Thank you so much for your contribution. I love the idea that now you need to shop. I buy so many things from Amazon these days. It's just easier and most of the time less expensive. But.....knowing that local stores are negatively impacted, I do make purchases there too. Heck, maybe I'm just a professional shopper and didn't realize it!I did do the FARM selection on Amazon. Every little bit helps and it gives me more excuses to buy stuff!
I think this feeling is very common. It's especially the case when a person has little frame of reference for what these joint procedures take for recovery. This is one of the main reasons BoneSmart was created. Our founder, Richard Warner, was unable to find ANY information or help on the web back in the early 2000's when he had his hips replaced. It's our mission here at BoneSmart to ensure that never happens again for people who want to understand their joint issues and surgeries.I think I just expect more from myself and need to feel sure that I’m where I should be in my recovery.
I definitely agree with Jo that there probably isn't a limit on how long you can expect progress. At least in some cases recovery time would be a factor of how weakened your muscles were before your surgery. Muscles can atrophy fairly quickly....usually faster than most people think. I remember my cracker-jack physical trainer telling me years ago that for every day your muscles are immobile or underused, it takes 10 days to recover proper strength. I don't know if that prediction is valid when you have muscles not used for months or years, but in my case with my shoulder, I can see that after 2+ years of not doing much with my left arm above shoulder height, my strength at those higher levels is VERY slow in coming back. I'm learning patience.....again.Another rotator cuff surgery survivor told me that her therapist told her that where you are at a year is pretty much where you’re going to be! What do you think about that?
I noticed a similar upswing just over the three months point. Maybe the difference now is that the changes are smaller and I think slower, that it’s easy to not notice or feel like you’re going backwards. I sure felt like that for weeks, which triggered the pity party which made doing the exercises harder and increased the pain and around and around we go.Great update @Carcon ! Sounds like you have really turned a corner in this recovery. Well done!
Keep up the good work. I know you’ve been struggling with discomfort for awhile. So each step we take toward returning to a normal life is reaching a huge mile stone.
I’m going to be the harbinger forever (after needing a revision after 6 wk) Please do not do more than your care team recommends. No one takes better care of you than you do. Be kind!
I recall the two months mark as being difficult, especially getting through the holidays: I didn’t have enough strength to peel oranges for Christmas dinner ambrosia. I cried. Less than a month later I celebrated folding my sheets. I cried. You have to go with it.I am very encouraged by your post. Thanks! I will be at 2 months this Wednesday, so I am a long, long way behind you. Every day I feel a bit better and stronger, but words of encouragement like yours are still very much needed and appreciated.