TKR Phrog's Great Expectations - Downgraded a Little<

[Jockette]

Hi , Phrog, I’m sorry things aren’t going better for you. I hope the thyroid medicine will be a help to you.

I hope you enjoy that lunar eclipse tomorrow!

Sending hugs and prayers that things will improve soon.

 

[Pumpkin]

Thanks for the update, sorry to hear of all the challenges you are having with your thyroid.
Enjoy the eclipse and getting out of the valley fog.

 

[liam2015]

i had no idea thyroid condition could affect tkr. keep up the optimism. enjoy that lunar eclipse.

 

[KarriB]

I struggle with hypothyroidism/Hashimoto’s, the thyroid effects everything it seems. I hope yours settles down, but I’m happy to hear your getting back to a normal life.

 

[Rayna]

Thanks for sharing your journey. With your positive outlook,I believe you'll get there too.

 

[sistersinhim]

I'm sorry you're still having thyroid problems. But, it sounds like your knee is getting there! Please keep us updated. We care!

 

[phrog]

I've become a little obsessed with wanting to take a bath. In my PJs, I tried getting in sans water yesterday and slid in rather faster than expected. This was followed by being unable to get out. I sat there laughing and laughing at how ludicrous I must look and finally did some kind of a flop that allowed me to get up on one knee and push up. It was very early morning so I didn't want to wake my husband to help me out. I still giggle just thinking about it. The tub is narrow and the back, non-faucet end is quite sloped. Any and all suggestions will be appreciated.

Other news is that I am trying to give up my cane as I think it has negatively affected my gait. At two weeks short of the one year mark, but with weak muscles from hyperthyroid, I have been depending on it a lot. Some soreness today and pain on the lateral side of both knees (TKR and natural) after a trip to the mall, but hoping I can handle this and build strength.

 

[liam2015]

oh my goodness, @phrog ~ that is a funny image and i am so glad you were able to get out of the tub unscathed. i recommend that you save your bath time for when someone is around; other than that i don't know the best way to get out of the tub. i haven't had a bath for years. sorry that your thyroid continues to fluctuate and cause additional problems. i hope that will get stabilized soon. good luck trying to go without your cane ~ slowly at first until you feel confident and be mindful of your gait.

 

[mlwreader]

Before my second knee got in on the act, and only righty was scheduled for surgery, I could take baths. The way I got out of the tub was to swing myself around so that I was kneeling, and then put my feet under me and stand up. I have several safety bars in the tub/shower area of my bathroom, and they really helped that process. I loved taking baths and hope to be able to do so again some day. Would something like that work for you @phrog? Do you have safety bars in your tub?

 

[phrog]

@mlwreader , thanks so much for the suggestions. We don't have safety bars in the bathtub (what were we thinking when we re-did that room five or six years ago?!). We did put them in the shower in the other bathroom, but I digress (I can't take a bath in my shower stall!). I have tried to swing myself around, but the tub is narrow and I can only kneel on my right (non-surgical) knee. I am going to try again when the house is awake in case I get stuck when there is water in the tub. I think I need to perfect my flop over and move to the wider end of the tub (unfortunately, this is where the faucet is), which will give me more room to maneuver to my knee and push up on the tub rim. We have a project list a mile long, but I think I should move the safety bars up on the list. Still dreaming of a .

 

[Jockette]

That sounds like a lot of work for a bath! I’m glad I take showers!

You would love my tub, it’s one of those bigger corner tubs. Most of the houses in our community have them, complete with 36 x 54” mirrors on both sides.
I couldn’t get those mirrors down fast enough when we moved in!

Most of the people in the community agree the tubs are a waste of space (the House has limited storage!) and a safety hazard. No bars, no nothing.

I vacuum mine just before my kids come to stay with us as the grandchildren love the tub, as does my oldest daughter.

 

[Jajakio]

I doubt I would do so well getting into a normal tub although I haven't tried. ( it is becoming more and more apparent to me that the second knee will have to be done sooner or later). I have a covered hot tub on my deck two steps outside my bedroom French doors. . It's easy to get in and out of and I was back in within 6 weeks or so of my surgery once doctor cleared me. Not an inexpensive project, but so worth it. I can sit in hot water up to my shoulders. Different seats of different heights including one low one with shoulder jets, plus a lounge to lay back. It's my ultimate luxury and we use it several times a week.

We are planning to renovate our bath and are replacing the standard tub shower combo with a walk in shower big enough for a shower seat so we can age in place. I have no need for a standard tub. My 87 year old dad came to visit a few years back and even with a bad ankle, he was able to climb into the hot tub and enjoy his first bath in years. If anyone decides to go that route, there are plenty of models with grab bars and other safety features and it is honestly so much easier than climbing in and out of a standard tub. Plus a standard tub just does not seem deep enough once you are used to hot water up to your shoulders.

 

[sistersinhim]

I have a regular tub and it was years that I didn't use it because I wouldn't be able to get back out. Now, I can! Another one of my old activities becoming new again! If anything holds me back now, it's the left knee!

 

[SusieShoes]

Hot tubs are great, though outdoor ones are quite impractical where I live. I really enjoy the one at the health club where I take aquacise and yoga classes. The issue, of course, is that it's available to all members, so not guaranteed to be as clean as a private one. Bathing at home is doable because I'm able to do a flip (or is that flop) over to hands and knees and can get up easily from there. Upper body strength is helpful! Needless to say, lazy me prefers the ease of a shower.

 

[Polkadot]

Hi, phrog,
It sounds as though you might be able to get out more easily if you could kneel on both knees. Do you think you could kneel on something like a gardening pad?

 

[phrog]

Thanks to all of you for the suggestions and smiles. @Jockette , I had to laugh at you vacuuming your tub. Good solution and a way not to waste water! I take showers and love them -(we have a walk-in shower with safety bars in the master bath so no problem getting in or out) - it's just that a few times a year, especially in winter, I want an Epsom Salt Bath. It seems to relieve aches and pains and is good for dry skin, which I've had because of my overactive thyroid.

I haven't gotten back into the empty tub to try, but I am going to! It's the narrowness of my tub that keeps me from being able to flop over easily and I'm wondering if that would actually be easier with water in the tub. I can really only kneel somewhat comfortably on the non surgical knee. It's been a year next week, but like most of us, my recovery hasn't been a high speed race, and I'm a ways from the finish line. @Polkadot , I hadn't thought about a garden pad in the tub. I need to see if I can find one that is a spongy foam rubber so I could squeeze the water out of it and hang it to dry. Good idea!

I use the hot tub at my senior fitness club and love that, but it dries out my skin because the water is very hot and I can't put the Epsom salts in it! I even exercise by bicycling and doing my stretches for hamstrings and calves in the spa. I'm lucky that the club is a few blocks from my house and I go at least twice a week.

On the good news front (this is for you, Jockette), I have been sewing quite a bit and I am having just a little pain when getting up and down from the machine or standing at the table to do the cutting. Progress! I made pillows to go with the sofa we got in December - they are corded and have zippers and there was lots of up and down. So hooray! Something else I can do more easily.

 

[Jockette]

I’m so glad you’re enjoying sewing! I have done a couple of projects and it’s been nice to be “back”. I do well standing and getting up and down from the chair. My main discomfort in the sewing room is the issue I have when I lean forward over the table, and turning back and forth as my room is very small, that makes my knee very uncomfortable.

I agree, I think some kind of foam pad for your tub would be great. Yes, you really would love mine. I think the length is standard, but it is wider and deeper. The only good thing about it for me is that it’s not an eyesore, I have a vase of flowers in the corner, and it’s next to the toilet which gives me something to push up from if I still want to do that. (Many people in my community have taken the tub out and replaced it with a more elaborate walk in shower than the one that came with the bathroom originally. ) To each his own!

 

[SusieShoes]

It's the narrowness of my tub that keeps me from being able to flop over easily and I'm wondering if that would actually be easier with water in the tub.

It is easier with water. Yes, I tried both. But not so much easier that it makes a huge difference. A bit, though. As my legs get stronger (and pain-free) I find it easier to manuever. Before this surgery I never realized how very much we rely on strong leg muscles!

 

[Jockette]

And just for comparison, the tub in our second bathroom is narrower than standard. This house is a double wide mobile home (or, a manufactured home which seems to be more politically correct these days ) I don’t understand why they put smaller tubs in homes that are not “real”. Real people do live in them!

 

[phrog]

One year ago today was my LTKR. Am where I thought I would be 12 months later? Of course not! Before surgery, I thought I'd be taking my grandson to Disneyland three months post op. My OS and PT told me that was a good goal and a friend who was a year out from her own TKR said she thought I should be able to do that. Well, no. As most who read my thread know, an overactive thyroid caused me to lose quite a bit of muscle strength and I am not able to do so many things I thought I would be able to do.

My main goal for surgery in addition to being able to walk longer distances than I could with my pre-op knee was to be able to get easily down on my knees to pull cookware out of my lower cabinets or scrub the tub or play with my grandson on the floor. I also wanted to get out of a chair without pain. Can I do those things at least? Not yet. Those things still hurt almost as much as they did pre-surgery.

There is some good news, though. For the first time in 8 months, after taking anti-thyroid meds, my thyroid is in the normal range. I have to get it tested every 3 weeks for awhile and adjust meds. I've been warned it may go to hypo and at that point we will decide whether we irradiate it to "kill" it or go back on thyroid supplement. Because this isn't the first time I've been hyperthyroid, the doctor says I may want to consider ending the cycle if we can't maintain a normal level with a low dose of the anti thyroid.

Already my legs feel slightly stronger, and though the doc say it will be several months before I get a normal level of strength back, I discovered a side benefit of the weakness. Because I had such bad shin splints, I cut back on exercise and started using my cane for anything more than a few blocks. I had IT band pain almost from the beginning and that has subsided for the post part since I am less active. I do have quite a bit of pain on the outside of my knee (at what I think of as the hinge) and below my knee with certain movements, but overall it is better and I think the weakness forced me into using it less which has allowed the IT Band to heal.

That doesn't mean I haven't exercised at all. I do water exercise (mainly stretching and arthritis mobility exercises) 3 days a week for 45 minutes and I maintain a pretty good level of ADL. I gave up the cane again last week and have some soreness in my shins, but I am trying to build strength back because this June, whether I have to go in a wheel chair or can walk, I am taking my grandson who turned 3 this week to Disneyland. The good news: there is definitely normal life after TKR.

Side note: for those of you following my bathtub saga - it is on hold until next week. At the end of last week, I cut my finger with a rotary cutter while cutting out a quilt (@Jockette , have you ever done this? And with a new blade! Oh my!!) and had to go to urgent care because it wouldn't stop bleeding (I take 81 mg aspirin for my heart). Anyway, they superglued the cut together and I am just now able to get it wet. I will get into that tub, doggone it! One way or another.

My overall mood today: