OP
OP
greatlakes
graduate
United StatesI can hardly believe it, but it's time for the six-week update. I've just started a two week trip to the mainland. I took the ferry over on Sunday, then drove for about three hours. Yesterday I drove the rest of the way, to Ann Arbor. The friend I share a house with, who also was my wonderful ice supplier the first few weeks of this experience, is going on a two-week trip to Yosemite with another friend. He doesn't drive, so I brought him this far, where he got picked up today, and now I'm hanging out here for two weeks until he gets back. I was able to get a really good rate on a hotel with a pool, plus I have relatives in Ann Arbor, plus I have a lot of music lined up I'm going to hear in the evenings. My folks are well provided for back home with people we hired to care for them. Two weeks with no responsibilities and a swimming pool! This is going to be fun.
The two days of driving went quite well. I no longer have any deep aching pain. The pain manifests itself only in stiffness and tightness. By the end of each of the two driving days, I was quite ready to lie down in the hotel room with ice and my foam cushion, which goes everywhere with me, but was not what I would call completely wiped out either. It's sort of like you don't feel all that tired until you're lying down, but then you realize that this is the only place where you want to be.
It felt so good to get in the swimming pool today for the first time! I limited myself to a half hour, 20 minutes of slow, careful water walking and 10 of various water exercises. Then I rested for several hours, then drove one hour to a club where I listened to jazz for three hours before driving back to the hotel. I don't feel any bad effects tonight so that seems to be a decent start. They also have a recumbent bike, so I'll start adding 15 minutes of that tomorrow as well. I'm hoping to add a second half hour of pool time in the afternoon in a day or two, since most if my days will be just resting.
At the six week mark, I still use a cane most of the time. Just walking around in my hotel room or around the house at home, I sometimes set out without the cane. I do think it's a bit too soon though, because I do limp a bit without the cane. I think at my weight, it still needs to do some more healing to take the stresses. So most of the time I remember the cane. My friend tells me that the biggest difference he sees when I'm walking with the cane is my walking posture. He says I walk straight now, I walk tall. And I walk with much more speed and confidence. I can feel that this is true. But I can also feel that I'm not quite all there yet, and hope the pool helps in working on my gait.
I often forget about tylanol during the day, but still take two in the morning and two pm at night. Still have severe scar sensitivity particularly at night, where anything touching the scar is painful. Still ice but not nearly as often. I bought two ice packs with screw off tops to use in the hotel, as they are easier than the machine, and the gel wraps aren't useful here without a freezer. I put one of the screw top packs above the knee and one below. I'm putting in a picture of my hotel cushion and ice set up (I do turn the one that goes under my knee upside down, that plastic top wouldn't keep it very cold!).
And that's a wrap at six weeks! Oh, my right knee is still doing better than before the left knee replacement. I know some have had the opposite experience with the non replaced knee. My theory is that I'm still resting the knees so much more than before the operation, that the right leg still is getting a bit of a pass. It might hurt more again when I get more active in a few more weeks.
Just edited this to add the left butt/hip pain lingers, I ice and stretch it and that does help. Mainly I have to focus on walking correctly to minimize the pain. It's not debilitating but more an irritant.
The two days of driving went quite well. I no longer have any deep aching pain. The pain manifests itself only in stiffness and tightness. By the end of each of the two driving days, I was quite ready to lie down in the hotel room with ice and my foam cushion, which goes everywhere with me, but was not what I would call completely wiped out either. It's sort of like you don't feel all that tired until you're lying down, but then you realize that this is the only place where you want to be.
It felt so good to get in the swimming pool today for the first time! I limited myself to a half hour, 20 minutes of slow, careful water walking and 10 of various water exercises. Then I rested for several hours, then drove one hour to a club where I listened to jazz for three hours before driving back to the hotel. I don't feel any bad effects tonight so that seems to be a decent start. They also have a recumbent bike, so I'll start adding 15 minutes of that tomorrow as well. I'm hoping to add a second half hour of pool time in the afternoon in a day or two, since most if my days will be just resting.
At the six week mark, I still use a cane most of the time. Just walking around in my hotel room or around the house at home, I sometimes set out without the cane. I do think it's a bit too soon though, because I do limp a bit without the cane. I think at my weight, it still needs to do some more healing to take the stresses. So most of the time I remember the cane. My friend tells me that the biggest difference he sees when I'm walking with the cane is my walking posture. He says I walk straight now, I walk tall. And I walk with much more speed and confidence. I can feel that this is true. But I can also feel that I'm not quite all there yet, and hope the pool helps in working on my gait.
I often forget about tylanol during the day, but still take two in the morning and two pm at night. Still have severe scar sensitivity particularly at night, where anything touching the scar is painful. Still ice but not nearly as often. I bought two ice packs with screw off tops to use in the hotel, as they are easier than the machine, and the gel wraps aren't useful here without a freezer. I put one of the screw top packs above the knee and one below. I'm putting in a picture of my hotel cushion and ice set up (I do turn the one that goes under my knee upside down, that plastic top wouldn't keep it very cold!).
And that's a wrap at six weeks! Oh, my right knee is still doing better than before the left knee replacement. I know some have had the opposite experience with the non replaced knee. My theory is that I'm still resting the knees so much more than before the operation, that the right leg still is getting a bit of a pass. It might hurt more again when I get more active in a few more weeks.
Just edited this to add the left butt/hip pain lingers, I ice and stretch it and that does help. Mainly I have to focus on walking correctly to minimize the pain. It's not debilitating but more an irritant.
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