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Bilateral TKR Ms Blue's recovery

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@MsBlue. My insurance had me do 6 at home PT and then nothing. I asked my OS about outside therapy and he never answered. He took out the staples and made an appointment for 3 months later. I know in my mind I should get a different OS but he came highly recommend by my insurance. He has great skills but no bedside manor. After 8 weeks I am still doing PT at home I just increase it every other day and it seems to work for me.:flwrysmile:
 
MsBlue said:
I am feeling discouraged right now.
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Please don't.

Worsening ROM is perfectly normal as your leg reacts to the chopping, hacking, sawing and hammering it's had. Perhaps reacting to over-doing things too, but in any case please don't panic or worry.
MsBlue said:
She also espoused the "no pain, no gain" philosophy.
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Don't go back, simple.

Be aware that PT will not speed healing, it's just to retain mobility, it's just gentle movement and stretching. Your body heals itself and doesn't need a great deal of interference.

When healing is well under way you can start to do strength exercises.
 
@MsBlue I find that the ROM often would digress and then advance. As stated, you did not have the best start to the day as you had already exercised by hiking around and looking for the office. I have been having in home PT for four weeks now and I have to start outpatient PT. I have loved my in home PT, he has been so encouraging and has a firm, but gentle approach. So I'm not looking forward to it as I fear, like you, I will get a "no pain..." place. Thinking good thoughts for us both.
 
Today was a much better day. First, I did the exercises this new therapist recommended before bed last night as she had suggested (5 relatively brief exercises done 3 times per day). Then I did them again this morning and at noon. In the meantime, I got busy on the phone with the insurance company and the doctor's office and on the Internet looking for PT places near the house. My husband and I went to see the two PT places near the house, agreed both would do, and chose to move forward with one that has had the same guy running the place for 20 years - his online reviews are great. I canceled next week's appointments at the hosptital (which was the original recommendation from my beloved rehab therapist).

The therapist from the hospital called me this afternoon, and I told her (truthfully) that I was glad she called. I told her that the overriding factor was the three-hour trip yesterday including two hours in the car and an hour at the hospital. Her exercises are not bad, and I think they are helping. And I didn't give her much of a chance to really see where this was going to go. I will keep doing these exercises until I meet with the next therapist. She was nice about it, and I was nice about it - no bridges burned.

In the meantime, A MIRACLE HAPPENED. I went upstairs to change my pants, and I looked down to realize ... I was walking up the stairs like a normal person. Instead of going up one step at a time, I went left - right - left - right up the stairs. I have not been able to walk up the stairs like that for at least 6 months prior to my surgery!

So, yesterday was a bad day, and today was a much, much better day. In part, when I got up this morning, I consciously told myself that I needed an attitude adjustment, because I have a long way to go. Fighting it is not going to help me at all, and it's going to make me a miserable person to be around.

Thank you everyone - @iivesfam5 @Braunzie @Slainte @Celle @jbrooklyn @PolarBear60 @Pescara @Roy Gardiner @LHop Thank you for your encouragement, your support, and your patience with my no-good-very-bad-day (and grumpy attitude) yesterday.
 
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YAY! I'm so glad you found a better solution for you. As for a bad day, we've ALL been there. And we'll be there again (well, I know I will -- can't speak for everyone else). I'm glad you were able to keep the discussion with the therapist you're not planning to see again on an adult level. That can be so difficult to do.
 
Whoop whoop! So glad today is a better day and you won't have to move to Australia :heehee:. As has been said, we've all been there, this is the place to vent because who better can understand? Way to go with the stairs and I hope your new PT place is just what you're looking for! Keep up the good work!
 
MsBlue said:
. I was walking up the stairs like a normal person. Instead of going up one step at a time, I went left - right - left - right up the stairs.
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Excellent. Now you have some actual evidence of how good your recovery is; I am certain that I wasn't able to walk correctly up (or down) stairs until a LOT more than 2 weeks after surgery!

So, don't worry. Keep on doing what you're doing, it's working.
MsBlue said:
So, yesterday was a bad day, and today was a much, much better day.
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This happens. You will get worse days again, too, this is a roller coaster ride. The good days will get better, the bad days less bad until they don't happen any more. Cool, eh?
 
@MsBlue, so happy for you. I'm glad you found a new PT. 8 weeks out and just a twinge of pain going up and down the stairs but I only have 2 steps lol.. we all have bad days. It's normal. I had 2 major meltdowns but hubby says we all heal different. I can't find a PT in my area that takes my insurance so slow and steady wins the race. I am doing what my home PT had me do in the beginning and increase it every day. A 2 hour car ride and an hour to find the place would not be an option for me. I don't worry about the numbers. I do what I can when I can. You are doing great. It will get better over time. :yay:
 
@MsBlue, great about the stairs and positive attitude. Vent all you want. That's what we are here for. When I get discouraged hubby brings me ice cream. We have had bad rain for 3 weeks so I don't go outside. I am so afraid of slipping or falling. You are doing fantastic.:angel:
 
I haven't posted here for a while, because I've been on a bit of a PT merry-go-round. I had the hospital PT, the in-patient rehab PT, the eval PT that I decided not to go with, and then two sessions this week with a new PT guy. New to me - he has 25 years of experience and 20 years running his current clinic.

Each one has had such a different approach. The guy I am with now does heat treatment, deep tissue massage (and I mean DEEP), some exercise, and then electrical stimulation before I leave. He's had me do an exercise lying on a moveable board and pushing myself up and down (like squats, but lying down). The intent is to loosen my knees, but my knees end up feeling like they weigh 1000 pounds by the time I finish. After the first session, I was pretty sore, and, in fact, last night (after session 2) I woke up and had to take a pain pill, but it wasn't as bad. He also had me pedal a bicycle yesterday - I'm much tighter on one side than the other, so it is challenge to find a range where I can pedal on both sides. I also did a bike thing at the inpatient rehab that seemed good (better than this bike) for loosening the motion.

My new guy hasn't really given me exercises to do. I have a resistance band to use for heel pumps, and he suggested that I practice very easy squats and bridges, but they hurt too much, so I am not doing them. My range of motion seems stalled around 90 at 3 weeks out. I had near 90 in the hospital in the first three days, and over 100 left and over 90 right in the in-patient rehab during the first week, but I feel like I have regressed. It is hard to tell, because each of these PTs measures differently, and I'm not sure the measures really compare. I have a a doctor appt. in 2 weeks - first follow up since the hospital - and I am worried that he is going to be very unhappy with (what I perceive as) my lack of progress in terms of R-O-M. I have the exercise sheets from my in-patient rehab, and I am thinking about going back to doing those.

When I come home from these PT sessions with the new guy - even though I feel like I am not working that hard - I sleep like the DEAD. Yesterday afternoon, I got home around 2:30 and slept from 3 to 7:20 on the living room couch. My husband was coming back and forth through the room, walking the dogs, ate his dinner, left to go out for a while, and all the while I slept like a zombie. Went to bed again last night by about 10:30, took a pain pill around 2:30, got up with my husband from 3:30 to 4:30 (he goes to work early), then slept until after 8 this morning. Came downstairs, let the dogs out and fed them, and then slept like the dead again on the couch for another 3 hours until the phone rang. Something from these sessions is wearing me out - I don't know if it's the electronic muscle stimulation, or what.

Is anyone else having the stim treatments? What exercises is everyone else doing? I feel like I should be doing more on my non-PT days, but I'm not sure what. I've had such different direction from the different therapists.

So, those of you who are a bit farther out from surgery - @Rob 68 @jbrooklyn @LHop - did you go through a "third week slump"? Are there any particular exercises that helped you to loosen a tight knee?
 
Of course you're sleeping like the dead. You're only three weeks out. You have a ton of healing your body is trying to do. You'd be sleeping that way even without the PT sessions. Don't worry about exercises at this point, you're doing more than enough for where you are. Your therapist is doing as much or more than necessary to loosen things up. I haven't had any stim treatments, but I know some people have. I'm not certain what situations call for them.

You're okay. Don't worry. Sleep, ice, and take your normal pain medication routine.
 
MsBlue said:
So, those of you who are a bit farther out from surgery - @Rob 68 @jbrooklyn @LHop - did you go through a "third week slump"? Are there any particular exercises that helped you to loosen a tight knee?
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Had a terrible third week, but things rebounded nicely in week 4. Turning the bike pedals was key; that let me use my home recumbent bike to work on stretching my knee every day and not just at PT. And my therapist found an IT band running through my quads that was like an inch-diameter steel rod; she worked all that tightness out, and ROM increased on a regular basis from there, aided by the bike work at home.

But my knee is still tight, especially just above the break and from side to side. It is still swollen, even coming up on 5 weeks. I think that is something that will just have to work itself out, but I don't plan to slack off any exercise I can do without pain. And I agree with Jean; sleep when you need to, whatever the clock says. No shame in resting an injured body.

Hope this helps.
 
When you do your knee bends lying down, have they put weights on the machine? I've been doing that, but with no weights, it's relatively easy and causes no pain.. Sounds like they are giving you "strengthening" exercises more than just stretching exercises? Could be why you're so tired and have pain? Also, I've had the electrical stimulation at the end of my outside PT, along with icing, but I haven't felt that has caused me any ill affects.. (It's supposed to increase blood flow, I believe, and help in the healing process.. ) They've had me try squats, but I find them very painful.. on my non-operated knee even more than my operated knee, but still the latter.. It helps to move my feet a bit further apart, but I always stop if I feel it is hurting too much. I also peddle a bike, but it takes some time to warm up before I can do full rotations. I haven't had a double TRK, but I would say you need to play to your least strong knee and just call it good. Don't stress about that.. I'm sure they will even out at some point.. :) Hope that helps, @MsBlue :yes:
 
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Squats are very hard on newly replaced knees. It's best to leave those until at least 3 months after your surgery, even longer if you find that they hurt.
 
MsBlue, you really are going at it aren't you? You may well be overdoing it.

You are sleeping a lot. That is good, as has been said your body is shutting you down so it can do its work in healing.

You are only a tiny distance out. Again as has been said, you don't need to do any strength exercises, nor anything that causes pain or swelling in the 24 hours after doing it. This covers a lot of what you are doing, I think.

Deep tissue massage is usually a great idea, bear the previous paragraph in mind.

Don't sweat that your ROM isn't miraculously improving. It won't, and will often worsen for a short time as you heal. DON'T WORRY you will get there. Do the stretches and gentle exercises, sleep, watch telly.

Did I say not to worry, by the way?
 
I still get exhausted after PT and it has been 4 months! Good tired though as it is nice my muscles can do the work because the joints can do their work. I seriously doubt I felt that way at 3 weeks post surgery though, I started the squats and bike and all that after more like 7-8 weeks out. I never plan to do anything on a PT day and try to leave activities up in the air and do them as I feel up to it and also try to leave an easy bailout if something seems to be too much. These days I generally can get out and about late in the afternoon, early on no way. Do try simply getting up every 15-30 minutes during the day to move around a bit though. It really helps with stiffness. Don't try to do squats getting in and out of your chair though, that is way too much for your knees yet.
 
I'm 2 weeks out from my second and a little more than that for my first and I feel like I've slapped a wall.. I sit and think will they ever not hurt or not be tight.. Nights are hard.. My pt is good but I'm still with in home but she likes to push it. When she comes back Monday I will not be in tears bc I paid for it this weekend.. You do give me hope... I haven't been out of the house since I got home last Friday.. I can't even imagine going anywhere.. Being home is hard enough... I guess I just hoped it would be easier. But bilateral is not for the faint of heart... But thank you for sharing you give me hope I'll so more soon

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I hope you are not letting anyone push you. Your body has been through a big shock. I am 9 weeks out and only go out on the weekend when my husband is there just in case. He knows when I overdue! The couch and ice are my best friends. I had him watch the video on YouTube. He didn't make ilt to the end lol. I still need my naps and only do what I can when I can. For me, the dust will be there tomorrow. We all heal at different rates.
 
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