Realise that I am now exactly 16 weeks post my lateral pkr. I have been thinking it is less but it will be four calendar months on the 25th.
I am making progress but it is slow and I sometimes still get dispirited by well meaning but insensitive comments from others- expressing surprise that I am not 100% better and planning adventurous holidays etc.
Just going to log my current situation, both good and not so good for information. I think my recovery is probably about average for a modestly fit 66 year old.
My knee is gradually getting stronger. I regularly walk 8000- 10000 steps/day. If I do much over 10000 steps or a lot of stairs then I will have slight swelling/ soreness/ warmth by the end of the day but it will settle with ice/ rest overnight.
I can walk 3 miles with a break in the middle for rest/ coffee with little or no pain ( 1 out of 10). My family all agree I am walking faster than pre-op.
I can do a few flights of stairs/ day normally going up ( towards the end of the day when tired I will revert to one-step at a time). I can do 3-4 steps normally going down if they are fairly shallow but generally still find this too uncomfortable/ slightly painful. I do have to be careful walking upstairs to keep my knee straight and engage my muscles.
The numb patch is definitely reducing and feels more normal and less tingly. I still have occasional funny sensations and zingers. I can now kneel for about 5-7 minutes quite comfortably in the 4 point position to do cat stretch exercises for my bad back.
My lower back pain is improving because I can now lie on my tummy and kneel to do back exercises. Plus I am back on naproxen once/ day for the last couple of weeks because it was sore.
On the more negative side I still get slight twinges from my MCL if my knee twists inwards even slightly. It is getting less mainly because I am careful to walk straight and I am strengthening my muscles with daily pilates.
I carry a foldable walking stick. I don't use it except for getting on and off buses and trains and going up/ down stairs if there is no rail. Also to lean on if tired.
I still need to rest and ice in the afternoon as I get tired after my exercise in the morning.
I find standing for long periods much more difficult than walking. I like art galleries and am catching up after being out of action for months. I get very tired and my knee gets definitely stiff and sore with a big exhibition and I lean on my walking stick at these times.
I still don't sleep that well and use my cryocuff water cooler resting on my knee at night. The knee pain at night is definitely reducing and pretty minimal. My sleep issues are long-term and not helped by endless colds recently.
I also have a very challenging few days coming up. I am doing my first long car journey tomorrow. It is just 2 hours ( which I know is not long by many people's perspectives). I won't be driving but I may do a part of the journey and we will stop part way. We are visiting my son and his wife and my other baby grandson. We will stay overnight and I am not looking forward to my first night away from home post- op. I then have to come home early on the train ( my husband is staying to help with babysitting). I have to come back for a gynae investigation/ procedure billed as "painful" in the paperwork. It can be done under GA if I can't tolerate it but I would rather avoid a GA. Partly as I don't want anyone moving my new knee if I can't tell them to stop! My daughter will collect me and my husband will be home the next day- so not that difficult really.
Still getting anxious nonetheless.
Sorry for the long post but it helps me to summarise and record where I am up to.
United States
