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TKR Counting the Hours to Left TKR

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Thank you all for the wonderful support. I really appreciate it. My vicodin does say one to two every four to six hours. I have been taking one every four to five hours. I had cut out the tramadol altogether. I just could not take the head spinning, nausea, constipation, unable to function along with the discomfort. I have started back on the tramadol, and taking the vocodin one every four hours. I am still hurting a lot, but I dont have all of the head stuff too. I had stopped the ice, because that seemed to make my knee ache more, but I just went back on it this morning to see if it helps. Sometimes at bedtime, I have taken two vicoden, but it does not matter. I sleep about two hours at a time. I am 12 days out now. I am up a lot with a cane, and have walked full steps to the basement in my home. Is it normal to still be hurting 12 days out? my incision looks fantastic, swelling is not too bad (even with being off the ice). I must admit, I am feeling cranky from the non stop cant ever find a comfortable position, deep aching and then sharp stabs I get without any time off.
 
@butterflydancer yes, as far as I know pain early on is a problem for most. Everyone's different though- I was able to cut back on the prescription pain meds after about three weeks, but that's just me. I continued taking extra-strength Tylenol on the clock for a long time. At three months out I find that an occasional Tylenol still helps.

Ice bothered me some days- some days it felt too intense, but I always went back to it. Ice is really important in reducing inflammation. If whatever method you're currently using is too uncomfortable, try changing it up with a different style of ice pack, e.g. a cloth covered gel pack, or a simple bag of frozen peas. Always protect your skin with at least one layer of fabric.
 
hey @butterflydancer how are you going?? Have you got the pain more under control? I'm a ghoul - can we have a pic of your incision? I can't get over how different they all are.

I hope you are able to get in a few more ZZZZZZZs - always feel better for some of these little guys under the belt. Keep posting but most importantly take care of you - listen to your body and follow the BS mantra - cheers Maggie x
 
Hi Vinny, Diane and Maggie, thanks for the reply. I have now found that if I stop the vicoden, and take the tramadol, two every six hours, the pain is more controlled. The only problem, is that I am so sleepy, day and night. It is hard to find the right combination. I have improved a lot on my moving, walking with and even sometimes without a cane, going up and down steps, etc. I now think that I can see the light, and that it will get better. I just still feel like I am a lazy slug, on the couch way too much. :)
 
hey @butterflydancer you are NOT a lazy slug - your body is working overtime to repair the assault it has endured - rest and give it time to do this... what do want to do anyhow - clean the house - yukky!!! Just go with the flow - take care of you - Maggie x
 
Hi @butterflydaner Its very normal to be tired. your body does the majority of its healing while we sleep. You just had a huge trauma and it will be awhile before it is all repaired. I believe they have a chart around here on that. I'm glad to hear you have the pain meds sorted out. I had a funny conversation with my Ortho doctor today about Tylenol 3's. I've been taking oxycodone when needed and asked for something lighter such as Tylenol 3. He said its effectiveness is based on how well your liver metabolizes it and releases the codeine. Always works for me but he told me some people get very weak pain relief from it. There are lots of available pain meds and pain hinders healing, physio and sleep. It gets better with time and your still pretty early in recovery so I'm sure you'll be right as rain in no time.
 
The more you allow yourself to sleep at this stage the better your recovery will be. So if body says oi close eyes and.nap then do so. This is speaking from.a.deaf ears perspective I fought to be normal at start bad move. Also me.normal aye right.
Good luck

Legin THR Sep 14
 
I agree with the others. Your body needs to use its energy to heal and will tell you so by "shutting you down." :) This is major surgery. Naps were definitely my friend. :zzz:

When you get a chance could you please do a signature with your surgery date? It helps Josephine and the other advisers a lot to know where people are in their recovery process.

https://bonesmart.org/forum/threads/how-to-create-a-signature.14728/
 
I think they want you to go edit your profile & put your surgery date in there...I think there's a box where you can enter a personal signature.
 
I have not posted in a while. I am not usually on social media, and am not real savvy about how to do this. On my phone, I could not find where to add my signature. I am back on my lap top now, and hope I did this right. Let me know please if my signature is correct. Thanks.
 
It might help if you go back and reread the articles that Kelly posted for you (Skigirl). In them you'll see that recovery usually takes months, so you are really pretty early in the process. It is important to keep the pain under control, so I hope you continue to take pain meds on a schedule as long as you are hurting. Rest and ice are also important as well as keeping a limit on how much activity and exercise you are doing each day.

Remember, all this is temporary...just until you can safely increase activity levels without an increase in pain or swelling.
 
Just bringing up the rear to reiterate what everyone else said! :-) I had my surgery on January 19 and was in hospital three days. Lots of pain that first week but now that I'm in my third week, it's somewhat better. Patience is NOT my strong suit but I have learned a few things on this journey:

- Sleep when I need to. I've been given Percocet and Celebrex for pain. I take the Celebrex in the AM and the Percocet throughout the day IF I need it. If I don't need it, I don't take it but almost always take 1 or 2 before bed because my knee aches a LOT at night. Sometimes it wakes me up in the middle of the night and I have to take another pill. I write down what time I take them so that I am careful not to overdo. But again, during the day I don't take Perocets unless I am very uncomfortable.

- The swelling has gone down a lot in the last three weeks although my knee is still misshapen. Two weeks ago, my leg was so swollen it looked like someone had gone after it with a baseball bat! Now they're the same size except for the knee itself. I try to remember to ice it a few times a day especially after I do my exercises or if I walk around the house a lot (I'm on a cane now vs. the walker. Slow going but I'm getting there.). Walking a little helps with the stiffness but sometimes causes a little extra swelling and achiness.

- My cure for constipation? Trail mix! When I first came home, I had my boyfriend go out and get me some Colace because the meds had really gotten me 'backed up', so to speak! :-) The Colace definitely helped but I didn't really want to take another med on top of the other meds I'm taking, along with my high blood pressure meds. So I buy trail mix -- the kind that's mostly raisins or cranberries and some kind of nuts. And I drink Vitamin Water or iced tea throughout the day. I also have an Activia Yogurt for breakfast a couple of times a week. The extra fiber and water seem to be doing the trick!

Best to you!
 
Thanks to everyone here for their help. I am now walking up steps in a normal gait, and using a stationary bike. My bend is at 125 degrees, and PT is happy with my progress. My pain is better controlled, and I am using a tramadol in the morning and one at night, although I still have the ache most of the time, with the occasional zing of pain. It is much better. My only problem now is that I feel so darn weak still. When I go up one flight of steps my heart rate goes to 120-130, and I feel short of breath. I need to sit down, and recover quickly. I don't understand the tachy rate with minimal exertion, and have a call in to my doc. I am slowly improving. I told work that I did not think that eight weeks was enough, as I work 12 hour nights as a nurse, and plan on taking one to two more weeks for recovery.
 
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