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TKR christeen's knee journey 8/11

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Finally fell asleep around 1 am and it was an off and on sleep. Around 8am had my husband hook up the cpm machine (which always puts me right to sleep) (strange I know) but I got 2 hours of nice deep sleep on the machine (I had it set on 8/78 ). Hubby helped me do my PT exercises (heel slides, gluts, quad squeeze and abductions (15 each). Now I am set up in the living room recliner with my ice machne for an action packed day of amazon prime, dozing off in the middle of episodes and wining to strangers on the Internet about my knee.... All actions which shall be referred to henceforth as "healing".... Hope all are doing good today!
 
Christeen so you are having a beautiful Sunday!! Yay for you!
 
Good morning Christeen!! PT is coming here around 130pm. Hopefully it will go ok. The pain meds have kicked in and my knee is more comfortable. I am currently watching episode after episode of Dr. Phil. Mind numbing TV lol.
 
So I had my first meltdown and I think I need some I put to talk me back down. In my mind I thought I had a great relaxing day yesterday and was generally thinking positive about my progress.... Then, this morning I was restless and had quite a bit of knee pain and stiffness... The PT evaluation guy came and just shot to he1l my whole confidence....

He was measuring g my rom and was very surprised a d disappointed that I only have 70 for flex and 10 extension. He asked "has it always been this poor since surgery?" I was like "yes" he then started really pushing on it saying we had to work pushing and getting it to move and I should allow up to a pain level 7 duri g this process or I might never recover my rom. I said NO and BS! While he was pushi g he was like "so I guess you have a low pain tolerance? Which is NOT true, I have been through 5 joint replacements and 1 hip revision a d live with extreme rheumatoid arthritis, I have a very high threshold for pain.... However I have a low threshold for people purposely causing me pain!! He said I should be at least 90 flex by now and my gold should be 120 by 6 weeks. The regular therapist assigned to me will be out Wednesday. The insurance approved 3 PT sessions the. They ask for more and I might get another 4-6 sessions in-patient. But the whole episode threw me into a meltdown spiral!

Yes, I Am Disappointed at such a bad ROM a d I am very taken aback at the amount of pain.... I am tryi g so hard to do everything right, not overdo it etc... I just feel like I am dissappointing everyone and I am not used to feeling like I am underachieving... I a. General,y a positive person but today is definetly a very challenging day.. I am stiff (when. I bend the knee, it feels like a massive leather belt is tightening across the top part of the knee preventing me), I have swelling and just feel very emiotionally drained... Tough one today.
 
@Poz222 oh I am so sorry you had such a rotten PT experience. You said it yourself, your knee is swollen and tight, it's not going to bend under those conditions no matter how much the PT pushes on it. Low pain tolerance? Needs to push to a pain level of 7?? That just sounds ridiculous. Christeen you know the Bonesmart way works, take a deep breath and continue the healing you have begun with rest, ice, elevation, and gentle stretches only. The PTs expectations of where you should be are complete bull. This is a long process and you'll get there. After all your initial ROM was 60 after your surgery so you have already improved. Don't let anyone hurt you or bully you. Get yourself comfy with your ice, some pain meds, and your kitties. Big hugs to you :). Post when you feel better.
 
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Boy, this home health organization is just a boatload of bad experiences, isn't it? I'm sorry this is working out so poorly for you.

I guess when you talk to the administrator about the fisherman from Saturday you can add this guy to the list. I hope Wednesday's experience goes better.
 
Yes, they are really batting 1000 with me... I guess it was just soooo.... Deflating (the best word I can come up,with) when you think you are doing OK and someone comes in and is so disappointed and telling you how far behind you are... :boohoo: I know my rom is not where everyone thought it would be, I have the tight band feeling that I can't seem to push past... I get 60-70 on flex but only 10 on extension... And it is stuck at that. I am using the CPM machine 2 hours in the AM and 2 hrs in the afternoon... It was just a real shock and made me so discouraged to know that I am underperforming.... :cry:
 
By the way, you are doing just fine on ROM for where you're at in recovery.
 
You'll get there as the swelling goes down. My knee is very tight and swollen tonight, if measured I'm sure my ROM isn't what it was in the morning. So I am elevating and icing and settling in for several weeks of the same. I think it is going to be very easy to get discouraged. Hang in there!!
 
I had a good nights sleep last night (thank you sleep tabs! ) but my back was a bit achy today. This morning I had my husband go through the PT exercises with me. He is very thorough and doese t let me cheat and follows the little booklet step by step (his engineer mind will not let him..lol) but he was helpi g me with my heel slides and doing gentle stretching for my flexation and he pushed but slowly and patiently and was very aware if he was causing pain... I found since I trusted him completly that he would not do,anything ever to hurt me I could relax my leg to almost limp while he pushed a bit to loosen up the muscles and I got my best flexation yet (cause I was not tensing up as a protection measure). He also did a great knee and leg massage. So if the whole engineer thing does not work out, he definetly has a future in physical therapy! Lol... He had to go to work this afternoon for meetings so I am resting with ice in the recliner until my friend comes later on. I need tomdomamfew hours on CPM machine. But ok day so far, but dreading the PT stuff tomorrow.
 
What a great hubby!! Much better after your experience yesterday!
 
Chiming in a bit late but....my flex was 75 at 10 days out. Like you I was disappointed, upset and felt like I was failing. This was my first meltdown of many so far! However, at 4 weeks I was at 107 and at 6 weeks I got 121 without pushing at all. How? By following the Bonesmart mantra and by changing the way I did heel slides. I could not do them lying on the bed. My foot barely moved 2 inches. So I started doing them sitting in a chair. I put a magazine on the carpet to give me some glide, placed my foot on the magazine and very gently slid my leg back under the chair. I never pushed too hard, never hurt myself and only did a few at a time, a few times a day. It worked! There is an article in the library on here that shows you how to do them. May not work for you but might be worth a go? Don't let those PT bullies get to you, you got this!
 
My husband Franco made a heel slide tool for me in the bed/chair. He took a piece of foam core board and cut it 12" x 24" long. Then took a pair of hospital slippers (the kind with the rubber bottoms) and cut out a foot shaped piece of foam ore and glued it to the bottom of slipper. This way it slides easily... Tonight he is going to add two pieces of string to each side so I can pull with my hands to help. But the slide board can be used in bed or in chair, it just slides more easily! Engineer mind to solve medical issue :idea:

As for the bully PT, it is sometimes so difficult to stand up,against them, they start citing their experience and rehab record and makes you think " what if they're right and I miss my opportunity"? It's like a high pressure sales tactics they use on you! They use you fear of failure, need to please and the "act now our you will miss it" as well as the authority and future fear tactics in order to get you to agree to do it their way. And they TRULY believe they are right so it makes it extra hard to stand up against that. Does anyone have links to studies which support the less is more theory?
 
Sounds like your husband is a doll! I don't know what I would have done without my hubby--not only has he been my cheering section and my protector, but now that I am at 16 wks., I STILL get nightly leg and back massages--I am so very spoiled!! I, like you, found the cpm machine soothing--I was suppose to have it only 2 wks. but they didn't pick it up for almost another week and when they came I was definitely done with it. My PT girl was quite gentle, but she never let me get sloppy.
 
I had my first FULL nights sleep. I fell asleep about 1 am and did not wake up till 7 am! The swelling was down this morning too. So my PT guy came today and I am happy to say that I think I can work with him. His is a no pain no gain type guy but it seems he understands my point of view and is willing to let me call the shots. We will see.

This evening when hubby comes home I want to try a shower... I feel so yucky I think fresh water and shampoo will feel,good. I will Saran Wrap the leg just n case (imhave the aqua cell dressing but a corner looks loose... )

This afternoon program is CPM for 2 hours then ice and elevate.
 
Sounds like a much better day Christeen. It's always nice to get some sleep lol. Great too that your PT is reasonable, your rehab will be more successful now that you 2 are on the same page.
 
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Nothing like a decent night's sleep to make the world look better. A shower and shampoo can certainly help too. Just go easy and know that there will be challenges but that ultimately the good times will win.
 
I be cleenez now!! Managed a shower and feel soooo much better, but my knee is a little angry at me from the PT and shower... Hope for another good nights sleep...
 
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