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TKR Here I go again!

I know you'll shout at me that it's early days yet etc but I keep reading other threads where people have terrific flexion compared to me yet are at an earlier stage than me.
I've got my next PT assessment next week (which will be 6 weeks) and I'm worried I've not improved more.
At least the strange sharp pain down the outside of my knee is better which is something. I'm planning another wee walk round the gardens but it's looking like rain so I might have to postpone that.
Sorry just airing my worries.
 
Well I had a single glass of dry rose last night and slept solidly from 10pm-6.30am. 8 hours straight! It was absolutely wonderful. I've just been going with the flow and sleeping as and when I can which has been fine by me. But this! Lovely!
Shopping today and lunch out for the first time. I'm ready!
 
My left knee stayed around 90 degrees till almost 4 months, then in the last month before surgery on the other knee, was almost 110.

The left never bent as much as the right, even when I was young. My right, 10 days out of surgery was 95. But, as the PT said, it doesn’t matter what anyone but you wants. Your opinion is the only one that matters.


Congrats on the sleep! Sleep is delightful.
 
That's reassuring @Eeek. I felt I was walking in a more natural way for a while but now my leg sort of springs back as though I have an elastic knee. Most odd.
Went shopping. OH said I walked as though I had wet myself!! Oh well, at least other shoppers avoided me.
Lunch out went well. Delicious Chinese meal. I had my leg down for ages but did have to have a walk around the dining room at one point.
 
Newsflash! I just did 40 (very slow) rotations on my little pedaler thingy. It was set quite far away from my chair but I couldn't attempt a rotation last time I tried. It seems a relatively comfortable way to work on flexion as no weight on knee just stretching and bending. More tomorrow
 
A good accomplishment!
Just remember, slow and steady wins the race!
:bicycle1:
Even though this guy isn’t going slow, but he’s cute!
 
That's wonderful accomplishment! Petal that thing as much as you want as long as your knee doesn't hurt afterwards. You know the routine!
 
Don't worry I'll take things easy!
Looking back on the week I feel I've improved a lot. The leg feels stronger and more robust somehow. I no longer use my stick round the house and I've been out and about more. Just a walk round our grounds involves some steps and lots of changes of surface area. I can get into the car easily now too which is a bonus. Shopping expeditions have gone well and with no repercussions.
Managing to use the pedaler felt like a great step forward. On top of that I can sleep on my side and also on my front. Marvellous!
Am still in some fear and trepidation re my PT visit on Thursday
 
@Spex10 I don't want to hijack mollymax's thread, so will post this here. :) I always go shopping on Saturdays as hubby works Monday through Friday and likes to go along, plus right now I need his help. I also shop only one time a month as I make my menu and grocery list for the entire month and then shop accordingly. Along with the warehouse store, I also go to local grocery stores like Safeway, Trader Joe's and WalMart. It's always a tiring day but I only have to do it once a month. I only went to the one place today, and we plan to go to WM tomorrow as I was too tired today. I live near Sacramento, which is a very large area and so never run into anyone I know. To me shopping is a task, not a social event, although it would be nice to be able to shop with friends if I had any who shopped the way I do. I do occasionally go with my daughter, but she's pretty busy and it's hard to get together to shop, do our nails or hair, etc. I suspect your life there is very different than mine here. I'm fortunate to have plenty of time to do whatever I like, but I don't really shop for pleasure. I used to go to the malls with my daughters and friends years ago, but I don't really enjoy that and do most of my shopping on Amazon, e-bay, and other online stores. I'd rather meet friends for lunch or other fun activities like a book club or games, etc.
 
Fair enough. I do all those other things too when my knees are OK and soon they'll be better than OK so I'll get back to my normal life. I like to have busy weeks so I can keep weekends as special. I run 2 groups for adults with Asperger syndrome, play bridge, write novels and short stories and give talks on them. I've got so many bookings starting in the Autumn that I'm virtually 'on tour'. It's very sociable round here so lots of chats with neighbours and friends as I do everyday activities. Life for me is very different I reckon! Just need those knees to play ball.
 
Glad to see things are going well for you Spex10. What is the peddler thing you are talking about? @lovetocookandsew or supermarkets aren't as big as yours. There is a Costco in Edinburgh which is a fair size but I haven't been for some time now. Tesco down near where I am is fairly small so I managed round but was in pain from unoperated knee unfortunately.
 
@Mollymax it's just a set of pedals on a little frame. No wheels or seat. I set it up in front of my chair and pedal away. If I move it nearer it causes more of a bend. I tried to post a photo but apparently the file was too large (?)
Oh well. Maybe you could Google it. It wasn't very expensive but works well. I can pedal away so stretching while watching TV. Win win!
Just back from another lovely lunch out. Leg down for more than an hour!
 
I have one of those little peddlers; I got it for my first TKR, but am not using it this time around. I asked Josephine her opinion on it, and she reminded me how she feels about exercise after a TKR, so it's still stored away. I may use it way down the road when I'm ready to try to ride my big bike again, just to see how my knee does with rotating, before hopping on my real bike. But then again, I may not.
 
I'm ready for some stretching. Sitting about has gone on long enough and there are other health concerns than just a knee to worry about. I don't want to end up the size of a house and if I can do some simple easy exercise or walk about the shops then so much the better. All aiming towards getting my life back.
Many of the moderators use and recommend the use of either static bikes or even real ones. Check out their comments.
 
It seems a lot of people like those peddlers. They are an option if, for whatever reason, you don’t have a “real” exercise bike, of any design.

A friend loaned me his, and I didn’t do well with it. Back in my younger days I tried some aerobic videos/classes and I was always going the wrong way! :doh:I guess I’m just not very coordinated!:rotfl:

Anyway, back to the peddler, I couldn’t find the right height chair to use with it, so it hurt my back trying to pedal it, I had to finally block it up to a wall so it wouldn’t move, it bothered my non operated knee that has some arthritis, and if that’s not enough, it made my foot hurt and my foot had gotten to a better place. (I have a nerve problem in the foot of my unoperated leg, there is much pain near the ball of my foot, and even wearing my sturdy soled footwear, pedaling with my bad foot put pressure right there in the ball of my foot, making that worse)

One more disappointing time for me of trying to fix this, but messing up that. :bawl:
 
Oh dear. Bad luck @Jockette! I do it barefoot. It's quite stable so doesn't creep. If I lie back in my chair it's like a reclining bike but is more challenging if I sit up. I don't do it for long and use gel packs afterwards if my knee feels too hot.
I simply have to get up and walk about a lot too these days. I think it's all progress.
OH pointed out that I seem much stronger and more mobile than I was in South Africa when I was 5 months out from my last TKR. I wish I'd kept a diary!
 
@Spex10 I know some here recommend it, which is why I bought the mini pedal bike last time. But because I had so many problems in the end, I want to do everything possible to not only keep my knee out of the ODIC, but to have the very best result I possibly can as I NEVER want to do this again in life. Therefore I decided not to stress out my knee, nor over work it at all, just let it recover at it's own pace while doing daily activities. I am doing quite well-my bend is actually coming along and mt my extension is gradually improving. I haven't done a single exercise, nor have I once overdone things, and my knee is very happy. I will be riding my big girl bike, which has been hanging around in my garage for years, as soon as I am able, but until then, I plan to keep doing what I'm doing as it's working wonderfully well. By the same token, if what you're doing is working well, keep doing it. We are all different, our knees are all different and what works for some may or may not work for everyone.
 
Well its Monday morning again. I wish I'd kept a diary to record progress. Somehow I just feel more robust these days. No more stick around the house, shopping OK and sitting with leg down for longer and longer periods. Sessions on my pedaler and more walking generally are paying off. Phew!
A return to my normal life doesn't feel so far off any more. My OH feels I'm doing much better at this stage than last time.
 
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