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TKR Chasing 90 degrees ... LTKR 12-11-13

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Sportsgurl, I have a thread called,
[TKR] Give it TIME and ROM will come.

Take some time to read the whole thread. It is 2 pages and there is a lot of information in it that you won't get anywhere but here in Bonesmart. It takes time and patience to get the ROM you need. I am proof that Rom is attainable when your knee is ready.
 
Absolutely the best thing I've done for myself (well, the next best thing after finding this site) post-op was to quit going to PT altogether after doing it for about 4 weeks with no net benefit ..... I've done so much better & feel so much better since I quit PT & started following the BoneSmart guidelines.... & saving money too!
 
Hello Sportsgurl! Saltyal told me to check out your thread. and he was right! We have a lot in common! My surgery was also on December 11th and it was also my left knee.
I am having problems with flexion and swelling also. I know I should tell the therapist to not hurt me, but it always happens and then I suffer for it. I had therapy yesterday and today I'm so swollen that I feel like my left knee belongs on an elephant!
I have also had a very emotional journey this time. I just get so frustrated and depressed. I am constantly looking at my knee, and feeling how "tight" it feels and when it is all swollen I get so angry!
I like the comparison to a water hose though. That's how it feels. It is so full of swelling that it can't bend!!
I can get to 90 on a good day, but today since I'm so swollen, I am walking very stiff legged!
I hope you start feeling better! I have therapy tomorrow and I'm trying to get up the nerve to cancel it. I think I'm going to need more time to get the pain and the swelling down. I'll keep up with your thread to see how you are doing!
 
So paying the price of yesterday's PT.... Knee is swollen and stiff... Therefore painful, so no excersises today. I iced a ton and took my pain meds. Frustrating! Next PT is Thursday and she is not gonna kill me! Tomorrow is four weeks since surgery , I never thought I would make it this far. Seriously. I have been such a train wreck. I am trying to celebrate the progress and not beat myself up to push ROM. My next goal is to not need the cane to walk!!!! Thanks again everyone!
 
Some of us are turtles, maybe even snails, and that's so much slower than we had envisioned. Either your bend will slowly improve with conservative measures or you'll join the MUA club and need some help. Either course takes you to the same destination. The tricky part is staying encouraged, which I failed miserably at and which is not helped by the effect of all the pain drugs, and we slow benders end up taking more pain drugs because inevitably we get pushed in PT, or push ourselves. I found out the hard way that it's beyond our control. I needed interventions and bend very well now.
 
Listen to Maryjo! Don't allow your therapist to kill you! Mine is coming tomorrow and my plan is to tell her that I'm not going to do ANY flexion exercises if it is still so swollen. I will do other things but not flexion. And I have to be brave enough to tell her that or its only going to hurt me. Literally.
 
Ladies please do not overwork a swollen knee. Remember you can't bend a garden hose full of water. But turn the water off and it bends. It applies to a swollen knee. Less is more with a new knee!!:thumb:

My knee was horribly swollen from an infection, and it was way overworked for too many months. It got me no where. My ROM was gained after the swelling went down at 8 months post op and after the pain was gone at a year. Now at 2 3/4 years I have gained more ROM because there is no swelling an no pain. Listen to your KNEE. When it SCREAMS at you in pain and swelling, do no abuse it. Treat it kindly with rest, ice and elevation till it is ready .:console2:

[TKR] Give it TIME and ROM will come
 
I am eight weeks today and am at 98-100. And for me, since I am not into a lot of physical activity at 72, I really don't care if it doesn't improve, although I'm pretty sure it will over time. In my opinion, the key to recovery and adequate rest/sleep is to take the pain meds on schedule, like everyone says. To me, the chairs get more comfortable when the pain meds are taken. I started off taking the maximum recommended amount at the shortest time period. Script said 1-2 tablets every 4-6 hours. I started off with 2 tablets every 4 hours and it worked. After six weeks, I was able to extend the time schedule. Now, I am able to reduce the pills. I take them before bed and sometimes I have to get up during the night. This knee does what it wants. At this point, I m ready for the journey to end, but know it's going to be another few months, probably. Good luck!
 
I want to add that I realize it was not the therapist's fault that I hurt myself Monday. I did a full rotation on the little portable "peddling machine" and she was pleased, so I did it again. And again.....and again. I did it way past the point of pain. I blame myself for the swelling and pain that I've had since Monday!! Today went much better. We didn't do any flexion exercises at all.
 
Trying to get into the Overdid it Club, huh, @beth1954 ? :heehee:
 
PT tomorrow... I took the last two days "off" and rested, elevated, and iced. I am sure the therapist won't be happy about that but my knee said nope! You have all thought me not to over due it and listen to my body. Hoping for good results tomorrow!!

Beth I so understand why you did what you did but our knee will call foul when we go to the overdid it club :boohoo:
 
Hello all, I wanted to update everyone on my week five progress. PT is going ok.. Slow..but ok... She is able to get me to bend 92 degrees and I can bend 82 degrees on my own. The swelling is better but I thought as it went down my ROM would improve... Not so much.... What gives? My hamstrings are soooo tight... As are my calfs... Any thoughts on how to stretch them out? I am starting to feel tightness around the knee and where the scar is. Is that typical? I am still walking with the cane struggling with balance... I feel unsteady still :@((
How much ROM do you need to be able to go up and down stairs regularly ?

I have listened to everyone's advice and if it hurts I say no and stop! :yes!::thankyou:
 
Five weeks is still very early! You're doing fine and all the things you mention are perfectly normal. You may still have swelling inside your knee that you cannot see. The knee compartment is very compact and it doesn't take much to limit your ROM. So, please keep up the icing as much as you possibly can. For the tight muscles, you can try a heating pad on those areas. Stretches are good too. Your therapist can give you printouts of calf and hamstring stretches to do at home.

Hang in there. This recovery requires patience. Most people don't feel like things are really getting back to normal until around 6 months out. But in the meantime, you'll be making slow steps forward. If you want to track that, just post some of your accomplishments here in your thread every few days. Then in a couple of weeks, look back and you'll see how far you've come.
 
Wow sportsgurl . ! Patience is a virtue. Im pre op so I have absolutely no experience at all but have been reading Bonesmart daily for two months. I believe years ago a person in their 40s would have to wait to get a tkr. Nowadays its much more common. I Had to beg to get mine and went to 3 OSs to finally get the ok for a replacement. Us young folk are impatient and competive and in my case inmature. Eventually I wanna run at the beach, climb mountains , play basketball , climb a tree and ride horses , crawl under a car to empty oil etc. Will I ever do that ? only time will tell but I know it will be a long upward ordeal. I have a spirit of a teen but me knee has robbed all the fun out of my life. I will be extra patient and may even consider doing my own PT. Best of luck to you.
 
It sounds like you're doing fine.... At 5 weeks post-op I had about the same flexion as when I got away from the horse-pistol so I can relate! :console2:That feeling of tightness seems to be pretty common, and certainly one of the things that limits our bending along with the tight muscle feelings. As well as the stretches, what works for me is I take a couple of muscle & back pain tablets (generic Robaxecet) along with a heating pad to relieve the muscle tension. But the best thing I've done is to listen to the old hands here and apply liberal amounts of Patience. :bow:
 
Sportsgurl, the more you push that knee the more it will swell. Back down on the PT and exercising. Up the rest elevate and icing . Stretches are good but too much of any exercise doesn't bring on the ROM. Until all of the swelling is gone, you won't reach your maximum ROM. It will come slowly until the swelling is gone. I was 8 months till I got mine to 115. Then I could do steps, but not to my liking. Please be patient and it will come slowly!
Did you read my thread yet?
[TKR] Give it TIME and ROM will come.
 
I would say tightness around the scar is just an indication of swelling which can last a long time. It will take a long time to loosen up those muscles.
 
Thank you Mimi .... I am icing so much I feel like I live in an igloo!:rofsign:....
 
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