after the Annual Halloween Party at the golf clubhouse. Then, we’ll start to see the pale ghostly lights of the silent golf carts making their rounds.
 
It all reminds me of Halloweens of years past… 
 
I remember trick or treating in my old neighborhood, as a kid back in Brooklyn, on 88th Street. Hoboes were in fashion then, as costumes, together with mummies, vampires, ghosts and Frankenstein’s monster. Costumes then were all hand made. The neighborhood was all rows upon rows of attached homes, on both sides of the street, so we could walk between 3rd Avenue and 4th Avenue, going from door to door, on our own street and collect quite a haul. Usually made ourselves sick, eating all that crap, but hey, you’re only young once and it was great fun.
 
During my years in practice, every Halloween, Mike, one of the Anesthesiologists, would always dress up, in full costume, no less, to put patients to sleep. It became a tradition at the hospital and the patients, especially the kids and their parents, loved it. He made everyone smile and took a little of the tension out of the sterile OR setting. Then, he’d go on rounds in the Pediatric Ward– the kids were always thrilled. It spread a little happiness to children trapped in the hospital on this “kids’ holiday.”
 
One year, he came in dressed in drag. He even shaved his moustache for the occasion. That was a scream. We all got a great kick out of Mike. It was such a great get-up that he had to go around to all the nursing floors, the ICU and CCU, and even the Physical Therapy Department (where a number of my patients were being treated with the forerunners of the exercises I teach today in my PAIN-FREE PROGRAM at http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html ).  Funny thing was, he made a damn good looking woman(well, except for the hairy chest…)!
 
So, now the sun is getting high in the sky. In just a few more hours, it will finally set and our streets will soon be overrun with the goblins, ghosties, ghoulies and things that go bump in the night. They’ll be free to plunder our little “village,” once again…. So Happy Halloween, my friend, to you and yours!
 
Just think, in a little over three weeks, it’ll be Thanksgiving! It goes so fast, now…cherish each day while it’s here. Til next time…
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill
 
P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

This morning, I was in my study reading my emails and trying to get rid of the extraneous crap that has a way of clogging up my Inbox. I’m sure you have the same problem. I was happily deleting a list of messages, when I came across one article that caught my eye.
 
The email edition of a local newspaper had a headline about ‘Jumper’s Knee.” So I read it and, as far as it went, it wasn’t bad. But naturally, it didn’t do more than give a cursory list of conservative treatments, without explaining how they help.
 
Well, maybe that’s too much to expect from a newspaper, or maybe that’s just beyond the scope of the article. But the fact is, this is a condition that’s all too common today and the average person has no idea they may have this, or what it means. They just know their knee hurts and that it won’t go away.
 
Jumper’s Knee is a layman’s term for Patella Tendonitis, an inflammatory condition of the fibrous cord that connects the kneecap to the upper tibia, or shinbone. Usually caused by repetitive trauma, it can linger and last for months, if it isn’t recognized and treated appropriately.
 
You see, any sport or other activity that involves running, with rapid changes of direction, like soccer or basketball, or sudden explosive jumps (not surprising, given the name of the condition), can avulse (fancy word for “pull out”) some of the tiny fibers that attach the tendon to the kneecap on one end, or from the shin bone, on the other end. Even though you couldn’t see any disruption from either bone, were you to look, microscopically a few of these fibrils have been pulled free. And that causes a localized inflammation, which in turn causes pain and tenderness.
 
As I’ve said before, pain is spontaneous–hurts all by itself. Tenderness has to be elicited–only hurts when it’s pressed or squeezed on examination. Either way, though, this condition hurts. And it hurts MORE when you try to use the knee.
 
So, what to do? Well, with any inflammation, you need to rest the tendon. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t get out of bed. No. There are ways to keep you fully functional, while still giving the damaged tendon a chance to heal. A patella strap is one such method. 
 
Then, there are a number of conservative, non-surgical methods to reduce local inflammation that I’ve reviewed here, again and again. Short term treatments for the acute knee (the RICE protocol) are pretty much common knowledge these days. But it’s the long term treatments that follow the acute period that make all the difference.
 
I reveal not just one protocol, but many–an actual menu of conventional and alternative treatments, which often work best together, in my best selling LITTLE GREEN BOOK FOR ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN  http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html  Stripped of the technical medical jargon, the basic principles of each disease or traumatic condition that cause knee pain are easily understandable and provide a foundation for you to select treatments, from across the entire medical spectrum, that WORK, to give you RELIEF OF KNEE PAIN–FAST.
 
And once the treatment has worked and your pain is gone, my PAIN-FREE PROGRAM exercises will help to keep you that way, for good. See how here, at  http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html

Together, these two programs give your pain a one-two punch that will knock it out, for good! And keep it from coming back….
 
So whether you’re a Boomer couch potato turned weekend warrior, or a regular “jumpin’ jack flash” on the basketball court, if you have jumper’s knee, or any other kind of knee pain, these programs will help you, like nothing else out there. Click on the links for knee pain relief, NOW:  http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html        http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
Til next time my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill

P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

 In the Fall of 1973 I was a straight surgical intern at the Medical College of Virginia in Richmond. I had barely survived my first two months of training, given my gross disorganization, inefficiency and sheer terror that I would kill some poor patient by what I didn’t know. 
 
But gradually, apparently by osmosis, I learned what I needed to know, somehow developed patterns of ruthless efficiency (quite contrary to my nature) and logical analysis that remain with me to this day. Against all odds, I had survived and I had evolved into a pretty competent fledgling surgeon.
 
Having recovered from the prolonged anxiety attack that characterized my first two months, I looked forward to my new assignment at the local private hospital. 
 
What many people don’t realize is that interns are “farmed out” to a number of different affiliate hospitals during their training. This was to provide us with different perspectives and adequate clinical experiences, and provide those hospitals with the closest thing to slave labor,  since the Civil War.

So there I was, in my freshly startched white uniform, as I walked into the hospital’s surgical ward for the first time. As I walked into the Nurses’ Station for the first time, an elderly nurse, all in white, even stockings, with a stiff, starched nuses cap (nurses wore caps in those days) first noticed me and cried out, “Doctor on Deck!” 
 
And with that, everyone currently seated, all the nurses and orderlies writing or reading charts, who were in the Nurses’ Station, immediately jumped up in unison and stood at attention, facing me!
 
I naturally wondered who they were standing for and turned around to see who it was that commanded this almost military reaction. I figured, I should probably be at attention, too. Imagine my surprise when there was no one else there.
 
I was pretty dumfounded, that’s for sure. It never even occurred to me that they were standing for ME. The elderly nurse came over and took me in hand, and said, “Welcome, Doctor.” Wow. I couldn’t believe it. “Hi. I’m Bill Stillwell,” I said.  “Just call me Bill.”
 
“No,” she said, “you’re Doctor Stillwell, now.”  Apparently, I was expected to be a bit more formal than I was used to. With that, she turned to the other nurses, mostly female, but with a few males and orderlies, as well, and said, “This is Dr. Stillwell, our new intern.”
 
Much to my surprise, no one burst out laughing at me. Apparently, they were quite serious.

Now, I’d always been a pretty informal guy. Airs of any kind were not tolerated in my family or by my friends, and despite my abilities, I completely accepted these values. They were part of me and my world view. It would never have even dawned on me that I would or should command this level of deference. I mean, I was still a wet-behind-the-ears, junior doctor in training, hardly worthy of this display, and, to my mind, hadn’t earned their respect. So this was a brand new experience. In short, I was in shock.
 
The senior nurse smiled at me and took me aside. She advised me that I was in charge now, so it was appropriate that my subordinates show me respect. I still couldn’t wrap my head around it. This was obviously someone’s idea of a joke. I had no idea what I was doing and said so. The nurse said, “You know more than you think…”
 
Over the next couple of months, especially at night, she guided me, by asking innocently phrased questions that gave me an idea of what I should be doing, but without ever undermining my “authority.” We both knew that I was clueless, but she was very adept at teaching me, without seeming to. That old nurse taught me plenty and I owed her a lot. We both knew it.
 
At the end of my rotation, I thanked her for all her help and guidance. She smiled and told me that I had become a good doctor. “At least you listened,” she said. “Why wouldn’t I?” I replied. She was the only one of the two of us who had any idea of what they were doing. But apparently, some prior interns had resented her help and had refused to listen. Ego, I guess. Damn fools….
 
From that time onward, I was always a staunch nurse’s advocate. I never forgot that debt of gratitude. I don’t even remember her name, but I will never forget what she did for me and for the thousands of patients that my life eventually touched. 
 
The moral of this story is that you have to be open to help, when it’s offered. When you open yourself up to someone who has been there, to someone who KNOWS, then, with luck, you might actually learn something. That’s why, when I wrote my LITTLE GREEN BOOK FOR ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, which you can get at this link: http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html   I wrote from the perspective of a surgeon AND a patient, who has undergone knee surgery, myself.  I also made sure to speak in your own language, NOT “medicalese.” 
 
I made it the hallmark of all my healing programs to get rid of the mystery and the obfuscating vocabulary, so you can access the underlying principles, which are actually pretty simple, once you understand them. You see, if you know WHY to do something, you’re much more likely to do what I tell you. And therefore, much more likley to get better, FAST.
 
So, if you want to relieve your knee pain and restore your function, then click here for FAST RELIEF:
http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
Have a great weekend, my friend. And be well. Talk to you again next week.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill
 
P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

My wife and I finally got to our New York home in Southampton yesterday after a road trip from Florida of 1,169.5 miles. We got in around six o’clock in the evening, dragging in after the last stretch along the Belt Parkway. My wife was doing the last leg of the trip, so I had a chance to look around for a change, and see a lot of the old sights from my childhood and teen years.
 
These included the Verrazano Bridge over the Narrows (God! I’m getting to be older than dirt–I remember when it was being built!), the field next to Gravesend Bay, where we used to fly kites, Dyker Heights, where my father was born and raised, Coney Island, with the Wonder Wheel and the famous Parachute Jump Tower, Sheepshead Bay and (fanfare…) the STILLWELL AVENUE Exit, the Marine Parkway Bridge (gateway to The Rockaways and Riis Park, where we used to go to the beach for real waves and surf) and finally, to JFK Airport (originally called Idlewild Airport), then onward to the Southern State Parkway, the Sunrise Highway (Route 27) and Southampton. Lots of memories….
 
As I said we would last Friday, just before we left on the trip, my wife and I took turns at the wheel during the drive, which lessens the stress of driving considerably. And during the drive, I made sure to do the ankle pumps and quad sets that I recommended to you. As I’ve mentioned before, these simple measures help to keep the blood moving in the legs, to prevent deep vein thrombosis (clots), as well as reducing or eliminating any joint pain. I present these and other treatments in my newest healing program, HOW TO AVOID KNEE SURGERY, which you can see and get for yourself at   http://drbillsclinic.com/avoid_knee_surgery.html
 
Anyway, today we just spent taking it easy and allowing our batteries to recharge. I reviewed some of the email I accumulated during the trip, deleting a ton of spam and reading and replying to legitimate communications, and reading relevant blogs, especially some of the alerts that I often use as inspiration for my commentary. 
 
You may recall that I commented on an article in The New England Journal of Medicine (THE clinical “bible” for Internal Medicine specialists) nearly a month ago, which demonstrated that arthroscopic surgery was ineffective as a treatment for osteoarthritis, or more precisely, that surgery was no better than physical therapy for that disease. 
 
As you might imagine, that headline was taken as gospel by all the athletic trainers, fitness buffs, chiropractors, naturopaths, homeopaths, accupuncturists, and especially physical therapists. That reaction was to be expected, but that story has “legs,” as they say in journalism. 
 
Just today, I saw yet another article belaboring that very same reference, the very same conclusion. Man! They are just “beating a dead horse,” driving this same point right into the ground, over and over again.
 
Okay, enough already. If you’re a member of one of those afore-mentioned professional groups and you want the real story on how to eliminate knee pain–once and for all, with all the conservative, non-surgical treatments that are available from across the entire treatment spectrum, conventional, alternative and complimentary, then get my ADVANCED MASTERS’ PROGRAM by clicking here:  http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
Oh, and by the way, the Prius did great–I averaged 43.6 MPG on the trip and spent less than $100 on gas! I’m feeling smarter every day….
 
Til next time, my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill
 
P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

Here in Southampton, it’s just about 11 PM and I’m sitting here, writing my daily subscriber email. That’s the really nice thing about being an internet information marketer these days–I can do what I want, when I want, with no one to make any demands on my time (well, except for my wife). Far cry from what my life used to be….

On surgery days, I had to be IN the OR at 7:30AM, so I could say “HI!” to the patient. If I wasn’t there, Anesthesia would not bring the patient into the room. That, of course, would back up the entire OR schedule, and piss off all the other surgeons. So, I made it my business to be on time, all the time. 

After saying hello to the patient (and often the family) in the preoperative waiting area, I would go to the doctors’ locker room, and suit up in my scrub clothes and a long white clinical coat. Then, I’d take the elevator to the fourth Med/Surg floor, The Joint Implant Unit (Long Island’s FIRST such dedicated orthopaedic Unit–despite the specious claims of LIJH), where I would make rounds, visit my postop patients, confer with the nurses, write notes, do consults, give orders and so on…until the OR called me. In this way, I wasted NO time and I was maximally efficient. 

I then went down to OR #5, often referred to as “my” OR. Operating Room 5 was the largest of all the eight OR’s in St. Catherine of Siena Medical Center. It was also the only room that had a full bank of windows across the back wall, overlooking the forest outside. And it had a special “Laminar Flow” air filtration and conditioning unit, to hyperclean the air flow into the operative field, to prevent any contamination, or infection. It was ideal for doing the big joint replacement surgeries and revision procedures I was known for.

The windows were there specifically because I asked for them, during their renovation. Of course the other surgeons ridiculed the concept and called me a prima donna and worse, for asking for them. But oddly enough, when the room was finished, they ALL wanted to get that room. “Hey! How come Stillwell rates that room all the time?”they’d say. And I would reply sweetly, “Say, didn’t you think this was a stupid idea? And it WAS my idea, wasn’t it?” HA! 

Today, there’s a bronze plaque outside OR#5, “The William T. Stillwell, MD Operating Room”–an honor which, though pretty cool, is usually reserved for the dead.

Anyway, after doffing my coat, putting on a mask and coming into the room, I had to position the patient. Most often, I did this myself, with help from the OR staff, the assistant and Anesthesia, who always was in charge of the patient’s airway and head. Before my back injury, I was a strong little sucker, so I liked to turn the patients on their sides and position them just so, in preparation for the surgery. 

It’s hard to overemphasize the importance of this positioning. In joint reconstruction at that time, my judgment and assessment of the proper angles for implanting the artificial parts were all that resulted in a stable joint, and avoided dislocation. So when the patient was so positioned that a true vertical and a true horizontal were established, it made my determination of the correct angles for implantation much more accurate and more likely to be successful.

After all of that, finally, the surgical team: myself, and my assistant, preceded by the Scrub Technician, would then go to the sinks just outside the room and scrub, while the nurses were scrubbing the hip or knee with antibacterial soap. We would then re-enter, gown and glove. The patient was then prepped and draped, and at long last, surgery could begin. This mini-opera was re-enacted before every surgical procedure. 

As you can see, there was a heck of a lot of activity before anything actually happened. Just thinking about all of that makes me tired! It’s amazing what you get used to, through training and repetition. 

These days, life is much more civilized. And I spend all my time trying to teach you how you can AVOID surgery, with the best alternative and conventional treatments and strategies. Ironically, I can potentially affect far more people now–many thousands more–than I ever could as a surgeon. Which reminds me…

Hard to believe though it is, this Wednesday will be ONE YEAR since Dr. Bill’s Clinic Website went live and I presented my first product, the popular LITTLE GREEN BOOK FOR ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, which you can see at http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html 
But after one full year, my “special introductory rate” has run its course. After all, it’s not “introductory” anymore, is it? So here’s fair warning: as of midnight, October 1st, the price for the LGB will revert to its originally intended price, roughly double the current price. 

If you have been “on the fence” about getting this book til now, further delay WILL cost you. So don’t delay any longer. Click here and buy NOW: http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html

Don’t say I didn’t warn you….
 
Til next time, my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill

P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html

P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html 

FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

It’s just a lazy day here in Florida. The sun is playing peek-a-boo behind the clouds, but it’s warm and quiet. Hope it’s peaceful and restful where you are. Time to kick back, relax and enjoy some hot dogs (yeah, I know they’re terrible for you, but I dearly love them, so I’ll indulge, occasionally) and shrimps on the barbie. 

The best hot dogs (in my opinion) are from Nathans, heavy garlic, grease and “strange meat,” but they taste great! And the very first Nathans is still in Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York, at the junction of Surf and STILLWELL Avenues! That’s right. My ancestors were early settlers in Brooklyn and used to own that land. (Wish they’d saved some for me…oh well) Anyway…
 
It’s Labor Day, a day of rest, in honor of the working men and women of America, and the official end of the summer season. And that means, it’s time for a SALE!
 
And while it’s going on (until midnight tonight only), take advantage of my 20%-50% OFF SALE on selected Dr. Bill’s Clinic products.
 
Go to http://drbillsclinic.com/labor_day_special.html
 
Talk to you tomorrow. Til then, be well, be happy and enjoy the holiday.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill

P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

Just today, I was driving along in my car, listening, as I usually do, to a talk show on AM radio. The traffic was miserable, the weather was lousy, but the kitties need food, so there I was. Anyway, one caller came on and said, quite emphatically, to the host of the show, “Healthcare is a RIGHT! It’s a disgrace that there are people who are uninsured in this country…We’re the only major industrialized country in the world that doesn’t provide care for everyone…Yada, yada, yada…(with apologies to Seinfeld)”.
 
Like many people who hold this viewpoint, the man who called into the show was long on passion, but short on facts and true knowledge of the problem. Which is to say, he was clueless about the real situation, but he gets points for compassion for his fellow human beings.
 
Here are a few things to consider. First, yes, there are a large number of people who do not have insurance coverage. BUT, and this is a big “but,” for many, this is a CHOICE. I know this seems like heresy, but in this country, people still have the freedom to make some choices. 

A young guy with no dependents, in the full flower of his life and strength, often thinks he’s near invulnerable and feels like he’s immortal. He may choose not to spend his money on an insurance policy (health OR life), because the need for it seems very far away and he’d much rather spend it on something else. 

Now, there are people who need coverage and can’t afford it, or maybe they can afford it but they’re disqualified by a “pre-existing condition.” That last is a real problem in anyone who is younger than Medicare-eligible age. Finally, there are a horde of ILLEGAL ALIENS included in that number of the uninsured–not only can they not afford it, or qualify for it, but they’re NOT supposed to be here, at all! And yet, their every emergency is treated FREE, if necessary, in the local ER, by law. WE pay for that, BTW.
 
Now, I’m not going to say that there aren’t problems with the current system–there are. But politicians are attempting to use this situation to seize control of yet MORE of our freedom and our money by attempting the government takeover of the healthcare industry. 

And underlying all of it is the idea, popular on the left, that health care is a RIGHT. Sorry, but it’s NOT a right. A need, obviously; desirable, certainly; but not a right. Why? Well, any other right guaranteed by our system and our constitution can be freely expressed by an individual and IT DOESN”T IMPOSE A COST ON ANYONE ELSE. That is, if I want to speak my mind and express an opinion, my “right” of free speech, it doesn’t cost anyone else a dime for me to do that. 

It’s true that in at least some of these cases, there is a true need. And that should be addressed. There are ways to deal with that. But NOT by putting the ponderous federal government in charge. These people can’t do anything right! Do you really want to trust your health to a bureaucrat? Think about it–it’s better for their budget if you die.
 
And do you want to stifle the innovation, investment and effciency of the private model? I mean, already a whole lot of physicians are from elsewhere–because our best and brightest, right out of college, have already figured out that they don’t want to be under a government thumb. They’ve gone into other fields, where they can prosper to the limts of their own talents and drive, free from government regulation. And the old dogs (like me), who have decided to retire, rather than put up with ever more regulation, litigation, and decreasing revenues, further decrease the physician pool. 
 
Then there’s convenience. Tear your meniscus? Today, you can see a doc, get an MRI that afternoon, and if needed, get surgery done a day or two later. So you can be back at work or play in a few days to a week or so. Done. Want to give that up, so some government fool can tell you that you have to wait a few months to get the MRI and then, another 6-12 months to get the surgery? I don’t.

Then just think about this: now you have cancer. And some drone tells you, sorry, you’ll have to WAIT to get that CT scan and then WAIT again to get the surgery. And all the while, the cancer is eating you alive, spreading through your system with unseen virulence…while you WAIT. That’s what the future holds if we let this happen.
 
And then, there’s the financial argument. Create a “right” to care and you create an endless demand–which YOU will pay for. Take a look at Europe and Canada. Anywhere this idea has been tried, it has all but bankrupted the country. We can’t afford this. The American taxpayer is not a bottomless well.

There are problems that need to be solved in healthcare. But the government is NOT the solution. It’s part of the problem.
 
So next time you hear someone tell you how healthcare for all is a “right,” you now should know better. Your best bet for your future healthcare is to STAY HEALTHY.
 
This rant has been brought to you by HOW TO AVOID KNEE SURGERY, where you can avail yourself of the latest cutting edge techniques, from across the entire treatment spectrum for eliminating knee pain, without surgery, at
 http://drbillsclinic.com/avoid_knee_surgery.html
Thank you.
 
Til next time, my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill
 
P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

Over the weekend, I was cleaning out some of my old stuff. You have to understand that this activity is contrary to my nature. I’m a pack-rat and I always have been. I collected everything: comics, books (especially first editions; especially signed first editions), original paintings, prints, bronzes, antiques, old orthopaedic implants, guns, photos, slides, you name it. The thing is, after a while, you really don’t own your possessions–they own you.

So, I’m making an efforts to strip away the barnacles and dump all the non-essential memorabilia. I just need to simplify my life and have a whole lot less STUFF, you know? Anyway, as I was going through my stuff, I came across an old photo of me and my old buddy, Steve. Steve was an orthopaedic surgeon who was one of my best friends and colleagues. He was one of the original members of the orthopaedic group that I joined, right out of my fellowship training. But I didn’t meet him right away.

When I showed up for work, Steve was recovering from his first heart surgery–a coronary bypass. It seems he had these really crappy genes for heart disease. His dad died at 40 and his brother at age 42, both from heart disease. So, he had already outlived them both and he wasn’t going without a fight.

While he was recuperating, the other senior members of the group scrubbed and supervised me. When Steve finally returned, he was assigned to me as my supervisor and assistant, to show me the ropes and keep me out of trouble. This is standard procedure whenever a new surgeon begins at a hospital. Privileges are provisional at first, until the new recruit has demonstrated competence. So supervision is required, until the Department Chairman is confident that he/she meets the professional standard.

Steve and I hit it off, right away. He was friendly and funny and had a great way about him. He was a pretty good surgeon, too (so good that I asked him to operate on my mother when she needed a hip replacement) and a terrific diagnostician, who had an innate, intuitive ability to figure out what was wrong with a patient. He was down-to-earth and very straightforward in his bedside manner: patients all loved him. What he lacked in polish, he more than made up for with his acute clinical acumen and compassion. And he had really, really good judgment. Not everybody does.

I can’t begin to tell you how much I learned from him, both what to do and what NOT to do. And there were quite a few times he kept me from screwing up. There was this one time in particular that really demonstrates the nature if his character. Once, when Steve was on vacation (just hanging out at home), I was scheduled to do a total hip on an elderly woman. A new guy, who had just joined the group, was going to assist me, in Steve’s absence. He had informed me that he had to leave for an important meeting at 2:00 PM. This should have been plenty of time, but the OR had many delays, emergencies and such, so they were running behind. Finally, they anesthetized the lady, but at 2:00 o’clock, this guy said, “I told you I had to leave at 2:00.” And with that, he LEFT! With the patient asleep on the OR table! Unbelievable!

Now, I’m a very even tempered guy. It takes a lot to make me angry. But, man, I was in a white heat fury at that time. I couldn’t believe he had walked out on the patient and on me (turns out he was meeting with an accountant!). I was wild. The trouble with anger is that it keeps you from thinking straight.

I was so furious, that I went ahead with the surgery, by myself. I could do it alone! I didn’t need ANYONE! Technically true, but not too smart. You see, there was a rule in force that any major case required an assistant surgeon. And now, I didn’t have one. Uh-oh. The Chairman of Anesthesia was not amused. He told me that I needed an assistant. I told him I didn’t really need one. “Yes. You do,” he said. And he went off to call the Chairman of Surgery (at that time, Orthopaedics was a Section, under General Surgery), ie., my boss. They called all around town–no one else could or would come to assist me. By this time, I had cooled off and I realized that I was in deep doo-doo. It looked like a short end to a promising career….

And then, who should walk in, already scrubbed, with a big grin you could see even under his surgical mask, but Steve. “Hey, STILLWELL…What the F#&% are you DOIN’?” he said. I coulda kissed him. The nurses had called him at home, ON VACATION, and he came in to help the patient and save my bacon. I was never so happy to see anyone. Well, we did the case together, the x-rays looked great, the patient did great and the crisis was averted. Thanks to Steve. And he never threw up to me how foolishly I had behaved. Ever. He just smiled, laughed at me, left and then went home and resumed his vacation. Lucky for me.

That’s just the kind of guy he was. Apart from clinical expertise, “ya gotta have heart”–and he did, in spades!

In later years, after my appointment as Chief, I left the group to go into solo practice. But I remained good friends with Steve. He eventually had a second bypass operation, recovered, but finally retired to a cattle farm in Ocala, Florida. We still stay in touch, now and again, to talk over old times and old friends.

Last time I spoke to him, he had heard about my injury and retirement. I told him all about my new venture, Dr. Bill’s Clinic, and about my very first product, DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK FOR ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN                                         http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html     He loved it! Thought the concept of teaching lay people all about knee problems and their solutions in everyday English was great. Not for the first time, I thanked Steve for all his help over the years. Without him, I wouldn’t have been able to do everything I’ve done, and wouldn’t be here now, to teach you what I know at http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html

Truly a great guy. I’m proud and grateful to call him my friend. Like I said, I was lucky. Til next time, my friend, be well.

Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,

Dr. Bill

P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html

P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html

P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html

FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION

Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

I think it was 1973 when I read about Durk Pearson for the first time. His book LIFE EXTENSION was a mega best seller, back then. He and his girlfriend, and co-author, Sandy Shaw were scientists, who had made a study of various supplements, vitamins, minerals and
the like that they believed, based on available resaerch, would extend the life span of the average person and enhance the quality of that life, as well. Now, bodybuilders and other athletes had been taking supplements for years, but this was something new. This was real science backing up their recommendations.
 
Durk Pearson himself was quite an enigmatic guy. He was a frequent guest on Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show. He was a strange looking, tall, gangly man in black leather pants, hideous silver and tourquoise Native American Jewelry (though they were still “Indians” in those days), straggly, shoulder length brown hair. He also reportedly had the highest IQ of anyone they’d ever had at MIT in Boston, where they were quite impressed with him. Sandy was no slouch either. They lived and worked together and apparently were an item. The two of them together were as odd and Bohemian a pair as you’d ever see and you’d never suspect the depth of intelligence they possessed from their appearance. Hey, you never know….
 
Anyway, I was one of very few people who actually read the entire tome, cover to cover. I know I was pretty impressed with their research. Starting then, I began taking megadose Vitamin C, Vitamin E, selenium, niacin and a host of other supplements. Although much of their data was based on animal studies, extrapolated onto human beings, I was impressed with their reasoning and I always felt that it was a gamble worth taking. After all, if you wait 20 or 30 years to find out if it works, and then discover it does, it’s too late to do you any good. 

A number of my more conservative colleagues have always thought I was crazy, in this regard. They’d never take anything without a number of double blind, controlled studies, which on its surface, seems to make sense. Only problem was and still is that no one is making a buck on these things, in comparison to prescription drugs; therefore, no funds or incentives to conduct such studies. Still, I looked in the
literature for myself and found support here and there in various journals.
 
For example, I found buried in the Plastic Surgery journals evidence of the efficacy of Vitamin C in wound healing. They did a study of the tensile strength of scars in rabbits, and compared those given the human equivalent of 2 grams of Vitamin C a day with another group that had none. They made incisions in each rabbit and allowed them to heal. Then, they cut the scars out of them and hung weights on the scars, held on a hook, length-wise. They added weights until the scars tore apart. Guess what? The scars from the Vitamin C rabbits had three times the tensile strength of the other group. That’s a 300% increase in strength.
 
So, years later, when I began doing my own surgery, I ordered oral and intravenous Vitamin C (as well as my own concoction of liquid vitamin B complex) on all my postop patients. And I was able to get the staples out of their incisions in three days, instead of the 10-14
days that everyone else needed. Coincidence? I don’t think so.
 
So I’ve been taking supplements since that time. Over the years, I’ve added to my own personal regimen, although I was always much more conservative with my patients. After all, a lot of this is a speculative gamble, and I didn’t want to gamble with my patients, without more solid proof. Over the last decade or so,  I’ve learned about and added other nutrients, including the protective compounds in many foods and the pain relieving effects of certain spices, which have additional health benefits, to enhance your life, as well. Some spices are so effective that they can be taken orally; others can be applied to the skin and relieve the pain in the joint beneath. 

I describe these spices, as well as a number of other dietary measures and helpful supplements, that can help to relieve joint pain, in my ADVANCED MASTERS COURSE   http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
The great thing about these naturopathic measures is that they work with conventional treatments and medications, often by different pathways, to bring long term relief and, in many cases, can help you to avoid surgery.
 
This course is the real deal–everything I know about eliminating knee pain, but in layman’s English. If you’re a therapist, trainer, nurse, chiropractor,  or a non-orthopaedic physician, or just someone who wants to know it all, this has all the information you’ll ever need, from across the entire treatment spectrum. And it’s available in a convenient, affordable monthly lesson format, to make it easy to learn and easy to own. So click on the link and sign up for yours today    http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
Til next time, my friend, be well.

Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill
 
P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to   http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved