United StatesWhy not just skip pt altogether!
TKR Knees 1 AND 2 up and running
- Thread starter sheliac
- Start date
Sister - I did skip yesterday. Why not altogether is a great question. My at home PT was very much pro Bonesmart way and the outpatient therapist is gentle, I just didn't tell him no about the "tree pose" exercise. I truly think I don't need them -- the only real benefit of the at-home therapist was having a second pair of eyes on my incision healing and her catching my limp very early and having me go back to the cane. I guess I'm afraid NOTto have them in case something goes wrong and I will feel negligent by not doing what was prescribed. Plus, I think my husband feels better with me having them. I only have to go twice more before my next surgery. I'll keep the at home appointments for that first week post op and then reassess my choice.
The "day off" yesterday was just the ticket. All I did was rest, ice, elevate and medicate. I slept great last night and the excess swelling is gone. I do have a mild pain in my calf -- I worry that it is a DVT. The calf is not hot, it is slightly swollen (no more so than before). It just feels different. I have a terrible fear of pulmonary embolism (my first patient in nursing school died of a PE following a hysterectomy and I have never forgotten that. She was 40 years old, getting ready to go home and had a sudden respiratory and cardiac arrest. I always thought I should have known something was wrong, although that is not realistic). SO-- I suspect I am being a hypochondriac about the calf pain. It is very mild.
Otherwise it's smooth sailing on day 17 (I think that is right count). I've learned my lesson and am liberally icing and elevating. I am walking every hour with focus on gait. I'll do my outside walk later - I'm comfortable doing that alone now, going slow and using my cane to promote heel-toe walking. Glad to be back on track!
Shelia
RTKR - 8/23/16
LTKR - 9/20/2016
The "day off" yesterday was just the ticket. All I did was rest, ice, elevate and medicate. I slept great last night and the excess swelling is gone. I do have a mild pain in my calf -- I worry that it is a DVT. The calf is not hot, it is slightly swollen (no more so than before). It just feels different. I have a terrible fear of pulmonary embolism (my first patient in nursing school died of a PE following a hysterectomy and I have never forgotten that. She was 40 years old, getting ready to go home and had a sudden respiratory and cardiac arrest. I always thought I should have known something was wrong, although that is not realistic). SO-- I suspect I am being a hypochondriac about the calf pain. It is very mild.
Otherwise it's smooth sailing on day 17 (I think that is right count). I've learned my lesson and am liberally icing and elevating. I am walking every hour with focus on gait. I'll do my outside walk later - I'm comfortable doing that alone now, going slow and using my cane to promote heel-toe walking. Glad to be back on track!
Shelia
RTKR - 8/23/16
LTKR - 9/20/2016
The pain in your calf is probably because of that exercise where your PT had you standing on one leg.
Thanks, Celle. I think you are right.
10 days until my next new knee. I refuse to get myself worked up like I did the first time. The first one was NOTHING like the horror I expected. I'm trying to keep reminding myself that this second one may not be as easy and just be thankful that the first went so well. I do worry about my current new knee-- I hope they will let me ice it while I'm icing the other one. I'm sure they will, if I ask. I just have to have something to worry about .
Gonna be a "day off" Saturday. Husband has a foo-foo business dinner tonight and he opted me out without me having to ask . I'm so grateful for that. I'm sure I could do it, but 2 or 3 hours of being dressed up and making chitchat sounds overwhelming to me right now.
Shelia
RTKR - 8/23/16
LTKR - 9/20/2016
10 days until my next new knee. I refuse to get myself worked up like I did the first time. The first one was NOTHING like the horror I expected. I'm trying to keep reminding myself that this second one may not be as easy and just be thankful that the first went so well. I do worry about my current new knee-- I hope they will let me ice it while I'm icing the other one. I'm sure they will, if I ask. I just have to have something to worry about .
Gonna be a "day off" Saturday. Husband has a foo-foo business dinner tonight and he opted me out without me having to ask . I'm so grateful for that. I'm sure I could do it, but 2 or 3 hours of being dressed up and making chitchat sounds overwhelming to me right now.
Shelia
RTKR - 8/23/16
LTKR - 9/20/2016
uva55
post-grad
I understand you not wanting to go to that dinner it's too soon for you.
You will do fine with your second knee, we will be here for you,and now you know what to expect. I have some arthritis on my left knee but it rarely bothers me, however if I ever need a TKR, I know I can deal with it.
I think I'm going to be semi-lazy today, I'm super tired
and hubby is working, I do have to figure out dinner for my us and my dad later, but I think it will be a takeout kind I feel a day!
You will do fine with your second knee, we will be here for you,and now you know what to expect. I have some arthritis on my left knee but it rarely bothers me, however if I ever need a TKR, I know I can deal with it.
I think I'm going to be semi-lazy today, I'm super tired
and hubby is working, I do have to figure out dinner for my us and my dad later, but I think it will be a takeout kind I feel a day!
greatlakes
graduate
I'm impressed that you're already outside with a cane!
dianehelen
supremo
You have a profile pic, yay! Hi there pretty lady 
thanks to Dianehelen for showing me how to do pic!Having an "off" day today (day 19). Just feel tired and feverish again, but no fever. Last night I had this intense burning on the outside of my thigh. I've not had that before--it felt like an area of my leg was going to burst into flames, but my skin was no hotter than surrounding tissue. An ice bag and some Tylenol made it go away, but it was alarming while it lasted. I'm thinking it is "nerves" healing or something.
Shelia
RTKR - 8/23/16
LTKR - 9/20/2016
dianehelen
supremo
my pleasure, Im glad it worked and we can see you smiling pretty face
As for the burning, its amazing all the gamut of strange pains and sensations this brings. Im glad it didnt last too long
Oh yeah, I remember that burning well. Still have a little bit of it every so often. But it does get much better!
greatlakes
graduate
I've been getting some burning where I had the awful bruising. Good to know we're not alone!
Day 20.
I'm so thankful to know burning is normal. As knee 2 approaches, my hypochondria/worry is escalating. I really think I may need to be on meds for that! I think my obsessing is above normal and I can't seem to stop it. I found myself looking at my incision with a bright flashlight, terrified that there's an infection lurking. I am seriously considering get a psych appointment . My husband is very patient, but tends to laugh at my constant worrying. I don't blame him, but when I am stuck in one of those moments of intense anxiety, the laughing just makes me angry/scared. I've always been a worrier over family's health, but not much about me. Do I need a psych consult???
I'm determined to make this a good day- I already did my outside walk and the tint of fall chill in the air was lovely. Being outside is very uplifting. I'm used to a bigger home in the mountains where we are outside a lot, and the house has brilliant sunlight. This condo is small and outside is a typical condo environment. I guess I'm homesick . But I gotta bloom where I am planted. There's a lovely park nearby with a little lake. I think I'll ask husband if we can have a quick little picnic by the lake this evening. Maybe another dose of outdoors will lift my spirits.
I'm also having to accept that there is no way I can safely return to Sierra Leone in 6 months. My OS had told me I could do that if all went well. But things couldn't have gone better with knee 1, and I know it won't be ready in 5 months. Add knee 2 to that and I suspect a more realistic goal is one year. That makes me sad. Gonna turn that around -- I have the blessing of getting new knees. The people I served in Salone never had the option or need for new knees-- the average lifespan is 39 years. I am SO BLESSED . Yes!
Shelia
RTKR - 8/23/16
LTKR - 9/20/2016
I'm so thankful to know burning is normal. As knee 2 approaches, my hypochondria/worry is escalating. I really think I may need to be on meds for that! I think my obsessing is above normal and I can't seem to stop it. I found myself looking at my incision with a bright flashlight, terrified that there's an infection lurking. I am seriously considering get a psych appointment . My husband is very patient, but tends to laugh at my constant worrying. I don't blame him, but when I am stuck in one of those moments of intense anxiety, the laughing just makes me angry/scared. I've always been a worrier over family's health, but not much about me. Do I need a psych consult???
I'm determined to make this a good day- I already did my outside walk and the tint of fall chill in the air was lovely. Being outside is very uplifting. I'm used to a bigger home in the mountains where we are outside a lot, and the house has brilliant sunlight. This condo is small and outside is a typical condo environment. I guess I'm homesick . But I gotta bloom where I am planted. There's a lovely park nearby with a little lake. I think I'll ask husband if we can have a quick little picnic by the lake this evening. Maybe another dose of outdoors will lift my spirits.
I'm also having to accept that there is no way I can safely return to Sierra Leone in 6 months. My OS had told me I could do that if all went well. But things couldn't have gone better with knee 1, and I know it won't be ready in 5 months. Add knee 2 to that and I suspect a more realistic goal is one year. That makes me sad. Gonna turn that around -- I have the blessing of getting new knees. The people I served in Salone never had the option or need for new knees-- the average lifespan is 39 years. I am SO BLESSED . Yes!
Shelia
RTKR - 8/23/16
LTKR - 9/20/2016
Today is my 3 week anniversary. Feel much better after PT yesterday. I rode the bike! Only 5 minutes but it felt great. My flexion was down from 117 to 115, extension -2. I'm not worrying about extension decrease. New PT person started to put a weight on my ankle for leg lifts. I said, "I prefer no weights". She removed it but was snooty about it or so I felt. I am walking 1/4 mile outside with cane. She told me to up that to 1/2 mile. I can do that, but if I get swelling or pain, I'll not do it again.
Shelia
RTKR - 8/23/16
LTKR - 9/20/2016
Shelia
RTKR - 8/23/16
LTKR - 9/20/2016
dianehelen
supremo
You are doing just AMAZING! No way i could walk even 1/8 mile. You extension is -2 ? That means you knee is bending backwards, is that ok? Keep up the awesome progress. Just curious, what do you do in Sierra Leonne, sounds very exotic.
Dianehelen, I don't know if the negative extension is bad?? PT didn't say anything. I'm NOT googling anything this close to next surgery (I get sucked down the horror story hole). Hopefully someone here can help or I can ask tomorrow.
To answer your question, I initially went to Salone during the ebola crisis with a NGO (Partners in Health). I signed up for 6 weeks but ended up staying 3 months. I moved from Freetown to Kono (blood diamond jungle area) and worked with PIH to help government hospital begin ebola recovery. I came home but was very unhappy returning to academia here. So, PIH hired me and I am now working with them to create a standardized curriculum for nurses in Salone and improve healthcare in the country. I'm stationed at a government hospital in Kono where I mentor national nurses (training varies from none to basic) and create nursing standards and provide education for nursing/medical staff. I could go on forever -- but I won't. I've done a lot of emergency response internationally over the years, but nothing like ebola or West Africa. I've decided to finish my working career with Partners in Health in Salone. But I have to have these new knees! My last month there, the pain became unbearable (12-14 hours a day on very rugged terrain). When I got off the flight home, I made the decision to have surgery -- right there in the airport, the pain of walking overshadowing my joy to be home, I KNEW that if I want to continue to work and be functional, I had to have my knees replaced. So, here I am .
Shelia
RTKR - 8/23/16
LTKR - 9/20/2016
To answer your question, I initially went to Salone during the ebola crisis with a NGO (Partners in Health). I signed up for 6 weeks but ended up staying 3 months. I moved from Freetown to Kono (blood diamond jungle area) and worked with PIH to help government hospital begin ebola recovery. I came home but was very unhappy returning to academia here. So, PIH hired me and I am now working with them to create a standardized curriculum for nurses in Salone and improve healthcare in the country. I'm stationed at a government hospital in Kono where I mentor national nurses (training varies from none to basic) and create nursing standards and provide education for nursing/medical staff. I could go on forever -- but I won't
. I've done a lot of emergency response internationally over the years, but nothing like ebola or West Africa. I've decided to finish my working career with Partners in Health in Salone. But I have to have these new knees! My last month there, the pain became unbearable (12-14 hours a day on very rugged terrain). When I got off the flight home, I made the decision to have surgery -- right there in the airport, the pain of walking overshadowing my joy to be home, I KNEW that if I want to continue to work and be functional, I had to have my knees replaced. So, here I am . Shelia
RTKR - 8/23/16
LTKR - 9/20/2016
dianehelen
supremo
Wow, that is amazing. You are certainly making a difference, im honored to know you. I hope you can get your knees in shape and go make to help fix the world!
BoneSmart #1 Best Blog
Staff online
-
LaylaStaff member since November 20, 2017
