He was trying to help me push my knee backwards and we didn't get as far as we had the previous week.
It was hurting quite a bit and I had tears in my eyes, so we stopped but I could see from the look on my husbands face that he was uncomfortable because I was hurting.
I think physio was disappointed and so was I.
I am already doing as you suggest and husband is helping to push the bend a bit further but of course he only does it to the point where I say stop. He then holds it there for a few seconds.
Please stop allowing anyone to push on your knee. It won't help with flexion. In fact, it could even slow down flexion development, because it will keep your soft tissues angry and inflamed. That leads to more swelling, which is a physical barrier to flexion.
PT and exercises should never hurt. Discomfort is OK, but pain is bad. PT that causes pain is bad PT. Don't allow it. It's bad for your knee.
If I want to do this, and I do, how does everyone else get through the pain barrier. I had already taken oramorph as OS had suggested, half an hour before but it doesn't seem to help.
There's no need to try to work through the pain barrier. It's counter-productive, doing more harm than good.
Myth busting: no pain, no gain
It's never a good idea to take pain meds so you can get through PT. Pain is a warning sign that you are doing more than your nee can handle. Mask the pain by taking meds before PT and you may miss that warning sign and unwittingly harm your knee.
"If it hurts, don't do it," is a good motto for this recovery.
In any case, 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.
OS said physio is very pleased with me but not to be surprised if improvements are slow. He reminded me that pre-op my bend had been very limited and apart from the knee I had 2 hip replacements last year and have just been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis too.
Your surgeon is correct. Past surgical history does have an effect. Try not to worry about ROM, because you have all the time in the world to achieve it.
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
You're not quite 2 months into a recovery that takes a full year. Instead of stressing about achieving flexion as fast as possible, aim for slow, steady improvement. Time is on your side.
Your PT therapist has an agenda that says you should achieve a certain degree by a certain date. That's what she/he was taught, but it doesn't apply to everyone. Your knee is following its own schedule, which is slower. Try not to get caught up in the PT's numbers game, but let your knee improve at its own pace.