TKR Funnysmart’s May 12 TKR

Funnysmart

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4 days post surgery. Had a rough Saturday with knee hurting and being nauseas all day. Sleep was tough to get. Haven’t taken any narcotics yet besides tylenol and anti inflammatory. Startig PT today. Leg extension pretty good considering ROM not good pre op. Walked around a lot yesterday and might have overdone it..constantly icing and stretching..
 
@Funnysmart The first week or so can be tough, your keg is very upset. Rest a lot, don’t over do, right now you need to heal. Don't worry about your ROM.

We have an article about sleep in our Recovery Guidelines.

I will leave you our Recovery Guidelines. Each article is short but very informative. Following these guidelines will help you have a less painful recovery.

Just keep in mind all people are different, as are the approaches to this recovery and rehab. The key is, “Find what works for you.“ Your doctors, PTs and BoneSmart are available to help, but you are the final judge as to the recovery approach you choose.

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:
rest
ice
take your pain meds by prescription schedule (not when pain starts!)​

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. At week 4 and after you should 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.
 
Glad you’re through with surgery but sorry you’re hurting. Is there a reason you’re not taking pain medication? Do not over do it!

Marie
 
8 days post surgery. Have rom of between 95 to 100 degrees very happy about that. Extension is close to 0. Still having a miserable time sleeping more than 3 hours a night. Taking one anti inflammatory and one Tylenol 500 in morning and 1 Tylenol at night. Kicked it up to 2 Tylenol at night and slightly helped. May have to take one hydro morphine at night. All in all dry happy so far. During the day walking sound on crutches and not over doing it. Trying to ice every 3 to 4 hours and trying to keep swelling down. Also have been on bike to increase ROM for the past 4 days for 29 minutes and that helps. Start off pedaling backwards and then when warmed up going forward. Doing all of my stretching recused several times a day. Hardest part for me is to get more rest and less exercise. Will post again next week. If anyone has any questions please let me know.
Thx
Mike
 
Hi @Funnysmart and welcome to BoneSmart. I think you are really overdoing with all the exercise you describe so early in your recovery, which is likely contributing to your pain at night.

You really don't need to be worrying about ROM at this stage. There is still lots of inflammation in that joint from all the carpentry work your surgeon did. As the inflammation goes down, you ROM will automatically increase. Remember that overdoing the exercise can cause additional internal inflammation.

You might also consider increasing your pain medication a bit to help you sleep at night. They work best when you stay ahead of the pain by taking them on a regular schedule -- every 6-8 hours for Tylenol. If you wait until the pain becomes intense, it's harder to get it under control. This article explains more:


Glad you found us. Keep us posted
 
Thank you. Icing consistently has really helped in the past week. Agree with you that I tend to over do exercise when knee feels well. Will try to calm down on stuff.
 
Tuesday afternoon.knee feels a little sorer than yesterday. Went out yesterday and today for several 300 yard walks down our road. Using a cane to make sure that I’m walking correctly. Was able to push off my foot a little better today than yesterday. May need to take a narcotic tonight since the 2 Tylenol do nothing for me at night..trying to elevate and ice 4 to 5 times a day and that really has helped with trying to get swelling down.
 
Using a cane to make sure that I’m walking correctly. Was able to push off my foot a little better toda
That's so great! Heel-toe walking can really help you with your recovery.

May need to take a narcotic tonight since the 2 Tylenol do nothing for me at night..trying to elevate and ice 4 to 5 times a day and that really has helped with trying to get swelling down.
The first month or so can be a real roller-coaster ride, so you are wise to try to stay ahead of the pain and swelling!

Keep us posted!
 
One month out yesterday. ROM of motion is 105 on flexion and extension is at 0. The last 2 nights i have finally started to get some sleep probably averaging 5 hours as the stiffness and the pain are slowly starting to get better. Trying to do more stretching and a little less walking and riding my peloton bike about 3 to 4 miles a day.Have been at work for the past week and the first day or two since I use a stand up desk was a little tough and did lots of icing for the past week. I am now taking 2 Advil and 2 Tylenol over 24 hour cycles. Hopefully i am through the worst of the pain. Just ordered a yoga strap to help me get a consistent stretch on bending my knee.. Have a follow up in 10 days with my surgeon. If anyone has any questions feel free to ask me.
Thx Mike
 
One week later. Huge difference in one week. For the last several nights have gotten 5 to 6 hours sleep and the pain in my knee has lessened by 50 percent. Starting to increase my Rom. Have my follow up on monday
 
Yay! What an uplifting post.
 
9 1/2 weeks out. Just came back from PT and im happy that I reached out my ROM goals of 0 degrees extension and 120 flexion. It has been a tough 9 weeks but the last 10 days have seen a huge improvement in sleeping. My exercise routine stays fairly constant on a daily basis. Have been doing 20 minutes on the bike, 20 walking backwards on treadmill to get extension, 20 on the elliptical. For the past 2 weeks have started doing leg presses, short arcs, lots of balancing and trying to get leg strength back. Have cut myself down to 1 Advil and 1 Tylenol every 24 hours. still get fatigued by end of day after work and hard PT sessions. Was able to hop on my outdoor bike and rode 5 miles for the past 3 days. Still icing twice a day after workouts. I had cementless TKR so before I do any impact exercises I need to wait the full 12 weeks for bone growth to occur. All in all very happy with progress but getting into the gym has helped me mentally. Its a long process but you have to stay mentally tough.
 
A belated Happy Two Month Anniversary to you! Good to hear you’re happy with your progress.

Please notice that we have merged your newest thread with your original recovery thread. Having your recovery information contained in one place will make it easier for you to reflect back on. It is also helpful for those stopping by to be able to review your history before advising or commenting. Please post any updates, questions or concerns about your recovery here. Let us know if you’d like your thread title changed and we’ll edit accordingly.

A great Sunday and week to you! :)
@Funnysmart
 

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