About Day 1 PT, 5 days post ACL reconstruction & meniscus repair

As of today, I am at day 6 after ACL reconstructive surgery. I injured my knee December 20th, 2013. My new ACL is a patella tendon autograft. Its considered the gold standard...I guess we will see after I start kicking again.
Here are some before and after photos of what is going on inside my knee (Figure 1). A picture of my leg is also posted (Figure 2).

Figure 1. Before and after "intraOperative" photos.

Figure 2. Right knee.

My first PT session was yesterday January 29th, 2014. The PT started me off laying down on my back doing heel slides and straight leg raises. Sat up and let my leg dangle at a 90 degree angle. Last thing was laying face down, knees hanging down off the table. In that position I hooked my left (good leg) around my right leg and slowly did a hamstring curl.

The hardest part about doing all of it is that the knee feels like its going to implode or explode. The surgeon and PT say that, that is normal and the knee is actually going to be alright. Its all mental.

I hate doing leg raises. I feel like I cant. I hate feeling like I CAN'T do something more so I will try as hard as possible to raise it until I CAN. I can feel my knee cap tighten up and hurt. It feels like its going to break. But I can get my leg up if I put everything Ive got into it. Its like that moment in Kill Bill when The Bride is paralyzed and is telling herself out loud to wiggle her big toe...http://youtu.be/vHl24Kjp5Vs.

If the surgeon and the PT are telling me that I can then its all in my damn head. So today, and everyday, until my next PT appointment, I am going to get that damn leg raising.