Bilateral TKR La's new knees (recovery diary)

[BLAKQUEEN]

Hi I just started your recovery journal so I just wanted to say congrats on your new knee!! I too am youngster @ 48yrs old. I too was told by my OS that I was too young and was my pain bad enough to die for. Let me explain my OS lost his only patient to a blood clot @46yrs old, so it scares him when he has a young patient needing tka. My OS has operated on Lt knee last year meniscus fix, had th rt knee done 25>years ago. So my knees are really jacked up, my rt more due to compensating for the left and for my wt gain for which I have lost over 85lbs. I'm having my surgery on June 1,2012 btka and yes my OS thinks my knees are that bad. Good luck with your recovery I will look a head to see how your doing since it is now April

 

[Larosser]

Re: La's new knees (recovery diary) 4 month update

Hi, Everyone, and welcome, Blakqueen!

Well, I am now coming up on four months post-op, and I must say, things are looking up. :biggrin: I went to see my daughters and grandkids, and got a lot of "firsts" out of the way. First plane ride. First night in a bed other than my own. First time to be completely on my own far away from McQ's support. And....it all went well.


Well, unless you count the fashion crime I committed at the airport. I wanted to wear slip-ons for convenience at the screenin station, but the only ones that are comfy to walk in are my okabashi shower shoes. My scars are also a bit sensitive to garments rubbing against them, so I wore my softest sweats. And my grandson LOVES my Grinch t-shirt, so I put that on as well. Charming, I'm sure! I did remember to mention my new knees to the TSA screeners at the airport, but both had body scanners rather than metal detectors, so it was all good.

I was glad to have my little pillow/brace as my daughter's guest bed is pretty firm, but with it, I slept just fine. Walked to the bus stop to meet my grandson, played paddleball with him, helped him learn to ride his new six-year-old sized bike. Carried my 18 month old granddaughter without worrying about my knee locking and dropping us both to the floor.

I've also been discharged from PT, after promising to continue a rehabilative workout routine. I can walk more than a mile without a cane, and am planning to walk a 5K within the next couple of months. I started working out on my own with weights today, after lengthly discussions with my therapist about which ones were okay to do (mostly closed chain), and how much weight (not much at all). It will be interesting to see how sore I am tomorrow and the next day.

Next week, I'm going to start going in to the office a couple of days a week. I'm starting with just a couple, because my commute involves a car, two trains, a bus and a walk, so I'm not sure how much it will wear me out.

Overall, I'm pretty happy with the progress I've made so far. Definitely don't miss the grating, burning joint pains that led me to the surgery to begin with. I'm much more stable on my feet and can do a lot more than before.

But...I'm clearly not done. Getting up from low chairs is still a challenge. My knees don't flex as much or as freely as I'd like, and getting into and out of certain positions is a challenge. My quads ache, and sometimes the ligaments on the insides of my right knee hurt like fire. I limp when I get tired, and I still get tired more easily than I should.

All that said, I'm optimistic. I feel like all those issues can be fixed, and if I can't fix 'em I can still live with 'em.

Best to everyone,
La

 

[bottomshollow]

Oh, La, you are doing fantastic! And keep in mind, you are only 1/3 of the way through a 12 month recovery. So things will continue to get BETTER & BETTER with TIME and continued PATIENCE.

Yes, there are still challanges--I have them at 6 months post op. But we will conquer them between now and the end of the journey. There are actually moments during my days that I don't think about my knees.

Sound like you had a great visit. Grandkids are the bomb!

Please keep us posted with your updates. We care.

 

[Janet2012]

La, glad to hear things are coming along even though you aren't done. I love the airport visual! I can relate!

 

[kneeper]

Thanks for giving us an update. Love the grinch shirt. The things we do for the kids we love. :biggrin:

 

[Larosser]

Re: La's new knees (recovery diary) Month 5 update

Hideho, BoneSmarties!

Well, my new knees are five months old now, and guess what? The "rubber band" feeling is GONE and I can actually feel my knees all over! A few weeks ago I was grumping at McQ that it seems like I feel more clicks and twinges in my knees than before, and then I realized: it's because I feel them all over! So, now I'm not grumpy, I'm happy. My balance is better, and I feel much safer trying new things now that I don't worry about that. I've started using an elliptor again, and swimming (as opposed to just water walking, although I still do that as well as water calesthenics). I'm training to walk a 5K - and as minor as that sound, training is required. I think my knees and quads are probably up for it, but all the small muscles in my legs and back have atrophied some from 4 years of limping and limited use, so I have to work them back into condition. But....it's coming.

Once I've met that goal, I plan to reward myself by going on a trail ride with my niece. And that brings up a question: are any of your folks horseback riders? How soon after surgery were you able to mount normally? How long could you ride at first? I know everyone is different, but it always helps me to hear other people's stories.

On another note, I've been off restriction at work for a little over a month, meaning that I can return to the office. I'm still not doing it five days a week - it isn't really necessary, and the commute still wears me down some. The hardest part of being back at work full bore is the travel - I have taken four business trips since the beginning of May, and twice I've come home sick. I think I'm just not quite up to all of the plane ries, time zone changes and extra work that goes with travel. So I think I'm going to try to cut back a bit if I can.

Love to all my BoneSmart buddies - I'm gonna go catch up on your posts now.

Best,
La

 

[Campervan]

Hi La, great to hear from you. Isn't it a wonderful feeling when the tight bind feeling goes. It does come back a little but not for long. Yes, I too still get weary sometimes and have been trying to find out why - maybe it is still the after effects of the surgery.

 

[referee54]

Hey---that is a great report and you have made tremendous progress! You are definitely moving forward and have reclaimed your active lifestyle! I cannot comment on horseback riding---I have only done that once in my life, and that was 35 years ago--but there are several folks on the forum that can help you out there. You are right about the muscles strength and the stamina, but boy, you have made great progress! Please keep posting to let us know of you other milestones!

 

[Janet2012]

Hi La, i remember reading your story when I was Knees in Waiting, and now that I am two weeks (tomorrow) post surgery, it is nice once again to see your updates!

 

[Jamie]

Nice to hear from you! It sounds like you're doing great and I'm so happy to hear it. If you check through some of the recovery threads you'll find many horse people. All have been able to get back to what they love....their stories are great.

 

[Jazyb]

Hi La

It's good to read you are doing so well and living your life - great news. Keep well

 

[skigirl]

Awesome news and encouraging too. K

 

[Larosser]

Check this out: I was on my way to work out, going to do about an hour on the elliptor, went to put my shoes on and realized: I had crossed my legs in a figure 4 to reach my foot! I haven't been able to to that for years! Dang, what a difference eight months makes! I can drive a standard, I can walk a mile, I can work out, I can cross my legs......yippee! It does get better!

La

 

[Janet2012]

Those little surprises are great!

 

[bottomshollow]

Those little milestones are really biggies in the total scheme of recovery. So happy to hear how well you're doing.

 

[Larosser]

Hi, there Bonesmarties! My new knees are now one year and three days old, so I thought I'd better duck in and give and give an update.

Bottom line: I can say with no hesitation that I am absolutely glad I did it, and that I did both knees at once. That might not be the right choice for some people, but it was exactly what I needed to do.

I am able to walk extensively, to swim, to dance, to play pick up soccer and practice martial arts with my grandson. None of this was possible before. I feel very much that I have my life back, and I love it.

In spite of this very positive report, I'm back in physical therapy, fine tuning a few specific things. Functionally, I have trouble swinging my leg on and off my bike, going down stairs (up is fine) and squatting down to pick things up. So, I'm back with the therapists to focus on these specific things. It seems that even though my quads "test" fine, they are functionally still a tad weak, and I still have a few proprioception (reception of stimuli) problems. But other than that, I am TOTALLY satisfied.

Best to all. I'm going to go read through other posts to see what's up with everyone.

La

 

[tashia]

Thank you for coming back and sharing your story. We need to hear for those who haven't had it that its worth it. Tashia

 

[Jacky48]

La great report! I am still working toward the one year mark, however I am so totally with for the BTKR! One of everything, one recovery, one rehab, one surgery (this is a biggie), one round of PT and on round of heavy duty drugs! I feel so good after 7 months, I can't imagine what it will be like at 1 year! Yay, for you!

Good luck in PT for your other issues!

 

[bottomshollow]

and I am totally happy for you! And none of us can expect our surgeries to give us perfect results---nor should we. But your report is so positive and shows how much can be accomplished---it's an inspiration to all of us. Take care of yourself and don't be a stranger. Keep us updated on how and what you're doing. We care.

(Hope you don't mind, but I did edit your post to define proprioception for others--I had to look it up myself.)

 

[Larosser]

Hey, Judy, thanks for the fix. For those of you who haven't experienced this, one side effect of knee surgery is an often temporary loss of information transmission from nerves around your knee. This can result in not being able to confidently "feel" where you are in space, which is weird when going down stairs or balancing on one leg. For me, this isn't a huge tragic thing, but it IS disconcerting, and it makes me want to clutch the railing and look at the stairs I'm walking down. So....back to PT for fine tuning.

Edit to add....the therapist cautions me that I may not be able to get 100% "fixes" for any of my little complaints. Some people never do a full squat, balance on one leg or lift their knee up to their navels. If I can't, no big deal. I'm still content. But it doesn't hurt to try.

La