Become an Insider

TKR My Journey as of 12/16/13 - Over 1 Year and Still Trying

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Oh well I disgraced myself again in Physio by getting tearful when she said it might take a while to get my knee bending well cos the muscles are so tight due to the bad condition of those muscles pre operation.

Had two sessions of hydro this week and loved it but my knee has swollen badly. However I can still only get an 80 degree bend.

Now 6 weeks out and although I can see progress I still feel that I need a lot of rest ice and elevation. Is this the same for everyone.

By the way doglover3 I do the same as you when stepping up and get severely told off by Physio. I am walking with one crutch and still a bit lumpy.

Is Saran Wrap cling film?

Bentley comes back Friday for good. Missing him and have got someone to come and walk him during the week. Hope I can cope with him.

Hope everyone having a good week. I've been out 3 times courtesy of friends. Go to OS on Monday and hoping that I am allowed to drive. Here in the uk not able to drive for 6 weeks.

WOOPPEE took DVT sock off for god today. Thank goodness.
 
Oh @Bentley's Slave I hop you don't mind me interjecting. You had your op done the day before me and our recovery is very similar. I know you don't want to hear this but you make me feel better about my slow recovery too!!! Saran wrap is cling film Dogloverx3 told me when I asked! I am nowhere near ready to drive yet. I can only just about work the pedal bin but maybe when I go to my OS on 24/02/14 I will be by then.

It will be nice for you to have Bentley back he is adorable and you must miss him around!!!! Great news about the horrid sock I can't wait for that either. A bit more normality restored!!!!
 
@Bentley's Slave @Nana moon 27 I had a major change in how I felt and moved at 7 weeks. Now I do a little too much and Violet (my knee) lets me know it for a while but recovers fairly quickly. I'm sure you will all feel much better when you are off the prescription pain meds.
 
Hi @Bentley's Slave ! Uhm, I cried every single day at PT for over a month. They still joke about it and give me a hard time. I inwardly (and sometimes outwardly) cringe when someone shows up at PT who had their surgery after mine and is 'doing great!'. Gag. I get very jealous. It's hard to know that we're not progressing as fast as some people, but we WILL get there! We're just in the remedial class of recovery is all :whistle:I'm glad you've gotten out a few times and seen friends! That's great! Please don't worry about your ROM right now. It will come. Slowly, but it will. Just keep up with your GENTLE stretches as home. I'm going to tag @Ziggysmom for you because she does all sorts of water exercises and maybe you 2 can compare notes on what is easier/harder on your knee. She's done very well in her recovery and is leaps and bounds ahead of us all, but don't hold that against her; she's AWESOME! :bow: I really think you will start to see little improvements more consistently from here on out. Not to say that there won't be set-backs, but at least we ALL made it through those horrible 1st 4-5 weeks!:happydance:

I'm glad Bentley is coming home and that you have a dogwalker to help out. I hope he'll be a good boy. May take a day or so for him to get used to the 'gentle' with mommy, but he'll get it.

As @Nana moon 27 said, yes, saran wrap is cling wrap and allows me to be able to wear jeans and pants without that annoying rubbing feeling. I'm just now starting to try to get my knee used to that annoyance as it's been wrapped in plastic for weeks, but I won't hesitate to start doing it again.

I hope everyone is having a great day! I've just finished all my prep work for today and am getting ready to head out in a few minutes, but wanted to check in with everyone. Sending big hugs to you all!:console2:
 
hahahaha @Chihuahuan , you snuck in and posted while I was. My friends decided to name my knee last night as it seems to be it's own separate entity. They came up with Richard. Dick for short (and when it's being a sh*t). I don't think it's the best name in the world, but I guess they just got tired of hearing me refer to it as 'my dumb f*ing knee' :umm:I hope Violet is being nice to you!!
 
Oh I am so glad to be on this site. You are all so kind. I stopped visiting it for a couple of days this week cos I felt so disappointed in myself for lack of progress and, believe it or not, I do have a sense of humour usually.

Love the name Violet for your knee @Chihuahuan so I am thinking of a name for mine. It is such a nuisance it has to be male.

@nanamoon it is good to hear that I am not the slowest person on the planet and I am grateful for your interjection!!!

@doglover3 you have kept me going over the past few weeks with your humour. Hope all goes well today.

Thanks everyone. I have felt so alone in my head this week.
 
Hi all - and particularly @Bentley's Slave
Glad Bentley is returning - beautiful, beautiful boy.
I have had so much hydrotherapy and it always leaves me wiped out. You do work very hard in the water. Some of my results have been pitiful, but sometimes I have a really good session and surprise myself and the PT. It's just how it is - good days and bad days and all our recoveries are different. I was telling NM27 a few days ago how I envy a woman who had her knee done just 4 hours before me. She is much older than me and bends it like a possessed bendy thing, where mine at that point just looked like a bruised and swollen lump. Seeing my despondency the PT was quick to ask her how her knee was before surgery. She replied that she had no problem bending it at all beforehand - whereas I could hardly bend mine pre-op. Huh!
I am so envious that you can shed the dreaded compression stockings. I have mine for another 3+ weeks and they already look as if they have been chewed by a large animal and spat out. In fact I wish they would be chewed by a large animal and eaten! I am off to hydro tomorrow and am going to beg for replacements.
My dressing comes off tomorrow - hurrah! Thanks for the Saran wrap tip @DogLoverx3 that may be useful.
I am hoping to get the all clear to drive very soon. Fortunately I have an automatic and its my left leg - and as I am only on paracetamol I'm hoping to get the go ahead in the not too distant.
Take it easy @DogLoverx3 - I am so lazy in this recovery and you are dashing about keeping your business and your social life going, whilst getting that ****** knee to do what it should. You put me to shame.
Well I have been 'rat sitting' today - looking after my daughter's post-op ratty. He has a huge bandage on him to stop him worrying his stitches - and tends to do a Houdini trick quite often and wriggle out of them. Poor little mite - the bandage covers about 80% of his body mass and I complain about compression stockings. Still, I have had no desire to chew my wound and he is the world's worst.
Night night all - have a good one and talk soon
ChrisX
 
@DogLoverx3 your name for your knee is the same as my husband lol x x x honestly t's hilarious. He is also called Dick for short! There is a longer version when I'm mad at him.......:rofsign::puppysmooze:

I was lying here feeling nauseous again when I read your post OMG absolutely made my day !!!!!!!!!!:cheers:
 
Oh @Bentley's Slave , that made me feel so sad, never stop posting, especially if you are feeling alone in your head, that's when you need us the most. We're here for each other,mew understand what our friends and families don't understand, we KNOW exactly what we're all going through - the pain, discomfort, sleeplessness, frustration, depression etc. just come on here to get it out of your system, we will always support and sympathise and send virtual hugs xxx
 
Hi all @Bentley's Slave please keep posting we all go through bad days and it helps to talk to all the lovely people on here, I hate the ted stockings I took them off for a couple of hours this morning what bliss another 2 weeks and they will go in the dustbin.Hope you all have a good night Terri
 
yiayia3 said:
Hi all @Bentley's Slave please keep posting we all go through bad days and it helps to talk to all the lovely people on here, I hate the ted stockings I took them off for a couple of hours this morning what bliss another 2 weeks and they will go in the dustbin.Hope you all have a good night Terri
Click to expand...
Terri, shall we have a virtual TED bonfire? I hate mine with a passion, my legs itch,they swell overnight, I hate having to hand wash them every day, my toes pop out of the end during the night and end up being 'strangled' ( a bit of an exaggeration but you probably know what I mean). My six week date is on Saturday week, but my appointment with the OS is the following Monday - do you think he will expect me to be wearing them when I see him or do you think I'll get away with binning them on the Saturday?:)
 
@DogLoverx3 Just thinking about you and your very busy day --hope it went well and you are now trying to recover a little.
After two days with the grand-babes, and Violet letting me know about it, I had an ultra lazy day. I'm hoping to start walking in our city pool next week.
 
Hi @DogLoverx3 hope all went well today. Have dozed off and woken up ready to start my day ay blooming 2.45 am. I got PT this morning so I'll try to get some zzzzzzz's. Looking forward to reading your post x x x x
 
@Bentley's Slave....@DogLoverx3 mentioned my pool workouts (and said some very nice things about me...she is so sweet!), so I thought I would share here. I have been released from PT, so am now working out almost exclusively in the pool as my recovery continues. I also do some exercising in the gym, and am trying to walk more, although the weather is hindering that effort...

I have found the pool to be the best way to exercise the knee...I can do almost all the exercises I do on land, but without gravity causing discomfort, so I can do the repetitions more easily. Also, buoyancy helps with exercises like squats, or stepping on and off the stairs, but I don't think will help me strengthen my quads or hips...that's where the land based exercises will do the most good for me.

I do take a water aerobics class, but do not do any jumping or exercises that twist the leg. In addition to the class, I have my own routine, which includes walking forward, backward and sideways across the pool (3 or 4 laps each). I also march with a high step back and forth. I then use a noodle and do some "deep water" exercises of cross-country skiing, jumping jacks (legs only), and bicycling. I also do some ab exercises while in the deep end, but they are hard to describe. I then grab the ladder and scissor kick for 100 reps. Then I dog paddle two laps of the pool. After that I do leg lifts, knee bends, squats, and other such exercises in the shallow end, ending with lunging on the steps (holding the bend for 20 seconds...only 3 or 4 reps), and stepping on and off, like in PT. I end with some hamstring and quad stretches, like on land. This workout takes about a half hour.

I designed this workout, not only to work the knee, but to use the resistance of the water for some strengthening, and calorie burning...my appetite returned with a vengeance after 3 weeks and has not subsided!!

As concerns ROM...in PT, I achieved a range of zero extension to 127 bend. When I stand naturally, however, my
"good" leg is in a negative position...this makes my tkr leg feel, and look, bent. My OS wants me to stretch and concentrate on getting the leg straighter, but all I seem to be doing is hurting the tendons that connect my hamstrings to my bones. I have stopped doing the heavy stretches, and I have decided to let the chips fall where they may and just get used to the bent feeling. I also try to concentrate on a long, heel-toe stride when I walk to minimize the bent feel. The bend is another issue, but not as concerning for me....although I can achieve 127 if I really try hard, I do not think my tkr knee will ever reach the bend of my "good" leg. When I think back to the time before my surgery, I could no longer straighten or bend my injured leg to match my "good" leg, so I think my muscles shrank or tightened or something, and I am now limited forever. We shall see. The trick is to try to reach a goal of extension and bend that is safe for negotiating uneven ground and slopes...you may want to discuss this with your PT or OS.

A final thought...I am now at 8.5 weeks post-op. You are two weeks behind me, I believe....just these past few days my knee has started to feel somewhat "normal" once in awhile. At 6 weeks I was wondering if I'd ever not have a time of swelling and discomfort. I am happy to say I now do, although it is not all the time...but I do see progress! It will happen, mark my words! Everyone is different, and recovers at a different rate, so your recovery may not be as quick as mine (and I know my knee could blow up tomorrow...it's far from healed yet!), but you will recover...I do wish the doctors would counsel great patience, because that's what it takes, not this "window of opportunity" garbage they tell their patients, at least on this side of the pond.

One final thought....crying jags comes with the territory...I'll bet even the men are doing it, even if it's behind closed doors...even that will pass eventually...you are NOT alone! Cheers, and I hope everyone has a pain free and wonderful weekend! Sorry for the long post, but I can't say anything in two sentences, LOL...
 
Holy cow @Ziggysmom that sounds like quite a list to get done in 30 minutes! I could maybe do half of that (in 45 but who's counting). Probably why you're doing so awesome and I'm in the remedial class. ;-) Thank you for responding for @Bentley's Slave . I certainly hope that she's feeling better about, well, everything. This all gets so overwhelming for all of us but I agree with everyone else. If you're feeling blue, post on here. If you're happy, post on here. If you have a setback, post. If you have a victory, post. You get the idea. That's what's so wonderful about this site. We are all here to share in all the ups & downs with you! xoxoxo

K, so I wasn't going to post about my night and day as I've been feeling hugely sorry for myself. I do appreciate your checking in with me @Chihuahuan and @Nana moon 27 and everyone else. It makes me feel very good. My 36 hour day is over. And I cried for over an hour last night. :-( My knee had been hurting all day yesterday and as you all know (because I whined about it) I had to work all of yesterday. By the time I got home last night my knee was throbbing and I knew I still had hours of work left to do - unload the car, reload the car, prep, cook, blah blah blah. It was not the smartest thing of me to do not to call someone for help, but you know me, I thought I could do it all on my own and didn't want to bother anyone. Bleck. I got it all done, managed to hop in bed for a couple of sleepless hours and with my 1st step at 5am this morning getting ready for the breakfast I had to do, I planted my foot wrong and semi-twisted my knee. Lovely. As I DID think ahead this time, I had one of my servers with me to help this morning and thank goodness I did. It was tough, my knee is ticked, but I did it. I just awoke from a much needed 2 hour nap. Could have slept much longer as I was sound asleep but my phone woke me up. Boo. I will proceed to spend the next 2 days laying in bed watching bad television and hoping that I am not doing any permanent damage to myself. :-( :headbang:

Anyway, I received a lovely message from a new Bonesmartie this morning thanking me for posting and being honest in my thread. I know that I whine and moan and complain a lot. I try to sprinkle it in with bits of optimism and humor so no one actually wants to stab themselves in the eye with a fork after reading my saga. What I am glad of, truely, is that those that may feel that they're 'falling behind' or 'failing' or 'having a harder time' than others will realize that they aren't. It's great that apparently some are able to sail right thru this with minimal pain, meds and discomfort. That apparently they have no setbacks. I'm proud of them and truely jealous. I really do feel that those people are the exception and not the rule. This is a TOUGH process that can get the most positive of people down so I want everyone to know that even if I, the one who apparently seems to have lost her positivity at points, can sometimes see the light at the end of the tunnel, that everyone else will know that IT DOES GET BETTER! Sucks how long it takes, but it will happen. Hugs all around! :puppysmooze: Oh, and Happy Valentine's Day (*gag*). :whistle:
 
Hi @DogLoverx3 lovely to see your post!! I don't know if you backtracked to my brief list about your knee and my husbands name. I could not stop laughing last night about it. It so cheered me up!!!! :puppysmooze:
 
I DID see that :heehee: sorry, no offense Mr Nana Moon 27 :blush:
 
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