TKR It's no piece of cake!

[saltyal]

@icep707 I'm headed over to your thread now, got my goggles and noseplugs handy .... and yeah, I'm very fortunate to be able to live here; I moved "on-island" 39 years ago when it was still affordable and I just couldn't visualize living anywhere else ......well I suppose a getaway place in the tropics somewhere would be acceptable for a few weeks in the winter....

My PT's never made me hurt; never, ever. Please be strong and do not let them cajole you, push you, or threaten you with that "window of opportunity."

@referee54 .... Tim I know that statement is crucial to the BoneSmart way, and I think it bears repeating at every opportunity! ....It's too bad more of us didn't have the same kind of rehab experience as yours but I guess the PT philosophy re: TKR is still a work in progress so I'll bet within a few years we'll be hearing more stories like yours. Thanks for sharing!
Cheers, Al

 

[Nana moon 27]

Hi @saltyal I couldn't resist having a read of your posts. What I like so much is the honesty and clarity in which you write about your journey. You have got better in your own time and this is what I am having to learn to do too. It's very hard. My doc said I have to focus on getting well instead, when I am back to getting well I will get back to normal. I can't argue with that one.

I have to ask where your avatar picture was taken, it is so beautiful.

Thanks Al love Nana moon 27 x

 

[saltyal]

Hi @Nana moon 27 .... Thanks for those kind words! As you've observed, it is indeed a long and difficult journey but SO worth it.... I think @Karringtyn said it best a few days ago when she said something along the lines of "some days I will fail but I'll pick myself up, wipe myself off, and carry on" ... a good motto for all of us!

It sounds like you have a good rapport with your Doc: getting well and staying healthy should be #1 priority for all of us... anything else just diminishes our lives.

The avatar picture I'm using is one I snapped at Brady's Beach outside of Bamfield B.C. last winter. My grandparents homesteaded near there around 1925 so we're very fortunate to still have a small parcel of land out there as a "getaway" from here on Salt Spring Island... I'm planning on getting out there later this week with Woodstock to check up on things & do a little minor maintenance.... It will be my first major drive (about 2 1/2 hours, mostly on logging roads) since my op so I've been putting it off but now feel confident I can do it!
Cheers, Al

 

[Nana moon 27]

Hi @saltyal the place looks truly truly beautiful like something out of a dream. You are sooo lucky. Good luck with your drive and I hope that Woodstock is a help!!!!

I do have a good rapport with my doc, when I said to him you know me too well he smirked at me and nodded. He also said that unlike the majority of his patients I'm always the one that wants to go back to work!!!

We all need out getaways, our bolt holes (eng sl). Ours is in Wales and at the end of the month we can go and stay up there on the caravan park where our caravan is located. It used to be someone's home before and is beautiful inside. I get really excited when I know we are going. Yes it does rain a bit but you don't get greenery and scenery like that without water!

Cheers Al love Nana moon 27. FYI my avatar was taken last September. The young man in the pic is my grandson on his 18th birthday x x x x

 

[Karringtyn]

Aww thanks...that is my new mantra! I love your profile pic.

 

[saltyal]

So I'm 19 weeks out now and here's my latest update: Life goes on quite happily, with very few steps backwards compared to those going forward..... well except for occasionally going upstairs backwards! My knee is still a bit stiff when I get up in the morning: it's not swollen at all but a little reluctant to bend more than 115º-120º or so. But it loosens up pretty quick to about 135º with a few rolls on my exercise ball and a few minutes on my exercycle. With a cup of coffee and an apple it's a pretty good way to start the day so I really have no reason for complaint! I can walk as far as I want now without a hint of a limp... adding up to 6 miles/day sometimes along the road, through the bush, and along the beach nearby which is a good exercise in itself as it's mostly cobbles and logs. I do have a bit of minor swelling and slight pain (about a 1out of 10) when I stop and sit after those hikes but it's easily resolved with an icepack for 1/2 hour or so.

The bottom half of my incision is nearly invisible now, but the top half is a little hyper-trophic (it looks like an earthworm) and remains a bit tender to touch. I think part of that is due to my over-eager PT right after staple removal, which caused the knee to swell up so much that the wound started to gape in flexion exercises .... I went to the drugstore & got a package of steri-strips to keep things together but I suppose the damage had been done by then and it took a couple of weeks extra time to completely close itself....Of course that was before I became a BoneSmartie so lessons learned but what a goofy thought process I had in those early days: rather than cutting back on exercises to avoid swelling I opted to tape myself together ... I guess I'll have that little bit of "outstanding" scar as a conversation piece!

The numb area on the lateral side of my knee seems to be gradually shrinking in size so I remain hpoeful it will continue to improve. I sometimes kneel down on it for floor exercises or to fish Woodstock's ball out from under the couch, and although it doesn't hurt it feels pretty strange, which I gather is common.

So that's it for now... I hope those of you that are still in early days or struggling with your exercises will find all this somewhat helpful.... you'll have noticed that through my TKR journey I only did PT a handful of times in weeks 3 and 4 post-op and I found it was a bit too pushy so I quit and just did exercises I found in the library here, combined with a few I cobbled up myself. But for me the most beneficial exercise of all is just plain walking with my dog. I'm very lucky to live in a place where there's all kinds of rough trails and beaches close by, and I'm convinced the effort of walking properly in slightly challenging conditions has made my journey easier ... there's a little paradox for you!

Now having said all that, I'm off to take Woodstock out for our walky!

Cheers, Al

 

[icep707]

Thats great news SaltyAl , you are moving along just great . Its a blessing to live in a beautiful area. It really helps and motivates in recovery. 19 weeks ! Im patiently waiting to get at that point . 4 weeks yesterday . No complaints so far .Very early on I had to sort out my meds , week 1 and now I need to talk to my PT about yesterday. He got me ! Easy fix im sure . Well I have been taking it very easy this last week . Was overdoing it week 2 -3. Im so grateful for the support I get from Bonesmart. It really helps with the loneliness. Well SaltyAl , Congratulations on the job well done , keep on keeping on . Iceman

 

[DogLoverx3]

Love your update! You're always so positive and supportive to others that it's great to hear how well you're doing! I think if we all were able to live in such a lovely spot and have miles of beaches to walk on (and Woodstocks to walk), we'd all be doing better! Hey, maybe you can open up a post TKR B&B and then pimp your dog out for walks & hikes! I hope to be where you are in recovery (and attitude) very soon!

Keep up the great work and thank you for always inspiring me to do my best and if that's not possible, to at least admit that I'm not yet ready for the things I think I 'should' be ready for.

 

[saltyal]

open up a post TKR B&B and then pimp your dog out for walks & hikes!

Woodstock would absolutely love that! .... he's such a sociable dog he'll go anywhere with anyone and I'll bet there's some amazing places to walk in your neck of the woods; maybe not right out the back door but not too far off.... there's got to be a good reason all those folks live around there besides the nice winters!

 

[saltyal]

Early tomorrow morning I'm off to see my Mom and will be offline for a couple of days.... so I'll catch everyone later..... if you promise to keep on healing and sleep well!
Cheers, Al

 

[Ready]

Thanks for visiting my thread. I am so happy your recovery has been so successful! I envy walking with your dog. We have a 3 legged lab that can barely get around. We love him just the same.

Hopefully you will be able to get those skis out next winter. A year ago, I never would have imagined I would have ever skied again. No, it is was not a piece of cake getting to this point, but that is all behind me (and you, the way it sounds). We are so fortunate to have the opportunity for a new lease on life.

Sounds like you have been a real encouragement to others on this forum. Thanks for that. Best wishes.

 

[saltyal]

We have a 3 legged lab that can barely get around. We love him just the same.

Of course you do! ... & I'm sure his acceptance of his handicap has in some ways been an inspiration for you.... Woodstock sends him a couple of spare belly rubs!

We are so fortunate to have the opportunity for a new lease on life.

Yes we are! ... and also grateful for the technology that allows it to happen and the wonderful environment here that really helps make it work!... without the collective wisdom provided here and all the pain, tears and grins shared by so many, it would be a much more difficult journey indeed!
Cheers, Al

 

[MS Char]

Hi Al, you are very uplifting, it's really good to read your upbeat thread maybe one day soon I will be over this hump. I'm thinking that the longer you wait for tkr the ligaments and muscles get out of whack and makes healing harder. Right now I can't imagine getting my left knee done still struggling with the RTKR. Yesterday I lowered the bike seat down another notch and had no problem doing a rotation so I am having some progress. Josephine wants me to limit my walking to 40 minutes a day for a while. Weather is starting to get warm I think we've had our last snow threat,happily it missed me this last go around. Next knee will be during warm weather.


What kind of dog is Woodstock? I had a Bichon a couple of years ago. I love dogs but now just have one cat at least 15 years old with kidney failure. When he is gone I am going to take a break, he is the last of 4 cats and the dog. Well, give Woodstock a big belly rub for me...
Take care, Charlotte

 

[saltyal]

Hi @MS Char congratulations on lowering the bike seat: now you can put away the stepladder you needed to climb up there at first!... But don't try to lower it too much more for a while if Josephine is advising you to dial your exercises back a bit.... oftentimes it seems that the struggle to progress causes the process to be a struggle!

My hiking buddy Woodstock is a bullmastiff-boxer mix, he's very fit and lean at 98 pounds and a real sweetheart with people everywhere, but for some reason he likes little kids the most... our grandkids can pry open his mouth, peer in his ears or whatever and he just soaks it up! For his bed he has a child-sized mattress with a couple of pillows in our living room so he doesn't miss out on anything.
Cheers, Al

 

[MS Char]

Hi@saltyal, yes now I don't need the step ladder! That one turned my giggle box on. I was planning on leaving it there anyway. My daughter had suggested not lowering it for a week at a time to make sure I didn't have any problems. It is a bit frustrating at this point. I am actually staying home and doing the mantra. Need a food run so have to go out in the rain.

Woodstock sounds like a beautiful lovable baby! I got my children a puppy when they were 7 & 9. He was a Chow Lab mix grew to 60 pounds and was a lovable baby. He used to sleep with me and has actually pushed me off the bed! My avatar is my one and only baby now. He has several sleeping spots including my bed.
Take care,
Charlotte

 

[Nana moon 27]

Long time no hear Al? Are you ok? we miss you love Nana moon 27 x

 

[Nana moon 27]

So Al, how are you? Is everything ok?

Love Nana moon 27 x

 

[saltyal]

Hi @Nana moon 27 & everyone else! ....I meant to put some scritchings together & post here on my 6-month "kneeversary" but time just seemed to slip away now that we're nearly into summer with all kinds of things to do out in the yard & garden, and I've been out fishing on the boat and hiking the trails with Woodstock, so lounging around with the computer has kind of taken a back seat

The old hands here told me that all good things take time and patience, and not to expect to feel like the TKR recovery is behind me for 6 months to a year.... that turned out to be pretty good advice! ...
It's now 7 months since my op and most of the time I "forget" about my new knee but I still have to do some warm-ups and stretches first thing in the morning to shed the bit of stiffness that settles in overnight. And I still get some minor swelling and stiffness by late afternoon, especially on busy-busy days like yesterday when I spent about 5 hours doing yard maintenance, plus picked up and delivered a load of construction material to rebuild our back stairs, and took Woodstock for 2 long doggy walks! My pedometer tells me all that activity was just over 16,000 steps which is around 3,000 over my daily average, so I really have nothing to complain about except for a sore back!

I guess my knee is among many others that click and clunk a lot but without a hint of pain, brought on with all kinds of ordinary movement..... I don't feel any kind of laxity or instability so I have full confidence in walking in rough or slippery terrain and I would have thought these noises should be "quiter" by now, but maybe they'll fade with more time?

My flexion is kind of settled in at just over 130° and I can pull it up to 138° when I'm warmed up and "loose", with a slight hyper-extension, maybe 1 or 2° .... By the end of day though I'm down around 10-15° from that on the flexion and don't quite make full extension... if/when my daily stiffness resolves and I can retain those better numbers I'll be singing in the rain, but meanwhile I'm as happy as a pig in doo-doo with what I've got! .... howzat for mixing metaphors ;)

Those of you that are just starting out on your journey need to know that my own successful trip down TKR Lane isn't really out of the ordinary; there's lots of us started feeling a lot better within 2-3 months post-op, with a slow and steady return to full activity in the following months, and eventually a feeling of "been there, done that, got the t-shirt to prove it!"... So have patience and follow the BoneSmart way; it works!
And for those that continue to struggle even though you've been dealt some lousy cards... @Nana moon 27 & @DogLoverx3 and @MS Char and @RunA42K and anyone else that's getting exasperated, you have my undying admiration and respect for your strength and fortitude; you've made me more appreciative of my own good fortune, and I just wish I could put some of mine into your bank ;)

I'll post again here around my one-year mark; I'm such a slow typist it'll take me the next 5 months to put the words together
Cheers, Al

 

[skigirl]

Great Report

 

[Nana moon 27]

What wonderful news Al, I'm so pleased that you've made a recovery. You've given me hope that mine will suddenly improve. I'm longing to do longer walks on uneven terrain. I feel sure that eventually I will.

It's been great chatting with you. Please take care and keep on with this splendid recovery!

Love Nana moon 27 xoxoxox