TKR My Left Knee

Myleftknee

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I had a left tkr on 9th February 2019. Discharged home yesterday (12th). All ok so far. I live alone so it's a bit overwhelming, but I'm getting there. My main concern at the moment is the extent of the swelling around my knee which is definitely impeding the exercise routine given to me on discharge.
 
@Myleftknee Welcome to BoneSmart and the other side of surgery! I hope you will stop by often to keep us updated on your recovery. Questions? Ask away. We are with you through this journey.

Here are your recovery guidelines to refer to when needed.

Knee Recovery: The Guidelines

1. Don’t worry: Your body will heal all by itself. Relax, let it, don't try and hurry it, don’t worry about any symptoms now, they are almost certainly temporary

2. Control discomfort:
rest
elevate
ice
take your pain meds by prescription schedule (not when pain starts!)
don't overwork

3. Do what you want to do BUT
a. If it hurts, don't do it and don't allow anyone - especially a physical therapist - to do it to you
b. If your leg swells more or gets stiffer in the 24 hours after doing it, don't do it again.​

4. PT or exercise can be useful BUT take note of these

5. At week 4 and after you should follow this Activity progression for TKRs

6. Access these pages on the website

The Recovery articles:
The importance of managing pain after a TKR and the pain chart
Swollen and stiff knee: what causes it?

Energy drain for TKRs

Elevation is the key

Ice to control pain and swelling

Heel slides and how to do them properly

Chart representation of TKR recovery

Healing: how long does it take?

Post op blues is a reality - be prepared for it
Sleep deprivation is pretty much inevitable - but what causes it?

There are also some cautionary articles here
Myth busting: no pain, no gain
Myth busting: the "window of opportunity" in TKR
Myth busting: on getting addicted to pain meds

We try to keep the forum a positive and safe place for our members to talk about their questions or concerns and to report successes with their joint replacement surgery.

While members may create as many threads as they like in a majority of BoneSmart's forums, we ask that each member have only one recovery thread. This policy makes it easier to go back and review history before providing advice.
 
Hey, hang in there! I had my LTKR done a few days before you on 2/6. I was releases on 2/8 and that day and the next were the absolute worst. I wanted to do my exercises bu my knee was so swollen I just couldn't do them. Speaking from my experience, load up on your med's and if you have access to an ice machine use it constantly. Ice, Rest, and elevate. I'm a week post op now and able to work through my exercises. The swelling is still there but has gone down enough to allow me to do them. BTW, I live alone too and have been okay thanks to the help of a few friends who have brought me ice, food, etc.....good Luck!
 
Do what you can but don't push yourself too hard right after surgery. I'm having mine March 7 my Dr has already said first few days won't be able to do much. Pace yourself and hoping you start getting relief
 
Welcome to the other side! Don't overdo the exercises. You want to aim to keep the swelling down enough for you to be able to do what you need. As the others say - rest, elevate and ice and keep on top of your painkillers. Wishing you a smooth recovery.
 
Do as little as possible, and ice and elevate most of the day. You will feel more in the swing of things little by little. Another tip I learned was to post a list of requests on your refrigerator so when someone came by or called and offered to help, there would be choices for them.
 
Forget the exercises, just rest, ice and get better. The time for exercise will come much later.
 
CONGRATS! It's uphill from here! BUT, s-l-o-w-l-y!!! Take care of your self, first. I had RTKR on JAN2018 and am know recuperating from LTKR on FEB 8, 2019. LOTS of rest & ICE!! All the rest will fall into place. Slow & steady will win the race!! We can get through this!
 
Don't worry about the exercises.... Seriously, your body will tell you what you can do and when you can do it. On Friday, I decided that my knee felt up to driving so I hopped into my little SUV and drove around the block.

I was very concerned about the rehab until I started reading this site. I've been mostly following the recommendations on here because, when I don't, I do too much and suffer for days. The best advice I got from here is about icing and elevating. I both a recirculating ice machine and have it on about 12 hours a day including while I sleep. I do my stretching exercises, walk, ride my recumbent exercise bike and ice/elevate in between. This morning I walked 1/2 mile around my neighborhood. Hopefully, I'll be able to double that in the next week or so because I felt pretty good when I was done.

I doubt if my recovery would have been so smooth if I hadn't found this site. That's not to say it's been easy because it hasn't. I've had several occasions where I had tantrums and sulked all day because I was frustrated with the slowness of the recovery. I've felt guilty because I haven't been able to go back to work yet. I've cried because people close to me don't understand what I'm going through and why I can't just do things that they think I should be able to do.
 
As I've said, we are all in the same boat . . . some boat's are just bigger and take more maintenance than others!! CAdesgirl, you hit the nail on the head . . . icing and elevating are top priorities to healing.

If you've seen my bio, I had RTKR in JAN 2018 . . . a HORROR!!! Terrible uphill struggle!! BUT, I didn't quit, had LTKR on FEB 88, 2019 . . . a DREAM!!! This knee (so far) experience has been a total 180' compared to my Right knee!! But, that's what everyone on here has to learn . . . we're all different, each knee is different. Stick to the basics and the rest will fall into place.
 

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