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Right TKR soon; great hopes!

@sewhat , I am using frozen water bottles with water around them. I use three of them, and also sometimes scoop a few ice cubes from the ice maker and add that to the water so that it gets really cold really fast. But mostly frozen water bottles and they do seem to last a long time.

Sorry to read that you are having trouble sleeping! I awakened this morning at 8:30 due to the neighbors mowing. Can't blame them for that, in this summer heat, but I usually prefer sleeping really late. So, I got up and moved to my recliner (farther from the windows and mower sounds), and napped for another hour before coffee. My knees are doing a little better this morning after all that icing yesterday.
 
Today I got my hair cut SHORT short SHORT, which hopefully will be easier to deal with during hospitalization and recovery. I hadn't had it cut for 8 months so it was time, and I love having short hair, especially in the summertime. On the way home we drove by the hospital to locate the entry they told us to go to on Tuesday, when I report for surgery.

I have been taking care of details to make the house safer during recovery, like replacing batteries in my motion detecting night lights, removing and storing the small throw rug in front of the kitchen sink, and so on. Right now I am icing.
 
You're getting down to the wire. I'm counting the days too. I've been thinking I need to cut my hair short too. I've just got it grown out after having it short, but I get so sweaty doing PT. It's one of the perks of Parkinson's.
 
Yes, we are getting close to our surgery days! I just don't want to deal with long hair during these next few challenging weeks.

Tonight I cooked three more meals in the Instant Pot, and froze them to eat during my recovery period. Also, while they were cooking I sat on a tall bar stool and re-organized the freezer to make plenty of extra room for all the water bottles for my icing machine. Then I checked the house again for any falling hazards I might not have noticed. Everything is about the knee lately.
 
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I cut my hair before surgery and my hairdresser helped my figure out how to work with my natural curls so I could air dry. It’s one of the best things I did! I like how it looks and it’s so easy to take care of. Bad hair is such a drag on my spirits - I’ve texted Glenn (my beloved hairdresser) to ice to thank him for his help. :cheers:
 
@hoopsgran , my hair is not quite as curly as yours (as you can see in my avatar!), but I am lucky because when it is very short it gets at least some wave in it. So, I just get it done in a layered bob and that's short enough that it has slight curls and waves in it too. I am very happy with how it turned out, and it feels so cool and comfy. It really cheers me up to have a new haircut right now. :)
 
At my hospital, the written instructions for all TKR patients include daily washing of the entire body (except head and mucus membranes etc) with a foamy pink antimicrobial skin cleanser called Hibiclens. For example in my case this is supposed to start today and continue for five days, including the day of surgery. So I started that routine just now.

Luckily, it smells good and I do feel squeaky clean so it's fine with me. Besides, anything that might discourage infections gets my stamp of approval. :thumb:

I used the icing machine on my knee twice already today, once for an hour and once for two hours.

83 hours until I arrive at the hospital for surgery.
 
I have to do the Hibiclens routine too. I have a detailed list of 13 items for hygiene for the 3 days before my surgery. You have to sign it for each day and bring it with you the day of surgery. If you bathe instead of shower, you have to shampoo and wash, drain the tub, rub a washcloth with Hibiclens all over your body from the neck down for 3 minutes, refill the tub and rinse it off. I'm glad we have a shower. You also have to use freshly laundered towel and washcloth, freshly laundered pajamas and freshly laundered bedding. Ugh, I hate changing the sheets. It hurts my knee to lean forward on it to get the fitted sheet over the corners.
 
Yeah, @sewhat , I have to use a fresh towel EVERY DAY for until surgery. As if washing all my bedding, and all my pajamas and other clothes wasn't enough. Oh well. Anything to avoid infection is probably a good idea.

I am just SO glad that I have my plain jane walker so that I can take a shower instead of sponge bathing, for this! I talked about why earlier in the thread but basically my knee gives way so I can't get into the shower safely without this very stable, plain metal walker to take in with me.

Maybe your husband could help you change the sheets? It's so hard with crummy knees!
 
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Just 42 more hours until I report to the hospital for surgery. :scaredycat::happydance:

The rest of this post is just rambling on about last minute preparations that I am making.

I just finished doing all my laundry thus far and putting it away (not easy with a bad knee!). All I have left to do today is cook and freeze a few more meals, run the dishwasher, clip my toenails, do some minor dusting, and take my daily Hibiclens shower. I think that this morning, finally, I have completed the last things that I need to do in order to make my house safe as a recovery location. My hospital's instructions for that included some very specific requirements, such as to tack down or remove throw rugs, and to put down a bath rug with a rubberized backing in the bathroom.

I found my "car cup" for coffee (the kind with a lid). I haven't used it since I retired 10 years ago, but it might make it easier to bring a cup of coffee from the kitchen to my recliner, after surgery when I will probably be hobbling along relatively slowly using my sturdy, stable plain metal walker. I think that tonight I may stop using my wonderful rollator walker that I have used for the past three years, so that I can see if any unexpected problems arise in the following 24 hours when limited to just the plain metal walker.

Tomorrow I'll launder my bedding and toss in what I am wearing, tonight's towel, and anything else that accumulates between now and then. Plus, pack my suitcase and take yet another Hibiclens shower. Hopefully my sweetie will offer to help me make the bed.

In a sense I am lucky because I have suffered with these knees for so long, that there is absolutely no question in my mind by now that I want and need this TKR desperately. So even though there is a bit of terror lurking in the back of my mind (as I think there probably is for most people), I can easily beat it back because I know that changing my mind about this surgery is not an option. I am hoping that this first TKR goes well, and if it does then I will probably be less afraid for my second TKR. My surgeon offered to do the second one as soon as I am sufficiently recovered from the first one.
 
You're making me antsy to get things done, and I'm a week after you. Tuesday I have to stop Meloxicam and aspirin. I had to remember that when doing my pill packs yesterday. That's about all I can do until I get my bed.
 
sewhat said:
You're making me antsy to get things done, and I'm a week after you. Tuesday I have to stop Meloxicam and aspirin. I had to remember that when doing my pill packs yesterday. That's about all I can do until I get my bed.
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So sorry that you cannot take Meloxicam and aspirin any more, when they were helping you! I haven't been taking them lately but icing sure does help (in my case). Maybe you can try some extra icing to see if that helps a little.

I have no idea whether I will feel like posting after surgery when I am all high on Oxy or whatever they give me. So don't worry if I vanish.... if I do then I'm probably just high as a kite.:heehee:
 
@Carole With my first knee, I posted very short posts at first Even the words were short. I think it was after I go home before I could do it.

I reminded my daughter about the bed last night. "I know, Mom."

In church yesterday, my 2 year old granddaughter must have had to go potty a dozen times. She got away from me once. I had to chase her down limping.
 
Tomorrow morning very early I will be reporting to the hospital. So, this is my last day at home before surgery. I cannot believe how fast the time passed! Seems like just yesterday that I found out my surgery date and started this thread.

Last night I put away my beloved rollator walker, as planned. So far, so good but the plain metal walker is slower and no place to sit if needed. I love how stable it is, though. BTW, I am SO glad that I bought the add-on basket for my plain metal walker. It was only about $13, and doesn't hold much but still it is very helpful for bringing frozen water bottles from the freezer to my ice machine, and so on. With the rollator, I had the seat to put stuff on but with the plain metal walker I really need the basket to carry anything.

The "car cup" with the lid worked beautifully for bringing my usual one cup of coffee from the kitchen, about 20 feet to my recliner while using both hands to hang onto my plain metal walker. I should have used the car cup before now; forgot that I had it.

I hope I get at least a little sleep tonight and don't oversleep in the morning. Usually I set the alarm for 11 AM (since I'm retired), but this morning I set it at 7 AM. So far, so good, since I awakened naturally at 6:45, after less than five hours' sleep. Tonight I'll try to get to bed earlier, because tomorrow, I'll have to set the alarm for 5 AM.

Of course, all of this is subject to change. Later today the physician's assistant (for my surgeon) will be calling to confirm the time, or if the surgery schedule had to be juggled, then I might have to show up earlier or whatever. He will let me know.
 
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You have done an excellent job of preparing your area and knowing what will work for you! I know people that had the tremendous pain state they felt so much better after their TKR!
Hang in there and best of luck tomorrow morning! We will be looking for your post-op posts!
 
Thanks, @LindaO !

I just got a call from my surgeon's assistant, confirming that the surgery time has not changed. So, I will be getting up at 5 AM, reporting to the hospital by 7 AM, the surgery will begin at 9 AM, and I suppose it will probably be over an hour or two after that.
 
Good news. See you on the recovery side!
 
I will be praying for you, Carole. Be sure to let us know how you are when you feel up to it.

My daughter messaged me that my bed will be here on Wednesday. Yay! I also get my hair cut on Wednesday morning.
 
Thank you all for all the caring support and also for such great information!

See you on the other side.
 
You're already gone and probably in your so fashionable backless gown waiting impatiently to be knocked out! Thinking of you this morning and looking forward to seeing you on the other side.
 
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