TKR Carole’s recovery thread

[sistersinhim]

I feel like I heal SO much better when I sleep deeply like that.

That is so true. Your body can concentrate mainly on healing that knee and not all the other things it has to while being awake. That's why we say to sleep whenever and wherever you can.

 

[Carole4815]

Last night I did not take a pain pill, and had a hard time sleeping. My knee was (slightly) protesting the "Extensionator" workout on Friday. Instead of drugging myself into a deep sleep with pain pills, I decided to place a rolled up towel under my knee so that it didn't have to be quite so straight while sleeping. I haven't done that before, but it cut any lasting pain back to about zero.

But did that result in sleeping soundly? NO of course not. I guess I took a half dozen 1-hour naps punctuated by frequent bathroom breaks and the occasional zinger or fleeting pain. I shouldn't complain; it could have been so much worse. I am thankful that I was not in agony like some of our bonesmart members are.

 

[Tykey]

I've given up with trying to sleep the night through. I think it becomes more difficult the harder we try. I usually manage an hour or two before waking up.
I now just get out of bed, downstairs, into the recliner with a sandwich, a cover and a pillow. Find a bit of drama on the radio and within a while I'm asleep again.
I never find out how the dramas unfold.

If it's a nice warm night, which doesn't often happen here, I'd be up and going for a walk. Looking forward to when that returns as an option

 

[Carole4815]

For some reason, 10 mg hydrocodone put me to sleep within 10 minutes and I sleep like a baby for around 7 hours. But without it, well, sleeping the whole night through is a problem. I like the idea of listening to the radio to go back to sleep. I sometimes listen to podcasts or youtube recordings of radio shows, for that reason. The more boring they are, the faster I nod off. I forgot to try that last night and should try that tonight, thanks!

It's not generally considered to be a good idea for the elderly to walk alone at night around here, due to our high crime level. I used to like doing that when I was a teenager though.

 

[Celle]

Instead of drugging myself into a deep sleep with pain pills, I decided to place a rolled up towel under my knee so that it didn't have to be quite so straight while sleeping. I haven't done that before, but it cut any lasting pain back to about zero.

Oh no! I know it helped you to feel more comfortable, but putting something like a rolled up towel, or a pillow, behind your knee can decrease the efficiency of your circulation and increase the possibility of you getting a DVT (deep vein thrombosis).

You can use a stack of pillows that supports the entire length of your leg and will allow it a slight bend, like this:

 

[Tykey]

Carole, as you know we are the same age, 71.
I'm not "elderly" so you aren't either.
I prefer to think of us as mature, experienced and wise.

 

[Carole4815]

Oh thanks, Celle! How surprising to me; I did not know that could have such a terrible effect..

Luckily I didn't try that again tonight, although not for the same reason; I didn't like the idea of putting a rolled up towel there, because I want to encourage my knee to flatten as much as possible even when sleeping.

(sigh) Oh well.

 

[Celle]

Your extension is going to come, given time. There's no need to try and rush it.
It's admirable to want to encourage extension while you sleep, but not at the expense of comfort and sleep. It doesn't matter if you bend your knee a little while you sleep.

 

[Carole4815]

Carole, as you know we are the same age, 71.
I'm not "elderly" so you aren't either.
I prefer to think of us as mature, experienced and wise.

I like your way of looking at it! Anyway, we mature, experienced, and wise folks prefer not to walk alone at night in many parts of New Orleans due to the level of crime here. Probably that is because of our maturity, experiences, and wisdom gained from having seen what happened to dear friends who did so.

I told my sweetie about your suggestion of walking at night, and we agree that it is wonderful and heartwarming to know that there are still places where a mature, experienced, wise, and unarmed woman can walk safely alone at night.

By the way, my 75-year-old brother said in an email that he thought it was great that I was getting my knee replaced now, "while you are still young". So he agrees with you. LOL

 

[Carole4815]

Your extension is going to come, given time. There's no need to try and rush it.
It's admirable to want to encourage extension while you sleep, but not at the expense of comfort and sleep. It doesn't matter if you bend your knee a little while you sleep.

Well that is what I thought, so I thought a rolled up towel raising my knee an inch or two while I slept might not be so dangerous as what you seemed to be saying above when you said,

"Oh no! I know it helped you to feel more comfortable, but putting something like a rolled up towel, or a pillow, behind your knee can decrease the efficiency of your circulation and increase the possibility of you getting a DVT (deep vein thrombosis)."​

But I'll avoid raising my knee slightly like that while I sleep since you point out that it is dangerous.

 

[Hoppy Nanny]

Catching up on your thread and it seems like you are doing well...
some great info which I’m noting for my TKR...

I’m just slightly younger than you & Tykey (not much) so encouraged to see how well you are coping with positive attitudes & humour!! Hoping it will get me through!!

Met a lady yesterday who I’ve known for years (always on crutches) ... she had 2 TKR’s with 15 weeks of each other & 4 months down the line is walking insides... first time in 4years... it’s amazing how this surgery can give people their mobility back....


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Celle]

You don't have to put anything under your knee to help it to bend while you're asleep. If you rotate your leg outwards a little, you can bend you knee slightly.

Also, it is possible to lie on your side for short periods - the nurses put me on my side while I was still in hospital.
You lie on your non-operated side, with a pillow between your legs, to support your entire operated leg.

 

[judgar]

Can you lay on the operated side if it doesn’t hurt..?

 

[luvcats]

I found I was off pain meds during the day long before I could sleep without them at night. Have you tried taking half? Good sleep is so important. I just had 2 days of not really sleeping and it leaves me such a zombie. Then last night suddenly 8 wonderful hours. Who knows why?

I miss sleeping on my side. July still won't have anything to do with it. I'm not sure why.

 

[Carole4815]

I don't sleep on my side yet, either, @luvcats. And I rotated my leg outwards at the hip so much in the past due my other knee injuries, and presently as well, that it is affecting my gait and not something to encourage. Surely bending my knee one or two inches upwards while I sleep could not be the end of the known world if bending my knee eight inches to the left (like the man in the photo) isn't. Apparently there was a huge miscommunication going on (sorry if I wasn't clear enough, Celle!)

Also, I suspect that perhaps my knee has no idea of what my reasoning is or is not for a slight bend or perfect straightness while asleep. My knee is so stupid! Even worse, it doesn't care and is busily providing super mild and gentle zingers and cramps no matter what the position and also when least expected, instead of responding with reason and logic. Stupid knee. Oh well, I am pretty sure this is one of those situations where common sense may save the day.

As for half doses of hydrocodone, that would probably work but regularly dosing myself with opiates to sleep when I am not experiencing much if any pain just isn't something I am eager to do. Which doesn't mean I won't do it!

 

[luvcats]

No, drugging one's self to sleep is generally not recommended.

What I believe happened to me at least is that the pain goes fairly quickly from horrific to annoying. We are used to horrible, so we dont really notice annoying but our lizard brain does, and that can be one of the many things that keep us from sleeping.

So even once I was off almost all meds during the day, there was another week or two where I took a smaller dose at bed time, which helped me get that urgently needed sleep.

I have trouble sleeping even when I'm at my normal healthy and my sleep doctor told me I might find it dramatically improved when my knees didnt hurt all the time. It was so constant I didnt always realize how it wore on me.

And then there is also the issue of the constant discomfort in the pre surgical knee.

So many issues going on, it's hard to know what is where. Those were just all my thoughts. YMMV

 

[Macknit]

Hello ladies, I just had to join the conversation on sleep , or lack there of!!! I just finished my 3rd night of midnight wake ups and long stretches before I can return to bed! I'm still taking my opiates (3 weeks postop tomorrow) but I'm down to 7.5 mg every 7 hours and it isn't helping by the last 2 hours, which is what is waking me up. I will agree the pain has shifted @luvcats, from horrific to annoying. However, there is no help for my sleep!!!
I also was using Ambien to sleep prior to this surgery and a sleep Dr. recommended getting off of it while I'm recovering (I've been using it for 2 years) which isn't the best for us wise and mature ones!! Since I would probably be waking up anyway....

If either of you have any other suggestions I would love some ideas. I know that sleep is essential for healing!

 

[Carole4815]

I wish I had some ideas on how to sleep better during TKR recovery, @Macknit! All I have been able to do (other than drug myself to sleep with opiates which is not really a good idea), is to just forgive myself and tell myself that I must not need more sleep at that moment or I would be sleeping. (Hah! Yeah, right? As if.). Then I tell myself that I have permission to nap at any time.

I'd say this approach is not great but it is a starting point and it is better than lying there fuming about not being able to sleep.

As to the horrific vs annoying, don't hate me but I must guiltily admit that I was one of the lucky few who never really had truly horrific pain. Or if I did, I don't remember it now. I think once, in the hospital, I had level 8 once but got opiates from the nurse immediately which took care of it. Most of the time I have been level 0-1 when sitting and 2-3 when walking or doing PT exercises or whatever. You know, basically more of a yawn than horrific.

And for the past month or so, it's not really been my knee pain that has been annoying; it's other stuff, like other leg cramps or zingers or itching or a back ache, you know what I mean. Right now I have a cramp in my toe (which I just massaged out). Just weird stuff like that.

Oh, and it drives me absolutely totally NUTS, absolutely BONKERS to have my light blanket even touching my incision area. Makes me itch and want to rub my incision too much. So, I ice, which makes me cold, I put my blanket over my left side only, and turn the thermostat up from 72 to 78 so part of me is cold and part of me is hot. No wonder I can't sleep.

 

[Jockette]

Here’s something me info on why we can’t sleep:
https://bonesmart.org/forum/threads...tty-much-inevitable-but-what-causes-it.13344/

 

[sistersinhim]

Surely bending my knee one or two inches upwards while I sleep could not be the end of the known world if bending my knee eight inches to the left (like the man in the photo) isn't.

Many of us slept all night elevated on the Lounge Doctor or something similar. I did and I still ended up being able to straighten my leg. When not on the LD, I'd be on my side in short spurts with my tkr knee over the old knee and bent on a pillow. I was unable to stand the pain of having my knee completely straight for a few months. With walking with longer strides, the extension came right in.