TKR 5 Years Post Op

[dvannie]

Saw the OS today. For a change I went by myself so he would talk to me instead of the other person. It went well, he listened to me about the MUA and then agreed to give me more time to see if I hit a wall where I didn't progress. He was pretty certain that I would not see 90 degrees without a MUA and I told him that I was equally certain that I would. He was also certain that I would not progress much past 100 degrees with this knee and I replied that I was good with that, I'm a patient person and would work on it. He ended the conversation that he would see me next appt and that his experience was not usually wrong but he was willing to be proven wrong by me .... challenge accepted!

 

[kmak81230]

Good for you dvannie for advocating for yourself - and your knee. You are still quite early in this process with plenty of room (and time) for continued improvement. And who doesn't love a good challenge?

 

[sistersinhim]

Yay!!! Good for your standing up for yourself and making your OS listen to YOU!! It was a good idea to go by yourself, it seems! Now, you have a challenge. Remember, the way to get ROM increased is to get and keep that swelling down. You do that by not exercising or taking PT. You do that by using your knee the way it is intended to be used in your daily living! Follow the BS guidelines and you'll be showing that doctor who's right! Don't fret about it, it will come.

 

[dvannie]

It's been a pretty nice couple of days, working on just walking properly and stretching. Oddly enough with the rainy and overcast weather yesterday my new knee decided to swell and ached like my other joints, it was exhausting and all I wanted to do was stay under a blanket. I decided to take it easy and ice and elevate and rest and this morning I was extremely relieved that the new knee felt it's new odd normal self.

I've been missing all the new movies so much that I decided to brave going to one this morning. Thankfully my youngest son, aged 18, came with me since my hubby and oldest son decided to go to the car races. He even wanted to see Wonder Woman which I'm sure wasn't his first choice but because he knew I wanted to see it. Such a good movie although I was left full of envy of all the running, jumping and sliding the character was doing LOL! My knee felt pretty odd at the end which I'm sure was due to swelling, however after icing and elevating for the last little while I think I have it under control again. Such a relief to get to do something like this again!

I'm going to give going back to work a try next week for a few hours. I'm a desk jockey and can get up when I need to and take a stroll or ice whenever I need to. They are just happy to have me coming back whatever the hours. I never thought that I would say this but I do miss the work horribly and am so bored .

I hope everyone is enjoying the beautiful summer weather, I love our Ontario summers so much more than our winters!

 

[sistersinhim]

It's good that you can ice and walk whenever you knee to at work. Be sure and not over do! Come back and let us know how you made out.

 

[Pheebs52]

Dvannie, you rocked that visit with the OS; huge kudos! I hope he likes "crow" [emoji23]


Sent from my iPhone using BoneSmart Forum

 

[dvannie]

Well work morning number one is completed! I can tell that my knee is a bit swollen so I'm back to elevating and icing this afternoon. I felt really good this morning, my chair was slanted the right way so not too much stress on my new knee and was texting with the hubby that all was good and then at about 11:30 I started to hit the wall and started to feel tired And sore. It's funny how quickly the exhaustion started and how basically useless I was after that :smile2:. I'm lucky tho, my work is good with me setting my own hours until I can come back full time so I finished for the day and drove home. My husband claims I'm walking a bit better after this morning so fingers crossed this helps bring my ROM to 90!

I'm going to try to go again on Wednesday and see how both the swelling and exhaustion develops then and then try to increment the time if I feel all right. This day definitely makes me feel like I'm making some progress!

 

[SusieShoes]

Getting a little work in definitely seems to perk up your happy meter! I'm also doing a little work today (though I work from home, so it's different... but still it feels so good!) You're listening to your knees, and pampering them after. If they settle down quickly, that's your cue that you can do this again. Chances are tomorrow they'll be happy knees again. You're on your way!

 

[kmak81230]

Congrats on making it through a morning at work. Glad you have the flexibility to ease into it gradually. It is amazing how just sitting at a desk can cause the new knee to rebel - even with walks and elevating. I found it took several weeks to phase in and was still mighty tired when I got home. It's hard when the brain is ready for a little exercise and body isn't there yet.

 

[Pheebs52]

Great job Dvannie, in more ways than one! Having an understanding boss makes such a big difference. Having the sense to leave when you've had enough makes even more of a difference! Enjoy your recliner or sofa for the rest of the day; you've earned it!

 

[sistersinhim]

Yippee, you made it. Exhaustion is completely normal for many months after this surgery. You'll get your stamina back in due time!

 

[dvannie]

LOL as soon as I got home I iced and then fell asleep for 2 hours and woke up just in time to pick my son up after school. This day has gone by quickly!

Thanks for all your words of encouragement. I'm finally at a point where even if I end up getting a MUA in a few weeks, I'm good with my new knee.

 

[dvannie]

Exciting news break .... I slept 6 hours straight through the night! I don't even remember the last time I did that before the surgery! I'm liking where this whole thing is trending even with a stiff knee!

 

[SusieShoes]

These little victories mean so much. And they just keep coming! The first three weeks are the hardest, and things can really pick up after a few more weeks. If you can be happy as a passenger, it goes pretty quickly.

 

[Pheebs52]

Three cheers for 6 hours sleep! Whoohoo! Great news Dvannie!

 

[kmak81230]

Congrats Dvannie! It's amazing how a decent night sleep can make everything else better!

 

[sistersinhim]

6 hours! Shoot, I don't even do that now! Not the knee's fault, though! Things are looking up and up for you!

 

[VW54]

Will you be changing anything at work to help yourself avoid the knee problems?
Does your work place have a fridge w a freezer in which to put icepacks in?
All in all it's great that you can be at work already.
If I had to go back to a regular work I'd probably choose part time.

 

[dvannie]

VW54 Since my knee issues were caused by some bad genetics and surgery when I was young, my career as a programmer doesn't require many changes other than the need to remind myself to get up every hour and not just sit for hours on end . I'm also fortunate that there are three fridges with freezers in our kitchen at work so there isn't any issue finding freezer space. I'm lucky that the summer time is our slow season so I can work part time however once the fall begins we usually ramp up to full time/ overtime pretty quickly. I think I would go insane if I went to part time all year at this point in my life. I enjoy my work and they are a pretty great company to work for which is the reason I've stayed there 10 years already. :cool:

 

[knit2tog]

It sounds like your OS visit went well and you did a great job letting him know what you wanted. Good for you! Congrats on going back to work as well. I know you will continue to listen to your knee and do what it needs.