TKR Back with a question
- Thread starter jakeleg
- Start date
jakeleg
member
@MSgirl I just bought a leg wedge and it seems ok now. I looked at lounge doctors and didn't want to wait a week to get one. Thanks anyway for the tip.
Went to PT. Rode the easy bike for 10 minutes. Will try a different bike next week. That has helped my confidence. 110 and 112 ROM. I am satisfied with that at 9 weeks.
Found Bonesmart at 4½ weeks. Should have rested more; was under influence of PTs a little too long. I told my PT about using the rocking chair. He asked if I learned it "on that website". I said I did. Told him I'm not trying to be difficult, just trying to go slow and steady with discomfort not pain. Am scheduling for once a week for the next 4 weeks.
I came home with lower back ache and a knee starting to swell. I'm now on the bed, legs elevated and knee icing. PT was positive about where I am. Said I was too critical of myself.
I teared up and said I'm afraid of not being able to do things I used to do. Like walk! I don't remember the last time I really walked without pain in one knee or the other. Also, worrying about my rotator cuff. I can't do therapy for 2 things in one session. I need to complete shoulder rehab before it gets worse.
So I guess my message this morning is Bonesmart has helped me more than I can say. I have not forgotten the early weeks of crying and despair. I still fight fear and impatience, but I have more hope now.
Thank you Josephine, Celle, SusieShoes, kneeper, Jockette, Roy Gardiner and too many other Bonesmarties to name. We have to keep encouraging each other. Haven't decided how much to tell my doctor about what I've learned. He might disapprove of "that website", too.
Thank you
Went to PT. Rode the easy bike for 10 minutes. Will try a different bike next week. That has helped my confidence. 110 and 112 ROM. I am satisfied with that at 9 weeks.
Found Bonesmart at 4½ weeks. Should have rested more; was under influence of PTs a little too long. I told my PT about using the rocking chair. He asked if I learned it "on that website". I said I did. Told him I'm not trying to be difficult, just trying to go slow and steady with discomfort not pain. Am scheduling for once a week for the next 4 weeks.
I came home with lower back ache and a knee starting to swell. I'm now on the bed, legs elevated and knee icing. PT was positive about where I am. Said I was too critical of myself.
I teared up and said I'm afraid of not being able to do things I used to do. Like walk! I don't remember the last time I really walked without pain in one knee or the other. Also, worrying about my rotator cuff. I can't do therapy for 2 things in one session. I need to complete shoulder rehab before it gets worse.
So I guess my message this morning is Bonesmart has helped me more than I can say. I have not forgotten the early weeks of crying and despair. I still fight fear and impatience, but I have more hope now.
Thank you Josephine, Celle, SusieShoes, kneeper, Jockette, Roy Gardiner and too many other Bonesmarties to name. We have to keep encouraging each other. Haven't decided how much to tell my doctor about what I've learned. He might disapprove of "that website", too.
Thank you
You girls are not slow benders. Please don't think of yourselves as such.
You are making normal progress in a recovery that takes as long as a full year.
The only reason you consider yourselves slow is because you were initially led to have false expectations of a faster recovery and you grew impatient and anxious when that didn't happen. You're expecting too much, too soon from your knees.
It doesn't matter what your age is or how fit you were before surgery - your knee is going to take just as long to recover as it needs to take. It is on its own recovery schedule, not yours, and it knows what it is doing.
Where are you in recovery?? (TKR)
Jakeleg, with a bend of 110-112 at only 9 weeks, you already have excellent ROM.
Remember, there's no need to rush to get ROM, 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
rubyyarn
graduate
@jakeleg, whenever I refered to anything I learned on BoneSmart I'd say "I've heard..." or "Some say..." So far I haven't gotten the eyeroll. My doc is a good mechanic, but rather old school. He can see my progress and that's all that matters.
If your ROM is 110, you are doing wonderfully! You'll be able to walk without any trouble
If your ROM is 110, you are doing wonderfully! You'll be able to walk without any trouble
On to you about what? That you already have great ROM for 9 weeks without having all that pain that they want you to have?
Since my recovery, I've been able to do things that I haven't been able to do for over 20 years, and that's without one bit of PT! You will be doing the things you love to do very soon. Much quicker than the years you suffered with arthritis pain.
jakeleg
member
@sistersinhim you're right. What I meant by "on to me" is they know I'm getting information here. Maybe it's a threat to some of them. I've read about some real meanies. My PTs are good "kids" so I try to be pleasant when I say no or question something. I think I was influenced by my home health PT. I hadn't found Bonesmart and I thought pain was necessary so when I went to PT outside my home, I went along with their program. I feel ok about what they're doing now, especially the massaging.
jakeleg
member
jakeleg
member
@Celle I am still more tired than I think I should be. I don't miss anything about the early weeks except I slept well. Now I fall asleep around 9 or 10; I wake at 3 then go back to sleep till 5: 30 or after.. Even when I get decent sleep I still feel slow. I'm not taking meds for pain or sleep.
I have lost some weight (about 8 lbs.) which I needed to do. I thought that might increase my energy level. Should I be over my fatigue by now? Also, is it normal for my knee to get more swollen and red within a few minutes of being on my feet. My knee looks almost normal in size after ice and rest. I feel the tightness and swelling rather than see it. Does tissue swelling continue for months?
Thank you for all you advice for the last 9 weeks. Never thought I'd be here.
I have lost some weight (about 8 lbs.) which I needed to do. I thought that might increase my energy level. Should I be over my fatigue by now? Also, is it normal for my knee to get more swollen and red within a few minutes of being on my feet. My knee looks almost normal in size after ice and rest. I feel the tightness and swelling rather than see it. Does tissue swelling continue for months?
Thank you for all you advice for the last 9 weeks. Never thought I'd be here.
funkymuse
senior
- Joined
- Oct 22, 2017
- Messages
- 464
- Age
- 67
- Gender
- Female
- Country
United States
yes i'm very interested in this as well as this happens to me every time I get up!
@jakeleg - The tiredness is going to be with you for a lot longer yet. You're only just over 2 months into a recovery that takes a full year. Your knee is still healing and much of your energy is still being directed to that cause. There still isn't a lot left for anything else.
Re-read this article, to remind yourself:
Energy drain for TKRs
I think it was not until about 9 months post-op that I started to recover almost my full complement of energy. Even at that stage, I would suddenly feel I was "running on empty" by about seven in the evening.
As for the knee getting red and more swollen - again, it's still very early days. It's nothing to worry about. Part of the cause is gravity having its effect. When you're lying down or elevating your leg, gravity works for you, by helping to move any excess fluid towards your hips, but when you stand up, that effect is reversed and the swelling moves "downhill", back towards your knee (and your ankles, sometimes).
Re-read this article, to remind yourself:
Energy drain for TKRs
I think it was not until about 9 months post-op that I started to recover almost my full complement of energy. Even at that stage, I would suddenly feel I was "running on empty" by about seven in the evening.
As for the knee getting red and more swollen - again, it's still very early days. It's nothing to worry about. Part of the cause is gravity having its effect. When you're lying down or elevating your leg, gravity works for you, by helping to move any excess fluid towards your hips, but when you stand up, that effect is reversed and the swelling moves "downhill", back towards your knee (and your ankles, sometimes).
funkymuse
senior
- Joined
- Oct 22, 2017
- Messages
- 464
- Age
- 67
- Gender
- Female
- Country
- United States
jakeleg
member
@funkymuse . I probably did that. I'm still having to read the instructions for posting. Haven't felt like posting at all this weekend. Swelling is discouraging me. I ice and elevate a lot, but my knee continues to swell when I'm up. I'm up and down a lot.
Have to go out tomorrow and will have to walk a lot. Two things I have to do at the hospital before I go back to work.Thank goodness my job, is not in the hospital, but I am a hospital employee. There are no exceptions for these short classes so I'm going to try to rest before I go from one building to the other. See, already starting to worry.
Anyway, I keep up with you and a couple of others who seem to be about where I am. I am in a place where I see no progress and it will be 10 weeks Tuesday. I had my assessment at PT last week and I listed my progress in terms of what I can do better such as getting in and out of the car without moving the seat back. I feel like I could do more if I didn't have the swelling.Duh!
I'm venting like a brat because I want some new solutions. I now truly believe this is going to be a long, long road. I can lose hope when I think like that.
Hope your mood it's better than mine. Thanks for checking in.
Have to go out tomorrow and will have to walk a lot. Two things I have to do at the hospital before I go back to work.Thank goodness my job, is not in the hospital, but I am a hospital employee. There are no exceptions for these short classes so I'm going to try to rest before I go from one building to the other. See, already starting to worry.
Anyway, I keep up with you and a couple of others who seem to be about where I am. I am in a place where I see no progress and it will be 10 weeks Tuesday. I had my assessment at PT last week and I listed my progress in terms of what I can do better such as getting in and out of the car without moving the seat back. I feel like I could do more if I didn't have the swelling.Duh!
I'm venting like a brat because I want some new solutions. I now truly believe this is going to be a long, long road. I can lose hope when I think like that.
Hope your mood it's better than mine. Thanks for checking in.
Last edited:
Josephine
NURSE DIRECTOR EMERITA
Oh my dear lady! You are only 10 weeks out so cut yourself some slack!
I'd really like to offer you some structured advice but in order to do that, I also need to ask you some questions. Are you willing for me to do that?
jakeleg
member
@Josephine yes
Josephine
NURSE DIRECTOR EMERITA
Here y'go then!
It would be very helpful if you would answer each one individually - numbered as I have done - in as much detail as you can then I'll come back as see where you are ....
1. what are your pain levels right now? (remember the 1-10 scale: 1 = no pain and 10 = the worst you can imagine. And don't forget to factor in other forms of pain such as soreness, burning, stabbing, throbbing, aching, swelling and stiffness).
2. what pain medications have you been prescribed, how much are you taking (in mg please) and how often?
3. how swollen is your leg compared to these?
![[Bonesmart.org] Back with a question](https://bonesmart.org/forum/attachments/ai63-tinypic-com_eta39s-jpg.63632/ "[Bonesmart.org] Back with a question")
4. what is your ROM - that's flexion (bend) and extension (straightness)
5. are you icing your knee at all? If so, how often and for how long?
6. are you elevating your leg. If so how often and for how long?
7. what is your activity level? What do you do in the way of housework, cooking, cleaning, shopping, etc., and
8. are you doing any exercises at home? If so what and how often?
This is the most crucial question so please help me by using the format I have left as an example
(which means please make a list and not an essay!)
Exercises done at home
- how many sessions you do each day
- enter exercise by name then number of repetitions of each
etc., etc.
Anything done at PT
- how many times a week
- enter exercise by name then number of repetitions of each
etc., etc.
It would be very helpful if you would answer each one individually - numbered as I have done - in as much detail as you can then I'll come back as see where you are ....
1. what are your pain levels right now? (remember the 1-10 scale: 1 = no pain and 10 = the worst you can imagine. And don't forget to factor in other forms of pain such as soreness, burning, stabbing, throbbing, aching, swelling and stiffness).
2. what pain medications have you been prescribed, how much are you taking (in mg please) and how often?
3. how swollen is your leg compared to these?
4. what is your ROM - that's flexion (bend) and extension (straightness)
5. are you icing your knee at all? If so, how often and for how long?
6. are you elevating your leg. If so how often and for how long?
7. what is your activity level? What do you do in the way of housework, cooking, cleaning, shopping, etc., and
8. are you doing any exercises at home? If so what and how often?
This is the most crucial question so please help me by using the format I have left as an example
(which means please make a list and not an essay!)
Exercises done at home
- how many sessions you do each day
- enter exercise by name then number of repetitions of each
etc., etc.
Anything done at PT
- how many times a week
- enter exercise by name then number of repetitions of each
etc., etc.
jakeleg
member
1. 4 - swelling and stiffness; hate the stiffness
occasional pain to the right of kneecap
puffy lump on left side of kneecap that is prone to swelling
occasional miscellaneous pains on or around knee
2. Discontinued Hydrocodone with Acetaminophen 7.5 - 325 about ten days ago because of nausea
New RX for Trammadol HCL 50 mg q 6 hours
3. Slight to barely moderate; looks almost normal in size and color in the morning
4. ROM 112 Extension 0 to -1 " very close"
5. Icing with gel paks several times a day; replace when barely cool; estimate a total of 6 - 8 hours; just started icing back of knee
6. Elevate when icing on wedge; have not been able to sleep while elevating
7. Trips to the kitchen many, many times a day for food and bottled water. Load dishwasher,general straightening up of a 1 bedroom apartment; trips to drugstore or Post Office 3-4 total a week. No grocery shopping. Short drives to 4 one hour AA meetings per week. Out to short lunch 1x a week or less
8. short walks 5 - 10 minutes 3x a day
rocking chair stretches 5-6. 2 x a day
gentle lunges 3-4 2x a day
9. PT 1x per week
8 - 10 minutes on bike
chair stretches 5x hold 5-10 seconds
quad massage
Heat or cold with electrodes stimulation
I don't exercise much at home or PT. Am avoiding pain. Most of my walking is purposeful rather than recreation or exercise. I have been limiting activity and trying to get swelling to decrease. Have to return to work at 12 weeks. Have flexibility to sit, walk and ice at my job.
Hope I did this correctly. Thank you.
occasional pain to the right of kneecap
puffy lump on left side of kneecap that is prone to swelling
occasional miscellaneous pains on or around knee
2. Discontinued Hydrocodone with Acetaminophen 7.5 - 325 about ten days ago because of nausea
New RX for Trammadol HCL 50 mg q 6 hours
3. Slight to barely moderate; looks almost normal in size and color in the morning
4. ROM 112 Extension 0 to -1 " very close"
5. Icing with gel paks several times a day; replace when barely cool; estimate a total of 6 - 8 hours; just started icing back of knee
6. Elevate when icing on wedge; have not been able to sleep while elevating
7. Trips to the kitchen many, many times a day for food and bottled water. Load dishwasher,general straightening up of a 1 bedroom apartment; trips to drugstore or Post Office 3-4 total a week. No grocery shopping. Short drives to 4 one hour AA meetings per week. Out to short lunch 1x a week or less
8. short walks 5 - 10 minutes 3x a day
rocking chair stretches 5-6. 2 x a day
gentle lunges 3-4 2x a day
9. PT 1x per week
8 - 10 minutes on bike
chair stretches 5x hold 5-10 seconds
quad massage
Heat or cold with electrodes stimulation
I don't exercise much at home or PT. Am avoiding pain. Most of my walking is purposeful rather than recreation or exercise. I have been limiting activity and trying to get swelling to decrease. Have to return to work at 12 weeks. Have flexibility to sit, walk and ice at my job.
Hope I did this correctly. Thank you.
jakeleg
member
Oh, my! Jakeleg took her longest walk since TKR. Had to go to my place of work today. Walked a total of at least a mile round trip. My medical building is connected by tunnel and long halls to the places in the hospital that I had to go to for classes.
Short trip to grocery, then lunch with a friend. Up and around for about 6 1/2 hours . Too long and too much walking. Icing and elevating now. I have figured out a way to keep a gel pak on my knee when I am back at work although I don't think my work day will have me walking except for short trips (kind of like ups and downs for ADLs).
Definitely too much walking today so I'm going to try 15 minutes at a time and slowly increase to have a little more stamina by 1/4/18. I would not have been able to do this today if I were going to PT and letting them hurt me. I'm aching and have pain in a couple of places. Forgot to take a pill. Will do that now. No plans for the rest of the day except to baby my knees.
Short trip to grocery, then lunch with a friend. Up and around for about 6 1/2 hours . Too long and too much walking. Icing and elevating now. I have figured out a way to keep a gel pak on my knee when I am back at work although I don't think my work day will have me walking except for short trips (kind of like ups and downs for ADLs).
Definitely too much walking today so I'm going to try 15 minutes at a time and slowly increase to have a little more stamina by 1/4/18. I would not have been able to do this today if I were going to PT and letting them hurt me. I'm aching and have pain in a couple of places. Forgot to take a pill. Will do that now. No plans for the rest of the day except to baby my knees.
Shoot, what you did today was PT! What a great outing you had! Now, take the day off tomorrow and do nothing but the absolutely necessary things. You knee needs a day of rest.
Staff online
-
djklaughStaff member since December 30, 2020 -
Roy GardinerStaff member since February, 23, 2013
