TKR Kiwicurls TKR 27 Feb 2024

[SnowHare]

@sistersinhim
@EalingGran

My GP was unaware that Diclofenac came in suppositories. I had been prescribed them by my previous GP. They are not commonly used. I knew an obstetrics nurse, who said they used them in the post natal ward. We were comparing how hard the suppositories were to open up.

Perhaps it's cultural. My sister, a retired OBGYN told me that I could use them vaginally, if rectally was unsatisfactory. The only problem I have with them is that the provincial drug insurance I have will only allow the pharmacist to dispense 1 month at a time.

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[SnowHare]

So excited to get in pool this week

Where is my Envy button.

I have to wait until I see my surgeon at the end of the month to see if I can get into the pool early. I was told initially that I would have to wait 12 weeks before pool time and definitely no whip kicks.

 

[kiwicurls]

Whip kicks? Really?

 

[SnowHare]

Yup. It's on the list of no nos, along with any knee twisting.

 

[kiwicurls]

Had a very nice holiday at the beach, great autumn weather. Did plenty of walking with the walker.
Nothing has changed at 3 months out. Still limping. I’m not using the walker inside any more and am trying very hard not to limp by doing the heel-toe thing. It’s fine when you really concentrate but when you walk quickly it’s easy to forget and limp again. I suppose I’ll improve one day…
Goodbye and thank you for your support.

 

[EalingGran]

I’m not using the walker inside any more and am trying very hard not to limp by doing the heel-toe thing. It’s fine when you really concentrate but when you walk quickly it’s easy to forget and limp again. I suppose I’ll improve one day…

Not using the walker indoors is progress. The limping may take a bit longer to settle with your foot issues as well. If you can walk normally with concentration on the heel-toe method it should gradually improve with practice and strengthening.
Glad you had a good beach trip!

 

[Layla]

Still limping. I’m not using the walker inside any more and am trying very hard not to limp by doing the heel-toe thing. It’s fine when you really concentrate but when you walk quickly it’s easy to forget and limp again.

So true! It does take concentration mainly because it feels unnatural to so many of us. I know it felt foreign to me. However, when I really concentrated I felt more in control and as though I was walking taller, straighter, stronger.

 

[Jen53014]

Daughter sent me an enormous bunch of flowers and I got cross because they won’t fit in any vase. Feel ashamed as I am lucky to get such a nice gift.

This made me smile because I actually told my daughter pre surgery to please not send me any flowers as I didn’t need one more thing to care for. She totally gets it! She sent me a lovely recovery box of frozen soups and breads and dessert and she went ahead of surgery so I could get it all sorted before hand. Your daughter totally understood! Happy continued recovery.

 

[mtcwp]

The best advice (unfortunately after my surgery) was from someone who had a double knee replacement to learn how to sleep on your back. FYI im almost 6 months in and still waking up in pain ... its getting better .. but very very very slowly

 

[Layla]

Happy Three Month Anniversary!
Thanks for sharing your healing journeys with us.
Winter is about to begin in Australia. I hope it's a good one for you, kiwicurls.
Take good care!
@kiwicurls

 

[kiwicurls]

Thanks @Layla.
To sum up: I am nowhere near as good as I was with my first tkr, but will get there eventually. Progress has been very slow this time around and although I am doing almost everything I need to do (driving, shopping, housework etc) I am still limping and have some pain at 3 months. None of that last time but every knee is different.
By the way… I got rid of the loo seat raiser last week…yay!
All the best to everyone on your journeys !

 

[Layla]

That's the only bad thing about having a better recovery with the first knee over the second. It's natural to compare and then question whether the current recovery is normal, or why it's not as easy / quick as the first.
I think the time says a lot. You're only three months into a year long journey, well at least for a good majority. So hang in there, I believe good things to come!

Yay on the toilet riser! Thankfully we had the higher toilets and I didn't need one and didn't want one. For some reason the riser, walker and cane, although all beneficial, scream "you're old" to me. I wanted to kick that walker and cane to the curb as quickly I could. Call it stubborn, call it vanity, call it whatever...just being honest.
Have a great week, kiwicurls!
@kiwicurls

 

[kiwicurls]

On Thursday my husband was getting the walker out of the car and it fell. The handle whacked into my new knee, just below it and really winded me. I continued on with the day and spent a lovely few hours playing bocce with our probus group. Really enjoyed the game on a lovely autumn day but have suffered ever since. After the whack on the knee there’s been more pain, especially in my shin. No bruises but a superficial laceration and slight swelling. I suppose it’s a combination of the game (bending and walking more than usual) and the injury but today I am extremely uncomfortable and can hardly walk.
Ah well. One limp forward, one back I suppose.

 

[mendogal]

More ice! More ice!

 

[EalingGran]

So sorry about the injury. I found the area around the surgery super- sensitive. It was even horrible when one of my baby grandsons bashed it with a plastic toy.
I had to look up Bocce to find it was like bowls/ boules. The pictures I saw showed a lot of bending- so not really surprised you are sore from the combination of injury and exercise. I think it sounds as though you were doing well to do it.
I think @mendogal is right about lots of ice and rest. Good luck- hope it settles soon!

 

[kiwicurls]

I have been icing today and trying to rest. I probably shouldn’t have kept going after the whack on the knee but after being cooped up for so long it was such fun to be exercising again (and our team won!)
People offered to pick up the balls from the ground for me but I refused as I really wanted the bending exercise. I’m really a couch potato and do need more fresh air and exercise!

 

[Layla]

Sorry you're hurting, kiwicurls...but at least you had fun creating memories.
I hope you feel better today after some rest and icing.
@kiwicurls

 

[kiwicurls]

Hi. 15 weeks out and really no improvement at all from last time I wrote.
Still limping badly, still need the walker when walking for long distances and although I can manage any toilet seat during the day now, at night as we enter midwinter I am once again having difficulty. The cold certainly affects it.
I don’t know what else I can do to speed up this recovery but it’s getting me down. My ROM is excellent as its always been but can’t get rid of the limp! It’s not as if I’m in pain, just mild discomfort. Maybe it’s just that I limped for so many years that my body can’t adjust yet. Physio s all have their own ideas and I think they’re just guessing.

 

[EalingGran]

My ROM is excellent as its always been but can’t get rid of the limp! It’s not as if I’m in pain, just mild discomfort. Maybe it’s just that I limped for so many years that my body can’t adjust yet

Sorry about the limp. It is frustrating if even the physios can't figure out why.
Presumably your foot issues don't help?
It is hard for those of us with multiple joint issues to work out what is causing what.

 

[sistersinhim]

I limped for over 30 years and found myself falling back into that habit, even though the leg wasn't weak or painful. Concentrating on the heel to toe gait helped me to kick that habit to the curb!