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TKR Onwards and upwards - my journey continues

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Well i havent done that for years and years Joy so that would be something. I was just sitting here thinking of how I used to be before the op. Literally dragging my feet up the stairs and on really bad days sitting on my bottom to get up. What a difference this op makes to our lives. Takes years off us. :dancy:
 
Oh Pat I know what you mean. We go for dinner at a pub in Gibsons that has a flight and a half of stairs that I used to drag myself up the last flight by the railing. We were there recently and I walked up properly instead of two feet on each step... I can feel how much stronger my new knee is and am eager to have the bad one done too. I guess I will find out what the OS has planned on Wed at my 6 week check.
 
Hi Patricia, Well done. I am really pleased for you.
How was your hospital visit?
Toothfairy :egypdance:
 
All went well at the hospital. He agreed still very swollen but wasnt concerned about that. Give it time. He showed me the x rays before and after the op and what a difference. Sadly he showed me the x ray of my right knee. Bone to bone and almost as bad as my left knee was. He then told me I had been recommended for bilateral TKR but he as a surgeon didnt like doing them at the same time. I didnt know that. He then said "So do you want to book the next one now ". Er well no thank you I would like to recover more from this one thank you. He agreed with me and gave me an appt for November next year with the proviso I can always bring it forward any time I want to. He said sometimes when you have two bad knees and you have one done it takes the pressure off the unoperated knee and it does become less painful. So we will see how it goes. I really dont want it in the next few months. I would like time to get over this op. I went shopping after the appointment pushing the trolley around the supermarket and after 15 mins was close to collasping. Husband finished shopping. I waited in the car. Best bit of the day. Home to a lovely long bath...... at last.
 
Creeker13 said:
Oh Pat I know what you mean. We go for dinner at a pub in Gibsons that has a flight and a half of stairs that I used to drag myself up the last flight by the railing. We were there recently and I walked up properly instead of two feet on each step... I can feel how much stronger my new knee is and am eager to have the bad one done too. I guess I will find out what the OS has planned on Wed at my 6 week check.
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Good Luck on Wednesday Joy, as you can see from the above post Im just not ready yet, You are really brave to be considering it so soon. Or maybe Im a wuss. Im making good progress so hope it continues x Let me know your outcome.
 
Well just got my first christmas card this morning ( yes it is early ) and i suddenly thought im just not looking forward to it this year. As a Mum of six christmas has always been a very busy time for me and Ive always loved every single minute of it. This year Naaaaa Baaa Humbug. Am I just being misreable or just fed up I havent done all my xmas shopping with my daughters and having great days out doing it. This year most of it has been done on line which isnt quite the same. I cannot imagine walking round the shops with my cane and queueing up and being held in traffic jams. I think this year I will just make the best of it and hope next year it will me much happier for me. Anyone else feel the same......... or is it just me ( scrooge )
 
Oh my Pat, I know exactly how you are feeling. I have one daughter and she always says that I instilled in her that Christmas is the most favorite time of year for us. Now being married, she goes all out for Christmas. We spent Black Friday shopping from early morning to that evening. Wow! Need I say anything else? Did I pay for that? Ohhhhh yeah!! She did push me around some in a wheel chair, but having my leg hanging for that long was horendous!! I am feeling more and more like "bah, humbug" every day. Just not in the mood this year. And like you said, maybe next year will be back to "normal" as it always has been. I sure hope so!! Scrooge # 2...ha-ha
 
Well taught myself a very hard lesson yesterday. Was in the "I can do this mood" and did washing, drying, tidying, up and down stairs, carrying baskets of laundry, making the evening meal. BIG MISTAKE Two swollen knees, back pain, and feeling very very misreable. When will i learn. Today I am icing elevating and resting. I was quite worried about my operated knee. It was very tender and sore to touch I thought I had done something horrible to it. So im icing one knee and tiger balm on the other knee and watching sad christmas films. Wont do that again.:beg:
 
Much better today and looking at the posts on the forum a lot of us are having problems with ROM health issues or just feeling a bit down. Hope all this improves soon. Poor Debbie and her family are in my thoughts.
 
Aah sorry to hear you had a bad day yesterday, but glad to hear you are feeling better today. I do know what you mean about Christmas though. Wow you have six children - you look remarkably well for it! Do they all come to you? I love Christmas, but must admit to finding it harder and harder each year. My Mum and I do mostly everything. My two daughters might lend a hand clearing the table and wash up a couple of things - then I think they feel they have done their bit! It just nowadays seems like endless cooking, clearing away, loading the dishwasher, putting away and then starting again. Oh I don't mean to sound like Scrooge, I wouldn't have it any other way - except more more help, of course.

My eldest daughter, partner and three grandchildren (4th one due in March) usually arrive Christmas Eve and go home on New Year's Day. Then there is my youngest daughter (who lives at home) and on Boxing Day our son, his fiance and our granddaughter arrive for a couple of days. Plus my Mum stays as well, even though she only lives around the corner from us, it's still nice that she stays with all of us.

Anyway, I really don't think you are being at all miserable, Patricia. I understand completely how you are feeling. I'm sure when the time comes you will actually enjoy it - I do hope so :flwrysmile:
 
Hi Pat.... I think your Christmas might be cheerier if you talk to all of the family and see what they can do to help make this a great Christmas with all of your restrictions.... They have to be responsible for all of the cooking and cleaning right up to the garbage going out and you can be there to field questions with your cooking expertice, watch the kids (in the livingroom) while everyone else is busy in the kitchen, etc. I am sure if you get this set up now so everyones expectations are all on the same page as your recovery, your spirits will be lifted.... Remind them how depressing it is when you are not included in planning too, so they keep you in the loop. Above all tell them how you feel physically and emotionally. Then you can maybe think of something you can do a little at a time, ahead of time, to make this a special Christmas (eg.: your signature dish, a game to occupiy the kids while you "supervise", dessert) Something to plan for and enjoy doing at your pace.... ahead of time. If you plan a game... maybe with age appropriate puzzle prizes to keep them occupied after.... We used have a picture puzzle started on a card table.... everyone, all ages, would come and go do a piece or two, little ones watched the older ones... kept them busy!
 
Nice to hear from you both Kathy and Joy. Yes Kathy all six kids come here for Christmas. It s nice and I love having a big family and take everything in my stride but maybe not this year. My 3 daughters help a little bit but usually end up doing half a job and getting distracted. Laura is at home full time, she works as a wedding planner, Karlea is in her third year at Leicester University, and Kerry lives with her partner in Chester. The three boys all live away from home. I think it is begining to sink in a little bit that I wont be able to do everything. They know if I refuse to go shopping theres something not quite right. I guess Im worrying over nothing and things will fall into place and we will have a lovely family christmas. Fingers crossed.
 
Thank you Patricia for thinking of me and my family. Patricia is my sister's name too. Glad you are feeling better today. For you or anyone that has a 4 wheeled walker and hopefully one with a seat. I used that so much for hauling things around the house. I remember putting the laundry basket on it and wheeling it out on the deck where I have access to a line and pulley clothesline and I was hanging out clothes before I was two weeks out of surgery. I would take baskets of laundry to the bedroom. I would use it to bring in groceries. I finally took it back to my mom's. It was my dad's and we keep it at mom's in case anyone in the family needs it. It sure was nice using that for household chores.
 
Patricia I am in the same boat regarding my non op knee being an arthritic mess. My OS thinks that once my new knee is strong the problem with the other one will calm down. I can't see that happening. It actually feels worse than my right one ever did except right before the surgery. I feel like i'd rather get it over with now while I am already off work. So I am real curious how you feel about going so long with the continued pain in the non op knee. My non op knee is keeping me from staying on the treadmill and bike longer because it's so miserable. So I want to know more about your attitude because it seems like my doc is going to make me wait. Sure know what you mean about Christmas! My kids come from out of town and state and my Dad is 95 so I'm the one who "does Christmas", decorates,bakes,cooks, etc. Now my daughter has moved pretty close so she has been a huge help. But sure feels weird not to be taking care of things!
I think we need to be happy about the holiday like we always are but not worry about doing all the work we normally do. Mind you, I have not figured out how to do that! hahaha But that's my goal! Don't worry, be happy...but how? :heehee:
 
Oh Marianne, I do love your post, especially at the end...((smiling))...You are absolutely right about being happy for the holiday, but for goodness sake, does ANYONE of us here know how!!!!!? Funny but true!!
 
Brownie51 said:
Patricia I am in the same boat regarding my non op knee being an arthritic mess. My OS thinks that once my new knee is strong the problem with the other one will calm down. I can't see that happening. It actually feels worse than my right one ever did except right before the surgery. I feel like i'd rather get it over with now while I am already off work. So I am real curious how you feel about going so long with the continued pain in the non op knee. My non op knee is keeping me from staying on the treadmill and bike longer because it's so miserable. So I want to know more about your attitude because it seems like my doc is going to make me wait. Sure know what you mean about Christmas! My kids come from out of town and state and my Dad is 95 so I'm the one who "does Christmas", decorates,bakes,cooks, etc. Now my daughter has moved pretty close so she has been a huge help. But sure feels weird not to be taking care of things!
I think we need to be happy about the holiday like we always are but not worry about doing all the work we normally do. Mind you, I have not figured out how to do that! hahaha But that's my goal! Don't worry, be happy...but how? :heehee:
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Brownie51 Marianne, My non-op knee is also not very good and the first month or so after my surgery it was definitely complaining. But I have noticed that sometime between 4-6 weeks it calmed down quite a bit and is protesting a lot less than before my surgery. But I have gotten my legs quite strong since the surgery and I know that has helped. I was doing very little walking prior to my surgery due to pain and I am not walking a lot yet, but I was unable to walk around the culdesac where I live prior to surgery without a lot of pain and my hips seizing up. I can now walk all the way around (I am talking about 1/10 mile here) and my non-TKR knee is a little bothered by the end and the hip flexor in my TKR knee is achy by the end, but this is such a huge improvement from where I was. And I know the more I do it and the stronger I get and the more weight I lose the easier it will get on both knees. I also do most of my fitness work in the pool and on the bike as both knees like those activities and I am just grfadually working on the walking but not using it as a cardiovascular exercise.
 
I think we all have to pick and choose what we want to do for Christmas this year. If you can dole out chores to others, do it. As for making all the cookies and candies, do we really need it and will everyone be disappointed if we don't make those treats. I don't think so. Last year when I had my hip replacement...Hey, it is my one year anniversary of my hip tomorrow (Dec. 1st) and I did not do too much extra things. I did host my extended family so there were about 40 of us, but I had help. My mom and sister in law came the day before and helped set up. Dave and my son got the tables and chairs up from the storage in basement. I got dibs on the recliner for the whole day and it worked fine. Oh, and nobody died because I didn't make a pile of candy and cookies like I normally do. Other people brought things like that. When I told Dave I wasn't going to make fudge this year, he looked a little sad, but I said tough...:snork:
 
IF was rich I'd hire an ELF to take care of it! I would use my Grabber and hand him stuff! Then I'd pop on my walker and critique his work. Since I'm pretending I'm rich I'd hire a caterer, giving him all our favorite recipes, he'd have to set up tastings to make sure he got it right. Again I would use my Grabber so I could stay on the couch while reaching the goodies. Oh...then the personal shopper and wrapper! And of course the personal shopper comes back on "boxing day! to take back the stuff we didn't like! They would all get an enormously generous tip for their duties!
Debbie you had better make Dave his fudge or you'll have some hussy making him fudge before you know it!
And Happy Hips to you!
Lisa geez I am 6 weeks next Tuesday and my non op knee is pathetic. I am hoping your dates are off on your recovery but I would love to be able to go back to work Jan. 7th. I don't think I could if my non op knee doesnt start improving!
OOOOPs Sorry Patricia I'm on your Thread just yak yak yaking away about me me me! I was thinking that your wedding planner daughter should take on Christmas for you! Its okay if she does it all in White! :heehee:
 
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