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TKR I Feel Like the Tin Man these Days

Laurenkate said:
I'm surprised you were allowed to drive while taking pain meds
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There is a lot of mythology around this issue. I once telephoned 8 different insurance companies and asked them what were their rules about post-op people and resuming driving in regard to taking pain meds, etc. All of them said they had no policy and it was entirely up to the individual to decide if they felt fit and competent to drive. But then, that is the UK!
Laurenkate said:
I know the intensity of color has to do with how much water one is drinking and how diluted it is, but when my leg is really swollen and going a lot to the bathroom (like every hour at night), there is a green tint to it. Sort of like when you eat too much asparagus.
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I think it's more to do with the diet! Read this.
KitKat64 said:
How do you get the snippets from someone's post into your new one?
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@KitKat64 Have you not found the area How To Use This Forum yet?
This is the article you need How to use the quote feature
 
Well, here's what my doctor told me about driving while taking meds. If involved in an accident - and it doesn't matter who caused it - both drivers will usually be checked to see if they've been drinking and/or what medication they are on. For that reason, he tells everyone not to drive while on the opioids and he has to testify to that if called upon to do so in court. Perhaps we have more ambulance chasing lawyers than in the U.K. but it's not worth the risk.

Thank you, SVO; hope you're doing well. It is good not to compare ourselves to others, but it's also reassuring to realize all the exhaustion, pain and challenges etc. are a shared experience, isn't it?
 
To me, it's just common sense not to drive while taking opioids. Even if you aren't feeling totally under their influence, there will be some impairment while on them. If your reactions are even a little affected, it could affect your braking time, and that could cause a major accident and maybe even cost a life. Why even take the chance?
 
Laurenkate said:
Good grief, KitKat; that's either crazy or awesome - or both. I'm surprised you were allowed to drive while taking pain meds
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Oh, I didn't take the pain meds before driving. I mainly used them at night, that is when the pain seemed to get more intense. I used Ibuprofen mostly, I tried to limit how much of the narcotics I used. I used them in the beginning of my recovery, prior to p/t, but had someone drive me there.
 
Whew. Staples out this morning and a good talking to about wearing the TED hose.:groan: Staple removal was like being pinched by a baby crab 35 times so it wasn't bad. Just glad it's over.
 
What did they say about the hose?
 
Looks like you had your surgery the same day as me. I hope things are going well. My results have been amazing and I am really having to force myself to take it easy. The better I feel the harder it gets.
Wishing you all the best !
 
Getting myself to put on the dreaded TED hose is my least favorite thing right now. I took a day or so off and then read about them again and scared myself into putting them back on. I just despise them. I so love taking my strolls around the block in July weather wearing them
 
I would never have been able to put them on by myself. Thankfully after about a week and a half my surgeon said I could stop wearing them.
 
Shanej; thanks and same to you too. We spent the past 6 months completing a lot of projects around the house so I'm not as ambitious as you are....but good for you! It's been a surprise with both tkr's how content I am to just read, watch old movies, work on one easy project and putter around. Also looking forward to the fall, cooler weather and getting back out there with two knees which don't hurt.

Jockette; I just tend to swell and bruise if you look at me hard so I need to accept & wear the hose. Elevating and icing help but the hose help more than anything. Blech. My husband has to put them on and he hates hates hates it with a passion. And as SVO says, they're especially wonderful when it's 95 degrees and humid outside.

Ugh. Just really looked at my leg. It looks like a cross between Frankenstein, Bigfoot and an alligator.
 
Laurenkate said:
If involved in an accident - and it doesn't matter who caused it - both drivers will usually be checked to see if they've been drinking and/or what medication they are on. For that reason, he tells everyone not to drive while on the opioids and he has to testify to that if called upon to do so in court.
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Well that confirms what is said. At the end of the day, it's up to the driver to decide if they feel competent/confident to drive. If they have any doubts then don't. But the choice and responsibility is yours, not your doctors.
 
We've been surprised at how quickly each day has gone by but today, for some reason, has been a long one. Something feels very strange on the medial side of my knee - almost like a pulled muscle. Is that remotely possible? There's a shooting, burning pain when it's moved a certain way. With the exception of getting up ever hour to walk around for 5-10 minutes or bathroom visits, most of the day has been spent elevating, icing and wearing the stupid TED stockings; leg is still swollen right above the knee. It looks like someone inserted a small russet potato in there. *sigh*

The good news is my husband is starting to understand that "fixing dinner" every night is a pain in the neck. Last tkr was in the winter and I had frozen a lot of soups, stews, etc. so we didn't have to think about it much. We eat a lot of veggies in the summer and it's too hot to eat anything hot or heavy. We're fortunate to have a lot of good little places around us to pick up dinner or whatever we want to eat. It's been nice not to have to think about that (and there are fewer pans for him to lose).

Is anyone reading anything interesting? I have a pile of books here but none have quite caught my interest.
 
Laurenkate said:
Ugh. Just really looked at my leg. It looks like a cross between Frankenstein, Bigfoot and an alligator.
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A few days after my LTKR, I noticed my leg seemed really swollen. When I took off the TED hose that night (my OS had me wear them 12 hours on, 12 hours off), my leg looked like a baby elephants!! Plus the bruising!! Good grief, my whole leg was 1 huge bruise!! I don't remember my right leg looking bruised like that after I had that knee done. So, I panicked for a few seconds, then took a deep breath, and googled swelling after a TKR. I was relieved to read that what I was experiencing was considered normal after a TKR. I also spoke to my p/t lady at my next appointment, she, too, said that bruising like that is very common after the TKR. Ice and elevating the leg seemed to really help, and over time, the swelling and bruising abated.
 
I had the opposite experience. The day after my left tkr, almost my entire leg was black and blue and so swollen it looked like a balloon. This time, it took 3 or 4 days for the bruising to set in and it wasn't half as bad. Other than on the top of my knee, the rest of the leg isn't swollen much. I'm a little worried about the pain on the side of it but hopefully another 12-15 hours of icing will help it.
 
With my first TKR my leg was one giant bruise. With this one I had nary a bruise anywhere. Same leg, same knee, different surgeon, which leads me to only one conclusion......:)
 
Laurenkate said:
We've been surprised at how quickly each day has gone by but today, for some reason, has been a long one. Something feels very strange on the medial side of my knee - almost like a pulled muscle. Is that remotely possible? There's a shooting, burning pain when it's moved a certain way. With the exception of getting up ever hour to walk around for 5-10 minutes or bathroom visits, most of the day has been spent elevating, icing and wearing the stupid TED stockings; leg is still swollen right above the knee. It looks like someone inserted a small russet potato in there. *sigh*

The good news is my husband is starting to understand that "fixing dinner" every night is a pain in the neck. Last tkr was in the winter and I had frozen a lot of soups, stews, etc. so we didn't have to think about it much. We eat a lot of veggies in the summer and it's too hot to eat anything hot or heavy. We're fortunate to have a lot of good little places around us to pick up dinner or whatever we want to eat. It's been nice not to have to think about that (and there are fewer pans for him to lose).

Is anyone reading anything interesting? I have a pile of books here but none have quite caught my interest.
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You can't beat the classics:- "The Count of Monte Cristo" Very long but totally gripping. I thought it would be heavy going (free on Kindle) but it was a wonderful uplifting altruistic story. Of course it depends on what genre you like. Ken Follet "Pillars of the Earth" if you like historical novels or of course there is always "Harry Potter" :-)
 
My second knee has behaved a bit differently. My overall conclusion is that every knee is different, every hospital is different (in every Country), every surgeon has a different skill level (and it requires a lot) and lots of after care suggestions are different. I wouldn't go as far as to say we are on our own but you do have to work a lot out for yourself! I've found this forum to be the best and although we are all different it is easy to identify with a lot of what people are saying.
 
A mysterious new pain has appeared? It’s most likely normal. The medial pain that plagued my left knee for months was an inflamed bursa (that eventually settled down and the pain is now completely gone). There are tendons in that area that could be complaining about being put to work. These pains generally come and go, then go away. Pulled muscles are also possible because we’re not moving quite normally yet. :bored:

If you are at all into Westerns, consider the Longmire novels by Craig Johnson. Start with the first one, The Cold Dish. Set in modern Wyoming and ever so much fun. Different from the TV series based on them, and I think better.
 
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