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TKR A fresh start

Hi there FS,
Have you considered the rash possibly a side effect of your meds? I'd check inserts you received with any / all pharmaceuticals you're on. Is it only your knee that is reddish, or your entire leg? Many have inquired about their op leg appearing more pink (post op) than their non op leg. I experienced this myself.
Also, regarding warmth -
This increased blood flow to the area results in the warmth, swelling and redness often experienced. As the healing process progresses, the warmth, swelling and redness dissipate. The warmth can take 6 months or longer to resolve.

I am not being dismissive of your symptoms and it's great your follow up is on Monday. Hopefully the rash abates by then or you receive a sound explanation for the symptoms you've mentioned and the peace of mind that you deserve. Please keep us posted. We do care.
@FleuveStone
 
Thank you,
@Layla ! Doesn't sound dismissive, it sounds informative! Everything is so new and odd....

Rash just around the knee so far, and doesn't seem to be spreading beyond there so likely to be topical.

Am feeling very reassured about the rash and heat from your and others' comments. Deep breath !
 
FleuveStone said:
How do you manage the ice
Click to expand...
I used empty Cool Whip containers to freeze big blocks of ice in. They lasted all night long. Any kind of food storage container would work. Any ice cubes melt much quicker.
 
Am now at 6 weeks plus a couple of days since TLKR. Have had some good days, one or two not-so-terrible nights, plus lots of not-so-good of both! Like other bonesmarties (if I can call myself that :) ), I'm learning what it means to be a member of the ODIC. It's very confusing to feel good and up to do something (which in former days would seem trivial, hardly noticeable) then pay for it later!!!

This morning's crop of need-advice minor ailments:
  1. Tinnitus (which I've lived with for decades) has gotten much worse. Maybe because of turning my neck in weird ways, poor sleeping and resting posture, hunching my shoulders when walking up and down stairs (I'm reminded of a Pilates instructor I used to have who would say to one or another of us in a small group class every few minutes, "DROP YOUR SHOULDERS!"), or medications, e.g. coming off of Cymbalta. I'd been on it pre-surgery to help with mood, sleep, and pain. Not sure it helped with any of those very much (except sleep mainly because I didn't care so much that I was awake). So, in the interests of simplicity of minimizing side effects I decided to wean myself from it (with a telehealth GP) as soon as I could and took my last one a couple of days ago. Anyway I've since learned that tinnitus is a side effect of weaning from it. I've gone through hours of tiny little cicada-like chirps happening irregularly, in addition to the usual high-pitched tinny sounds. I think this might be wearing off too but I do wish I'd known about it before. At least it adds some variety!? Has anyone else had experience with tinnitus during recovery?
  2. Shoulder pain and greater trochanter bursitis pain. I used to have these a lot but they seemed to disappear before and after surgery till recently (maybe Cymbalta WAS doing something or maybe I can only notice a certain amount of pain at once). My OS prescribed 6 weeks of ASA along with a PPI that I just finished. I think I saw @EalingGran mention Advil and that reminds me it used to work well for me (before stopping NSAIDs pre-surgery). And it can last up to 12 hours, so maybe I'll try it tonight. Any suggestions on dosage?
  3. Overheating. This is still happening. It sort of made sense right after surgery, but now I'm confused when I just start EXUDING heat. Getting to and into the shower and taking a shower may be an almost Olympic event, but just lying in bed??? Any advice on this?
  4. Also lack of stamina. I don't even want to go sit in a restaurant (driving there, sitting, driving back--I'm not driving yet, BtW). I know my husband who's looking after me is restless and has cabin fever sometimes so I'm trying to do things like order in a meal here and there to mix things up. Any ideas for building stamina? For helping with squirrelly inmates?
Enough for now. I'm finding it hard to focus and finish things. This took me hours!f

Meanwhile trying to stay content and enjoy this retreat from reality.
 
I’ve had Tinnitis for many years. To be honest I don’t remember if it increased during my recovery from my PKR 7 years ago. I have been taking a supplement, almost since it started, many years ago. I take Arches Tinnitis Formula and I get it on Amazon. I do think it helps. I also notice the more sugar I eat, the worse my tinnitis is.

Lack of stamina is because your body is in overdrive trying to heal from this very invasive surgery, it leaves very little energy for anything else. It will get better as you continue healing.
 
Jockette said:
I’ve had Tinnitis for many years. To be honest I don’t remember if it increased during my recovery from my PKR 7 years ago. I have been taking a supplement, almost since it started, many years ago. I take Arches Tinnitis Formula and I get it on Amazon. I do think it helps. I also notice the more sugar I eat, the worse my tinnitis is.

Lack of stamina is because your body is in overdrive trying to heal from this very invasive surgery, it leaves very little energy for anything else. It will get better as you continue healing.
Click to expand...
is that ever interesting, it never occurred to me to use a supplement for tinnitus (and I have all sorts of supplements for all sorts of things!). I'm learning so many new life skills on this forum, not just joint replacement related!

good point about stamina. I need to keep doing reality checks

and this reminds me that I can put on headphones and play something like pink noise. this used to help me a lot when my tinnitus started
 
FleuveStone said:
I've gone through hours of tiny little cicada-like chirps happening irregularly, in addition to the usual high-pitched tinny sounds.
Click to expand...
Once I had an ENT doctor ask me how many sounds I heard in my Tinnitis. I thought, are you kidding? You want a number? I usually describe my Tinnitis as a million crickets chirping. It’s usually high sounds. However, last week it was a very low sound, I could almost feel it. I finally took an antihistamine and made a cup of coffee, hoping the warmth would help, and surprisingly, it did!
 
FleuveStone said:
hunching my shoulders when walking up and down stairs (I'm reminded of a Pilates instructor I used to have who would say to one or another of us in a small group class every few minutes, "DROP YOUR SHOULDERS!"),
Click to expand...
Thankfully I only get occasional tinnitus but mine is definitely linked to muscle tension. I had it badly for a while when I had dental problems and my tempero-mandibular joint got really stiff.
I think unfortunately that this surgery takes it out of us and any other weaknesses can come to the surface again. I am a bit worried about back massage because I have spinal stenosis but when my tinnitus was bad I found upper back/ neck/ head massage helped with relaxation.
 
EalingGran said:
I think unfortunately that this surgery takes it out of us and any other weaknesses can come to the surface again.
Click to expand...
That makes so much sense. At the same time it's kind of surprising. Thanks to you, @Jockette, and @mendogal for sharing that you experience this issue too. It makes me feel like part of some secret tinnitus-joint society.
:happydance:
 
Overheating.
WFD said:
Opioid pain relievers do this to me. Maybe one of your medications is doing this?
Click to expand...
Yes, that's quite possible! Another good reason to get off the blasted things, besides "don't really work", "dehydrate", "disturb sleep", etc.! I have some left just in case, but basically I'm relieved I can use Naproxen again after being off NSAIDs a few months before and after surgery.
 
7 weeks post surgery and it's a lovely first day of summer after having a couple of (relatively) decent nights of sleep. Have been off opioid meds for over a week. And I "graduated" from physiotherapy at the OS's office today. TBH I think the bar was pretty low, but the kinesiologist's approval and upbeat attitude meant a lot to me. :happydance:

I can start to walk for 10 minutes at a time and see how it goes. Now looking for a swimming pool to do mainly water walking. I grew up in the southern US and am kind of picky about watering holes whether indoors or out so am primed for frustration. Already have come across several "annual maintenance" closures.

Does anyone know how much you can do in a hot tub? Pool noodle exercises? Marching in place?
 
Exercises in a pool can easily be overdone without realizing it, due to the resistance of the water. Be very careful, start out a lot slower than you think you should.

Marching in place is not the best thing for a new knee:
bonesmart.org

BoneSmart philosophy for sensible post op therapy

You will have noticed there is a significant opinion here about the potential hazards of PT. You may feel that your therapists are experts and know what you should be doing. However, over the last several years I've been here, I have observed that the more intensive the regimen of exercising...
bonesmart.org bonesmart.org

Just regular walking will be very good for you. :flwrysmile:
 
My PT put me in a pool at 4 weeks post op (and I know you’re further along than that) and kept me in for a 50 minute session doing countless bending exercises. :yikes: I’m surprised it only took me 3 days to recover from it, knowing what I know now! Why didn’t they know it was too much at that point in recovery. :hairpulling:
 
Jockette said:
Exercises in a pool can easily be overdone without realizing it, due to the resistance of the water. Be very careful, start out a lot slower than you think you should.
Click to expand...
Agree with @Jockette on this.
I went for a spa day with my daughter at about 5 months. I just did some what I thought were gentle movement/ exercises whilst she did lengths in the pool. I really felt my knee afterwards and it was uncomfortable for a day or so.
By that stage I was comfortably doing 10,000 steps per day. I was surprised that the half hour in the water had more effect than a long walk on land.
Like you I found Naproxen the most effective non- steroidal and used it to wean myself off opiates- which I really didn't like.
Good luck!
 
It all felt worthwhile today coming back from my 15-minute walk. There's a small inclined section at the top of my street and going downhill has always been a struggle. Today I had no problems with it whatsoever! (BTW I'm still using my cane so I can fend off cars and bicycles at crosswalks :rotfl: and also just generally manage my gait and balance.) I could not believe it. Other parts of me still hurt but the walking was so easy it made me realize how limiting my knee OA was for so many years.

Hooray!
 
YES!!!!
That's exactly the kind of milestone that matters - I'm so pleased it happened so early in recovery for you!
 
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