I'm cracking up here because the whole "EMTs called us a cab" thing didn't seem that outrageous at the time. Some context is that we live in an area of town that's currently partly cut off because a major bridge is out, so the next ambulance was 45 minutes from picking us up while a cab could arrive in 10. Since the EMTs were seeing a normal EKG, I felt safe getting in the cab, partly because it would get me to the ER a lot sooner.
(Now, the whole "we're kicking your husband out of the ER waiting room at 5 am, guess you can get yourself home" thing? THAT was outrageous!)
Anyway, I found it SO HELPFUL to read everyone's recovery stories on BoneSmart that I swore I'd tell mine even if it was boring, and since the weekend it's been pretty boring.
On Monday (day 4 post surgery), we went to the surgeon's office so he could make sure the incision looked OK and put on the waterproof dressing I was supposed to have in the first place. Incision looked great, knee was at about 3 degrees extension and 85 flexion--no pressure, just the easy range of motion.
From the ER photos and current condition of the incision, he wasn't sure whether my low blood pressure and pain was caused by cellulitis. His theory is that the local he put in when he closed the incision wore off suddenly and I had a vasovagal syncope (fainting) episode from the pain, which would explain the cold sweats, lightheadedness, and very low blood pressure and heart rate combo (73/50 at 60bpm). This was kind of what I kept asking the ER doc -- could this just be a reaction to the pain?
{This actually sent me down a research rabbit hole on fainting. Did you know that endogenous opitate levels spike during a fainting episode, that those lower blood pressure, and that all of the other chemicals that cause the low BP during a fainting episode also modulate pain? My knee actually had zero pain when we were waiting for the EMTs and while they were here. Pain didn't come back until about 90 minutes after the episode started. Also, very little direct research is done on the whole fainting-from-pain thing, because you can't really subject research volunteers to extreme pain and see what happens when they faint. I'm now wondering if the body just overdoes it on the pain relief mechanisms and ends up affecting BP and consciousness.}
Sleep
Since Day 3, I have been able to sleep well, and sleeping a ton. Like, 11 to 13 hours at night with a nap in the afternoon. I wake up every 4 hours to keep the schedule on the pain meds, but I'm out again within 5 minutes. I consider this my job!
Range of Motion / Swelling
As of today (Day 6 post-surgery), the knee is not quite at zero degrees extension, but it's close. In flexion, it's past 90 degrees. Swelling is minimal -- about 1/2" circumference compared to the other knee. I've been sitting with the leg propped up on an ottoman mostly straight for a couple of hours a day, but sleeping with it bent.
Elevation & Icing
I've been having trouble elevating because it's aggravating some pre-existing low back pain. I have prescription compression stockings for another issue so I asked the surgeon if I could wear them to manage swelling instead and he said that was fine.
I've been icing 2 or 3 times a day, especially right before sleep, sometimes during a medication break if the pain is bothering me at night.
Pain Medication
My surgeon's instructions were to lay down a base of 3000mg Tylenol a day, then add either Tramadol or Oxycodone to that as needed. I also had a nerve pain pump for the first 72 hours. I had to switch from 2 Tramadol to 2 Oxy the first day after surgery as the pain increased. My pain got better on Day 3 and I considered switching back to Tramadol, but the pain pump was about to come out, so I decided to stay on the Oxy until I could see how I did with that. I needed to stay on the Oxy for the first 36 hours after the pain pump was done, but switched back to Tramadol on Day 5 and reduced from 2 pills every 4 hours to 1 pill on Day 6.
Showering
The shower is on the second floor up 17 steep steps, but I think I will try it tomorrow.
Know any good but undemanding TV shows?
I had all these great shows saved up to watch, but with the pain drugs, my concentration just isn't up to following the twists and turns on "Succession." Today's discovery was "Aristocrats" (BBC miniseries set in the 1700s), which was about right -- pretty costumes, pretty hair, simple plot. "Ted Lasso" was great except it was so good I was stressed about missing any if I fell asleep.