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TKR on the mend

HI Janmont. The walking is great progress and if it takes some pain meds so be it. My guess is that you will start to feel less need for pain meds during the day, but we are all different in how this works. You ROM is great and I am sure you will continue to make progress.

I am doing well and getting on with recovery. I had my first "robust" PT session today that focused on getting the last few degrees of extension. I have worked with this PT for a long time and even then it took some feedback such as "that is a bit too much pressure" to ensure a productive session. But, working with a PT for me is all about communication about what works and does not. I came home, did 20 minutes of ice and elevation and then 10 minutes of heat and went out and walked my dog.
 
@janmont,

I will reply to your question on your thread not Josephine's. If you go to the very bottom of your thread page on the left you will see the words 'BoneSmart mobile' Click on this and you will be given some options in ' Style chooser' Select the one you want and the appearance of the page changes. You can try out all the choices and see which one you like the most.
 
If you're having problems viewing information, please make a report in the "bugs" forum so we can check it out. Tell us what is going on and include a screen shot if you can.
 
@busylizzie thanks, I switched it to 2.0 which seems to be an older version. Not sure whathappened.

@metalheart sounds like you are doing well and making progress. Are you finished with pt? After my pt I can't go walking, it hurts too much . However, my pt does not push me hard either of which I am thankful. I am my own worst enemy, I do too much sometimes when doing pt at home. I have a cryogenic cuff with a compression cuff and I do use it, but I like heat too. I spent 10 minutes in a hot shower to warm the knee, got out and did my heel slides. The knee moves better I think.
 
hi Janmont -- I am not yet finished with outpatient PT. I am going to go a week or two more to focus on the last few degrees of extension and then just keep up my my home stretches and I also go to a gym for some workouts. At home, I do a combination of cycling, walking, extension and flexion stretches, and some strength work on my hamstrings, abductors, and quads. I found that after week or so my strength improved and doing things on my own works well.

Compression combined with icing has helped the swelling in my knee. I started using the ice/compression machine around the end of week two and swelling decreased quickly. And, we are in complete agreement about the flexibility benefits of heat!

Keep up the good work!
 
Today is the first day of my seventh week. I saw my OS today and he has released me, saying I look better than a lot of his patients at this stage. He said I could finish this weeks therapy if I wished but that I didn't have to. I did go to pt right after that because I had already scheduled it and I decided on next Friday for my last visit. The OS said I have very little scar tissue and I told him the pt and I had both been massaging the scar and he said keep it up. He also said I could do anything I wanted in the way of movement and exercise, but to expect to have some swelling for the next 6 months. The thing he seemed surprised about was that I tried to cut my perc to one to two pills of 5 mg each per day. He said I shouldn't try so hard to wean off yet and he wrote me another script for 60 more pills and this is coming from a dr who has the reputation of being conservative. I did tell him I travelled a lot in the summer and he said it is good to have some as backup in case something happens. I agreed recalling the time I fell on my knee on a pool deck in Mexico and twisted it in Vegas on my first day there. Thank goodness I had brought some Vicodin.
This past week I have been having trouble falling asleep and I think I will start taking 5 mg before bed. I have not had any trouble sleeping till I tried to cut back. I do agree it is best to get off as soon as possible and I will take just enough to avoid discomfort.
@Awriterafoot I drove to the dr and to pt today with no issue. I then went to the pet store for dog food, the grocery store for dinner, and then to the pharmacy for the meds. I then fed and walked my dogs. I will see how I feel tomorrow, I may be in the Odic club.
I didn't do much yesterday so my swelling would be down today and it was. I wanted a good accurate reding of my rom. It jumped one whole degree to 110. My OS said he was ok with the 108 I had previously had and that I would gain more as time went on. For my home and gym therapy, I plan on riding the bike at the gym 2 days a week, pool class 3 days a week and walking on all days. I will work on balance as well. Has anyone else worked on step ups in pt? We upped the height today and the side steps were a little challenging. I still walk with a little limp and I think it is the periformis muscle not getting a workout. I think I will try the machines at the gym for that. We will see how it goes @TexasTee i am, like you, going back to exercise class. Today is the first time I felt a little like my life is coming back. My other knee will be done in October. I have a trip planned to do the west coast and Brittish Columbia in July that will last till mid oct. I hope this knee will be in good enough shape to do all the activities.


 
@janmont
Sounds like you're doing great! I am 11 days behind you. I've been doing step ups in PT for about a week. Yes, the side steps are more of a challenge than the straight on ones. They involve more of the leg muscles (or so they told me). For now the height I'm using is about 4 or 5 inches. The first day by evening my knee was pretty fatigued and a bit sore. I'm sure an increase in height would bring on similar fatigue.
I hope you have a grand time on your trip. It sounds wonderful!
 
@BananasKnees I upped the steps yesterday to about 6 inches and my glute muscles are sore today. I think I need to practice lifting my knee higher and marching as well. After all it's been 7 weeks since the gluteus have had to do much. The side steps do get easier though.
 
Today I am feeling ok, guess all I did yesterday wasn't too bad. Gotta clean house sometime this week. Ugh.
 
Take it easy---remember, recovery takes time---do not worry about the housework---be patient about things.

Remember, recovery is not linear, and there are some peaks, some valleys, and some plateaus involved.
 
Hi Janmont - sounds like all is going great, congrats on being released! I'm envious that you are released to do what you'd like for exercise but I'll get there :) Let me know how the kneeling goes.
 
Sounds like you are well on your way to full recovery, @janmont. At this rate you should be in grand shape by the time you go to BC. Are you hiking, kayaking? Beautiful country up there. And lucky you, released from PT. I'm not getting much out of it this time. I could do as well on my own. Probably won't keep it up much longer, though I bet I have to keep going at least once a week until I see the surgeon at the end of the month.

I'm going to practice driving today. Of course, another snow storm is blowing in, but at least I can get started.
 
Great going @janmont another step on the road to full recovery..you are ahead of the curve....

Vinny
 
Thanks everyone for the encouragement. @Awriterafoot I am not exactly sure what we will be doing in BC. We are going on a motor home caravan and for the fee we paid, all activities re included. I know it will be great.

Last year we went to the other side of Canada and went all the way to Labrador on a ferry. The highlight of that trip was riding the tidal bore in the bay of Funday. Each trip lasts from 30 to 53 days.
@TexasTee @SuperSnapper i tried kneeling on a thin pillow and it was fine. I held the pose for about a minute. I am going to keep doing it.
I am feeling good today, I had 3, yes, 3 glasses of wine. It was good! No pain meds as wine is a good pain killer ha ha.
 
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