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TKR Joining the fun 9 weeks out

Hi @SarahJane thanks for the reply. Elevating and icing and catching up on my posts! Last time the hair loss only lasted about 2 weeks so I didn't do anything. This time it has been going on for at least the past 3 or 4 weeks so I am getting concerned. I know it's a known potential side effect of surgery, and even has a scientific name, but just hoping it slows down soon.
 
Glad your recovery is going well! I am about 9 weeks too (RTKR on Sept 14). My ROM is OK; somewhere around 105 to 115 flexion depending on how much swelling I have. Extension is around 4. I still feel a loss of energy and although it is getting better, I have just decided to accept it. Rest when I need it without apology. I cant imagine doing much hill walking. Sorry to hear about the hair loss. I cant help much with that.
 
Hi @Stillhope - we are almost knee twins. My ROM has been as high as 115 /0, but I am still having pain, especially when I think I am feeling better and try to go back to living life. I have to return to full-time work in another month and hope I will feel ready.
Seemed like the hair loss was slightly less during today's shower, so maybe that is coming to an end. I expected my leg to look bad, but not my hair too!
 
@Stillhope It sounds like your recovery is going well. That energy drain seems to last much longer than any of us had ever realized. It does take a lot out of you to recover from everything. You are brave to get both knees done at the same time. I hope you get some sleep tonight and a quiet day tomorrow.
 
I had my 3-month OS visit today! He said that the pain and continued swelling I am experiencing are all normal at this stage of the recovery (as my BoneSmart friends already know!). Most interesting were the actual words he spoke about PT: "At this point, less is more"! He advised me to give up PT, and instead be as active as I can, walk for exercise, and let the knee heal without any further assistance other than everyday life. :flwrysmile: Sounds like he has the same philosophy as BoneSmart.

My extension is 0 and flexion is 115 consistently, and goes up to only about 118 when PT urges me to really push it (and it hurts afterwards). I had them measure my non-TKR leg, which is also arthritic but nowhere near as painful as the TKR one was, and the flexion is only 128, so that might be my "normal".

I am dismayed to still experience pain at times during the day, and almost every night - although normal, it's exhausting. I return to full-time work next week and worry a bit about getting enough sleep to be effective. But I am so encouraged by the OS visit, and hope that leaving PT behind will give me fewer painful episodes. My therapists been very gentle generally, and I never let them hurt me, but I will be interested to see if this helps with the pain.

Thanks to all the wise and caring people on this site - I have been recommending it to everyone who asks how I got through the past few months.
 
Hooray for a surgeon who supports the "less is more" philosophy! :yes!::yay:
He sounds like a sensible, caring person.

That was a very encouraging follow up appointment. I'm glad for you. :)

The continuing pain is normal, as you say. It will gradually decrease, though. You are still taking some pain meds, aren't you? Tylenol is helpful at this stage.

When you go back to work, don't be dismayed if you get an increase in swelling and stiffness. Just make work the only thing you do on those days. Come home and chill out, because you will be very tired. Rest, ice, elevate and take a pain med before you go to bed.
 
Congrats on a good report from the OS. I hope cutting back on PT helps decrease your pain. It was hard for me to return to work at a little more than 3 months. I had to make sure I was ready with my ice and pain killer at night and took Tylenol during the day. Since I live alone I picked up a ready made dinner almost every night. I never did anything else on the day I worked.
 
Thanks @Celle and @newlybionic. I am still taking Tylenol and Celebrex daily, but the Tylenol usually does very little for the nighttime pain, so I often end up taking a Dilaudid. Right after surgery the Dilaudid made me sleepy, but now it tends to keep me awake (which is also my experience with Vicodin and Tramadol). But it does work on the pain. We have an ice machine at work, so I bought one of those old-fashioned, round cap ice bags. I will find a way to elevate at least a little, and will also try to get up every hour and walk so I don't get terribly stiff. I also live alone and can crash after work if needed. Fortunately my company's U.S. offices are closed from Christmas through Jan. 3, so I will get a break then too. Onward and upward! I feel so fortunate to have an OS that I like and trust, and who takes the time to listen.
 
First day back at work! I was dreading it, but it was actually wonderful to see so many caring friends who told me they missed me - and several who said that I looked great! I lost a few pounds total (maybe 8 or 9) with the TKR, and maybe I just looked rested. Whatever, I'll take it! Wore my athletic shoes with new orthotics all day, as my TKR foot has been hurting a lot, but nobody minded. Surprised that I am not more tired, but it's only Monday. I did come home with a sore knee, so I iced a lot, above and below the knee - and used it as an excuse to watch TV!

I feel much more ready to work than I did just 2 weeks ago, so I am very glad I was able to stay away from work until 3 months post-op. I am also very glad that BoneSmart helped me understand that this is a very long and gradual recovery, and that all my aches and pains are normal. Thanks to all of you for that :loveshwr::loveshwr::loveshwr:
 
I'm glad your first day back at work went so well and I'm glad you have such supportive colleagues.
 
Back to work has not been great! I am 3 months out and my short-term disability expired. I have not had any serious complications from my surgery, but some lingering pain and swelling; ROM is 115/0. I am still taking Tylenol and Celebrex every day. I worked Monday - Friday; I have a desk/computer job, but tried to get up frequently and walk; also walked quite a bit from parking to my desk, around the building at lunch, etc. I work in a cubicle but can (and do) stand up and walk while on the phone. I have consistently had pain at night since the surgery, and usually need pain meds (Dilaudid) at bedtime. I also rested, iced and elevated for a few hours each evening. I was doing pretty well until Friday - the weather got damp, and I was probably tired. I came home aching and visibly swollen behind the knee on the inside of my leg, which was more pronounced than my previous swelling. Slept well Friday evening, but was in pain most of yesterday, despite icing and elevating, and even worse today. I am trying to get ready for Christmas, but I was only able to run a few errands before I gave up and came home and took pain meds. Within an hour I was feeling much better, but after 4 hours the pain has returned, both behind the knee and on both sides of the kneecap. It is even sore to the touch, which I have not experienced for several weeks!

Does anyone know if a sharp increase in pain levels is to be expected when returning to work (or to more activity)? I only need to work 3 days this week, fortunately, but it is worrying me to feel like I felt at 7 or 8 weeks, instead of 14. Do DVTs develop this late after surgery? I can't take pain meds during the day as I must commute by car, and also have to be alert at work. I felt ready to return to work, so this is a bit of a surprise, and I am worried about getting through the weeks to come. I will call my OS (need a prescription refill anyway), but I am feeling sad and disappointed, and want to know if anyone else experienced this. Thank you!
 
Hi,
Hopefully the shorter work week will help. Unfortunately I haven't reached that point of mobility but before the surgery in August I did notice that the more time I spent on the leg the pain would vary. It was leveling off. Sitting at a desk was more of a problem for me. I would prop it up under the desk and had frozen rice packs. I would still need to stand and stretch every 1/2 hour to 45 minutes. That did seem to help.
I hope that New England weather is behaving for you. I grew up in Everett and the last time time I was back visiting all my joints felt it:)
 
Hair loss: are you, or were you, taking an NSAID such as Celebrex, Meloxicam, Diclofenac, Ibuprofen? I suffered hair loss (lots) while taking Meloxicam after my first TKR months 5-7 post op. My stylist noticed and pointed this out. When I stopped the medication my hair loss stopped. This may not be relevant to you but I think it's worth mentioning.
 
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Hi and thanks for the replies. PegGar: we are having an unusually warm December, which is welcome so far, especially after last winter's record snowfall. One fortunate thing about living here is access to excellent medical care though! Clipless - thanks for the hint. I am taking Celebrex, but was on it last year also, without the hair loss. I was hoping that less pain after TKR would mean that I could stop taking it, but not so far. The hair loss seems to have slowed down, so I am still hoping that it was from the surgery itself.
 
@Clipless So interesting you mentioned hair loss and NSAIDS. I am 9 weeks post op tomorrow and I was taking Meloxicam for about 10 months before my TKR October 27, 2015. for about 6 weeks after my surgery I had a lot of hair loss. It really freaked me out. I thought, up until I read your post, that it was stress and used that as another reason to beat up myself on what a failure I have been during my recuperation.

I have gone from really not understanding what was expected of me by my health care provider to expecting too much of myself and spending too much time painfully exercising. Just yesterday as I was leaving the gym, I told my husband that it hurt but I just had to do it. Today, I can hardly walk due to swelling. When will we learn.

But back to the hair loss, wow, just very relieved that it wasn't me! It was the drugs, gonna blame the drugs for the whole thing, ha!
 
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@New England Librarian Im sorry this response is so late in coming. When I went to work at 3.5 months post op ( I'm on my feet 8 to 10 hours a day) the pain I was having definitely increased and also the swelling. It was the same pain I had been having but greatly multiplied. I hope you start to feel better soon.
 
@newlybionic thanks for sharing your experience in returning to work. It's comforting to know that someone else went through this as well. This past week I worked 2 days in the office and 1 at home, which seemed to make a difference. The holidays have presented a chance to rest and I am grateful that my employer does not re-open until January 4. It still seems like it's a case of 2 steps forward, 1 step back, but at least I recovered enough after the first week back to stop feeling that something was horribly wrong.

Today I walked over 10,000 steps while visiting New York City, which I would not have thought possible a year ago. I am swollen and sore tonight, but it was worth it - and tomorrow I will rest :)
 
Wow on the steps! Rest up good. I hope you got to see a good show:)
 
New England Librarian said:
Does anyone know if a sharp increase in pain levels is to be expected when returning to work (or to more activity)? I only need to work 3 days this week, fortunately, but it is worrying me to feel like I felt at 7 or 8 weeks, instead of 14. Do DVTs develop this late after surgery? I can't take pain meds during the day as I must commute by car, and also have to be alert at work. I felt ready to return to work, so this is a bit of a surprise, and I am worried about getting through the weeks to come. I will call my OS (need a prescription refill anyway), but I am feeling sad and disappointed, and want to know if anyone else experienced this. Thank you!
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I'm sorry I'm a bit late in answering your questions.

Yes, it's quite likely you will feel an increase in pain level - and in swelling - when you go back to work. You'll probably find you feel very tired, too.

It's not usual for DVTs to develop this late.

As far as the pain meds go, Tylenol and Celebrex should be OK to take at work (and for driving), as they don't affect your state of alertness. And it's probably OK to take Dilaudid at night, as you are doing.
 
Thank you Celle - I was a bit panicked at what seemed like a drastic increase in swelling and pain, but it has calmed down. Thanks to you and the great people on this site, I feel reassured. Next week means back to the 5 day, 45-or-50-hour weeks, but this time I won't worry as much if I am swollen and in pain.

@PegGar16 no shows this time, but dinner with my two handsome sons and one's fabulous fiancée - I think I was able to walk that far because I was in such supportive company! We took taxis later in the day as my leg began to hurt, but overall, it was as close to a normal outing as I have had since my TKR! At this point the progress feels slow, but it does feel like progress hooray!
 
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