Teresa Lamb

As an employee at Hospital for Special Surgery, I have been writing about the Hospital’s mission and vision in my role as a communications professional for the last four years; however, I had never experienced what it was like to be a patient at HSS until recently. In high school and college, I was an avid runner, but because of terrible knee pain that got worse over the last ten years, I was forced to give it up. As a result, I gained weight and generally let my health suffer. Running was my sport of choice and having to stop doing what I loved really changed the quality of my life. Years before working at HSS, I tried physical therapy at another institution but had no success. I pretty much gave up hope that I would ever run again. Recently, however, an HSS colleague heard my story and suggested that I make an appointment with Dr. Jordan Metzl, one of the Hospital’s sports medicine physicians and a triathlete himself. Though I was hesitant to get my hopes up again, I met with Dr. Metzl and shared my history. What first struck me on meeting him was how positive, enthusiastic, and passionate he was. He assured me that I would be running again soon and made me believe that it was possible. He walked me through every step of the treatment plan, which involved a series of knee injections and at-home strength training. It is now two months later, and I am thrilled to report that I am running twice a week and have no knee pain! Dr. Metzl has given me back an important part of my life, and I am truly grateful to him. I only wish I had seen him sooner.