At 9 weeks, you're still very early in a recovery that takes a full year, so there's plenty of time for everything to improve. That tight band will be with you for several months yet, but it will gradually decrease. You'll be able to do most things long before the year is up.
The big thing about this recovery is that it's a long haul. It's not like many surgeries, where you're basically back to normal in a couple of months. This recovery is more like a marathon than a sprint, so you have to pace yourself and try not to expect too much, too soon. Patience will be your best friend.
Go easy on the exercises. They're not essential, because your knee will get all the exercise it needs as you use it during your activities of daily living. Keep using your walking aids until you can walk more easily.
It's normal for your knee to be more swollen by the evening, especially if you're up and about most of the time.
Here are the BoneSmart recovery guidelines, with advice and articles that should help you:
Knee Recovery: The Guidelines
1.
Don’t worry: Your body will heal all by itself. Relax, let it, don't try and hurry it, don’t worry about any symptoms now, they are almost certainly temporary
2.
Control discomfort:
3.
Do what you want to do BUT
a. If it hurts, don't do it and don't allow anyone - especially a physical therapist - to do it to you
b. If your leg swells more or gets stiffer in the 24 hours after doing it, don't do it again.
4.
PT or exercise can be useful BUT take note of these
5.
Try to follow this
6.
Access to these pages on the website
The Recovery articles:
The importance of managing pain after a TKR and the pain chart
Swollen and stiff knee: what causes it?
Energy drain for TKRs
Elevation is the key
Ice to control pain and swelling
Heel slides and how to do them properly
Chart representation of TKR recovery
Healing: how long does it take?
Post op blues is a reality - be prepared for it
Sleep deprivation is pretty much inevitable - but what causes it?
There are also some cautionary articles here
Myth busting: no pain, no gain
Myth busting: the "window of opportunity" in TKR
Myth busting: on getting addicted to pain meds
We try to keep the forum a positive and safe place for our members to talk about their questions or concerns and to report successes with their joint replacement surgery.
While members may create as many threads as they like in the majority of BoneSmart’s forums, we ask that each member have only One Recovery Thread. This policy makes it easier to go back and review the member’s history before providing advice, so please post any updates or questions you have right here in this thread.