TKR Benne68's 1st TKR recovery
- Thread starter benne68
- Start date
Yay! So glad you had a wonderful trip in spite of the difficult journey home. It is amazing how great these new joints are! I was walking all over this very hilly mountain biking course that some kids and their dad built in the woods the other day with my dog with no problems whatsoever. Last summer I couldn't have done that at all without lots of pain and balance issues.....
OP
OP
Today I am celebrating my one-year an-KNEE-versary! 
It was not an easy journey, but it's one I'm glad I made. Before surgery, I couldn’t walk to the mailbox without a cane and was in constant pain. Now, I hike, ride my bike, scramble onto the sailboat, kneel on my yoga mat and do so many other things that were impossible a year ago.
What’s more, my left knee -- which was almost as painful as the right prior to surgery -- has improved! Perhaps it’s all the walking I'm doing, or just the fact that the left leg no longer carries most of the load. Whatever the reason, leftie is performing well enough that we’ve postponed my second knee replacement until next year.
My implant still “clicks & clunks” a bit, and I still have a numb area to the lateral side of my kneecap. But neither is painful, and they don’t interfere with my ability to move -- so, even if they don’t resolve, I’m not concerned. I’m one million percent (hyperbole fully intended!) better than I was before this surgery.
One important thing I’ve learned over the past year is that this recovery is not a straight line. It has
Ups and downs.
Highs and lows.
Steps forward and setbacks.
It really tries the patience. It makes us doubt our surgery decision. It makes us worry that we won't recover. But, with time, we do progress.
So, if you are still in the Will-It-Ever-Get-Better? stage of your recovery, know this: It does!
It was not an easy journey, but it's one I'm glad I made. Before surgery, I couldn’t walk to the mailbox without a cane and was in constant pain. Now, I hike, ride my bike, scramble onto the sailboat, kneel on my yoga mat and do so many other things that were impossible a year ago.
What’s more, my left knee -- which was almost as painful as the right prior to surgery -- has improved! Perhaps it’s all the walking I'm doing, or just the fact that the left leg no longer carries most of the load. Whatever the reason, leftie is performing well enough that we’ve postponed my second knee replacement until next year.
My implant still “clicks & clunks” a bit, and I still have a numb area to the lateral side of my kneecap. But neither is painful, and they don’t interfere with my ability to move -- so, even if they don’t resolve, I’m not concerned. I’m one million percent (hyperbole fully intended!) better than I was before this surgery.
One important thing I’ve learned over the past year is that this recovery is not a straight line. It has
Ups and downs.
Highs and lows.
Steps forward and setbacks.
It really tries the patience. It makes us doubt our surgery decision. It makes us worry that we won't recover. But, with time, we do progress.
So, if you are still in the Will-It-Ever-Get-Better? stage of your recovery, know this: It does!
You made it a year. Yay!
NightQuilter
Former BoneSmart Staff Member
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Congrats on your an-KNEE-versary! A momentous occasion and great time to reflect on all you have accomplished! 
OP
OP
A year does seem so far away when you are in those early weeks of recovery and everything is painful and frustrating. But it does get better. It
Just. Takes. Time. As a friend told me: the muscle you need to exercise most for this recovery is your "patience" muscle!
I had the same experience when I did my left knee first and got another 6 years out of the right knee that was to be done 3 months after the left.
Congrats and welcome to the 1 year club!
Catalien45
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Wow! Congratulations, Benne!! You often gave me some good advice early on…. My one year is coming up on October 6. Hardly seems possible. I’m looking forward this year to putting up my Halloween stuff, our grandson will be with us for the last weekend this month, so that will be a fun project for us. I’m still having balance problems, & working on my quad strength, & we’re walking just over a mile on weekdays. But I’m still so very excited at what a Big difference this surgery has made in my life! It’s just so wonderful to not be in constant pain. I’m dealing with a real bumper crop of tomatoes & tomatillos, so I don’t get on very often , but I’m sure glad I saw your post.
OP
OP
One-year club member here too! I remember last year wanting to decorate for Fall so badly but I could only manage to do 10 minutes here and there with lots of resting as I was SO TIRED.... I'm about to decorate again, Fall is almost here!
![[Bonesmart.org] Benne68's 1st TKR recovery](https://bonesmart.org/forum/attachments/1663696268283-png.86580/ "[Bonesmart.org] Benne68's 1st TKR recovery")
Catalien45
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Thanks, @benne68 ! We’re sitting on our back porch, a little cloud cover, 87 & very comfy outside. A cool front moving in tomorrow, & it looks like temperatures in the 70’s & 80’s for the next week or so! No freezing temperatures anytime soon, so pretty sure my tomatoes are safe….kitty is enjoying exploring the yard, she love to come out, but only when we are here with her…we’re watching the squirrels run back & forth on the back fence, often with a walnut, I suppose ready to bury it. Problem is, they never remember Where…. So, I’ll generally find them in any soft dirt, especially my big pots!
@Susie-Q , thanks, it is good to be back. Our summer was really full, with garden, grandson 2 days a week, Farmers Market every Saturday, peaches to preserve, & a trip to Texas to visit family for the first time in over 3 years. But it was all wonderful, & made for a fun, memorable summer. Hopefully, we can have a true reunion next year, including my oldest sister in California & her daughters & kids. Our last full reunion was 6 years ago. Too long.
I’m so very excited about fall decorating!! I still remember, in addition to thinking I’d finish cooking off my tomatillos into enchilada sauce, I’d put up my Halloween stuff. That was before I read on here, that TKR is Major surgery! Boy, was I naïve!
Is that your Puppy?? Really has grown! Our grandson got a puppy for his 7th Birthday, & is so excited. “ Racer Speed” ( called Racer) is a Poodle/Lab, very sweet with that wonderful Lab disposition, with black, curly hair. The 2 kitties aren’t too excited, but, they all seem to working on becoming friends.
Well, I should go for now. It’s sure good to be back, & see how my Bonesmart friends are doing. Y’all take care, & have a lovely evening!
@Susie-Q , thanks, it is good to be back. Our summer was really full, with garden, grandson 2 days a week, Farmers Market every Saturday, peaches to preserve, & a trip to Texas to visit family for the first time in over 3 years. But it was all wonderful, & made for a fun, memorable summer. Hopefully, we can have a true reunion next year, including my oldest sister in California & her daughters & kids. Our last full reunion was 6 years ago. Too long.
I’m so very excited about fall decorating!! I still remember, in addition to thinking I’d finish cooking off my tomatillos into enchilada sauce, I’d put up my Halloween stuff. That was before I read on here, that TKR is Major surgery! Boy, was I naïve!
Is that your Puppy?? Really has grown! Our grandson got a puppy for his 7th Birthday, & is so excited. “ Racer Speed” ( called Racer) is a Poodle/Lab, very sweet with that wonderful Lab disposition, with black, curly hair. The 2 kitties aren’t too excited, but, they all seem to working on becoming friends.
Well, I should go for now. It’s sure good to be back, & see how my Bonesmart friends are doing. Y’all take care, & have a lovely evening!
OP
OP
I haven't talked about my recovery in quite a while, but am excited to share that at more than 18 months post-op, I am still seeing improvement!
When I posted for my one-year anKNEEversary, I was already very happy with the outcome of my TKR, although I did still have a few small issues.
Notably, there was an area on the lateral side of my knee that felt tight and "pulled" when I climbed steep stairs. Since it wasn't painful, I didn't worry too much about it -- but it was a reminder that I wasn't fully healed. At my one-year check in, the surgeon said it was probably scar tissue and, if I would "just keep moving" it likely would resolve on its own over time.
He was right! This week, I suddenly realized that the discomfort has disappeared.
So, for anyone worried about their progress in healing, don't give up. I am proof positive that recovery and improvements do indeed continue well into the second year!
When I posted for my one-year anKNEEversary, I was already very happy with the outcome of my TKR, although I did still have a few small issues.
Notably, there was an area on the lateral side of my knee that felt tight and "pulled" when I climbed steep stairs. Since it wasn't painful, I didn't worry too much about it -- but it was a reminder that I wasn't fully healed. At my one-year check in, the surgeon said it was probably scar tissue and, if I would "just keep moving" it likely would resolve on its own over time.
He was right! This week, I suddenly realized that the discomfort has disappeared.
So, for anyone worried about their progress in healing, don't give up. I am proof positive that recovery and improvements do indeed continue well into the second year!
Mojo333
Former BoneSmart Staff Member
Good news...
I also can't say with my BTHR that how "I was" at 2 years wasn't better than the annoying niggles still cropping up and hovering in the back of mind at 1 year postop.
Hope your weekend is SWEET!
I also can't say with my BTHR that how "I was" at 2 years wasn't better than the annoying niggles still cropping up and hovering in the back of mind at 1 year postop.
Hope your weekend is SWEET!
