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TKR Jan's journey to jump!

I'm glad the nausea has gotten better. Be careful with PT and don't let them do anything that hurts you. It very early and you will find that you can easily be set back but a PT that is too aggressive.
 
I agree with Newlybionic, don't let aggressive PT set you back. You are still very early in recovery, your job right know is to rest and let your knee heal.
 
Well how do I tell the difference between it actually hurting me and just discomfort with something that will help my physical progress?
 
Discomfort will bother you just at the moment and disappear once you stop. Pain is something that stays with you. It will cause your knee to swell badly in reaction to it. If you have pain it will delay your healing and ability to get more range of motion.
 
Jan8482,
Everyone is different in what they will tolerate. You will have to listen to your knee.
Pain past a "3" is probably too much.
Excessive number of exercises may set you back, you are still very very early in recovery, your knee needs rest in these early days.
IMO PT should be working on your gait, balance, stairs, and getting your swelling down. If the focus is on exercise and ROM, you may want to find another PT.
Go back and re read the articles left for you on page 1 of your thread for guidance, there is a lot of excellent information. I find when I re read them I learn something new.
Be sure to: :sleep: :ice: :elevate: and :chillpill:, on schedule as prescribed.
 
Thank you all very much. I will go back and review that info from the first page. I guess I'm just trying to do what my doctor recommended. But all of you experts say not to push it. So I'm perplexed.
 
I spoke with my PT and discussed my concerns. She understood but said this was crucial time to work on ROM. But she agreed to minimize the severity of 2 of the exercises. She asked what my doctor had said. Well uh... Nothing. Just ordered the PT.

I have been sitting in a different chair when I go out and sit in the family room. It's difficult to get my legs just right with pillows on that chair. When I have gotten up from the chair the past 2 days, my leg has hurt a lot. I don't know if that's the PT or the chair.

Icing helps a lot. I'm also gonna stay out of that chair today. I will do minimal exercises. Then I'll see how my leg is later. Of course then I still won't know which caused the pain. PT comes back tomorrow. We shall see.
 
@jan8482
Keep in mind that the PT works for you. You're the boss and she can't do anything to you or for you without your permission. If you think she's going overboard and she won't back off, you can always find a new one who will work with you instead of against you.

I asked my OS the other day if he'll be ordering PT after my surgery this May. He said it's up to me-that I've been through this before and know what to do, so whether I want to skip it or have it, it's my decision. While I don't yet know which I'll choose as I don't know how I'll feel after this procedure, I do know I'm the boss and will let any PT know what my plan is. PT can be helpful, but only if we don't allow them to cause more damage.

My thought right now is to skip PT altogether and go with Josephine's method, but I may decide to have a little PT just to help me with some things as I will be using a walker for a time, etc. Also, that "window for ROM" they try to guilt us with is a total myth.
 
@jan8482
Another thing to be aware of is that it isn't PT that improves your ROM. It's time.

Treat your knee gently, reduce the swelling, just walk a bit - and the ROM will appear, all by itself.
I did no PT at all for my latest TKR, and only had 3 PT visits (two weeks apart) for the one before that. I have great ROM and strong knees.

Your PT is misinformed, because there is no such thing as a crucial time for getting ROM.
 
This is a crucial time for ROM but it's NOT with aggressive PT. I learned ( the hard way) that it is with gentle stretching and massage and time to let your knee heal. I've done just that this time around and my ROM has increased quicker and I've had far less pain. Please don't let them bully you into anything painful at all.
 
No, @newlybionic , there is absolutely no crucial time for ROM. We have examples here of people whose ROM has improved, even after a full year. One person discovered that hers had increased several years after surgery. @Jamie, I think that was you. Can you confirm, please?
 
@Celle You are right. There is no crucial time it was a poorly worded statement. My main point was you don't get good ROM with pain and aggressive PT. Thanks for pointing that out as I wouldn't want someone to be confused.
 
Thanks for coming back and clarifying, @newlybionic . Your advice is usually pretty good, so I was a bit surprised this time! :)
 
Thanks, guys. I spoke with the doc's office this morning. And then talked more with my PT when she was here this afternoon. Turns out my doc wants my ROM to be at 100* when I'm a month out and go see him. Then my PT measured it and it is already at 100. Her goal for be is 105 when she's done the end of next week. So I should be pretty good there. I'm surprised. But I have been trying hard to do the minimal exercises every day. And I ice pretty much constantly. I even ordered some new packs and they arrived over the weekend.

I actually tried walking a little bit without my walker, for a few steps last night and it was so painless. It was so much less than before my surgery. Amazing. I can't wait. I'm starting to believe. I think I can go ahead and have my left knee (TKR) done in early June. And then be pain free and walking on my own by the fall. This knee has been so great, that I'm wondering if the other will be a nightmare. I can't have two easy knees can I?

Thanks again. I appreciate you all and your support and advice!
 
I had two different surgeries on the same knee. The original TKR and then a revision when they had to first remove everything and then replace it all with a new prosthetic. The first time was horrible and I was so frightened going into the revision but the second surgery has been so much better. It's truly amazing the difference. So I believe you can have two surgeries that will go well for you. You have a good surgeon and you know what to expect. I'm sure you'll do fine.
 
I think that both your surgeon and your PT have excessive expectations. Most surgeons only look for you to have 90 degrees by 6 weeks.
There's really is no need to rush, no deadline to meet.

Honestly, I wish that PTs would stop all this measuring of ROM. It only worries people and makes them compare their progress with an imaginary goal and deadline.
What you can do with your knee is far more important than the numbers.

It isn't PT and exercises that give you back your ROM. It's time, rest and gentle treatment so you can heal, and reduction of swelling.
That's why we emphasize rest, ice, elevation and patience.
 
Thank you all. I have certainly been icing, icing and more icing. I've also been resting and staying on top of my pain meds. Not so much with the elevating. They told me as long as my foot is level with my hip, then I am good.

Every day I am amazed by how well I am doing. I feel so lucky and blessed to be at this stage. It will be 2 weeks tomorrow. I'm trying to do everything "by the book" in order to have the best possible outcome. I'm not going through all this and spending all this money and then not doing everything I can to have a perfect new knee. So far so good. Knock on wood.

I sat on the couch sideways with my leg outstretched for a couple of hours tonight. That was pretty comfortable. Only problem I had was the lower height of the couch. Duh. I had forgotten about that. But I maneuvered around and was able to comfortably pull myself up by holding on to a chair. So that's another new place to sit.

My daughter bought some plants for our back patio. I'm looking forward to sitting out there at least for awhile and watching her plant. Yay spring.

PT again tomorrow. I'll keep y'all posted.
Thanks again,
Jan
 
@jan8482 Glad you're doing well. I'm no professional, but I know from experience that elevating is necessary and quite helpful. Leaving your knee at hip height isn't really elevating. I'd suggest you look through the site for tips on how to properly elevate-I did and it was very helpful.
 
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