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TKR No Kneecap and a TKR Experience

@uva55, you are one crazy girl! You gave me a really good laugh. Thank you for that! Now, I'm uplifted and off of the pity pot! I could just see you climbing into your refrigerator! And can I ever relate. But, now I'm icing and wrapped up in a blanket in front of the room a/c! And I'm feeling better emotionally thanks to you! And even my brat is feeling better, too!
 
Paula it's ok and we all understand. Give it another month. Sounds like a long time but it will go fast. At 3 months I can tell you I've turned the corner. Sleeping better and not uncomfortable. Getting around very well. I'm not going to PT anymore. I don't exercise much-just regular living type stuff. Now I did have swelling when I traveled on a plane for long hours to Ireland last week-then I didn't get rest, ate and drank too much while there. That all equaled swollen feet, legs, knees and pain. It's all fine now that i'm home again. Know that it's going to get better!:flwrysmile:
 
Thank you @tjcteacher for your encouraging email. It hasn't even been 2 months for me yet, so I really need to give it more time. My visitor picked a bad day to come by and tell me how much better she did than me! I was already down and that just added to it! My knee is my knee and different from everybody else's! After staying on this forum and you ladies talking me through it, I'm doing much better. Even the knee is less tender. A day of doing nothing much has helped.
 
Oh Paula, just catching up now. Darn, boy this journey is not easy huh? I hope you are having a better day today.

As for medicare, and suppliments, im a self proclaimed expert on it, from my best friend was a cpa and is 4 months older than me and did all the research, and taught me well. I picked what is called a high F plan, which means you pay a low monthly premium (I pay $55) but I have an annual deductible of $2180. After Medicare part B pays their 80% of my medical costs (not hospital, that's part A) , I am only responsible for $2180, then the supplement pays the full 20% balance after Medicare. My husband got the regular F suppliment, and pays $184/ month, and has zero deductible/co pay. The F line of suppliments are considered the "Cadillac of plans. Now the medicare part D drug plans are a whole separate maze of insanity. If you want more info from me, just ask :-)
 
I'm glad you're feeling better, Paula. Just when you think you're on an upward swing, down the hill you go. Soon though there will be more up hills than down. :flwrysmile:
 
It hard when others talk about what happened with them when it comes to any type of surgery/illness isn't it. Somebody always has a story! Someone tried to tell me before my surgery that they knew someone who had total knee surgery and was back to work the next few days! NOT!!!!Just insisted that it happened. There are so many things that go into this healing journey. Age, condition pre surgery, other medical needs,-we are just all different.
Each week brings an additional bit of improvement. Still a long way to 1 year:umm: but we will make it.
 
@dianehelen, I signed up today for the regular F plan. It's $132 mo. I'm tired of all these extra bills coming in from this surgery. It seems like every week there's another one. I also got their drug plan. If by some miracle my company keeps me on DB after I turn 65, I'll still keep the medigap plan. My company is paying way more than I'll be paying and they cover hardly anything. For my surgery in November they paid $1. Can you believe it?!
@newlybionic, thank you again. Your PMs helped me tremendously to make this decision! I don't have to start coverage until 9/1/16, but I'm so glad this is off my back now! Now, I just have to wait and see if I'm still on DB or not. If not, there's going to be a whole new set of problems and decisions to be made!
 
sistersinhim said:
regular F plan
Click to expand...


Wize move. Im sorta regretting not doing that. Probably will change next year. But after my $91,000 brain surgery, hospital billing and 8500 surgeon bill, I've met the deductible. So my TKR will be free, yippee,so fun (insert sarcasm)

Glad you got it all worked out
 
I'm glad you were able to find a plan for you. I'd rather know how much to budget for than to worry about all kinds of copays and deductibles.

You will start to add more and more good days. It just seems like we always want it done and over with already. Try to look at your recovery over the weeks and you can see each week something has gotten easier for you to do.
 
Me,too, Diane! Now, if only my knee will behave tonight, I should be able to get some good sleep! My birthday is 8/7 and I'll be 65. That's why they want to kick me off of DB. I sent an appeal letter and I told them I was unable to work anywhere right now because of my tkr. To please reconsider. I also sent them a list of all my surgeries. They said it'd take up to 45 days to make a decision. It has already been a month and I've heard nothing. I don't expect them to keep me on it. That means I'll have to be doing some juggling financially. But, everything will work out OK. It always has!

@newlybionic, did you get any sleep last night? How did your day go? Aren't you off for a while now and headed to the beach?
 
I had less than 4 hours sleep. But I made it through my day. I'm off now until Monday but it looks like it's going to rain on Friday so I might not make day trip to the beach.

I hope you are able to get a full nights sleep.
 
I hope you do, too. Just being off of work will be great. But, if you can make it to the beach it would be even better! We need some rain down here, so just send it to us Friday so you can go.
 
tjcteacher said:
It hard when others talk about what happened with them when it comes to any type of surgery/illness isn't it. Somebody always has a story! Someone tried to tell me before my surgery that they knew someone who had total knee surgery and was back to work the next few days! NOT!!!!Just insisted that it happened.
Click to expand...
I have a friend who proclaims loud and long that he went back to work one week after a TKR. He did, too, but that isn't the whole story.
The whole, and real, story goes more like this:
  • He was head of a department and said that he was irreplaceable, implying that he didn't trust his deputies.
  • Yes, he did go back to work after one week, but he went back in a wheelchair.
  • He only went for a couple of hours a day.
  • His wife helped him to get up, shower and dress, and drove him to and from work.
  • On coming home from work, he spent the rest of the day and night in bed.
  • He took no pain medications, saying that they were "for sissies". Consequently, he was a grumpy bear, at work and at home.
  • His colleagues wished he had stayed at home.
  • At home, he was miserable and demanding.
  • His wife was worn out by the end of a month.

So, when I hear those stories about miraculous recoveries, I only believe a very small part of them.
 
Oh yes, you and me too, @celle.That friend that came by yesterday and said she had no pain or swelling after a couple of weeks, has just forgotten what she did go through. I remember her husband saying, for probably months, that she was having a rough time of it, that it was so much worse than her hip replacement. I think that for some people they just have to be a little bit better at everything than someone else is and will exaggerate things to reflect so. I know they mean well, but sometimes it has the opposite effect. I was already down when she came and her statements just dropped me down farther. Sometimes people are better off not saying anything at all if they don't know how to help that person!

I had a better night last night! I even slept on my sides a little bit! When I woke up I felt well enough to go shopping. This is another first! I went shopping all by myself and even unloaded the car, except for a watermelon!, and put the groceries up! I love achieving these firsts! Of course now I have swelled and am uncomfortable, so I'm doing the same ole routine...Ice, Rest, Elevate, and Meds! I have to get well enough to go outside and drive my lawnmower out of the shed. My neighbor asked to borrow it. I don't trust her driving it out of there. I think the main problem I'll have to worry about is being able to lift the 5 gallon gas can to refill the mower. I just might leave that for her to do. I doubt I can lift 40 lbs right yet! I sure don't want my brat to get mad and me and pitch a fit! She's probably mad enough that I walked all around Walmart on her! She has to learn that there are things that have to be done and that I'll take care of and baby her later! Sure hate being controlled by my knee, but I have resolved myself to that fact! Doing this one shopping trip is all she's going to let me do. But, actually that's all that I needed to do! The rest of the stuff can wait until tomorrow, Besides, there's another SS lesson to work on and that requires sitting down!
 
By all means, have your friend lift that 40 pound gas tank! I suspect that we have all gotten weaker since we haven't been able to do our regular chores. I know I have.

I also think you have named your new knee "The Brat." That's a pretty good name because brats can be so irritating and often need a timeout for bad behavior. Sounds familiar?
 
I have learned not to listen to the "super human" stories as I call them, I have even read some of them on BS. I know that I'm not and never have been a delicate flower, I have a very high tolerance for pain and TKR has kicked my butt, I had natural child birth, I had a total hysterectomy, I had Achilles tendon repair, and nothing compares to this, the energy drain, pain, swelling, the long recovery, unable to sleep at night is mind bogling.

I was one of those individuals that thought I was tough enough to be done with recovery in 2 weeks...it didn't take me long to figure out that the more you try to hurry this recovery the more you set yourself up for pain and disappointment. I'm going back to work at 7 weeks, even though I know I can benefit from a little more time off, but my job is being difficult at this time, I already decided if my knee starts to bother my I will take additional time off.

Even if you have a relatively good recovery, it still takes a lot out of you. There are no shortcuts!!!
 
@dianehelen You won't know until you are there. Think positively. It can't hurt. Just remember with all your knowledge you won't make the dumb mistakes that we have made along the way.
 
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