TKR 8 weeks post op still struggling

bionicnana

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Hi all I have been following this forum for quite awhile now and it has helped me enormously. I had my right knee replaced on November3rd 2017 and had my left one done 8 months ago on April 3rd 2017 , I am struggling more with the latest one but my surgeon did say he had to do more work on it because it was a lot worse than the left one. My Rom is not very good was measured at only about 60 degrees flexion last week , it is still a bit swollen and just feels so stiff and unbendable , I am still using a crutch when out walking because ii find It so hard to walk , just need some encouragement really.
 
Hi @bionicnana Welcome to BoneSmart. Someone will be along soon to give you helpful reading. I had my operation same day as you and a, experiencing everything you are. I have had difficult time bending and knee still swollen and stiff. I do think that on reflection things have slowly become easier but it's so hard to see it when you are in mist of this. I walk with crutch as I'm also finding it hard to walk. Every journey is different and as you are seeing, even each of your knees have responded differently.

We will get there. This forum offers great support.
 
Hi @Tanya76 thank you for replying to me , it's reassuring to see that you are experiencing the same things as me , it's so hard though isn't it , I think if anyone knew how hard the recovery from tkr was then they would never have it done , perhaps that's why they don't tell you much lol . Whereabouts in the world are you from ?
 
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@bionicnana So sorry this recovery is a bit tougher than the last one. More proof that each and every TKR is different - even on the same person.

Are you icing and elevating regularly? Taking anything for the pain?

At this point please don't worry about ROM. It will come when your knee is ready. Focus on getting any swelling under control - that's what is limiting your ROM.

Here's that reading list Tanya was talking about. You may have already seen some of the content. But it may be good to review it again during your recovery.

Knee Recovery: The Guidelines

1. Don’t worry: Your body will heal all by itself. Relax, let it, don't try and hurry it, don’t worry about any symptoms now, they are almost certainly temporary

2. Control discomfort:
rest
elevate
ice
take your pain meds by prescription schedule (not when pain starts!)
don't overwork

3. Do what you want to do BUT
a. If it hurts, don't do it and don't allow anyone - especially a physical therapist - to do it to you
b. If your leg swells more or gets stiffer in the 24 hours after doing it, don't do it again.​

4. PT or exercise can be useful BUT take note of these
5. At week 4 and after you should follow this Activity progression for TKRs

The Recovery articles:
The importance of managing pain after a TKR and the pain chart
Swollen and stiff knee: what causes it?
Energy drain for TKRs
Elevation is the key
Ice to control pain and swelling
Heel slides and how to do them properly
Chart representation of TKR recovery
Healing: how long does it take?
Post op blues is a reality - be prepared for it
Sleep deprivation is pretty much inevitable - but what causes it?

There are also some cautionary articles here
Myth busting: no pain, no gain
Myth busting: the "window of opportunity" in TKR
Myth busting: on getting addicted to pain meds

We try to keep the forum a positive and safe place for our members to talk about their questions or concerns and to report successes with their joint replacement surgery. While members may create as many threads as they like in a majority of BoneSmart's forums, we ask that each member have only one recovery thread. This policy makes it easier to go back and review history before providing advice.
 
Many of us never took formal PT or did exercises. I am one of them. I had 11 knee surgeries, 2 of them kneecap removals and 1 tkr. Even after those I never took PT. But, I didn't just sit around and do nothing. I took care of myself, my house and yard as my knee allowed me to do. As I healed, I did more. But, my knee was always in control! This was enough therapy for me and would be for any tkr patient. All the awful pain of PT is so unnecessary.

All you have to do is use it in your daily living! Your knee knows how to rehab itself and doesn't need anyone telling it how. Just use it and it will come back like new! You have to be patient, though, it doesn't happen quickly! ADL,(activities of daily living), will be all the exercise your knee needs. If you just use it daily in your living, you will have a quicker and less painful recovery. We know what works, we've been there!
 
Your knee won't bend more until some of that swelling and stiffness has gone. So concentrate on trying to help them go away, with lots of rest, icing, and elevation.

There's no need to rush to get ROM (Range of Motion) because it can continue to improve for a year, or even much longer, after a knee replacement. There isn't any deadline you have to meet:
Myth busting: the "window of opportunity" in TKR

It's not exercising that gets you your ROM - it's time. Time to recover, time for swelling and pain to settle, and time to heal. Your ROM is there right from the start, just waiting for all that to happen, so it can show itself.
 
@bionicnana my partial was done on 10/31,,,just a few days before you. My ROM is still a frustrating 90 degrees. I have stopped PT because every time I went I experienced more pain and more swelling after. Coming on here and seeing that people still recovered ROM without PT was reassuring. There are days when my frustration level is so high...pain, stiffness, swelling...all still a pretty big issue. I’m following the advice I have gotten on here to slow down, and ice and elevate as much as possible. I still use my cane occasionally when I know long distance walking is needed. You are not alone!
 
Thank you everyone for your comments. It's really lovely to be able to talk to people who understand what you are going through . I hate to burden my family with talk of my knee problems because even though they are very understanding it can be tedious to them to hear me moaning on about it.

Like I said, I have been reading all your posts on here for awhile now and it has helped me so much. I feel like I know you all personally :)

@Jaycey I don't tend to do much elevating as it hurts a lot but I do ice it occasionally. It is not overly swollen about an inch bigger than other knee.
For pain I am taking solpadol and naproxen, an anti inflammatory, which is mostly for the arthritis in my hands which I have a lot of trouble with .

I go to pt every few weeks. They are very good - nothing forceful and they have put my name down for hydrotherapy which I am looking forward to doing in the new year.

I know I will get there in the end but its just been such a full on year with both my knees being done , been so hard , just wish i could bend it more :sad:
 
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@bionicnana - I've edited your post, above, to insert paragraphs and full stops (periods).
It's quite hard to read a big block of text with no breaks, so do you think you could use paragraphs next time? Please. :flwrysmile:
 
Sorry for being so down at heart , just get so worried about not being able to bend it yet and worried I should be doing at least some exercises? Don't get me wrong I don't lay about doing nothing all day, I am walking out and about and looking after my grandchildren once or twice a week so am keeping busy , just not doing any of the exercises that were given to me at pt .
 
Sorry @Celle i will try harder to use paragraphs .
 
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I had a lot of swelling and for me the key was ice, ice, ice.
Also you said it hurts to elevate? Be sure you're not trying to keep your leg stick straight. That will hurt. You can have a slight bend. I made a pillow "ramp" for elevating.
 
Yes think I will have to ice more and fix a more suitable position for elevating as probably not doing it as well as I should be . should I be doing any exercises at all though?
 
As long as you are using your knee in your daily living, you are exercising it. That's all I did. Sometimes I would 'exaggerate' my movements to get a little more stretch. Never did anything that hurt. And if that night or the next day my knee hurt or was swollen, I knew it wasn't ready to do what I did the day before. The knee always has to be in control!

Ice is a tremendous pain killer. I used it almost all the time I was sitting or laying the first few months!
 
This may or may not help but I'm at 6 weeks and still only at 65 degrees. I've only been to one physical therapy session it went okay. I too am worried about lack of range of motion somehow it's hard to get out of the back of your mind that it will never Bend again. I wish you good luck, maybe we will both break loose soon and have lots of range of motion.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G928A using Tapatalk
 
Thank you @sistersinhim yes I am doing everyday things so I will try to be patient and also ice more . Good luck to you too @rtkneeandy, it is a worry that it will never bend but we will get there eventually. My knee is just taking the scenic route this time lol .
 
I am at 60-70 - not quite sure how far yet and officially I am counting from my 2nd surgery of 10/31.. so I'm right behind you... I feel your concern deeply. I know the awful fear and frustration.. it has woken me up almost every night since the surgery... but I'm hanging on tight to the BS way of doing things and just going about life doing the best I can to walk the fine line between not overdoing and yet working to keep moving a bit with lots of ice and elevation when not up and about. Here's to raising a toast sometime in the new year when we start to decrease in swelling and gain ROM!!!
 
Funkymuse, when is you're next OS visit? I think that's when the ruber hits the road for me. He said if I wasn't at 90 deg he was going to schedule MUA. Got to decide if I'm going to go the Bone smart way. I really want to. Kind of afraid he will try the scare tactics.. Where are you in rhe world? I'm in Missouri. When was your surgery again?

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Sorry I see 10/31. looks like we're about the same age I'm 57. Les keep posted on ROM

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He said if I wasn't at 90 deg he was going to schedule MUA.
It's your knee, and you have the right to say what happens to it. There is no time limit on getting ROM.
One of our members, Bertschb, kept a record of his ROM process. He agreed for us to post it for those of you that are afraid you're stuck. The key is to have patience! Bertschb says:

I'm 12 months out from my surgery and have some advice based on my experience:
1- Stop going to PT (all it will do is make your knee swell and reduce ROM)
2- Don't worry about your ROM
3- Be patient - VERY patient!!!

Here is my ROM history (more or less):
1 month - 60 degrees
2 months - 80 degrees
3 months - 85 degrees
4 months - 90 degrees
5 months - 90 degrees
6 months - 110 degrees
7 months - 120 degrees
8 months - 125 degrees
9 months - 130 degrees
10 months - 135 degrees
11 months - 140 degrees
12 months - 140 degrees

I spent waaaaay too much time worrying about ROM. I thought I'd be riding my bike a couple months after surgery but it took SIX months! Looking back on my surgery, if I knew then what I know now, I wouldn't have wasted my time with PT and I wouldn't have worried about ROM.
 

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