TKR 2 days post-op

[Betsy-Knees-7-2014]

@Hopeful6592, Welcome to BS, so glad you found this. So helpful in knowing what to expect. I even have a calendar 4 weeks out, 5 weeks out, what to expect. So tomorrow is my day and we can travel this together. Remember Ice, elevate, Meds and relax... time for us to give to ourselves.

 

[Hopeful6592]

Betsy, I hope and pray your surgery goes well and that you can be home in a couple of days.

 

[Hopeful6592]

OK guys, pain medicine arrived at 2:00 pm today & I feel like a new woman. I can get back on track tomorrow with the OS appointment & physical therapy. I won't run out again, because that was really scary. I am so grateful that I have my husband & daughter her to help me with everything too. It would have been so hard without them.

 

[tiredwife]

@Hopeful6592 This is very important - are you elevating at night? If you don't elevate the swelling won't go down! We put a wedge pillow under the foot of the mattress to keep it elevated. Ice at night too! Also elevated and ice often throughout the day. Did you see your xray? Did it look like it fit? Until your pain is managed don't do much.

 

[referee54]

How long did it take your husband before he could get around without the aid of the walker? Does he have a good ROM now with that knee?

One thing that you must learn is not to compare yourself to anyone else, there is such a wide variety in the way people heal.

This is a very valid point---you are a unique individual, and your recovery is unique to you.

If you compare yourself to others, you will certainly become concerned and frustrated, as somebody will always be progressing faster than yourself.

And keep in mind that some days are good and some days are frankly lousy, even after my five weeks; and sometimes there is no rhyme or reason why I feel good or don't.

This recovery is very similar to a roller coaster ride---you will have ups and downs---good days and some real stinkers---and you cannot figure out why you are having a bad day---it just happens.

This recovery is not at all linear---in fact, it looks like this:

Celebrate all the small victories, they add up.

Yes---these little victories add up into a big win at the end--when you are fully recovered.

 

[Hopeful6592]

Ice and elevation constantly. The swelling has been reduced considerably. I have my post-op appointment tomorrow & will get to ask many questions about this new knee. I am extremely concerned, because it almost feels like it doesn't fit. Physical Therapist says it will feel must better when the staples come out. I know this will p help, I am hoping that it does extremely well. My knee just does not want to bend at all. I'm going to find out how many staples are in there, because there's so many, I can't count them all.

 

[tiredwife]

@Hopeful6592 Ask to see your xray of your new knee and have them expain it to you.

 

[LisaNHart]

@Hopeful6592 - I'm sorry I read your thread late. I called my OS on a Saturday when I ran out of my meds. And yes, I used the emergency line. I was so lucky the PA didn't live far from me. She ended up meeting me at the Barnes and Noble at 8:00pm that evening.

ICE, REST and ELEVATION is my biggest friend. I am 4 weeks post-op for RTKR and I ice several times a day. Stay on top of your pain meds. Especially in the early weeks. My hubbies set his alarm for every 4 hours to give me the meds the first 2 weeks.

Hang in there! **HUGS**

 

[referee54]

My knee just does not want to bend at all.

Of course not! Your knee has gone through some very, very serious surgical trauma.

Right now, your knee is still reeling from what the trauma that occurred, and it will take some time---possibly quite some time, for you to gain ROM.

Recovery---full recovery---can take upwards to a year; my own BTKR recovery took five months for me to lose a pesky little limp---six months to get to around 80%-85%, and eight months to get to around 90%-95%.

While you undoubtedly have quite a few staples, right now, the swelling and the stiffness are the major contributors to why your knee will not bend.

You are expecting, like many of us did, for healing to come around too quickly and too soon. Please consider that two bones were sawed off; your implant was not too gently placed in your new joint, you had tourniquets around two parts of your knee, and the surgeon and his helpers were not at all gentle. Then you were stapled shut.

These early days are called the "Dark Days" of recovery, and with good reason, too.

Hang in there, ice, elevate A LOT---and take it slowly---one day at a time.

You will regain the ROM, and you will be fully recovered---but you will get there on your knee's schedule, not yours.

It takes time and patience---this can be very frustrating, but you have to be very gentle with it---ice, elevate, rest---and do gentle little exercises.

 

[referee54]

This video may help you understand why things are moving so slowly now:
https://www.cleveland.com/healthfit/index.ssf/2013/11/new_knee_new_life.html#incart_m-rpt-2

During the video, you will also see a tray similar to what is seen in this thread:
TKR: fitting the implants to the patient

Don' sweat it, and don't fret it---you will get there, but at a slower pace than you---and all of us---wished it would be.

 

[kneeper]

Your knee is likely a big ball of swelling and combined with the staples probably feels very weird which could be why you think the implant is too big. Once the swelling goes down it should start to feel more normal.

 

[Hopeful6592]

Well, I had the post-op appointment with the OS today. According to him, everything is moving along in a reasonable manner. I should not expect miracles overnight. He went over the x-rays & explained everything in a simple way. The knee implant is the correct size, it's just extreme swelling that is affecting everything. If I continue on the path I'm on, healing will be eventual. Don't we all just get so impatient though?

 

[Ollie]

Yes, we do. Those 'dark days' are full of some terrible thoughts, fears, regrets. Remember to be gentle with yourself, to medicate, ice, elevate and nap like your world depends on just those things. Because, like this forum taught me, it truly does.

Had I not had all these wonderful voices pointing me toward those things, I would have been too aggressive, would have tried to be too tough, and would have made my path that much worse. Even today (5 weeks post op!!), I still gave to remember these things.

You'll get there - you are on your way right now!


Ollie. LTKR June 10, 2014

 

[referee54]

Don't we all just get so impatient though?

This is, possibly, the most frustrating aspect of a TKR recovery---we have a schedule in our mind and we think that we are not moving fast enough.

We have to be patient---we have to reach way down inside ourselves and find patience that we did not think that we have. Recovery can take months and months--most likely a 1/2 year---for some, lke myself and others---longer.

Our previous surgeries---if we had them, may have been arthroscopic, and we are not prepared for the trauma that has been done to our knee.

It takes time for the surgical knee to calm down and for the swelling to subside, and it takes patience on our part to be wary of trying to rush the recovery---this is actually counter-productive and slows down our recovery---work smarter, not harder.

 

[Roselover]

Hi Hopeful6592, My right knee was replaced July 8th. I definitely sympathize with how you are feeling. I am icing and elevating most of the day, taking my meds on schedule, and being careful with the simple exercises I was given to do, yet I still hurt. Especially when I try to bend the knee. From what I have read, we sound pretty normal.

 

[backstreet110]

I understand the screaming in pain. In the beginning, before I had my pain under control, I yelled a few times myself. I could not believe the intense pain I was in. Good news, I am now almost 7weeks, and the pain does decrease. I am still on pain meds and am in some pain and discomfort, but really seeing that healing is going on. I still have depression because I don't like being sick and waiting to get better. But, I am improving as you will. I promise!!!

 

[Hopeful6592]

That's good to hear. Physical therapy is taking a lot out of me, but I know that's the only way to completely recover. I try to do the exercises several times a day. It sure does help to hear about others' recovery, makes me feel that I am not all alone going though this.

 

[Ollie]

@Hopeful6592 PT wipes me out, too! I always take a nap after - while icing!! The stretches and exercises I do my PT told me to do every 2 hours. I do them as close to that schedule as I can; sometimes I am tired and it is more like every 3-4 hours. They make a big difference, I can tell!! So does simple walking.

Today I haven't felt real sharp, which is typical for the day after PT. I slept in late because I was sore tired from PT, but also I attended a funeral the day before that. So - my Stomach was topsy-turvy most of the day - I was a little stiff from PT and my quad was extra tight AGAIN, I was tired, too, but I think it was mostly due a bit to the on going hassle of constipation. Mine isn't extreme, but is annoying. Not an issue I have ever had to deal with more than one or twice in my life. Will be glad to leave this in the rear view mirror, soon!

I am also tapering my dilaudid a bit, taking it in the afternoon/evening to help sleep comfortably. Luckily, my pain has been easy to control during the day with Tylenol and/or ibuprofen or naproxen. But I am sure that contributed to my tired and almost icky day. I did my exercises, however, and iced and even did a heat pack on my tight quad. Had a couple lemon cookies, too. They were from the corner market, so not exactly 'gourmet', but they hit the spot after my turkey sandwich!

Right now it is 7:30 pm and I feel pretty good - another sort of roller coaster day!! Love 'em & Hate 'em!

Keep hanging in there!! You are most definitely NOT alone!!

 

[Hopeful6592]

I'll have to get some of those lemon cookies. I'm sure that would make me feel better. I've got one more day with the in-home physical therapy and then start out-patient PT on Monday. Really looking forward to that, where I can get on the machines and see what I can accomplish. I'm feeling a little better these days with all the PT and I can see a difference in the ROM now. Now, if I could just get a good night's sleep, things would be fantastic.

 

[Ollie]

@Hopeful6592 - the sleep will come!! It really started for me when the pool therapy started. I got tired, the real kind that is in body and mind! In the first three weeks I was certainly tired - but that hazy, foggy, restless post op kind.
I am doing pretty well now, at almost 6 weeks. Been almost two weeks back in my own bed and out of the living room and recliner!! I still nap in my recliner and it is wonderful, but getting full nights in bed is even better!!

Keep in mind that there will be up and down days, and there is no rhyme or reason for them. You seem to be on a bit of an up-swing and that is good for your body and mind!!