I am now 4 weeks and 3 days into my recovery. Even though the past weeks have seemed incredibly slow, I cannot believe that surgery was over a month ago! Progress is being made, albeit slower than I would like (sound familiar, anyone?).
ROM is coming along slowly, measuring at 105 and 2 at my last PT on Thursday. I wonder if I’ll ever be able to make that full rotation on the bike! Everything still feels incredibly tight. The swelling in my knee is still medium and pain levels fluctuate between 1 and 4. Most times, the pain feels like a dull and consistent ache in the bones, accentuated with a few zingers on the inside side of my knee. I am still taking 1000mg tylenol every six hours. A few afternoons I have had to take 1 mg of hydromorphone to help manage my discomfort.
Nights are getting better. With 2mg hydromorphone, I can now get 4-5 hours of solid sleep, which has felt most luxurious! My energy usually runs out by mid afternoon and this is when I tend to snooze in my recliner while the tv rumbles away showing some tacky reality show that I have no interest in. I save the good stuff for when I am more alert!
I haven’t tried walking the neighbourhood just yet, mainly because of the heat and the fact that the roads are not smooth. I’ve managed a couple of trips to the grocery store, mainly to get some walking done while hubby pushes the wagon. It feels good at the time, but ice is my best friend when I get home! I am really looking forward to the day when I can head out the door for a good 45 min walk!
My ADL’s have slowly increased. Yesterday I managed to dust most of the house. I can easily do a load of laundry, make coffee and cook some meals. I think washing dishes is still far in my future (or so I tell my family, haha). I’ve resigned myself to the fact that any sort of gardening will have to wait until the fall. All in all, I am feeling pretty good. Sure, my mood and outlook shifts from day to day, but for the most part I am staying pretty positive. My bouts of feeling frustrated and sorry for myself are definitely fewer, thank goodness!