pain management advice

[nuknee4me]

hi all
I had a LTKR Aug 11. The Physical therapist says I am doing very well, but I am still having a lot of pain. I notified the OS and he changed my med to percoset. The pain only gets down to about a 3 with that. Is that the best I can hope for. I do ice and elevate and I don't feel that I am doing too much at all. Who knew lying on the couch took so much energy?

 

[loggon]

Hi Nuknee welcome.
I know several folks around here have had a lot of pain. I did not have that much. But Jo or Jamie will be a long and they can
advise you what to take witht the percoset. I did not take that.

You say you don't think you are doing too much. How long and what type of PT are you doing. Sometimes folks do do too much
and don't know it.

 

[Judles]

Welcome, Nu! Aint THAT the truth? Yep! Recup IS exhausted! Your whole body's been through trauma....now is the time to take care of YOU!!! (0)

 

[Motherofmany]

Hi Nuknee,

I was unable to get pain much lower. Meds took the edge off it, but never took it away completely. Even when taking it one hour before pt, I never was below a 5-6 during pt until after about 3 month.

This is a major surgery and they have done a lot of cutting, banging and manipulating all those muscles and tendons. It will improve with time. The surgical pain takes about 6 weeks to subside.

Talk to your OS and PT and see if they have any recommendations. Hang in there, it will improve.

Blessings,

 

[sykeRN]

Hi--I had my surgery on 8/10. So far I do not have that much pain---BUT most people take pain medication for months since this is a TOUGH surgery(as was just said). There are many folks who have had to switch medications more than once to find the one or ones that help most with the pain.

You are early in recovery---ice---sleep---ice---take care of yourself---ice---and mostly find the medication that will work for you. My best to you. We also are together in this process of healing. Take care. Nancy

 

[Josephine]

You need to take the pilss spot on the 4 hrs and not wait until the pain breaks through. That can come later. For now you need to be on top of the pain and not play catch-up. Let me show you my graph

This demonstrates how, if you let the pain break through too much, it will still be escalating whilst the medication is trying to kick in. Then it will be too high for the meds to be effective very quickly. So you'll have a longer period of pain before you get relief.

Then again, you may not be suited to Percocet. Ask your primary care doctor if he will let you try something else like Tramadol. You can take that and paracetamol (Tylenol) and it gives good cover. I took 100 of Tramadol and 1g of paracetamol for the first month of my post op period.Eventually, I took 50 and 1G then just the 1G. It worked like a charm!

 

[Irishgirl359]

I had TRKR on 7/21 when i left the hosp my OS gave me a script for Norco 10/325 and Oxicoton these 2 drugs helped alot with the pain. Most of my pain was in the first 24 hours since my Femeral Block was not inserted right, other than that i have been ok with pain with that medication combination. I heard most OS only give you Lortab when you leave buy my doctor pretty much understood how ammuned I was to pain meds since I had been on Lortab for the past 5 years to get me thru the pain until i decided to get the knee replacement Hang in there it will ease up
like everyone sayd leg up and Ice Ice Ice baby. 2 days ago it was my one month anniversary with my New Knee. I still get stiffness and cant bend it all the way but the pain is far less then what i had before the surgery.
Hugs

 

[nuknee4me]

thanks all for the support. I am very committed to the ice. I sleep with it on. I am doing 30 minutes physical therapy daily and I walk laps around the house when I get up to go to the bathroom. other than that I am on the couch with my leg in the
CPM, or doing my stretches. Both with ice on. I think maybe my expectations were not really realistic for the pain. it breaks through at 3 hours. So instead of taking 1-2 pills every 4 hours, I have started taking 1 pill every 3 hours. that keeps it to about a 3. Not really gone, but I can watch TV or read and distract myself. Just usually by the end of the day , I am worn out and really notice the pain more.

I am enjoying reading all the success stories and gains people make . I am looking forward to being able to post mine too. :D

 

[Linda2]

I am one of those who has trouble with pain, also. It does get better eventually. Also, make sure you move around often. Do some exercises at least three times a day. I'm not talking about wearing yourself out, just quad sets, ankle pumps, heel slides, leg raises and such. I also find that doing a few lunges every time I'm up and about helps. If you have a bike, ride it for five minutes. I find that if I don't keep things moving in a moderate way, I actually have more pain.

 

[Sticker Lady]

Hi Nuknee!

It sounds like you are doing very well. This just takes a lot longer than any of us want it to. It's normal for the pain it get worse at the end of the day--don't be surprised if it continues. Also, are you taking time to just rest the new knee? CPM and stretches are great but rest is important too. Be good to yourself!

Blessings,
Irene

 

[brs0660]

NuKnee..you are doing great since you are less than two weeks out. Pain is part of this recovery...it's the best kept secret! Don't fear your pain meds...take them.

Time passes really slowly. I got so darn bored. Someone suggested a subscription to net flix (See the information center..knee information pre and post helps. )

 

[Texas]

Gotta love Jos pain chart . I agree I know its exhausting sitting lol..I think its more of a mind thing.lol...But all and all it will get better....Post anytime we would ll love to help yo anytime.................Best wishes......)

 

[Josephine]

I think maybe my expectations were not really realistic for the pain. it breaks through at 3 hours. So instead of taking 1-2 pills every 4 hours, I have started taking 1 pill every 3 hours. that keeps it to about a 3. Not really gone, but I can watch TV or read and distract myself. Just usually by the end of the day , I am worn out and really notice the pain more.

You can take 1 pill every 2 hrs, actually but it would be much better if you would take something else with the percocet, ibuprofen, for instance. But please - do have a word with your doctor and ask him about the Tramadol. It's not as problematic as Percocet and you can take Tylenol with it.

As for exercises, you should maybe do one hour max and then rest for two. Any more will give you problems.

 

[FrogFeathers]

One thing that surprised me with the pain was how it seemed to suddenly get better. It was around that six week mark. I figured that the stories I was hearing were the "best case scenario" kind, but it was round-about six weeks that I felt a great relief.

Around eight weeks, I was able to stop taking pain meds during the day. (I still take Vicodin at night for different pain issues). I was taking Acetaminophen during the day till a couple weeks ago (I'm five months out from my surgery). Any pain I have now is either scar-related (not really pain, more of a discomfort) or in relation to something else.

 

[Linda2]

Just a by the way--do not take Tylenol with your Percocet--Percocet has Tylenol in it.

 

[cindy88fan]

Just as everybody else has said...don't let the pain get away from you. Don't wait until you are in extreme pain to take the medication. Follow what Jo said about talking to your Dr. See if he can help you out. Best of luck.

____________
BTKR 7/20/09
Cindy

 

[nuknee4me]

thanks so much to all! I took the advice about giving myself a rest yesterday. only did about half as much and no PT. I felt better in the evening. But the best part..... I got 5 whole hours of uninterrupted sleep last night! I felt like a new woman today!

I'll be seeing my OS for followup in a couple of days and will ask about the Tramadol since Pt will be here every day next week. But I'll make sure I schedule some time for rest too. I really appreciate the help and support.

 

[Judles]

Good luck, Nuknee and happy dreams!!! (0)

 

[sykeRN]

Hi-good that you have an OS appointment where you can discuss the medication issues. Also it's great that you had some sleep.

After having two days of hard home PT(which I have loved) and doing all the exercises twice on Saturday by myself---I paid for the overuse finally. My last couple nights were more restless--and I needed to ice plus take some pain medication--usually I haven't needed either during the night. I DID reach 123 flex on Friday--felt like superwoman-but on Sunday I slowed way down and did a lot of icing-sleeping--and minimal exercise-did ride my exercise bike for 3 short intervals--however had to remind myself that this recovery is a "process"-does not have to be completed in two weeks!

Good luck today. Best regards! Nancy

 

[nuknee4me]

hi Nancy,
your surgery was pretty close to mine I think. I'm very impressed about the 123 flexion. wow. glad to hear you are so far along! best wishes.
Mary