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TKR New knee 30th October 2012 - Age 34

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WELCOME SHUBBLES! This site is the best thing that has happened since sliced bread! Everyone here is great! Supportive and full of experience! Happy Healing...:yahoo:
 
Shelly, I hear you. I am a tummy sleeper too, and those were hard days not being able to sleep on my belly... It will come, and before you know it you will be able to sleep in the position that you like. :console2:
 
Well, today after working a little at PT I was able to get to 70 ROM. I know this may not seem great to some of you but I started out at 55 and was at 65 Friday so I have increased 5 over the weekend! That makes me very happy! Also, I began driving this weekend and drove myself 20 mins to and 20 from lunch today as well as to PT and to pick up dinner and I even pumped gas today. It is amazing how important these little steps are to me. Most of the time people don't think twice about these activities but when you haven't been able to do any of them for 3 weeks and doing them takes a toll on you, you appreciate the ability to do them again. Every day I look forward to one more thing that I can do again. That is what keeps me going strong. That, and all of your stories!

Good night world! Can't wait to see what surprises tomorrow will bring!
 
Had a little set back today. I went to sit on the couch and one of my little doggies decided it was the perfect time to jump to that same part of the couch. So I quickly tried to stop myself from crushing her and twisted funny which made my foot catch on the carpet and couch causing it to bend way more than my ROM which made me have a lot of pain for several hours. That really sucks because I had been feeling really good the last few days. Not looking forward to PT tomorrow.
 
OH Shelly well I hope the extra push you gave your knee will end up increasing your ROM. That's awful that it caused you pain for hours and I hope you didn't actually damage any tissues. BUT...at least you didn't fall on it or twist it side ways. Better ice during the night tonight and before PT to keep it calmed down. I hope it turns out okay for you! Good luck with PT and let her know you had a little accident!
 
Good morning to you. I am still hurting more than I had been so i am not too happy about that. I am going to go to PT still but I am going to tell him to take it easy on me today. I have been elevating and icing since yesteerday afternoon when it happened. Oh and don't forget the meds :) . I think i just bent it too far and that I made it angry with me so it is letting me know to be more careful next time. I just hope it starts to feel a little better soon because I have 3 days full of visiting others and stuffing my face starting tomorrow! I want to be able to spend time with everyone instead of having to leave because I am in misery. Looks like they might just have to see me on extra pain meds! LOL!

How are you doing today?
 
Hi Shubbles, I see a cute little pup there in the picture , my little Rosey would love to play with him. I had TKR 10/24 and my quad is pretty weak. We are suspecting it was weak before the surgery. But at 4 weeks I can do straight leg lifts, and bent leg lift in a seated position, and its coming along. I worry about getting the quads strong again but just have to stick with the exercises which hurt but really aren't too much. Sometimes I feel like a baby! :boohoo: Anyway, my tip is... That I've found that if I concentrate on "firing" the quad muscle before I try lifting it, it helps a lot, and doesn't hurt so much. Hang in there, you're doing great! :spin: and visit us often!
 
Thanks Randi! I finally was able to get my quad working again after a couple weeks. It still needs strengthening but it is coming along. I find it easier to lift the leg when it is straight rather than from a bent position but I am working on it. Do you use the flexible bands? I find tjose help the quad a lot. Also straight leg raises work it well too. My biggest problem now is my ROM. I really don't want to have to have the MUA done so I really want to push it to flex more. I am only at 70 so far(3 1/2 weeks post op) and I need to be at 100 by week 6 or OS says MUA. So I need to be hard on myself but be careful not to be too hard because that just makes it swell. Plus, I had a set back this week when I accidentally bent it too far when I caught it on the couch while trying to sit down. But I am getting there. I started at 55 so I am moving in the right direction.
As for my little pup, that is one of two of my little girls. She was feeling a bit smily so my hubby took that and sent it to me. It made me smile so I thought I would share it with all of you to give you a smile in your journey too.

I hope you all have a very Happy Thanksgiving! I plan on stuffing my face with my leg up in the air doing nothing this year!
 
Shelly my Sophie wants to play with your pup too! She's so cute! What are your girls' names?
Glad things weren't worse with your accident. Have you read my blurb about what my OS said this am about getting the flexion? He showed me that you or someone holds up your leg by the back of your thigh so that your lower leg can just hang by gravity. And you just keep letting it hang while you let in go to jelly. It's surprising how much more flexion you get with that compared to you or someone pushing in on your lower leg to get more bend. He said the quad is such a strong muscle and it actually keeps you from bending at your maximum so it needs to be done by getting the quad relaxed. I was doing this sitting in a rolling office chair and holding up my lower thigh myself. Much more flex than when on bed/exam table trying to pull it up, assisted or not.
Have you tried sitting on a rolling chair in low position and "scooting" forward so that your left knee bends? It's a pretty painless way to get some bend. Feels good almost to me, not painful like when you are pushing it.
I sure hope you don't have to have the MUA! How much does your right leg bend? Do you think you can avoid the MUA as long as you are continuing in the right direction, even if not all the way to 100 in 2 1/2 weeks? You've had a lot done on your knee so maybe you just need more time than those of us with less complicated histories.
Have a great Thanksgiving and give those pups a hug from us! Bet you will sleep well tomorrow night!
 
Marianne, yes I was the one who mentioned using a towel. :) I haven't tried the chair yet but I am sure I will soon!

My girls are Gizmo and Pompom. They are my babies.
 
They are half sisters. They are 2 years apart. Gizmo is 11 and Pompom is 9.
When I get on my computer again I will post one of both of them. I can't get it to post from my phone.
 
Happy Thanksgiving. I had my RTKR Oct 4th. At 6 weeks my PT and my OS agreed that my ROM was being held up by adhesions and scar tissue, some from this surgery and some from previous arthroscopic surgeries. My flexion was only around 95, and my extension could only get to zero with lots of pain and pushing by another person. I had the MUA on Nov 16th. Now I live most of my waking and sleeping moments in the continuous passive motion machine (CPM) which weighs about 30 pounds. Its quite the contraption, and I am bound to it by 3 wide strips of velcro, at the foot, upper tibia and lower femur. Two nights ago I was in bed, asleep, and must have tried to turn over...the entire unit, with me attached, fell off the bed! Scared the heck out of my poor husband. It really hurt at the moment...my upper thigh was on fire, and my kneecap felt like it was broken in two! However the next day the only damage seemed to be a bit of a muscle pull in the thigh. Phew! I now keep a chair next to the bed to stop that from happening again! I just shared this because of your sitting on the doggie story! Love the dog photo! How adorable.
Remember you are only 3 weeks post op, and don't push TOO hard. Take your pain meds. (but not with alcohol..darn I miss my cold draft beer...)
 
So today I relaxed almost all day. I did some stretches but that's about it. I had it up and iced several times. The only time it wasn't up was when I was at the table eating or when I was driving. Based on this, you would think it should be fine, but my calf is very tender this evening. The knee seems to be ok but my calf muscle seems tight and sore. Any idea why this would be?
 
Hi Shelly, glad you had a good Thanksgiving. Sometimes I get a nice little massage on my calf and thigh and sometimes I do it myself. It feels good and the doc said it was fine, just avoid the scar. It sounds like you're doing fine and I agree with Marianne, you have some time yet. I find that small "leaps" in flexion happen periodically and I'm not sure why or what caused it. Go figure, work but not to hard, easy but not too easy- it's a moving target!
 
Shelly my six weeks post op is saturday and at the physio yesterday my ROM was only 90 but the physio was pleased with that because i do have some swelling. Im sure when i go to my OS on Monday for my six week check he would not suggest MUA because I am not 100 or over. Is your OS strict on that figure. I cant see how he can be because we are all different and recover differently from our ops. I think perhaps they are a little more strict in the US than they are here. I am sure you will reach the majic 100 in your own time and not having a deadline for it. The more relaxed you are the more it shows on your knee. Take care and no more little accidents with your lovely doggies x
 
I am not sure how strict he will be. I am sure if I'm at 95 by then I would tell him to give me a couple more weeks to see if I can get it on my own. But if I am only at 80 by then he would probably insist on it. I think 100 is just what he is hoping for. I think my knee other does about 130-135. My extension is still at about 10-11 too. I would like to get that lower so I can straighten that leg when walking. But I have to keep reminding myself that I am only 3 1/2 weeks post op. It sure feels like it has been longer than that! Maybe with me being at work next week I will be forced to bend it more since I won't have the comfy couch to lie on all day. Either that or it will just make it angry and then I won't be able to work yet. Only time will tell.

I hope you all had a wonderful day yesterday! I am off to my second Thanksgiving feast tonight. Oh and I did my Black Friday shopping online today so that felt good, like I accomplished something even though it was while laying on the couch again. :happydance: :happydance:
 
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