TKR Acceptance and Understanding<
- Thread starter Needhope
- Start date
United States
This is why I don’t go to PT.
OP
OP
Needhope
senior
If I don’t go to PT I won’t fix my knee problems and I’ll never be able to get back to work. I’m 52 and loss of income is devastating since I’m divorced and work is my only source. My situation is shaky right now. Been praying a lot for strength both emotionally and physically to help me get through this. I’m backed in a corner.
Do you not believe all of us on here who have had a tkr and not taken PT? While I was working I had 4 surgeries on each knee including kneecap removals on each knee. The recoveries from these were almost as bad as a knee replacement. I never took PT and got back to work just fine. All your knee needs to do is to be used in the normal way it was created to be used. PTs making people do all these unnatural movements after a very traumatic surgery just slows down recovery.
No one on this site is trying to steer you down the wrong path. We are all volunteers and spend most of our free time trying to help others, not hurt them. We are experienced, unlike PTs and OSs. The vast majority of them never had a knee replacement and think rehabbing them like a sport's injury is the answer. Not so, that sets the recovery back. All those soft tissues have to heal first. Just because the incision is healed doesn't mean the inside is healed. It's not, not for as much as a year.
I feel you. I am still battling depression....10 weeks out. We too had a snow storm and I I can think about is falling! This is very hard. I had no idea. And yes.....it HAS to get better!
OP
OP
Needhope
senior
@sistersinhim I’m just scared with both my knees conditions. It’s stressful and scary not knowing if the next footstep I take will send me to the ground.
GingerP
senior
@Needhope , I'm so sorry you are going through a very rough patch right now. Please know that not all of us have had an,'easy' path to healing. I'm one that had my share of 'nasty' with my first tkr. I needed the 2nd one done as soon as I could too, and now it's been a year plus to get to that point.
I'm so sorry you are concerned with so many issues in your life, but it seems overwhelming at this point I'm sure. You need to learn to "love" yourself right now. There are things you want changed, but without really doing those good things for yourself, those changes aren't going to magically come.
This is a day at a time kind of healing. Do you use a cane to assist yourself with the stability in walking? Are there neighbors, friends, people from social groups that can assist you? People in our life while it feels like we are climbing the highest mountain with handicapped legs, helps bring a little cheer or distraction to our 'in' ability at the moment.
Let us know here that you are frustrated, concerned, sad, or whatever. Most of us have or ARE feeling those same emotions. Recovery isn't a staight line. I learned that my first tkr.
I will be praying for your recovery healing. Consider it a hug from above and from all of us who have and feel despair in this process. We expect the pain of our 'bad' knee to be gone, but not all the rest of the package. You can do this! I Have faith in YOU!
I'm so sorry you are concerned with so many issues in your life, but it seems overwhelming at this point I'm sure. You need to learn to "love" yourself right now. There are things you want changed, but without really doing those good things for yourself, those changes aren't going to magically come.
This is a day at a time kind of healing. Do you use a cane to assist yourself with the stability in walking? Are there neighbors, friends, people from social groups that can assist you? People in our life while it feels like we are climbing the highest mountain with handicapped legs, helps bring a little cheer or distraction to our 'in' ability at the moment.
Let us know here that you are frustrated, concerned, sad, or whatever. Most of us have or ARE feeling those same emotions. Recovery isn't a staight line. I learned that my first tkr.
I will be praying for your recovery healing. Consider it a hug from above and from all of us who have and feel despair in this process. We expect the pain of our 'bad' knee to be gone, but not all the rest of the package. You can do this! I Have faith in YOU!
PT can be helpful but maybe not this pigeon pose. Maybe you can ask the PT for a modified position/exercise that serves the purpose. My PT did that for me on some things.
OP
OP
Needhope
senior
OP
OP
Needhope
senior
@kneeper ... I was supposed to have physical therapy today. I rescheduled because we had ice/snow. Sidewalks are covered and I’m not taking a chance. Also, noticed a bruise on the back of my knee from the pigeon pose at therapy couple days ago. I knew it hurt too much to be doing that. I will not be doing that again. I did my own PT today, actually felt right. And I was working my muscles. Patience is the key. I’m going to have to get me some. Ha ha.
I also never dreamed this recovery would be so difficult and so slow.
I had a partial and all I read about partials before my surgery was that it was a faster recovery than a total, more natural feel since only one of the 3 knee compartments was replaced, etc. Not true at all!!!
Between what I read and what my surgeon’s office did and did not tell me, I expected a 2-3 month recovery. It will be one year next month and I still have a long way to go. I am very disappointed with the lack of truth told to me beforehand.
AND, I have also learned since surgery that many partials need to be converted to totals at some point. I thought by catching my arthritis early, this “lesser” surgery would be all I’d need. So, I will possibly/probably have to go through all this again some day.
Yes I was hurting quite a bit before surgery, but I was not bone on bone yet. The outcome for me is that I traded some pain before for the constant discomfort and limitations of recovery that I have now. Not much end in sight yet.
All we can do is hang in there and move forward with our recovery, one day at a time.
I had a partial and all I read about partials before my surgery was that it was a faster recovery than a total, more natural feel since only one of the 3 knee compartments was replaced, etc. Not true at all!!!
Between what I read and what my surgeon’s office did and did not tell me, I expected a 2-3 month recovery. It will be one year next month and I still have a long way to go. I am very disappointed with the lack of truth told to me beforehand.
AND, I have also learned since surgery that many partials need to be converted to totals at some point. I thought by catching my arthritis early, this “lesser” surgery would be all I’d need. So, I will possibly/probably have to go through all this again some day.
Yes I was hurting quite a bit before surgery, but I was not bone on bone yet. The outcome for me is that I traded some pain before for the constant discomfort and limitations of recovery that I have now. Not much end in sight yet.
All we can do is hang in there and move forward with our recovery, one day at a time.
OP
OP
Needhope
senior
Yes Jockette. They never truly tell you what you’ll be up against. It would have been nice to have been better prepared mentally. I don’t take well to surprises and would have been better off being told so I knew how to handle this better.
SusieShoes
Former BoneSmart staff member
Just so you know the pigeon pose is possible, I can do that... HOWEVER, just because one person can do something doesn’t mean your knee is ready. I could not have done it during the earlier weeks/months of my recovery. And until recently I could only do that with my right leg over my left, not my left over my right. My left knee would have protested mightily and probably for days!
I like what GingerP said about this being a day by day recovery. It really is, especially at first. Victories are small at first: a little less pain, a little more bend, a little more ability to do little things. For many of us it’s hard to accept that such small progress IS progress. It doesn’t look much like it. And sometimes it’s tempting to turn to PT and think “if I just do what this person says...” things will get better, and faster.
But it doesn’t. And then we get frustrated with that. And that’s what our medical providers fail to tell us, that this recovery is long and you will have ups and downs, and maybe even have to find your own way, because there is no “One Size FIts All” road to regaining knee function.
I read everything on the internet before having surgery, including BoneSmart, and in that way I was at least a little bit prepared. Wouldn’t you know... this recovery kicked my behind. I had a good recovery by all standards, but I was exhausted and pain came back sometimes and my back hurt when I started walking again. The only thing that ever frustrated me more, and for longer, was raising children. They took longer.
I hope you feel better about your recovery soon. By all means, vent here. We’ve been in your place, some of us more than others, but we’ve been in the same trenches.
I like what GingerP said about this being a day by day recovery. It really is, especially at first. Victories are small at first: a little less pain, a little more bend, a little more ability to do little things. For many of us it’s hard to accept that such small progress IS progress. It doesn’t look much like it. And sometimes it’s tempting to turn to PT and think “if I just do what this person says...” things will get better, and faster.
But it doesn’t. And then we get frustrated with that. And that’s what our medical providers fail to tell us, that this recovery is long and you will have ups and downs, and maybe even have to find your own way, because there is no “One Size FIts All” road to regaining knee function.
I read everything on the internet before having surgery, including BoneSmart, and in that way I was at least a little bit prepared. Wouldn’t you know... this recovery kicked my behind. I had a good recovery by all standards, but I was exhausted and pain came back sometimes and my back hurt when I started walking again. The only thing that ever frustrated me more, and for longer, was raising children. They took longer.
I hope you feel better about your recovery soon. By all means, vent here. We’ve been in your place, some of us more than others, but we’ve been in the same trenches.
OP
OP
Needhope
senior
I was only 2 months into recovery from RTKR when my left knee started acting up. It couldn’t handle the added stress I guess. So exercises were modified to allow me to continue working on right newly replaced knee. It’s been 5 months since TKR. I’ve now gotten major anxiety because I don’t trust my left knee and my right is still healing. This has been a huge challenge. Im currently going to PT for left knee, hoping to strengthen muscles. I feel like I cannot trust either leg anymore. I don’t know what’s to become of me. My legs feel like jelly, but I have muscle strength. I’m scared to death. I only shower every other day for fear they’ll collapse. When I get out of bed in the morning, I have to remind myself that I can walk. I only feel safe if I’m sitting down. I have surgeon appt on March 6 to figure out what the plan is for my left knee. Anxiety meds barely help, but antidepressants have started working. I don’t go out of the house unless I have PT or dr appt. My RTKR still gets stiff if I sit or stand too long. This is gonna be a long haul. I may need to start selling my possessions to pay for dr appointments. Please pray for me. I’m very scared. Thank you Bonesmart friends.
SusieShoes
Former BoneSmart staff member
Are you using a cane? If not, do try one. It will give you the extra bit of security you need to get up and around more. Moving around and doing you daily activities is good for your entire body, and also your new knee, not to mention your spirit.
It sounds like you trust your right knee. That’s good. Now let’s hope your doctor will schedule your left knee and you can look forward to having two good knees again.
It sounds like you trust your right knee. That’s good. Now let’s hope your doctor will schedule your left knee and you can look forward to having two good knees again.
OP
OP
Needhope
senior
My RTKR has great ROM but feels tight when I walk. Also feels like it’s getting briefly caught up on something in the inside back of knee when I walk. It’s an uncomfortable feeling. Maybe swollen a little still? Could it be ligaments and tendons shifting because of fluid? I don’t know. Ugh.
That sounds like a very reasonable explanation for your strange feelings. You aren't even half way through a year long recovery.
OP
OP
Needhope
senior
My new RTKR is getting stronger while my left crappy knee is going downhill. I did all my physical therapy to try to build muscles and get my knee tracking properly but it hasn’t worked. I just want my left knee done so I can get on with my life. It’s been a long journey. Approximately a year ago my right knee pain started with a vengeance because of Osteoarthritis. I held off surgery because my very first grandchild was born August 1. A very important milestone in my life. I grinned and bared it until finally Sept 22 I had the TKR. About a month into recovery, my left knee couldn’t handle the extra stress being asked of it and it started to act up. Exercises were modified for my RTKR to allow me to regain strength but my left knee hasn’t cooperated since. I cannot go on like this much longer. My life is basically non existent, my anxiety and stress is through the roof and I’m just wanting my left knee done so I can recover and start living again. March 6 we’ll see what surgeon says. If no, I don’t know what I’ll do. If yes, I can then focus on getting through preop, op, recovery, and then living again. I’m a hostage in my house and I hate it. It’s not good for me mentally, emotionally, physically. I just want to feel like a normal human being again. It’s been too long since this all began and it’s taking a toll on me. I’m developing fears I’ve never had before. Like just going outside. My life truly has been on hold long enough. I want this nightmare over, I want to live again with 2 new knees. Amen!
Babushelen
junior member
OP
OP
Needhope
senior
Thank you Babushelen. My sciatica issue has subsided actually since I’ve been out of work on short term disability. I’m guessing it’s because I work in a factory on concrete floors and the seating is very uncomfortable as well. I had to hoist myself onto a high chair with basically no back support, I used a binder in between the seat back and my lower back because of the huge gap that was in between. It’s a factory. Not very comfortable standing or sitting available.
