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5 month birthday of my new right knee!

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I also quit PT when I returned to work at 8 weeks. My Rom is around 135/140 nine months out! I did still do gentle exercises like heel slides and took short five minute walks hourly as my job is sedentary. My OS didn't seem to care if I went to PT or not which I thought was unusual for a U.S doctor. I will see how the next tkr goes!

Oh and for maybe $5 you can buy a pill splitter at your pharmacy. Makes it very easy to cut pills in half!

Good luck with your school year - I wish you all the best!
 
I saw my OS the week before I started back to work and he knew I was going back because he asked if I needed to take a note with me to clear me for work. And I gave him the letter from my PT guy with the update on my progress and place for him to check if he wanted me to continue PT as I was doing, change to the PT, or discontinue. The OS said to continue as I was doing (2x a week) and to get 20 more degrees of ROM by the time I saw him again (which is in 2 more weeks at this point).
 
@MathSci4me. Hi. I'm fairly new to Bonesmart and I just read what you're going through. I just have to comment. Keep in mind that I'm no expert and can only tell you my experience but it's similar to yours. Getting my ROM up to that elusive and magical number of 90 almost killed me (too much drama there). My OS, like yours, sent me to PT, 3x per week. The therapist they sent me to was experienced and I accepted whatever he told me to do because I didn't know otherwise. But, I ran into trouble quickly. He put me through grueling and difficult sessions usually longer than 90 minutes each. I would have increased pain and swelling after each session. I found had Bonesmart online before my surgery but did not know much about what to expect AFTER surgery and specifically what to expect FROM my PT. I learned here that I should tell my PT not to push on my leg. He had been doing that in order to increase my ROM. According to him this was for my own good as I only had so much time to get that number up. If I didn't do it, my OS would send me for an MUA (manipulation under anesthesia). My OS hadn't mentioned that but I hadn't seen him since I'd left the hospital so I took the PT's word on this.

I'll cut this story short and tell you what I've learned...
1. I have the RIGHT to tell my PT to stop whenever he hurts me.
2. I should NOT let him hurt me.
3. I have the RIGHT to choose my own PT (which I just did a few days ago - I fired my original PT and found a new one).
4. I am NOT REQUIRED to go to PT (I think I do need PT but I'd be better off doing it by myself at home than allowing an aggressive PT to hurt me).
5. My knee is swollen and it is the swelling that is inhibiting the ROM.
6. Too much exercise, or exercise that is too aggressive, causes more swelling.
7. The PT I was receiving was actually holding me back as it caused cycles of increased swelling which, in turn, kept my ROM low.
8. Even if my OS recommends MUA, I can refuse or delay it.
9. Pain meds are NECESSARY!
10. Ice & elevate, ice & elevate, ice & elevate...
11. If my body says to rest -- Rest!
12. Ask doctor for anti-inflammatory if you think you need one.
13. Don't be surprised when you get conflicting advice, from experts!
14. IT IS MY KNEE!!

Let me add this, my ROM is climbing now. I have left aggressive therapy behind. It takes time for swelling to be reduced; patience is required.

Good luck to you! Keep reading Bonesmart.
 
I was at PT today and my legs were hanging over the side of table while I was waiting for the PT guy. Looking down you couldn't tell which leg was the one operated on! I know the ROM is improving, even if it is ever so slowly! One more PT visit on Friday and then back to the OS on Tuesday. Really hoping he recommends continuing with PT and not anything more drastic! Keeping my fingers crossed!
 
:thumb:
 
So I went to my last PT visit on Friday before I go to the OS again this Tuesday. Managed to break 100 degrees - got 101 - but didn't get to the goal of 110 degrees. I'm happy I'm improving and feeling good. Just wish I had more progress to show the doctor on Tuesday.
 
I think you're doing just fine. Don't let anyone rain on your parade. Progress is progress and you got it going!!!
 
Thanks, @Jamie!!

I had my doctor's appt today and finally totally realized that I've been stressing about not having enough bend and the possibility of doing the MUA for nothing!! I have such a hard head!! I have had this fear in my head ever since one of the home PT's told me that if I didn't get my knee to bend more the doctor would do it for me. I have been stressing about this for months! Today I gave the nurse my letter from the PT about my progress and the the PA came in. He saw that I was at 101 degrees and said that yes, they would like to see more ROM but it was up to me if I wanted to do more PT or if I felt I could get more on my own. He said that there was still swelling and I should get some more ROM over time - exactly what everyone here has been telling me. And he said that even if I didn't get more ROM as long as I wasn't in pain I would be fine - I just wouldn't be able to get up easily from low chairs or low cars! And then the OS came in and said he wanted to see more ROM but that I didn't need to come back to see him and I just needed to work out with the PT what I wanted to do. What a relief!! I feel like celebrating!!! :)
 
So I went to PT today and shared with him the information from my doctor's visit yesterday. He said to cut back to one visit per week now and we'd re-evaluate my ROM in a few weeks to see if I am continuing to improve. I think I have about 12 more PT visits I can have before insurance runs out.

Today he worked on trying to get my quad muscle to loosen up. There certainly are some very sore areas still in my quad/thigh. I was wondering if getting a massage might help with this??? And I'm looking for any advice on exercises to do that can help stretch and loosen that quad/thigh muscle??
 
Massage may help it loosen up a bit. I went to a massage therapist who is in the complementary medicine program with my health plan and I think it help the pesky tight area I have had on the side/back of my knee. Not a miracle but I think some help.
 
Sure....I'd give massage a try.
 
Just realized that today marks the 5 month birthday of my new right knee! I missed celebrating its 4 month anniversary because I had kidney stones! UGH! More painful than the TKR!

Physical therapy ended about 2 weeks ago and I'm happy to have that time back to do other things. My ROM got to about 105 degrees. I'm hoping that with time I can get some more ROM, but I no longer have the knee joint pain that I had before the surgery so I'm pleased with that. I still have the numbness in the area to the right of the incision (outer part of knee) and this is where I still have some soreness. I take Aleve or Tylenol occassionally for it. I also still have numbness on the inside half of my right foot. I know the PA said this was due to a major nerve getting cut in my knee. I'm hoping over time my knee and foot will feel more "normal".

Now that I am out of PT, I hope to get back into a routine of going to the gym. Gained too much weight over the past couple months! However, with Thanksgiving coming up I think I'll wait until after Thursday to start a new diet :D

I've been able to do some things that I was not able to before the surgery. I've had season tickets to my college's football and basketball games, but have not been able to go for years and sit comfortably with my legs bent in those seats. I've let others use my tickets so they could cheer on my team. This year I actually went to a football game and have already been to two basketball games! Sitting with my knees bent for the game has been fine, but I do need to remember to take some time to stretch out my legs before standing. I can't wait to get to some more basketball games!

Hope I can report some further improvement in another month or so!
 
Thank you for coming back with such a good update. Best wishes for continued progress.
 
So great to hear from you!!! I think you will be able to make some gains in ROM during the coming year or two. Sometimes it can be really slow coming. Just be sure to regularly do bending exercises where you push into the bend (like putting your foot up on steps and leaning forward) to coax those tight ligaments and muscles to become more flexible.

You may notice that I have merged your two recovery threads. We like to keep our members' recovery posts all in a single thread. That way it's easy for us to go back and read your history before responding to a question or concern. In addition, the thread becomes a journal of your recovery for those who come along later and want to read about you. So, please post in this thread from now on when you want to give an update or ask a question. If you decide you'd like a different thread title at any point, you can change it by using the Thread Tools button at the top right of your screen or just post what you want here and we'll get it changed for you.

Let us hear more if you can. We absolutely love success stories like yours!!! They make important reading for those who come on BoneSmart before they've had surgery too. They need to know good days are waiting in their future!
 
Hi MathSciforme,
I'm recovering from a LTKR 6 weeks ago. But Oct 2013 I had my tight knee replaced. I had 12 weeks of PT after that knee, mainly because I was not making much progress flexing that knee.
The good news is that by this year, a year later, I made a lot of progress and got about another 20 degrees of flex. That was just from normal living. So I think it is very likely you will continue to improve after your pt is done. I also had that weird numbness. It seems nearly all of us do. But the area of numbness shrinks over time. I can compare my knees now. The newer knee leg is very numb all around the knee and even down the side of my calf, while the knee replaced last year has just the smallest area and it's not completely numb.
I hope some of that is reassuring to you.
Best of luck.


TerriM 10/28/13( RTKR)
10/14/14 (LTKR)
 
Just realized that it is the 6 month anniversary of my right TKR! Getting ready for Christmas has kept me busy! Still haven't gotten back into a gym routine yet :( and I really need to make it a priority after Christmas as I've gained too much weight since the surgery and am eating too much stuff this holiday season! Plus, I've recently become very aware of how much muscle tone I have lost in my right thigh. I was wondering why my right leg muscles were always so sore and then I realized that I don't have much muscle there any more so the little bit of exercise I do get is working out those right thigh muscles.

I had an issue with my garbage disposal which required me to get down on the floor to try to fix it. It was the first time that I have tried to get down on the floor since the surgery (and getting down on the floor was not something I could do that easily before the surgery)! It was very awkward and slightly painful when I put my knee on the floor, but I managed to do it AND managed to get back up (I was really worried about not being able to get back up and what would I do then?!). I probably need to do that as an exercise a few times a day! :)

I do have a question about me new knee. I feel this "clicking" in my knee when I walk. It is not painful but it is something that has come on over the last couple of months. I first I felt it only at certain times, but now it seems to be all the time. Before I was discharged from PT, I asked him about it and he did not seem to think it was an issue since it was not painful. I find myself trying to change the way I move my leg while I walk to figure out a way to move it so it does not "click". I had thought about going back to the OS to ask him about it, but wonder if it is kind of a silly question. Plus, it would cost me $40 co-pay for the visit.

Thanks, @tmwillia, about your numbness experience and ROM improvement! It is very encouraging to hear how much your ROM improved after PT! I think the numbness is improving slowly. I had this thought originally that I would wake up one day and the numbness would be gone, but I guess it just takes time for those damaged nerves to repair themselves. I have really enjoyed being able to get out to some basketball games, movies, etc. Before it was hard for me to keep my right leg bent comfortably due to the knee pain. Now I am fine keeping it bent throughout the game or performance, but I do need to remember to stretch my leg out before I stand up.

At some point, I know I'm going to need to get my left knee replaced, but hoping I can put it off for several years. At times my left knee feels perfectly normal and then at other times I think I need to call the doctor to set up the surgery!

Hope everyone has a great holiday!!
 
Thanks for checking in, sounds like you are doing well with your knee. As your muscles get stronger the clicking will become less noticeable over time, and may go away entirely. Some people only have it when they move the knee a certain way.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
 
I have a clicking feeling randomly in my 3 year old knee. Like you said, no pain though. It was much more in the first months, like pumpkln said, as you're finishing healing.
 
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