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TKR Left TKR on 17 July

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@Jamie all boxes are checked. It just happens sometimes, and not always on the same threads. As it is I have so many alerts that it may be a good thing to miss a few!

@marmora Enjoy the wedding, ice and elevate when you get a chance!
 
Hi Cathie ... I made it to your thread!!!!! I hope the wedding on the weekend was lovely and you had a great time. You seem to be doing so well. I notice you have a bit of work to do on extension more than flexion. You are doing all the right things, so I am sure that all will eventually work out.

I would be interested in hearing how your water therapy goes. I am thinking of having water therapy myself once the OS clears me for going into public pools and such.

Can't wait to hear all about the wedding. Hope you have some photos too.

Take Care Cathie ... Hugs ... Ellen
 
@NetballKnees Hi Ellen! How have you been? Did I ever tell you that your RTKR and I have the same birthday? Leo's are bossy, so don't let it boss you too much! :)

@marmora How is the knee holding up to the wedding?
 
Good Morning
@NetballKnees @Ellejay @wolf woman @Yorkimom @happymum @Minnie's knees @lavender @chestnc @dogwheels @tiredwife @madinana @gr82cu2 @Jozilla @Nana moon 27 @msmechanic58 @Celle @hopefaith @martyz4 @TexasTee @Chihuahuan @IrishMike @Reebok @amber777 @DogLoverx3
And I know that there are some that I have forgotten - apologies !

Just a quick update from my last post on Thursday 18 September.
Thursday: Son & DIL arrived from Norway, family dinner with 2 other sons & DH . Then out to pre-Wedding night get together.
Friday: Norway son & DIL and DH and me off to Wedding at 1:30 and then onward to reception in a country hotel. Iced knee on the journey there and as we were staying there went up a few times during the evening & night to ice. Great night, "danced" holding on to one crutch until 1:00 a.m.
Saturday: good walks around the grounds and then relaxing breakfast and a bit of rest and then afternoon post-celebration with traditional Irish music, bar-b-que, and laughs in the local Rugby club. Home to ice, elevate and exercise the knee.
Sunday: day of rest, family lunch and then time to drive Norway son & DIL to Dublin airport at 5 p.m.
The All Ireland (kind of like mini -Super Bowl) Gaelic Football match between Kerry and Donegal
@IrishMike and my family very happy that Kerry won !
If you have never seen Gallic football look it up on Youtube ! (it is not Soccer- very different and more exciting)

Back to reality on Monday, had my 1-1 PT session and Flexion about 100 degrees and extension still at -8 degrees.
My PT has given me some additional exercises to increase both and will add those into my daily programme and to continue with my daily 3 thirty minute walks.

Going to the hydro therapy pool this afternoon and my PT has given me some exercises to do there.

Seeing my OS on Thursday 2 October.

I know that I shouldn't be disappointed on my progress, but feel that with all the work and icing and elevating and following the Bone Smart mantra, that my Flexion and extension should be more advanced my now.

Knee still quite stiff and very hard initially to find a comfortable sleeping position, as the knee takes a good while to find position that will be good for the night.

Sometimes pillow between knees, sleep on side/ sleep on back, toss and turn for awhile. This can last anywhere from 10 - 30 minutes.

Usually wake up about 2:30/3:00 a.m. for toilet and then refresh my Cryo Cuff and sleep until 6:30/7:00 a.m.

Very stiff on waking and need to do heel slides & stretches before getting out of the bed - first few steps are like The Frankenstein Walk.

This recovery is frustrating at times, my mind is ready for more activity - but the knee can't follow through !

Yes, I know that it is only 9.5 weeks post-op and everyone's is different and not to compare with anyone else.
But, still feel frustrated at my progress and just want to share that frustration here with those who understand.

Take care,
Cathie
 
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Hi Cathie - sounds like you had a wonderful time and are doing very well! My rom has been 100 - 105 but somehow I can pedal a bike completely around. That is the one exercise I have always loved being very lazy. I did little PT on my other knee which rom is 137 nine months out. Just living normal life it gained rom by itself very slowly and continuously. My PT is actually amazed at how that knee did. So I do agree a number is just a number. I am happy not to have the arthritis pain and know each day brings small improvements.

Feel better and lots of love! I must look up gallo football as I have never heard of it and am a huge sports fan!! Of course American football and NASCAR car racing are my favorites! Car racing of all kinds is my favorite sport from local dirt cars to Formula 1.

Xoxoxo
JoAnne
 
Hello my Irish Cousin JoAnne @Jozilla

Hope that two weeks post-op today finds you good and comfortable.
Your ROM is great :yay:

Thinking that if you like American Football and NSCAR you would love Gallic Football - it's very fast and exciting. All the players are armatures, and train after work or get leave from their jobs coming up to a match.

Take care and continued success with your new LTKR,
Cathie xxx
 
Hi Cathie! Glad you're back. You've been missed. It sounds like you had a wonderful, fun weekend :) Yes, it is so frustrating, this recovery journey. Yesterday and Sunday I felt I'd made great progress with how my knee/leg was feeling and today I'm right back to Saturday with a leg aching from hip to foot, for no apparent reason. I would imagine your leg not wanting to straighten is your biggest obstacle? That has to be very tiring and hard on your muscles to have it never straighten and be constantly bent. I wish I had a magic wand to wave over you and get your leg to straighten up! I have no advice that your PT hasn't told you most likely. We were talking over on Jackie's thread I think it was the other day how the extension exercises are the most painful of all. Those hammies and their associated tendons just don't like it at all. Since your leg was so badly bent for so long before surgery you are facing a bigger battle than most of us. Try not to lose hope that one day it will get better. xox
 
Hello Janet @gr82cu2
Hello Jackie @tiredwife

Thank you both for your kind thoughts & concern about my Flexion/knee bend.
It may never get to 0 degrees, but would be happy with a little more bend as I had pre-TKR.

It does get frustrating and I know that it will be a long process with lots of exercise and PT involved.

At the moment, on the couch in the family room catching up on emails, DH reading the papers.
Went to therapy pool this afternoon to do my exercises and the warm water makes me a bit sleepy and restful,fir the remainder of the evening.

Thank you for looking out for me,
Cathie
 
Hi @marmora I thank you very much for your kind posts on my thread and appreciate all of the kind posts you send me. Excited to get a date and thanks again. Happy you enjoyed the wedding and a nice chance to get out and have a nice time and get together. You are doing really good your bend is 10 degrees higher then my right knee but noticing even although I am past mark things are still changing no problem with the extension which took a little time but the bend still feels like it might do a little more. Thinking after my next surgery right knee will have less to take care of and then it will feel better. You have a very up postive way of handling things very supportive of others feelings always ready to share a kind word and how nice to wake up so many days to posts you have left me on my thread.

Things for me with my first knee replacement seemed to go so much slower then so many others were moving and very surprised when my surgeon told me that I was actually ahead of things wondered what he meant but he was surprised how fast my knee healed and this was the reason he said for the scar tissue. You offer all of us your friends words of encouragement so here I can help you to. As they kept saying to me here on bone smart things will get easier just takes a little longer for some of us and I am including my recovery in that . You are still early in your recovery time and are doing really well.

Nice to hear the stories of people who made it through smooth fast bend happy for them who would want it any other way and wishing all the best but for those of us who feel frustrated at the progress sometimes makes us feel like we are doing something wrong. The more I pushed for more bend the harder it was and now finding the less I can think about it the more I notice my knee surprises me. Still not a high bend but getting better looking back when I think of how little my knee could tolerate walking and now walking slow but still walking . You deserve the best wishing all will get easier and knowing your positive outlook will carry you a long long way and your bend will surprise you one day just takes time Holly
 
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@marmora Hi Cathie! Your wedding weekend with your family sounded wonderful. And you even goT to dance....good for you. I know that you are concerned about your extension, but hang in there. You are only 9 weeks post op and you have lots of time to improve. I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but I'll tell the story again. Before my first surgery, my right leg was very knocked kneed and it was always bent. Before surgery, they measured it and it was -7. My first PT after surgery it was -17. I worked so hard and it seemed to be creeping down. My therapist even said that "extension was going to be my Everest". At the end of PTA I did get it down to -2 and that was with her pushing down on it to measure. Even though I was done PT I kept doing doing the exercises they gave me tO improve extension and I even did a few myself they didn't mention. A couple of months ago while at the gym I told Joe to look at my right leg and how straight it was. He said that I had to be past that -2. Today at PT I had them measure it with just me pushing down with my leg muscle. It measured +1 which means it was hyper extended. I never thought I would see that. Needless to say I was thrilled. So what I'm saying is that even after PT if you are not where you want to be, you can still work on it and it will get better. Hang in there. Anne
 
Hi Cathie @marmora :loveshwr:
How are you today? Wow your weekend sounds so lovely, I bet you enjoyed being with your boys and just being at that wedding and dancing the night away. Being carefree and footloose then unfortunately reality hits you in the next few day and .............................................................................................................then you have the BLAHS!!! :swoon:

Seriously with all that great living and feeling so wonderful one could probably and easily overdo it. I cant speak, as I am going down south to see my boys who live in this wonderful spot right on the beach with a stunning coral reef. (I love the beach and snorkeling) I can see myself doing way to much without even meaning to lol.
I will keep you posted on this one!

So sorry you are feeling frustrated, as you know I was feeling very much so last week but this week i seemed to have turned a corner, a wee bit, but it has made a considerable difference. I am nearly 3 weeks in front of you so hang in there Bone Smarty friend.

Your getting to sleep routine sounds so familiar to my last couple of months but this week a little difference and I find i am more comfortable at nights. Why? I do not know but I think we should all just keep following the mantra and pray for patience. After all that's all we can do.

Cathie, I love Gallo Football. Did you know that Ireland send a team over this November to play our all Australian AFL players? It is always so much fun to watch and very skillful. Not to mention all the cute guys running around the field. The game is being held in Perth West Australia this year. I could go and would love too but the thought of all those stairs is a bit daunting.

Take care and many wishes for that pesky extension to improve.
Love Deb
 
@marmora ... please remember that you are only slightly more than two months out from your surgery. Believe it or not, that is still very early in the recovery process. You have plenty of time to gain ROM, so patience...patience. Also...VERY important to remember that more exercise will not necessarily help. Your knee is tight. That means it's swollen. More exercise can cause more swelling and that will be counter-productive. As long as you're feeling this tightness, the thing to do would be increase your resting, icing and elevating. You don't need a lot of exercise to increase ROM under these conditions. You need to reduce your swelling.
 
Hello Anne @Yorkimom

Anne, I was very touched and encouraged by your post, as you have had your LTKR on 19 September and yet took the time to encourage me and share your personal experience after your RTKR in December 2012.

And reading your post has shown me that time is one factor in TKR recovery that is different from each of us and to be patient.

At my first post-op PT measurement my extension was -15 degrees and as of last week improved to -8 degrees.

I am inspired by you climbing "your Everest" !

May your recovery continue to be all that you want,

Many thanks,
Cathie
 
Good Morning Deb, @happymum

Great to read your post this morning and your encouraging words. Yes, the Wedding weekend was wonderful and having all three boys in Dublin over the weekend is always special.

Two of my three sons, like many Irish lads worked in Sydney for 1-2 years/ but not at the same time, so having one of them living in Norway is almost like being just down the road !

Your trip to South to spend time with your boys at the beach sounds magic !
And I'm sure that it will be tempting to overdo as the call of water activities can be hard to resist.

Happy to hear that your sleep patterns have improved & as you are a few weeks ahead of me, this is very encouraging.

I love to watch Aussie Rules and when combined with Gaelic Football - there is no other game as exciting in the sports world ! Would also agree that attending for you this year could be too much of a challenge for you this year.

To my US BoneSmart friends, I encourage you to look at youtube for Gaelic Football, then look at youtube for Aussie Rules and the highlight when the two sports combine !

Take care and thank you for thinking of me and your encouragement,
Cathie
 
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