TKR 19 Dec. 2014: santa brings me a new knee

[treypops]

My first PT visit went fine yesterday. I got on the stationary bike and she told me to rock the pedals back and forth,but I went all the way around the first time! She didn't think I would be able to do it. In case most haven't noticed, I am a pretty competitive guy. Im fully aware that this could get me in trouble at some point, and I am really working on patience.

Rom was 112 with 10 degree extension. The best part of the whole thing was the 20 minutes in the cryocuff. That thing is heavenly...wish I had one.

@kneeper my doc wrote me a script for tramadol, so we are going to give that a shot.

@DogLoverx3 I have tried everything! Comfort escapes me. Im sure I will figure it out though!

Thanks for the kind words.

 

[lunula]

Hi treypops- just wanted to post to let you know that I am so happy about your progress! My ROM is coming soooooooo slowly - my max on the CPM machine is 78. I think the only thing I have on you is my ability to sleep through the night more regularly. Of course, I also have to take Benadryl...so I am sure that helps! I was finally able to move back upstairs to my bedroom instead of sleeping in the guest suite downstairs- feels wonderful! I have ditched my walker and only use my cane now. But nowhere near being able to walk on my own yet! Doing lots of PT, as well, and find that i actually enjoy it! I miss not taking my long walks and hitting the gym, so I approach my PT exercises with vigor. [emoji4]


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[treypops]

@lunula ! Great to hear from you! I've been a little concerned because I haven't heard from you in a while. I'm glad your recovery is progressing, even if it's slower than you would like.

By every measure, my recovery is going great. Walking on my own, pain under control, good rom, etc. But I am still frustrated that I'm not doing even better. I understand that is totally irrational and I knew that my impatience was going to be a problem for me before I even started this journey, but it is what it is. The good news is that im not letting that frustration drive me to derail my recovery. I hope I can still say that a month from now.

Be well...

 

[treypops]

Yesterday was three calendar weeks from my surgery and I'm excited to report that I walked a mile that morning prior to my PT. At PT, I was once again able to ride the exercise bike for 15 minutes. Last night, I took my son to basketball practice (I coached this team but asked someone else to take over before my surgery) and I got involved at practice, doing some coaching. Even shot a few jump shots, and it felt great.

I also walked a mile this morning, as well. I am trying to do that every day as my knee allows.

As far as pain goes, it is pretty manageable. I did start feeling a pinching pain on the inside of my knee late yesterday, but I attributed it to overdoing it a bit. I didn't like it though - because that pain was similar to the pain I felt before my surgery. A little ice knocked it right out, though.

My biggest issues still are just being impatient, and not being able to get completely comfortable at night to rest. I also just hate the feeling that I have something foreign in my leg - and the lack of feeling on the outside of my knee. I also get the quad and calf spasms, and those can be unnerving at times.

I also had a scare yesterday...I was walking up and down my stairs and I slipped and fell as I was going down the staircase. Luckily I caught myself with my hands and my backside, only a couple of bruises, but no damage to the knee. Lesson learned - I can't be going up and down the stairs in my sock feet.

At PT yesterday, my flexion was 110 and my extension was five degrees. I did my lift exercises with ankle weights, and I was able to do some free squats. My extension was at ten the first time we measured, but after a few hamstring stretches, we were able to get to that five number.

Today I went out to dinner with friends. It was good to get out. I am noticing that I just can't eat as much as I did before the surgery (maybe that's a blessing!). The biggest thing for me right now is that I just can't sit in one spot for any length of time (probably the same reason I can't get comfortable at night for sleep). This is why I know I'm not ready to go back to work. My target return to work date is 2 February.

As active as I seem to be in my updates, I promise everyone that I am following the mantras. I spend embarrassing amounts of time in my recliner with my knee elevated and iced. I feel lazy at times, but I know it's the right thing to do. I truly credit following our mantras for my successful recovery to date. RICE (Rest, ice, compression, elevation) are my priorities.

I'm thinking of making a video of myself walking and climbing stairs, and if I do, I will post it here. I'm proud of my recovery thus far, and I hope it continues to go well. More importantly, I hope it can provide some reassurance to those on here who may be struggling, or who may be fearful of having this surgery. A positive outlook can really help.

 

[TexasTee]

Outstanding report!! Love to see you returning - slow but sure - to your normal life this early. Scary about the stairs though, glad that turned out ok.

Have you looked into Magnesium at all? It's good for both muscle spasms as well as helpful to promote getting to sleep. I use Natural Calm - really does wonders and I like that it's a mineral rather than a chemical.

 

[treypops]

@TexasTee I will look into it. I will try just about anything once.

Today at pt I got 128 degrees of flexion! I was very surprised at that. The tightness and numbness is seeming to subside a bit. It's a good news/bad news scenario because while it's good, I'm starting to feel some new pains in areas that were previously numb. I'm also starting to get a lot of muscle soreness in my calf and quad...but ive worked out enough in my life to know that's a good pain.

All in all, I think things are going well up to now.

 

[lunula]

Hiya treypops! Holy cow, 128! You are the man! I almost jumped for joy at hitting 85 today, lol! I am told that doing PT 3-4 times per day is too much, hah! I am definitely motivated, but the body is not willing. I will just live vicariously through you.


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[treypops]

@lunula - you are doing great in your own right. I know your flexion will come.

I'm not sure if this is common or not, but I'm feeling a lot of new pains. Some of it is soft tissue, maybe some muscle soreness too, but some of it is definitely in the joint of the knee. I'm assuming it's bone trauma pain that's just now being realized because there's not as much swelling and numbness as before. Can anyone validate that?

From an activity standpoint, I'm doing well. I basically took today off. Other than a quick trip to Target, I sat in my recliner all day. No PT, no walking, nothing.

Today marks four weeks to the day from my surgery. I think I've come a long way in four weeks!

 

[linnrobb]

@treypops, been following yur posts, hope you're still doing well and as I notice from the pros on here, hope u r taking those pain meds on schedule. Went to my PC Tues 1/13, before I left his ofc the surgeon was on the phone to mk appt for me. That was impressive. He works out of Tyler TMF hospital. Anyone experienced w/that facility? (I see so many Texans on here I just know there's someone who's had that experience). I see him 1/29/15 which is impressive also. No long wait to see this guy. I have my list of questions I got off this site (I love you folks!) But as I'm alone and don't yet know if partial KR is doable, I'm so concerned about after care. I also have pets but a neighbor will see to the cat and a relative will see to the dog. I'm on disability, does anyone know if that will help in getting an electric chair? My mind is spinning, seems this is happening much faster than I had imagined. All the PC would say is that the miniscus (?) is in chronic condition, multiple tears (injury caused this, not athritis) and it would be up to surgeon whether pkr is possible....anyway, I'm sorry I got off on me, I'm following your progress closy treypops and rooting for you!

 

[DogLoverx3]

Hi Treypops! You're doing great. Yes, those new pains are 'normal'. Annoying, but normal. You will find in this recovery that as soon as you conquer one type of pain, another pops up. It's very much of a roller-coaster in recovery and as Tim (I think) says, it's not a straight line.

As your swelling decreases, you will discover new and exciting (ha) areas of pain as well as an increase (or start) in clicking and popping when you move. That part doesn't hurt, it's just more of a weird feeling. Bone pain is just that and is more of a constant ache, I found. My nerve pain was more like sudden searing pains that although short-lived, would make me jump. I had weird quad pains too that make me jerk my leg unknowingly. All of it gets better in the end. I promise! It just takes a while. You sound as if you're balancing your exercises and activities well with the mantra. I'm happy for you that you're doing so well! Keep up the great work!

 

[treypops]

It's been a while since i updated my recovery thread, so I thought I would do that today.

Tomorrow is eight weeks post op. The good:

I am walking a couple of miles per day. I am climbing stairs fairly easily. I am now able to go to the gym and do the elliptical and stationary bikes. At my last therapy session i got to 135 degrees of ROM. I return to work next week. I am taking 50mg ultram (tramadol) for pain. No more opiates.

The bad:

I still struggle a bit with swelling and stiffness. I still struggle to sleep through the night. I still have an area of my knee, approximately six inches long by three inches wide, where the surface skin is totally numb. I have gained a little weight now due to not being as active as i would like.

The funny:

i got really brave last sunday and took my son to a professional basketball game. Moving around amongst 19000 people can be a bit unnerving, but i made it through ok. I found it funny however that my new knee set off the metal detector at the entrance of the arena!

To all my bonesmartie friends still recovering.....SMILE! It gets a little better every day!

 

[Celle]

That's a very good 8-weeks report @treypops

Best wishes for you imminent return to work. You'll probably find that your leg swells more and that you are very tired by the end of the day. It's a good idea to plan to do nothing apart from work on work days. No PT, no other activities. Just rest, ice, elevate.

 

[TexasTee]

Great update Treypops! can't believe it's already been 8 weeks, sounds like you're doing terrific. My OS said most of the numbness will be gone in 3-4 months but can take up to a year to get all the feeling back and there is no guarantee that ALL of it will be back. Not such a big trade off to be able to live life - it is a weird feeling though, right now, a whole lot of my knee area is numb - well, not numb, just not as sensitive as the rest of the skin.

Funny about the metal detector...were they cool about it?

 

[Celle]

That numbness is quite unpredictable. 3+ years after my right TKR, there is still a numb area about the size of my fist.
My left TKR, done only last September, already has a much smaller area of numbness.

 

[treypops]

@TexasTee
they were pretty cool about it. They pulled me aside, and i was wearing shorts, so i just showed them my scar and they let me through. It was a pretty funny experience. I hope your recovery is going well.

@Celle
my numb area is about twice the size of my fist, and it's driving me crazy. I hate to hear that you still have that so long after surgery....that might be my undoing!

 

[Celle]

You kind of get used to it. It used to drive me crazy too, but now it doesn't seem to be so noticeable. I don't know if it's actually gained a bit of sensitivity or if I've just become accustomed to avoiding it.

 

[Jamie]

The numb area can take a long, long time to come back in some cases (nerves are such slow growers!). You will most likely see a lot of changes in that area in the next year. But do give it that kind of time. Nerves are never in a hurry!

Your recovery sounds fabulous! You might want to consider taking a cane along with you in big crowds, though. Amazingly, it signals to people that they need to give you some space and that can be extremely helpful. It's also good for whacking the knees of anyone who gives you trouble (ooops, pardon me...so sorry!) ... ....