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Revision TKR if at first you don't succeed....<

thanks Celle. I've decided to phone her later today and tell her that the last session has left the knee stiff and swollen (still, after 5 days!) and that I want to take 3 0r 4 weeks off PT to let things settle down again. I'll still plod on with the knee bends, leg lifts and exercise bike on my own - I know they won't cause any problems for the knee. I'm not unhappy with 100 flexion at this stage - I know that when the swelling goes down I'll get more and as long as I keep the knee mobile on my own I don't think a few weeks off PT is going to do any harm. I think she realises that I'm desperate to get back to my training of Guide Dog puppies and that's maybe why she's pushing a little harder than I'm ready for, but the results aren't helping! She's shown me lots of different exercises for various things, so if I think the knee is ready I can always try them very gently at home and see how I go.
I was reading back over all my posts on this thread and have realised how far I've come in just a few weeks, mentally and physically. From feeling anxious, abandoned and desperate I now feel that I'm taking control of my own recovery and that alone is a big boost in morale. I can't thank everybody on this site enough for their patience and advice xx
 
puppywalker said:
I was reading back over all my posts on this thread and have realised how far I've come in just a few weeks, mentally and physically. From feeling anxious, abandoned and desperate I now feel that I'm taking control of my own recovery and that alone is a big boost in morale. I can't thank everybody on this site enough for their patience and advice xx
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That's good to hear. :yes!:
Celebrate the progress you've made. You're going to get to full recovery in time.

I'm glad to hear that we've all been able to help.

Having a rest from formal PT won't do you any harm. You can always go back later, if you feel the need.
Just keep doing a few, gentle exercises.
When you're walking, concentrate on doing it properly - heel strike, roll forward on your foot and push off with your toes. Don't make your steps too large or too small.
 
Yippee!!!!! For the first time in 2 years I just managed to go up the stairs - all of them - sequentially! OK I still had a crutch to be on the safe side, but I did it, and in record time, too! Not ready to try coming down that way just yet, but what a boost! For some reason when I woke up this morning the knee felt different - none of the usual morning stiffness and I've been walking round the house without a crutch amazingly smoothly. I don't know what's happening, but I love it!
 
It's a little sore this evening, but I've used muscles that I haven't used in years. It's not too bad, though, and is far outweighed by my sense of achievement! Even if I ease back on that until the muscles are stronger, I know it's there.:happydance:
 
I don't know how to tag anyone, so I'm hoping someone will take pity on my computer illiteracy and do it for me!:umm: I wanted to ask Josephine about taking painkillers. I've read the library articles about pain management but I'm not quite clear about whether I still need to be taking them. I only take Tramadol 50mg - 2 in the morning to get me going. Since my knee has recovered from the last PT session I'm still getting stiffness, but no real pain. It's uncomfortable more than anything. I think it's more a case of the "tight band"syndrome than anything else. Should I now be OK to just grin and bear the discomfort, which I find quite easy to do, or should I still be taking them regularly as I do understand that stiffness is a form of pain? I stopped taking them at bedtime several weeks ago as I certainly don't need them to help me sleep - I've been very lucky in being able to sleep well within a couple of weeks of surgery. I'd be delighted to be done with the drugs, but I'm not silly enough to risk my recovery if I still need them. :dogwalk:(this is hopefully what I'll be doing in a few weeks with my new Guide Dog puppy!)
 
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@ puppywalker . I suspect you had the same book I was given at hospital...which hospital did you have op?..I tried to push to meet the timescales it suggested and it just made me miserable. If you need the painkillers take them, don't be a hero, no point in suffering, you will stop them when it's time. You will get there in your own time
 
Remember that stiffness is a form of pain! You may still be needing to take more pain meds than what you are taking in the morning. Many of us need to take them for longer than6-8 weeks after surgery. If you need them...take them!


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my op was at the Golden Jubilee Hospital in Glasgow, Speccybecky. I do have quite a high pain threshold apparently, and can sometimes regard pain as mere discomfort, which is why I'm not sure if I do still need the Tramadol. If it was sheer agony I wouldn't be in any doubt - I'd be eating Tramadol like Smarties, but it really does feel like simple discomfort now. I don't really believe that anyone can be totally pain-free at this stage, isn't it a question of what's bearable? I joined the "I overdid it" club quite early on in recovery and have been a bit more cautious ever since.
 
@puppywalker . I had my op at Golden Jubilee too. We are all different and you know yourself best over medication. All I know is I needed the tramadol for another few weeks yet.
 
@puppywalker .... your instincts in your recovery have been spot on!! Good for you for listening to what your body is telling you works. It will make little or no difference if you stop therapy for 3-4 weeks or forever, for that matter. You have learned what exercises help and those that don't. You are gently pushing yourself into more and more of life's daily activities as you are able to accomplish them. (Bravo for the stairs!!!! Huge accomplishment!)

Continue to take the Tramadol as long as you feel it benefits you. There is no time schedule and you should never try and "tough it out." The idea is to advance slowly in recovery and remain as comfortable as possible while doing so. Recovery is measured in terms of months and sometimes even years for some patients. I think you are doing fabulous. I will tag @Josephine for you, though, as you asked.
 
thank you both. Speccybeccy - are you in the Glasgow area? The Jubilee was like a holiday camp compared to some of the other hospitals I've been in! Jamie - I'm blushing! I had a struggle at first coming to terms with all this, but eventually I dragged up enough sense to realise that if I worked with it rather than against it, things might be a bit easier. I do so hate not being in control! I know there's still a long way to go, but I do believe now that it will come in time if I can only be patient. I've gone back to doing most of the stairs one at a time for now as I don't think the muscles are quite up to it yet, but it was the biggest single advance that I've seen and I was so chuffed it was worth a bit of soreness after -if I could do it once, I'll do it again! :yes!: Joyce
 
@puppywalker , I live in West Lothian. Apart from childbirth this is the only hospital I've been in! I was given a choice and GJ came recommended by physio
 
My GP wanted to go to the Golden Jubilee. I have a feeling it was maybe because I'm quite heavy and she wanted me to go to the top hospital. They were fantastic while I was in (48 hours) but I think the aftercare could do with a bit of attention. Have you seen the OS since your op? I haven't. I just saw a PT at 6 weeks who said I was doing well and they'd see me in a year! I think that's partly why I struggled so much at first - I really felt that I'd just been left to get on with it and I didn't know what I was supposed to be doing. However, that's all in the past now and at least if I have to get the other one done I'll know what to expect and where to come for help and advice!
 
At 6 weeks I saw an arthroplastic nurse. At about 6 months I told GP I was still sore and she said lay off exercise for a bit and if it still hurts she'd send me to hospital. I simply rang the hospital myself and saw surgeon in 2 days. They were great and I was fine! At pre op the nurse told me I'd be back at work and only taking paracetamol at 6 weeks! That, along with that damn book, put me under pressure and I cut down meds far too soon and was miserable, but at 6 week check up nurse could see that and told me me take the tramadol! Where are you?
 
I'm in East Kilbride. I'll be at 9 weeks next Tuesday. I phoned the aftercare team 6 days after surgery because my entire leg, knee to groin, swelled horrendously and they told me to go to my GP, who thought it might be a DVT and sent me at once to the local hospital for tests which luckily proved all clear. He also gave me stronger painkillers as what the hospital gave me wasn't helping at all. I also left a message with the aftercare team to say I was going away for a few days and giving them my mobile number to contact me as they requested in "the book". I heard nothing from them and phoned them again a few days later to be sure they'd got the message and got the rather huffy reply that if I'd left a message, it would be dealt with. When I got home a week later there were 6 increasingly annoyed calls on my landline answerphone asking me to contact them! When I phoned they tried to blame the ward staff for passing on an incorrect message and when I told them the message had been left on their own number they didn't seem too happy and only wanted me to answer a short list of questions - not in the least interested in how I was actually feeling or coping, just physical ability. At which point I gave up and found Bonesmart - thank God! That's why I feel the aftercare department could do with cleaning up their act a bit. The only person I've seen at the hospital since surgery was the PT at 6 weeks. I have to say she was really sweet and very encouraging. Like you, I felt the book they give you just depressed me because I took it for granted that I would be doing everything according to it and I didn't reach any of the "targets" in the time allocated and spent a couple of truly awful weeks thinking that the op had failed and I was going to be housebound for the rest of my life! I hear the same story so often about different hospitals - I suppose they don't want to frighten you too much, but so many of them just don't seem to prepare you for what's really going to happen afterwards. I'd much rather be prepared for the worst and then pleasantly surprised if it's not that bad!
 
Yes, I could've done with being better prepared. I found bonesmart at about 6 weeks on a sleepless night. It saved me. I even went to my GP at about 15 weeks in tears convinced there must have been a terrible mistake in theatre and I was crippled for life. She laughed! Said she wished she had a £ for every person who said that! Hang in there, there are lots of ups and downs along the way, take the pills, no point in suffering. I only started to feel better when I sat back and accepted that I just had to be patient and wait to heal.
 
glad I'm not the only one! I'm seeing little improvements almost every day now and feel that I'm now really on the way. I need some pills tonight as I've done rather a lot of walking about today - probably too much, but it's such a joy to be able to move around so much more easily than before. I shan't take them on a regular basis, though - I don't think I need them that often, just when I need them.
 
There y'go! Take them as and when you need them. Only you know when that is.
 
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