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-speaks from.the suitcase.- I had medipore till staples removed then nothing. But I.heal quickly the first dressing only had one.spot on it. My gut is.go.with how you.feel esp with hrdo coming

Legin THR Sep 14
 
Thanks legin what was an urgent problem in the middle of the night fades by the morning. I think after having the staples out the wound felt a bit unsettled so, being me, I think it is all about to tear apart!! It is amazing to have had a surgeon cutting so deeply and doing so much work, then 10 - 12 days later the skin is healed - the wonder of nature!

Oh well back on the virtual trip to Australia with you in the suitcase.
 
Hello all,
@Josephine - A question about my knee, following my left hip replacement 14 days ago! I cannot easily make my left knee straight. The back of the knee joint feels as if it cannot naturally stretch far enough. When I am laying (lying?) down I can tense the muscles around the knee and pull it straight. If I am standing and try to put the left knee straight back I can do it but it pushes my lower back/buttocks back - out of place. I can walk fairly fluidly with two sticks as I then do not need to pull my knee straight. There seems to be no improvement in the past 10 days.

Is it just time for the old, unused muscles to develop again? Or is it a leg length thing? Do I just "go with the flow" ? I am not seeing my physio until next Friday and not seeing my surgeon for another 4 weeks. Any ideas?
Thank you
Karen
 
copsham said:
I cannot easily make my left knee straight.
Click to expand...
That's very usual at 14 days and is generally due to swelling. If you feel that there is little visible swelling, you should remember that quite a bit of our swelling is internal so wouldn't be easily seen. Give it another 3 weeks and if things don't improve, try something from here Extension: exercises for improvement.

One other point, you're not going too mad with the exercises are you? I'm 3½ weeks now and have achieved 114/0 with zero exercises! I may do some at around 6-8 weeks but for now, rest, elevation and pain meds are my only regular things! I suggest you cast an eye over my recovery thread Josephine's knee story and amazing progress
 
Thank you @Josephine
Just the words "that's usual" is so helpful!
Re exercise - No not excessive. Thanks to you, I am doing minimal exercises just very gentle movement in the hydrotherapy pool twice a week. So patience remains the key word!
 
@copsham i am now 6 1/2 weeks out, and as everyone who has read my thread can contest to, I struggled mightily. I slept alone at my mom's house, but I only slept well when I absolutely just passed out. I would often get up in the night and end up in the recliner chair. I napped on and off, but sleep was a struggle. I would try to sleep on my back with pillows under my knees;that seemed to work the best.
I have had several other surgeries, but this recovery has been challenging for me. My brain was bored and restless, but my body was difficult. I couldn't focus to read, but I could do the ridiculously easy crossword puzzles. I watched a lot of bad tv too.
Patience is the key, and I could never muster much of it up. I'm still impatient, and acupuncture has been my saving grace. I'm still using a crutch, and my OS told me that he preferred me using that to limping. So, I bumble along...going to water therapy twice a week and acupuncture once a week.
Be gentle with yourself and remember that we all understand here. Rest whenever you can.

Lynn
 
@librarylyn thanks for your email. I used to have acupuncture pre op and it was very valuable to me. I can't go back to my acupuncturist for a while as his treatment room is up a spiral staircase. I feel too sensitive at the moment to seek out and go to a new one. I look forward to being 6 weeks post op and being able to go swimming again.
It is all more of a struggle than I anticipated!
 
Hiya I saw on another thread your hubbers has the old quasimodo ears bells etc. I have had tinnitus for 7 year 24/7. After 18 months finally saw an auditory counsellor who basically said to do as I had been which is to find which soumds are pleasing and overlay the tinnitus. Its not nice wen certain sounds appear sudenly, when a plwne went low overhead I litterally hit the ground. Its so much a thimg of using the brain to overcome it. I had to retrain my brain with a balance issue thats related to tinnitus issue. Tut I saw you raise eyebrows at me saying I had a brain.
Happy to talk further about ear thing oh mine is like a jet engine sound currently on climbing to 34000 ft level.

Legin THR Sep 14
 
@Legin thanks for that about tinnitus. really useful information. I did not know there was such a thing as an auditory counsellor! Yours sounds really bad - what you have to put up with.
I m brain dead at the moment, can't sleep and its 2.30pm, have hydrotherapy at 9.30am and i feel impatient. I visited my mother with Alzheimers today and she asked me if something was wrong with my leg, I said "sort of" and she said "never mind" some relationships never change oh well!
 
Nae probs pal. I do hope he can find a form of escape as the constantness of it is distressing. Re your mother before opp I worked in a unit for huntingtons which also had a unit for severe dementia and I would be called to help in challenging times. I by it happenimg would do work with families as these illness really affect close family far more and the looking at the person who is but isnt your parent. If you ever need to chat about it im here

Legin THR Sep 14
 
Wow @Legin you have such a lot of experience. That must have been demanding work with challenging teenagers, with dementia and with Huntingdon's? I have worked with challenging teenagers in a fostering setting - very demanding but tiny things are rewarding. I think having those work experiences makes it all the harder to just be at home recovering from a hip/knee or what ever. It seems so mundane or so selfish even though it isn't.

I am very fortunate that my mother with dementia is "calm and cooperative", thinks she is in a nice hotel ( aka nursing home). Staff are excellent. I have been through the wars with all of the possible emotions but now we have settled in to a relationship where she is like my toddler. She likes attention, likes being dressed up, likes being taken to the park for 20 mins and similar. I make the most of it while she still recognises me - yesterday she looked at me, thought about it looked at me again and then remembered who I am.

I went to physio this morning and I am exhausted can sleep in the day if not in the night! Improvement is happening but it is slow. It is logical that it would be slow with muscle and bone carved up but somehow i though I would be better quicker. I looked at a hip op on YouTube quite amazing but not for the squeamish. It did remind me why we need to let things take time.

All the best
Karen
 
I sooooo struggle with the at home bit but with silly foot I cant do the work I do as it often means I have to dodge thing dont want anyone hurting their hand on my head do we. Looked at volunteering for the local homestart group today.
Be kind to your self and rest today. Yes the process is slow my thigh muscles still complain but I am guilty of over doing it. Never looked at ya tube thingy might do as I know they had a lot of difficulty with me and I waw asleep could umderstand it if I was awake. Years ago I had the errrrrrrrr opp to stop babies was awake and surgeon asked me to be quiet as he was laughing and might slip. That did the job. Have a restful time
Nigel

Legin THR Sep 14
 
Aah - you will be lovely with the "little ones" in the homestart group! I bet you will be an instant hit!!
 
Ty grandson and I get on soooo well he sits next to me and bleathers away or helps me in kitchen.

Legin THR Sep 14
 
Bit of an update ... What I find really hard is going forward, feeling positive then a slip backwards. Night before last slept well then yesterday could walk really well with one stick then in the afternoon things "clicked" and I could walk a rooms length with no stick and no limping. I felt I was on the homeward stretch. BUT then last night I was so uncomfortable laying on my back was making my lower backbone (coccyx?) feel sore, trying to prop my heels up so they do not get redder, then while asleep I turned my hips over on the side but kept my top half laying on my back so woke up like a contortionist with very achey hip. feel very sorry for myself despite yesterday feeling very good.

I know it takes time. The good things are my fuzzy head went after 3 weeks, my walking overall is progressing and I am starting to plan some local walks. Just feel a bit sorry for myself.
It will pass!!
 
@Legin isn't it lovely having a grandsons? At least I am a hero to someone!! My grandson knew my leg was sore after my op. Then 2 hours later asked is it better now? He is still waiting for me to have a race with him with a walking stick each... Life is such fun when you are 4. Which reminds me there is a programme on channel 4 tonight at 8pm about the secret life of 4yr olds!! Looks good.

Hope life is being kind to you?
 
Tut its fine to feel sorry for yourself. Hey tho look at accomplishments so far you are doing so well. Sleep will come if not I can always bore you to sleep. Yada yadanyada

Legin THR Sep 14
 
We crossed posts. Hmmmm 4y olds sounds fun and I might get ideas for grandson of course teeetumteee

Legin THR Sep 14
 
Saw from your post on other thread still a tad down. Easy to say cheer up not always easily done tho. You said you are wondering around house dont look for cleaning or jobs to do. Reminds me of when eldest was a baby she developed colic hit every night at 6pm and she screamed for 3 hours, I would walk and shuggle her for the whole time. However I then ruptured achillies and couldnt put foot down. Soooooo I would sit on floor and bottom wobble the way around. Mother in law came to visit and almost had an accident laughing at me. Tsk tsk. So glad it wasnt a wooden floor splinters not nice there as I can atest to but thats another story.

Legin THR Sep 14
 
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