TKR I did it!!

[Cococay]

Well— I did it. I got through knee replacement surgery! They kept me 2 nights in the hospital.
Tonight is the first time the pain isn’t all consuming enough to go online. This surgery is no joke. If someone said we will pay you 5 million to do this-I would run away so fast..... it’s awful.
I knew my Family would bug me about pt. But oh my gosh- it’s constant. I’m staying at my Parents a few days and I can’t count how much I had to hear It.
i know it’s important but I also believe after that surgery- the day of- when they find a way to take the edge of my pain and I can finally sit still a couple minutes thar should be ok not to move but the therapist still made me try pt.
im so happy to get advice from my Bonesmart family. I hope that this horrible awful part after surgery is short term.

 

[Jockette]

Welcome to recovery! I’m so glad to hear from you, we’ve all been watching for your recovery thread,

Yes, the pain is very tough. If it is not under control, call your doctor and see if he will make an adjustment.

Ice is a great pain reliever, so ice as much as you can, making sure to have a cloth between your skin and the ice source.

You don’t need to do exercises right now, ankle pumps and short walks are all you need. You need rest so your body can begin to recover. Stay strong about this and don’t let anyone talk you into doing anything that hurts. It hurts enough just to walk to the bathroom, but you can’t avoid that!

We all wish you the very best, you got this!

I will leave you our Recovery Guidelines. Share these with your family. Each article is short but very informative. Following these guidelines will help you 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. At week 4 and after you should follow this

Activity progression for TKRs​

6. Access to these pages on the website

​

Oral And Intravenous Pain Medications​

Wound Closure​

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.

 

[Jockette]

Also keep in mind:

Regaining our ROM is more about Time than repetitions of a list of exercises.

Time to recover.
Time for pain and swelling to settle.
Time to heal.

Our range of motion is right there all
along just waiting for that to happen so it can show itself.

In the general run of things, it doesn't need to be fought for, worked hard for or worried about. It will happen. Normal activity is the key to success.

 

[Cococay]

Thank you I really needed to hear that. Although I know they meant well- I was told - once by pt once a nurse and even once by Family if I don’t aggressively fight through pt I will end up getting mua (although my Family didn’t know the terminology).
I wish I could be as naive as my early posts when I found Bonesmart.

 

[Jockette]

No one should even be mentioning MUA just days after surgery.

Now that you are home, (or at least out of the hospital) the choice of PT is yours alone. If you don’t agree with what they tell you, or their approach, find another one or do your own rehab at home.
Saying no to therapy - am I allowed to?

 

[Jockette]

And for further proof to your family, you can show them this:

This is what one of our members, TortiTabby, experienced:

(Just so you know, ADL means Activities of Daily Living.)

“At my six week appointment this is what my OS wrote in my visit summary: "She reads an online website called Bone Smart which states to not push through pain following knee replacement. If she were to follow this direction, she will have to learn to live with a knee that only reaches to 85 degrees of flexion. I believe this website is very misleading."

It has now been 20 weeks and all I do is ADL and this is what my ROM has done:
3.5 wks: 75
6 wks: 85
7 wks: 90
10.5 wks: 95
14 wks: 100
17 wks: 105
20 weeks (where I am today): 110
I am so thrilled it keeps improving and improving and I know now that I will get to my goal of 120 (or even better, dare I say!)
So, if a OS or PT bullies you into thinking your ROM will not improve over time they are wrong. By the way, I haven't been back to see the OS since that horrible appointment at 6 weeks, but I sure am going back when I reach 120 just to say, "Ha! You were wrong, BoneSmart was right!" “

And,

“Just an update for those who are apprehensive about gaining ROM:
It has now been 26 weeks and all I do is ADL and this is what my ROM has done:
3.5 wks: 75
6 wks: 85
7 wks: 90
10.5 wks: 95
14 wks: 100
17 wks: 105
20 weeks: 110
26 weeks (where I am today): 120!!!
I did it! My goal of 120! No "pushing through pain", no PT after the first 3 visits, and most importantly to me: No MUA! My surgeon who said I would never get beyond 85 ROM without pushing through pain was wrong, wrong, wrong. I'm excited to see if it gets even better. “

 

[DJL1967]

@Cococay Congrats on your surgery. Glad you are now on your way to recovery. Keep us posted on how things are going.

 

[Carmencita]

Hi and well done you! I’ve been watching for an update and wondering how it went, and here you are done and dusted!

You know by now that everything they say about needing aggressive PT is simply not true - there are so many “proofs” of that on this forum. Family mean well, but unless they have been through it they simply don’t know. And you have done extensive research here! Try to let their well meaning but incorrect advice go over your head!

Very best wishes for a good and gentle recovery

 

[DEL2021Feb-17]

Glad you done with surgery now comes the hard part recovery!! Keep in mind no one heals the same there is no standard on what should happen and anybody that claims that is nuts!! Most myself included will have a nurse and in home pt for a month. The nurse to check blood if your on blood thinner. In home PT will also start keep in mind its not supposed to cause even more pain its supposed to help not hurt if they hurt you stop!! I like the therapist I had but everytime she left I was in too much pain so I now have a different one and its fine. The first month is pretty blah. I am 23 days out finally feeling better not jumping for joy by no means but better. I cannot stress enough stay on top of pain meds and ice and elevate trust me it helps. There will be times you may be in tears frustrated etc but your not alone, I have felt that way plenty. I really wish you the best and please what ever you do not over do it your knee will let you know!!!!!!!!

 

[newlybionic]

Congratulations on your new knee. Make sure you keep your knee elevated with ice on it as much as possible. Dont worry too much about PT right now. You need to get your pain under control. You will do okay if you read through the articles you were given. You will feel better and better as the weekd go by.

 

[kneeper]

Congrats. It's ok that they want you do move, but as others have said, full blown PT is not needed this early. I did some gentle heel slides (not that I could bend far with all the swelling) and walked to the bathroom in the first few days and that was about it. Heck, just getting up and down for those bathroom trips can be a bit of an event in the first week. Your main job right now is rest, ice, elevate.

 

[sistersinhim]

Many of us never took formal PT or did any exercises. I am one of them. I had 12 knee surgeries, 2 of them kneecap removals, and 1 tkr. Even after those I never took formal PT. But, I didn't just sit around and do nothing. I used my knee as it was intended to be used by walking around to take care of my daily needs. As I healed I was able to do more. Icing and elevation were a huge part of my recovery.

So many people stress the point that we have to do the exercises or we'll never have function back in our knees. These people have never had a knee replacement and have no idea how much it hurts to do aggressive PT. Not only does it hurt, but it also doesn't help at all, and a lot of the time it causes setbacks. Nice easy normal movements that don't hurt are all you need to do to receive full function.

Listen to your knee. It will tell you if you're doing too much by increased pain and swelling. When that happened to me, I found that resting, icing, and elevating helped. Your knee knows how to rehab itself without being told what to do.

 

[FCBayern]

You got this @Cococay! You know the BoneSmart approach and you know you don't have to suffer torture by a PT. When the "must do PT!" people start talking just ignore them and come back to us for reassurance, no need to suffer for nothing. Welcome to recovery, you have a road in front of you, but Oz and the wonder of walking pain free is on the Horizon!

 

[Bishop]

Hi I’m so happy for you! Congrats on coming through surgery and on your new knee! I hope I’m allowed to post a reply to you here! 10 days now till my surgery!

 

[Cococay]

Thank you all so much!! . I keep getting these -I don’t know if they have a name but— mostly ok non surgical leg but I sometimes both. Where this spasm of its own volition cones on and my entire leg jerks-kicks. Etc. it’s annoying and can cause more pain after.

 

[Jockette]

I think that is what we call “zingers.” It‘s nerves healing and reconnecting. It will get less in time.

 

[sistersinhim]

Yep, zingers are a frequent visitor after this surgery.

 

[Cococay]

Definitely helps to know it’s normal.
tomorrow is one week since surgery and I have to say the last couple days have felt like I’m over that “hump”. I hope so at least.
I have this “tubey wrap” on my surgical knee -and the ted sock on the other. I was supposed to put the Ted on my other knee. I had so much edema presurg -but it’s helped it. Do you guys have pain that almost is similar to when your leg has a really bad sunburn and anytime you stand up it throbs cuz the blood rushes through?I feel like if I can get it on my surg knee without twisting etc it may really help. I was gonna ask the PA to help Friday at my post op appt.

 

[Jockette]

That first week or so whenever I stood up, I’d get a feeling of liquid fire running down my leg. It was awful! But after that it let up for me.

 

[lovetocookandsew]

Congratulations on your new knee! Remember, this is your knee, and no one; not family, spouse, friends, PTs or even your surgeon, can tell you how to recover. They can advise, but in the end the decision of how your recovery will go is yours, and yours alone. If people keep pressuring you, tell them you appreciate their care and concern, but you'll make all the decisions on your recovery, and to please back off. I told my PT in the hospital, in no uncertain terms, what he could and could not do, and what I would or would not do. There was no room for discussion-it's my body and only I will make the decisions on how to recover.

To date, I've done no formal PT, but have only walked around, and have now put away my cane and walker. Even though my surgery this time was different, it was still related to my knee replacement, and I have to recover in similar ways. My entire leg is still very swollen, so I've begun icing and elevating recently. I would normally do that from the moment of surgery, but because the pain in my thigh was so intense, icing and elevating caused non-stop agony, so I had to put it off. Normally ice would relieve my pain, but for some reason this particular surgery caused so much pain that icing was not possible at first. But ice is a great pain reliever, so as long as you keep a cloth on your skin, ice as much as possible day and night, making sure to get up and walk around a little every hour or two during the day.

I don't do the ted socks-so can't advise you there. I think even if my doctor had ever prescribed them after surgery, I'd skip it, as putting a tight pressure sock over a painful swollen knee sounds like more torture than I'd accept.

I also had a similar burning skin pain this time, and even a light sheet on my leg was too painful, so I used my Lounge Doctor to raise the height of the blankets so they didn't touch my leg. I wasn't using it to elevate at that point, so it was a perfect blanket lift.