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TKR Playing soccer and baseball again

Pain is a message from your brain!! It is telling you that perhaps the walk was a little too much. No big deal---walk half as far and see how that goes. Then 3/4, then the full walk. Take it easy and listen to your brain!!!
 
Yes, Skigirl, you are right. I am heeding all the good advice. I haven't done much today- mostly rest, ice and elevation.
It's funny my family doc called today and told me that "remember, don't take this easy. Work hard on the knee, its not like a hip, where you can lie back and relax"...I didn't have the heart to get into it with him and say I was a "boneSmart convert".
I read another post where it states that one surgeon doesn't recommend PT until after one month. That makes sense to me, especially having had broken bones in the past.
Anyway, slow and steady...
 
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Yes it is hard to hear your doc give you conflicting info---but I attended a Doctor's conference in Miami last year and the hot topic there was that less is more when it comes to exercise in the first month. It is hard for the athletic person to hear, but taking it easy in month one, which allows the soft tissues to heal, your quad to wake up and begin functioning will give you better results. I don't think it is necessary to challenge the doc either, but maybe at the end, you can give him a heads up!!!

One of the things that happens early on (ask me how I know this!) is that you start to feel pretty good while resting, icing and elevating---so, you decide to just run to the grocery store for two things!!! I felt as much pain as I had had the first three days. I could not believe that over doing it would cause that much pain---but, it did!

the basic anatomy issue is that if your quads and hamstrings are not fully functioning and firing, your joint has no support from the muscles when you walk around. It has to support itself. In a few weeks, the quad will be up and running and will help to support the joint. At that time, it is okay to start light exercises since the quad will be able to handle it.

I found that I could ride a bike from the second day, but my PT put the squeeze on me. Five minutes at first. It felt so good, so of course, I pushed to 10 minutes---and my knee screamed at me. I also think the first month does not need much PT. Mine used to give me massage of the leg, some simple table exercises--like leg lifts and clam shells---maybe 5 each in the early days. If you have to pay or have a limited amount of PT appts, it is really a waste to go to PT too early. After the first month, you can begin to work on rebuilding the quads and hamstrings when the soft tissues are healed. keep up the good work!!
 
Yesterday was Day 11 and I had to go to a wedding-my son's. it was my first day back into the land of the living. Luckily it was a quiet affair with no dancing -lol. I was out for about 7 hours - I made sure to sit whenever I could and skipped the after party- I also took my cane, which helped. I could feel my knee "tighten" a little bit during the ceremony but I think the beer afterwards had a medicinal effect:martini:. I have no ill effects, so far, today. I intend to rest the knee today as tomorrow I have to start back at the gym. I intend to limit myself to upper body machine work as I know I shouldn't lug free weights around...I will also listen to the knee and if it feels okay, I might do 5 mins on the bike.
 
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Okay to five min on the bike---but keep it simple right now, you are doing well and now is not the time to feel invincible and make your knee swollen and sore.
 
wilsonma said:
I read another post where it states that one surgeon doesn't recommend PT until after one month. That makes sense to me, especially having had broken bones in the past.
Click to expand...
I think that might have been one of my posts.
My surgeon recommends no PT for the first month - just the normal, gentle activities of daily living, such as getting out of bed and back again, and walking to the bathroom and back.
Even after the first month, his patients only go to PT once every two weeks. We are shown a couple of exercises to do, such as Heel slides and how to do them properly and a little bit of quad tightening. Each time we go, we are shown a few more exercises, which we are supposed to do at home.
His patients all do well and he hasn't had to do a MUA to help with ROM for almost four years.

Being somewhat lazy, I did very few of the exercises, just the occasional heel slide when I remembered. My knees are great now, both extending fully and bending to over 125 degrees.
 
Thanks Celle and Skigirl - again, it is great to hear from people who have been there. All the posts here have given me the confidence to "listen to my knee" and not do too much. If I didn't have the shared knowledge, I am one of those people that would have fought through the pain and done the "hard" physio exercises, leading to the inevitable vicious circle...
 
Really you are making a good decision. Just remember too when you start back at the gym to go slowly at first. By 8 weeks, I was really doing great, but I was not at full strength and had to remember that when at the gym.
 
I reached one of my goals and made it back to the gym today, two weeks after my last workout. It felt great to get my breathing and heart rate back up there again. I did take it easy and only used upper body machines bi's, tri's, arms, shoulders, and chest. I stayed light and did high reps. I had "threatened" to try the bike but listened to the knee again. I think it told me that the bike might be a week away...

I am now walking upstairs like a "big boy" , one leg after the other but cannot do it coming downstairs yet.

I was reminded today to "walk properly" so quickly lost the limp and just walked slower with proper form.

So far, so good and tomorrow, I will go and have the staples removed at 14 days post-op.

I am listening ski girl and know that there is no race here. As I mentioned at the start of this, my long-term goal is to be able to play soccer again next year, so I do have a long-term, slow plan to build my leg muscles back up.
 
I am so thrilled to read your post, wilsonma!!! You need to pat yourself on the back for taking the right road on your recovery. There is no "one size fits all" for this and by listening carefully to your body, you're picking the right road for you. The fact that you've been able to stretch a bit and do things like attend a wedding and do upper body activities at the gym and not hurt or swell the day after (when you wisely take a deserved rest) show you've got it! Keep doing the good work!! You won't regret it.
 
I am also impressed---a long term goal is a good one and taking it easy for two months will get you there. I play soccer---strictly recreational once a week or so. I play hockey in the winter--women's league on Sunday nights. I used to ski every day, but this winter I am taking a jewelry class at the community college, so skiing four days per week only. I hike and bike--my rom is 140---taking a long term view is the only way to go. If you rush these first two months, you pay a price---and frankly it is money poorly spent!!
 
thanks Jamie and skigirl- I want to be like you when I grow up ...although, unfortunately I don't skate very well.

I took out my staples last night-all 31 of them. The wound looks good and healing very well. I am trying to cut back on my pain meds now and taking one oxy every 7 hours or so. I do feel the pain a bit more at night and it wakens me every 4 hours or so. the swelling is coming down nicely so I am sure that helps reduce the pain. I no longer need my ice machine during the day but did use it a couple of times at night.
I have no plans to go back to the gym until Saturday (when I get a ride). I hope that will also help reduce the swelling.
 
wilsonma said:
I took out my staples last night-all 31 of them.
Click to expand...

Yikes!!! You took the staples out yourself???!!! That was a bit risky. Staple removal is normally done with a special sterile tool to remove them with minimal pain and tissue tearing and to prevent the risk of infection in the wound. It's done in your doctor's office or via a home health nurse. I'm glad that this worked out for you, but would encourage you to be very careful with your wound. So for anyone else reading this....please don't try this at home!

If you have swelling in your knee, you're right that resting, elevating (toes above the nose) and plenty of ice will make that better. This is still a very new knee. Treat it gently and carefully.
 
Yes Jamie- but it wasn't as dumb as in first glance. When I left the hospital, they gave me dressings, sterile solution and the sterile tool pack to remove the staples. My family doctor is an hour away (I moved a while ago) and the choice was to go to an "urgent care clinic" or walk in dr. I took the dressing off, sterilised the area and my hands, then took them out-which was very easy and painless. Sorry if I gave the impression, I did it the old cowboy way...and no I don't expect many others to do it themselves, although it is an option- check out youtube. I have had many sutures over the years (from soccer injuries) and always taken them out myself.
 
I used to love removing staples/clips and prided myself on my patients seldom feeling pain. However, I don't think I would have been brave enough to do it for myself.
It is unusual to remove your own staples or sutures, but I can understand why you had to do it. Not recommended for most people!
 
It is perfectly alright to take the oxy every 7 hours during the day and every 4 hours at night . Also, at about two weeks or so, I "stepped down" drugs as the oxycodone is so strong and I wanted less side effects--the worst one is that I got all sweaty whenever I did anything at PT.

I went to Lortab and then to Tramadol. That way you can still have pain relief with less side effects from the strong opiods.
 
Thanks Celle- it was actually very easy- that knee was perfectly positioned to do it...
Skigirl - I will ask my doc to give me the Lortab and go from there. I did get a little whoozy, for a second, at the gym the other day but put it down to inactivity. I dont really feel much of anything with the oxy so it is not a big deal to move on.
The PT people called me and were a little upset when I told them "no thanks"...
 
Day 17, back to the gym again, then out for lunch and grocery shopping. I could feel my knee get a little "tight" afterwards, so I will have a rest day tomorrow.
 
I think it's a bit too soon to go out to lunch and grocery shopping. I know you're doing well, but do beware of overdoing things.
Here's the level of activity we recommend during early recovery:
Activity progression for TKRs
 
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