Become an Insider

TKR I Feel Like the Tin Man these Days

Shoes. It's finally happened. I notice a marked difference in walking painfully after I've worn my flip flops. And they're not the flat rubber ones. They're Clarks and have support. It's a sad summer day when I wear Sketchers to the pool. :beg:
 
I have compression knee socks that I wear a lot. The ones I like best are by Sockwell. There are loads of merchants on Amazon, the socks average about $25 a pair and come in lots of colors. I have a very chunky leg and these stretch to fit, though I have a friend with a “ normal” leg and hers fit fine.

I wash and line dry them. I can’t wear them till I get my staples out, but probably next week I might.

My teds are so itchy and they stop mid thigh and have this weird rubber top. That, and my dog ruined one by adopting it as a toy. Plus, no good colors.

my legs feel a lot better in support stockings/socks.

And ewwwww. Girdles. I won’t even wear control top tights. At this point in my life, it’s not worth hiding. :heehee:


And i‘ll tack on shoes here....I love Clark’s.....I have some Mary Jane styles that are comfy but for serious walking I wear new balance. Wide foot, flat feet. I have a half sole insert from soul insole that works well.
 
As usual, I may be missing something but why doesn't someone invent an ice machine which can be used in a car? All it would need would be a different plug, right?

My problem with shoes is one foot needs one type of shoe and the other foot needs a completely different kind of shoe. The latest challenge - besides the knee - is that both have developed ganglion cysts on top of each foot. Actually they aren't really cysts because they can't be drained; just bony protusions - very painful. I can't wear anything that goes over the bumps so that cuts out a lot of shoes. Finally found three types of shoes which are the most comfortable - Ugg slippers, a pair of Ugg loafers (although they may be too flat now) and another pair by a German company which cost an arm and a leg. All so pretty. My daughter is secretly thrilled about this new development; she is slowly inheriting all my very good shoes and a few pairs of boots.

Another milestone....we just went for a short drive and I could get my foot in and out of the car without help! It's hot as the hinges of Hades outside and it felt like my bionic knees were heating up but it was nice to just drive around for 20 minutes.



 
If your ice machine could run on dc current you could plug it into your lighter. But my cryocuff is Gravity operated, so could work in a car as well.

Great progress to get into the car normally!
 
I’m glad you had a nice ride and got in and out if the car well! A major accomplishment!

I have trouble wearing shoes, also. Somehow I have a nerve issue in my foot and just putting a sock on makes my foot feel all lumpy in the bottom of my foot, add a shoe and my foot hurts. I need a footbed with a metatarsal bump inside to support the ball of my foot.

As a result I wear open toed sandals most of the year. If I won’t be outside too long,like a short walk from car to store, I’ll wear my sandals in the winter. Once I’m in a store I’m fine with them. One day in Staples I had a man say to me, “You know it’s January, right?) :blackcloud:

Maybe I should move to Florida, or at least spend the winter there!
 
@Jockette....at least you haven't been reduced to wearing socks with your sandals which is what I do with my Birks if the bumps aren't too bad. Yes, I've turned into my grandmother! Thanks for pointing out the shoe thread. Just read through it and have tried just about all of those suggested except the Klogs. Everyone I know wears and loves Skechers but my feet are screaming in pain after about an hour in those.
 
Unfortunately I have been reduced to socks with my sandals. :yikes: Not proud of it, but Baby it’s cold outside! Especially in Ohio in December!

I have black sandals and black socks and I try not to think about how it looks. And it’s not nearly as warm as if I had boots on. I don’t have any snow boots I can wear, if I should ever need them. I probably won’t, my days of playing in the snow are long gone, I never lasted long outside in the cold anyway.

I had to get diabetic socks because they are a looser knit and not so tight on my foot. No, I’m not diabetic.

This is the foot on my unoperated leg.

My replacement knee seems to be acting the same way when I put pants on. :bawl:
 
Oh....that's a great option. Thanks Love. It would be great to use on our autumn, 15 hour car trip/vacation and when I showed it to my husband, he said "well, at that price, we could buy a lot of ice on the road and stay another night at the beach. (The prices drop after Columbus Day). Hmmmmm…….
 
Laurenkate said:
when I showed it to my husband, he said "well, at that price, we could buy a lot of ice on the road and stay another night at the beach. (The prices drop after Columbus Day). Hmmmmm…….
Click to expand...
Husband’s are like that! You could try telling him some things are priceless.
 
Another option is an ice bag - i’ve Used them on a car trip and in bed at night. They stay colder longer than a gel,pack and you could fill a cooler with ice - or as hubby said can buy it along the way and fill it as needed. I got mine on amazon and it has a nice strap which keeps it on the knee
3-size Refillable Ice Bags No-Leak Waterproof Cold Packs w/ Adjustable Wrap & Extension Band, Reusable Healthcare Cold Therapy for Sports Injuries, Head Shoulder Elbow Knee Foot Pain Relief
 

Attachments

  • [Bonesmart.org] I Feel Like the Tin Man these Days
    A5095AF5-065D-41EA-945A-BB3726B0A90E.png
    40.4 KB · Views: 277
Lots of folks wear socks and sandals in CA in the winter, but then . . . CA, right? Sometimes I really miss that crazy place. Who knew?
 
@beachy - weird, right? I have a pair of very old Ugg slippers and most of the lining has worn away. Still always expect them to be very hot but they aren't. Bought a pair of Ugg sandals this past spring which are very comfortable until my feet start swelling & look like bread boxes so then it's back to the slippers while at home.

@Dzina - I saw that in another post of yours; love those English ice bags and am planning to buy that set. Thanks for the suggestion; that will be the perfect solution. I can have my ice and an extra night at the beach too!

@Jockette - do you know about Happy Socks? They have a lot of fun patterns and my grand-daughters think it's very funny when "GaGa" wears those with her sandals. (They're getting to the age where they will soon be embarrassed by it but we aren't there yet.) Socks tend to bother me too but you may not be able to wear those. Also, Bombas socks are very soft and comfy. Don't know if they would be as comfortable as the diabetic socks but compared to the compression socks I have to wear most of the time, they are very nice.
 
Last edited:
We figured something else out last night. I have the Ossur compact ice machine and cannot use the frozen bottles of water in it. My husband has been fiddling with various sizes of ice to see what would last the longest through the night. I remembered someone gave us ice trays which make the big cubes - maybe 2" in diameter. He used those and some smaller cubes and there was still a little bit of ice in the machine this morning.

I've been concerned about my leg flopping over at night and feeling so stiff in the morning. Last night, I wrapped my thin "Linus blanket" about my right foot, crossed it and tucked the ends of it under my left leg to hold it a little more upright. It actually worked, wasn't uncomfortable, and I wasn't quite as stiff this morning. Great! Another thing to deal with at night - 10 pillows, heating pad, ice machine, blanket around foot, etc. Getting into bed and then getting out about 5 times a night to go to the bathroom may be all the p.t. I'll ever need. :egypdance:
 
I love the elevating wedge the hospital sent home with me. It has a trough cut down into it so my leg stays put once on it!

I also have an adjustable bed, but my knee is very uncomfortable with the leg part of the bed elevated, my leg flops over toward the left, like you describe, and my knee is very unhappy. My knee, at almost 17 months, is very particular to angles.

So I continue to use my wedge. However, it is splitting where the seam for the trough is because I put both legs on it and it is only designed for one. So far it’s still good to use but I dread the day it’s “done.” I may have to call my surgeon or hospital to see if I can buy another one from them.
 
I'm almost 6 weeks out and reading the above 2 posts really makes me appreciate my knee! I never had any pillows or supports or ice devices etc in bed. When my knee was newly done I slept on my back. Not brilliantly but in 3 hour bursts which added up. More recently I can sleep on my side and even front and it's OK - not perfect but OK.
I'm not meaning to be smug or annoying. I truly appreciate a good night's sleep. It's just in case a newbie reads this. Sometimes, just sometimes, normal sleep is possible.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Active Antimicrobial Hydrogel

Members online

No members online now.
Total: 1,016 (members: 0, guests: 1,016)

Latest posts

Back
Top Bottom