TKR I am at day 16

[chrism]

Hi, sorry I never posted anything.

Been having problems with the pain meds, as soon as I take them I am gone, dead tired and cant remember anything that is told to me.

Surgery was good, had extreme pain in the beginning, first 2 weeks, now its better but I tried to get of meds too fast. That was not to good. Didn't know that you have to get off gradually. Could not remember the doc told me that.

Having big problems with stretching the knee out. One day I was at 4 degrees and the next I am at 13 degrees. But PT says we will get there. Have no problems with bending the knee I am over 105 if I remember right. PT said I am ahead of the game there.

But I am ready to get back to work I hate laying around. I have no swelling at all. You can hardly tell that I was operated on, only the bandage gives it up.

I walk a lot around the house and I even go in the yard when my son goes with, he will not allow me to go alone. If you fall, he said, I will be mad, don't go alone. All in all it's going up hill and this is day 16. Will keep you posted.... chris

 

[sistersinhim]

Welcome to Bonesmart! Extension quite frequently comes in much slower than the bend. Try walking with longer strides to help straighten your leg. But, be very careful. It's easy to lose your balance. I will leave you our recovery articles. Following these will help you to have a less painful recovery.

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
elevate
ice
take your pain meds by prescription schedule (not when pain starts!)
don't overwork.​

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

the BoneSmart view on exercise
BoneSmart philosophy for sensible post op therapy​

5. Here is a week-by-week guide for Activity progression for TKRs


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 a 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 history before providing advice.

 

[NavyGunns]

@chrism, from one guy to another, you need to get it out of your head that you need to get back to work immediately! You are barely 2 weeks post-op! As long as you don’t push things too hard and cause additional swelling, you’ll be amazed at how quickly things will get better. When I had my PKR in mid-April, I set reasonable and realistic goals regarding pain management, limited PT (no pushing or forcing of my knee and no exercises if they induced swelling and/or pain), and overall activities. Sometimes I tried to overdo it, but always paid the price afterwards. But overall, I did what I had set out to do and was successful at going back to work (from home) at the beginning of week 5. Week 6 was a transition week, one day home, next day office, repeat. Week 8 I took my first business trip out of town flying 4+ hrs to the west coast. But that type of recovery might not work for everyone. If you overdo it and try to force your knee, you will go backwards, not forwards.

So, you’ll need to rein in your Type A personality and tell him to chill out, relax, and give your knee time. Your knee is the boss right now and if you don’t respect that, you’ll find out the hard way what it’s like when it gets mad.

 

[Ang8793]

Chrism, so glad you are doing so well! I am 1 year post RTKR. I work in a transportation/dispatch office which is in no way a physical job. However, it is long hours and fast paced. At 7 weeks I felt pretty good - was mobile without any issues and didn't have any real pain to speak of. My thought was that I might as well be productive and get back at it. Looking back I think I would have benefitted from taking more time to build up strength in my legs and ultimately my overall stamina. By the time I returned home in the evenings I was too exhausted to devote the time I should have to my excercises. Just wanted to give you something to consider. Best wishes!

 

[tarajenni]

Chrism, I’m a lightweight when it comes to pain meds but there are so many options out there that won’t leave you feeling so badly. Something like Tramadol that’s a step down for some just wiped me out for 12 hours. Whereas a low dose hydrocodone for me did the job. It really varies. Check with your doc for other possible options.

I totally understand the wanting to get back to work. I’m still home and going crazy. I’m 3.5 weeks post op from PKR and am planning to go back next week but I know it’s not typical. Try to be patient with your knee as it will heal on it’s own time, not your time frame.

Hang in there. Keep us updated.