TKR Post op ROM

[sistersinhim]

it IS the boss!!

Yes, it is, as it is with all of us. Be sure and elevate as you're icing to try and get that swelling down.

I have about an acre cleared and can't imagine chasing a 3 year old over 2 acres! No wonder your knee is fussing!

 

[markbet]

For some reason, when I wear this knee brace, it seems to really help with pain during any exercise. But I mainly use it when riding the incumbent bike. For whatever reason, if I am exercising my knee and it hurts, I can grab my knee with both hands and squeeze it and I can actually get more accomplished with much less pain. The brace basically does the same thing as squeezing my knee in supporting it.
Why would squeezing or bracing the knee make so much difference? Is there a con to using a brace like this?

 

[Starsfan22]

Wow, reading this thread makes my knees hurt. No pain, no gain is so wrong. I stopped aggressive with PT pushing to get a better ROM at 6 wks. My OS released me and I relaxed and started real healing. It took a good three months to get on the real road to healing. Stop the aggressive PT. It's the best advice you'll get anywhere.

 

[markbet]

Any opinions on using a knee brace like the one pictured above? It won't hamper my recovery will it? Actually, the most soreness I have is the tendons and hamstrings, and this brace seems to take away some of the pain.

 

[sistersinhim]

I have no experience with a brace after a tkr. I tried one back in the 1980s and found it very uncomfortable.

 

[markbet]

@sistersinhim Okay, I will take it for granted that a brace will do no harm. I had asked my PT this same question, and she didn't really know either. I only would wear it during my exercises. I did try wearing all day, once, that really is a no no. My knee swelled all around the straps on this brace by the end of the day and it didn't feel good at all.

 

[markbet]

I posted in someone else's thread about me being a mental case because in my head, I am not where I should be on my recovery after three months. But I have to say, it sure doesn’t help when I have a family member call and tell me yesterday, “I had two TKR’s, and I was doing much better by this length of time, just as you should be doing!” With wonderful support like this from family, its no wonder my self esteem is in the gutter. Maybe I do need an antidepressant or some other kind of nut pill to get my head on straight.

 

[Jockette]

I’m sorry you are struggling emotionally right now. Unfortunately it’s a common aspect of this recovery. It will pass, but probably not soon enough.

Post op blues is a reality - be prepared for it

Post op blues is feeling depressed, weepy, nervy, shaky, fearful of the future, anxious, overwhelmed by what is happening to you, convinced it's never going to get any better and finally, uttering that most intense of all cries "I wish I never had this done!" It arises out of a variety of...

bonesmart.org

Another common aspect is irritating comments from others rating our recovery with a pass/fail mentality. Comments from others was one of the biggest shocks of my recovery, especially from people who’d had a knee replacement and should have understood.

I know it’s really hard, but try to ignore the comments, and if you figure out how to do that, please share with me, because they got to me every time!

Stick with us here on Bonesmart, we fully support what you are going through, we are compassionate listeners (readers?) and have been through this and not forgotten how bad it was at times. That’s why we stick around to help others through this recovery.

 

[partialfixFeb]

@markbet Interesting, regarding your brace. My PT will gently squeeze around my entire kneecap (to kind of gently lift it) when we doing one of the bending exercises. When she does this, it keeps the tightness around the knee cap area and the knee incision from pulling where it is very tight and allows the bend to happen a smidge more easily -- if that makes any sense. I am wondering if your brace kind of does the same thing that my PT does manually. It is very gentle and hurts zero.

 

[markbet]

@partialfixFeb Exactly! For some odd reason, when pressure is applied to the sides of my knee and then squeezed, the pain almost goes away. I'm glad to see I am not hallucinating! LOL! Since this surgery my mental stability has been a little iffy. It's been two weeks since I have seen my PT, but tomorrow I do have an appointment, and I think I will ask her to either squeeze my knee during therapy, or allow me to try wearing my knee brace, just as an experiment to see if it will help with the pain.

 

[markbet]

I canceled my PT appointment yesterday with my PT. I guess I have angered my knee to the point that it basically slammed on the brakes, and screaming enough. What seems to actually hurt me the most is behind my knee, hamstrings and tendons. I don’t know if I should ice the tendons, or use heat on them, they are and have always been tight as piano wires, even before surgery. I swear I was born with rigor mortise.

 

[Jockette]

I would use ice at this point. Heat too close to the knee will create more pain and swelling.

Heat is ok on areas further away, like your thigh.

 

[sistersinhim]

These knees with throw temper tantrums for anything, it seems. We recommend icing behind the knee also. Using heat can cause more swelling and pain. I had a lot of pain there, too, and found that icing did help me a lot.

 

[Josie1054]

@markbet You may want to try gentle hamstring stretches, stop before it gets too uncomfortable. Lie on your back with leg extended up, toes pointed upward and slowly move towards your head. Don’t forget to tighten knee and quads for a straight leg. Stretch slowly and gently. It helped me. Hope it helps you as well.

 

[Qdogpa]

I find massaging behind the knee helps..

 

[markbet]

Believe it or not, but not doing PT at home is proving to be difficult. I mean it’s been driven into our heads that it is the only way that we can recover from any type of injury is PT, and if there is no pain, then you don’t gain. I’m on my third day of letting my knee rest, other than walking around. How many days should I rest my knee before I start the exercise bike and stretches again? The knee actually is feeling better, still swelling, but better than before. I need to make my mind up to the fact, swelling will be a fact of life for many more months, if not longer.

 

[TimeBuster]

In my experience, I rest my knee 5 to 7 days after any exercise to let it recuperate (heal) before I attempt to exercise again. I notice when I follow that regiment I find I no longer have swollen painful knees and I can feel small increments of improvements and my muscles and tendons are getting stronger every week that goes by.

If I had to do it all over again I would go to physical therapy once every two weeks to give my knee rest in between. I am nine-month out of surgery and I still get the occasional knee stiffness especially after waking up. The good news is my knee doesn't swell up anymore so I'm able to walk off the morning stiffness can be good for the rest of the day.

I go to the YMCA once a week to increase muscular strength, range of motion, and activity exercise for daily living. For a person who never liked gyms or any type of physical exercise, the YMCA has been a blessing.

 

[markbet]

@TimeBuster Thank you for your reply! That sounds like a really good plan. I will let my knee rest the rest of this week, then the week after, I will do my exercise bike plus some light stretch exercises. What kind of exercises/equipment do you do at the YMCA?

 

[Tykey]

How long should you leave your knee to recover?
That's something for you to discover, because it depends on how much you do. The less you abuse your knee, the quicker it recovers and vice versa.
I used to do very little, except living my normal life activities and the very occasional stretch. That never caused me to need to give it a rest.
No pain, no gain? From your own experience, how's it doing for you ? (I'm turning into Dr Phil again)

 

[markbet]

@Tykey No, I do not believe in the no pain no gain theory. I was just saying, that the no pain no gain has been hammered into my head since childhood, and was told that is the only way to get well. But since finding BoneSmart, I no longer believe this myth. Basically old habits can be hard to break, but I am now making headway. Enjoy Dr. Phil, I am watching The Peoples Court, and relaxing. LOL!