Hi!
I had a left TKR on March 28, 2 weeks ago today. I had a right TKR 7 years ago, which was very successful, but this recovery is reminding me how tough the first was…I think it’s like giving birth, your memory protects you from the worst! I’m home with my husband, who is taking great care of me. I know that slow and steady is the key…my only big goal is to be able to enjoy a fairly physical vacation scheduled for November…but I’m impatient to get my life back!
Now, while I am comfortable walking without a cane, I’m using it as much for improving my gait as for supporting my left leg; I thought I had kicked the Dilaudid the other day, but last night I had enough pain that I had to take one…I didn’t think I’d done anything extraordinary yesterday, but I guess it’s easy to overdo things! I’m having home PT through this week, then I’ll go to out patient, and assume I’ll be able to drive myself. I have exercises for flexing and straightening each day, but I really hate causing myself pain, so I do them just so I don’t have to lie to the therapist! I take great comfort in the advice here to trust that my body will heal, and that I don’t have to push myself mercilessly. I try to elevate and ice a few hours a day, but even though I have nothing to do except recover, the day can get away from me! I can’t remember my ROM numbers, but I am so nervous about not making the progress my therapist wants to see!
it feels like 2 steps forward, 1 step back, physically as well as emotionally. I had continuous pain reduction for a few days, then a really bad night; I feel on top of everything one day (or perhaps one hour), and am fighting back tears the next!
I know no 2 knees are alike, but I think im pretty much where I was post surgery 7 years ago, although I do feel 7 years older, and try to respect that as I recover! I’m an actor, and have committed to a few projects starting mid-May, and hope the brain fog will lift for memorizing lines, and I can manage evening rehearsals given my limited energy reserves. I may have been a bit too optimistic, although I made the commitments based on how I got my life back 7 years ago, when I was 7 years younger. I’m counseling a friend who is considering the surgery to pretty much pull out of all commitments for the first couple of months… you don’t need the stress of following through on top of the stress of recovery!
I had a left TKR on March 28, 2 weeks ago today. I had a right TKR 7 years ago, which was very successful, but this recovery is reminding me how tough the first was…I think it’s like giving birth, your memory protects you from the worst! I’m home with my husband, who is taking great care of me. I know that slow and steady is the key…my only big goal is to be able to enjoy a fairly physical vacation scheduled for November…but I’m impatient to get my life back!
Now, while I am comfortable walking without a cane, I’m using it as much for improving my gait as for supporting my left leg; I thought I had kicked the Dilaudid the other day, but last night I had enough pain that I had to take one…I didn’t think I’d done anything extraordinary yesterday, but I guess it’s easy to overdo things! I’m having home PT through this week, then I’ll go to out patient, and assume I’ll be able to drive myself. I have exercises for flexing and straightening each day, but I really hate causing myself pain, so I do them just so I don’t have to lie to the therapist! I take great comfort in the advice here to trust that my body will heal, and that I don’t have to push myself mercilessly. I try to elevate and ice a few hours a day, but even though I have nothing to do except recover, the day can get away from me! I can’t remember my ROM numbers, but I am so nervous about not making the progress my therapist wants to see!
it feels like 2 steps forward, 1 step back, physically as well as emotionally. I had continuous pain reduction for a few days, then a really bad night; I feel on top of everything one day (or perhaps one hour), and am fighting back tears the next!
I know no 2 knees are alike, but I think im pretty much where I was post surgery 7 years ago, although I do feel 7 years older, and try to respect that as I recover! I’m an actor, and have committed to a few projects starting mid-May, and hope the brain fog will lift for memorizing lines, and I can manage evening rehearsals given my limited energy reserves. I may have been a bit too optimistic, although I made the commitments based on how I got my life back 7 years ago, when I was 7 years younger. I’m counseling a friend who is considering the surgery to pretty much pull out of all commitments for the first couple of months… you don’t need the stress of following through on top of the stress of recovery!