A guide speaks about knee pain

I have been diagnosed with severe osteoarthritis of the right knee, but in the past few years I have not experienced too much pain or difficulties, except for a gradual reduction in my distance walking. Now, however my knee is becoming more and more painful and I am also experiencing inflammation in the left hip and knee. Walking is a big part of my life and I do not want to give it up. It’s my understanding that the only “fix” for the right knee at this stage is a total knee replacement and I’m told that if successful I will be able to walk normally again.

My question is whether there might be other ways to improve my mobility and decrease the pain while walking. I have been doing exercise including cycling and trying different types of pain medication. I am willing to do the surgery if it will help extend my years of walking, but I am nervous about such a major operation. Also, I wonder if there is a spiritual aspect to this condition. What am I meant to learn from this condition? Is there is anything I can do to improve my chances of increased mobility?

Are you mad at your knee? Are you mad at your hip? Are you irritated with your body?

I think I feel let down by it; I’m not willing to give up walking. It’s a big part of my life, just as for some people running is a big part of their life.

So no matter how it yells at you, you will not stop. No matter how much it demands attention, you will not listen. There is a spiritual attitude to everything, my dear. Slowing you down—you are afraid to be slowed down. You are afraid that there is not enough time for what you have yet to do.

I have many things I want to do and see.

Then take some time for your knee and your hip. See what they are saying to you. You have deep frustration. You have sorrows that you have not yet resolved. You massage the knee but only in an urgency to relieve it, or shall I use your words? To make it shut up.

When you sit and concentrate on this knee think of it as opening and freeing. Listen to the voice it has. You created this knee; you created its pain. But you don’t understand why you created it. It wasn’t your conscious mind; it was your spirit being, that needed to be heard, to be still, to practice some of the truths you believe in, to walk in a life not run through it.

You my blessed one have many losses in your life, many deep sorrows. But you quickly got up and ran from them. And it was your way of dealing with the terrible pain and the deep loss. Perhaps, you have used this—although I should not give you all this information. Your greatest and first loss was when you were beginning to walk. And you stored within that a knowledge of pain, of not understanding pain. And every time since when you have lost you’ve added to it. Now it doesn’t mean you are going to lose again now. It means that in this amazing beautiful path you have walked, and cared and loved people, you have not cared and loved your own being as much—and it is time. In time, if you give energy and love to this area (and the hip is only a result from the knee) you can heal it, and walk and run with great happiness.

Now then, how do you do this? You listen to it. You visualize it opening, freeing out of it all humours of discomfort, all energies of angst and tightness. Put down your armour blessed one. You don’t need to fight anyone with this. Massage the muscles on the outside of the leg from the knee to the hip and the inside. Move it, dance with it. Lighten the load of it. And listen to it.

Now you speak of things like surgeries and you’ve been given much information about what will and will not work. They say this only because they really don’t know. For it is really up to you. If you want to heal it. If you want to be free of the pain, then you must listen to it.

(The guide then speaks to two others in the room)

As to you, my son, and you my dear, you too have pain. Understand that that this amazing body that you created to hold that magic, that spirit that you be, was created by you—so you know how to heal it. Your world will supply you with many different venues and avenues and understandings, but your method of healing your body is yours and yours alone.

You, my son, are very frustrated with many things in life. You feel you have not done what you need so desperately to do and you are searching for that. It’s almost as if you have an itch that you can neither find nor relieve. To tell you exactly what it is and where to go, I cannot, my blessed one. Listen to your being.

And you, little one, your knee—is because you feel so responsible to everybody. I perhaps have spoken enough.