Josephine
NURSE DIRECTOR EMERITA
Hush now - you're only 4 weeks out. Things don't happen that quickly.
TKR ROM-chatter
- Thread starter bumknees09
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vallee
junior member
thank you for the edit @Josephine oops
bumknees09
member
What? Did I use profanity ? Seriously? Oops, sorry . @Josephine ? Also regarding your recovery. That's amazing and I can't even for a minute believe that that is the norm. No offense whatsoever meant. @vallee, @gr82cu2- thanks for the input yes I thought six times a day sound a little ridiculous to put it mildly. Honest to God, what to believe when the PT's don't even seem to be giving it to me straight!!!
Ollie
member
@bumknees09 @vallee @gr82cu2 My PT has given me the "6 times a day" thing too. I smile and nod, all the time knowing I'll get some of it done twice a day, maybe. I do, however, stretch each time I get up / sit back down durning my day. I am also doing a bit of spinning on my recumbent bike, too. Once a day, twice if I have time and my knee feels good. I am still all about icing when stiff /hot, and after PT or other activities/adventures. All of THAT takes up my day!!
Who are they kidding that you can do all the exercises they give you six times a day. . .
Who are they kidding that you can do all the exercises they give you six times a day. . .
jerseygirl-in-ca
member
@vallee @bumknees09 @Shortie I am a researching fool. If something is wrong, I want answers. I got some here but other stuff was wrong with me that I didn't understand. I think for me I have my answer. I have many autoimmune diseases and fibromyalgia. I found I should have been been doing a basic stretch that NO One mentioned and icing the back and front of the knee. My main issue from sleep was I could not straighten my leg and the feeling was NOT the same as a tight hamstring. It was a dull pulling pain I had never felt. Now I had read that you should not have a wedge backed against the knee so I always had a soft pillow that kept my leg bent. Bad Move. Here are the things I found that I wished I knew earlier.
1. Rest Your Joint
• Change positions often (every 20 minutes) when you are awake. Try sitting, standing, and walking.
• Pace yourself. Have a rest day after a busy day.
• Lie down 3 times a day for 30 minutes on your bed or sofa. Put your leg up and support it with a wedge, arm rest of couch, or with pillows providing a layer of slope. Keep knee straight on the pillows with foot and ankle higher than heart
2. Passive Knee Straightening - Lie on stomach hang foot and ankle of operated leg over edge of bed. Let gravity pull leg straight
3. Knee Bend (heel slides) - bend knee, use hand or towel behind thigh to pull heel towards bottom
4. Knee Straightening - Place small rolled towel under heel ankle Keep kneecap and toes facing ceiling Allow the leg to stay like that for 5 minutes or 10 if possible You may have to work up to this
5. ICE trick - To help with knee bend, place ice over your knee with your knee as bent as possible. To help with knee straightening, place ice over your knee with your knee as straight as possible.
These are my new tricks. Maybe I am wrong, but I think those with scarring or inflammation issues above and beyond what others have might benefit. They are working for me. One additional thing I did get from my PT some patients need to keep stretching for years as they have issues if they don't. I am adding knee stretching as a permanent thing
1. Rest Your Joint
• Change positions often (every 20 minutes) when you are awake. Try sitting, standing, and walking.
• Pace yourself. Have a rest day after a busy day.
• Lie down 3 times a day for 30 minutes on your bed or sofa. Put your leg up and support it with a wedge, arm rest of couch, or with pillows providing a layer of slope. Keep knee straight on the pillows with foot and ankle higher than heart
2. Passive Knee Straightening - Lie on stomach hang foot and ankle of operated leg over edge of bed. Let gravity pull leg straight
3. Knee Bend (heel slides) - bend knee, use hand or towel behind thigh to pull heel towards bottom
4. Knee Straightening - Place small rolled towel under heel ankle Keep kneecap and toes facing ceiling Allow the leg to stay like that for 5 minutes or 10 if possible You may have to work up to this
5. ICE trick - To help with knee bend, place ice over your knee with your knee as bent as possible. To help with knee straightening, place ice over your knee with your knee as straight as possible.
These are my new tricks. Maybe I am wrong, but I think those with scarring or inflammation issues above and beyond what others have might benefit. They are working for me. One additional thing I did get from my PT some patients need to keep stretching for years as they have issues if they don't. I am adding knee stretching as a permanent thing
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bumknees09
member
Once again - THANK YOU everyone for responding! Lots of great info coming in.
Josephine
NURSE DIRECTOR EMERITA
It is for my surgeon. He doesn't allow any exercising for the first three weeks and then only minimal stuff. His MUA rate and poor outcomes are almost zero! where do you think I get all this stuff from about rest and pain meds and all? They are his protocols. I don't make them up myself!
@jerseygirl-in-ca
That's where BoneSmart comes in handy!
Nonsense! You can have some bend just be careful how much. You did read your recovery articles, didn't you? They are here in your own thread. The one you should read is this one Elevating your leg to control swelling and pain
Where on earth are you getting all this rubbish from? Certainly not on here. This is very counter to everything we recommend on BoneSmart. Please don't post any more of it.
I think people kind of naturally will change positions because it's more comfortable to, but I don't see that there should be a "rule" about it. 
You are so right @jerseygirl-in-ca that rest is important. I think it all comes down to listening to your knee and your body.
You are so right @jerseygirl-in-ca that rest is important. I think it all comes down to listening to your knee and your body.
Josephine
NURSE DIRECTOR EMERITA
I'm sorry. I cannot let these pass without comment - they are all BAD!
Now I had read that you should not have a wedge backed against the knee so I always had a soft pillow that kept my leg bent.
Change positions often (every 20 minutes) when you are awake. Try sitting, standing, and walking
Lie down 3 times a day for 30 minutes on your bed or sofa. Put your leg up and support it with a wedge, arm rest of couch, or with pillows providing a layer of slope. Keep knee straight on the pillows with foot and ankle higher than heart
bend knee, use hand or towel behind thigh to pull heel towards bottom
Place small rolled towel under heel ankle Keep kneecap and toes facing ceiling Allow the leg to stay like that for 5 minutes or 10 if possible You may have to work up to this
To help with knee bend, place ice over your knee with your knee as bent as possible. To help with knee straightening, place ice over your knee with your knee as straight as possible
Change positions often (every 20 minutes) when you are awake. Try sitting, standing, and walking
Lie down 3 times a day for 30 minutes on your bed or sofa. Put your leg up and support it with a wedge, arm rest of couch, or with pillows providing a layer of slope. Keep knee straight on the pillows with foot and ankle higher than heart
bend knee, use hand or towel behind thigh to pull heel towards bottom
Place small rolled towel under heel ankle Keep kneecap and toes facing ceiling Allow the leg to stay like that for 5 minutes or 10 if possible You may have to work up to this
To help with knee bend, place ice over your knee with your knee as bent as possible. To help with knee straightening, place ice over your knee with your knee as straight as possible
jerseygirl-in-ca
member
@Josephine I did not find this forum till after the leg would not bend and it was being forced to move by my pt. I am finding this is not that unusual for people with sjogren's disease or many other autoimmune diseases that I also have. Shifting your position is mandatory as the dehydration causes adhesions almost instantly which is why I had stitches inside and out with a new covering that kept it moist while it healed when many are stapled. . That is also a side effect I was just told by my DR s being seen with patients with Fibro and they do not know exactly why. Any disease or condition that causes excessive inflammation means the response is not typical to what others deal with. I called my DR about all I found ( my tricks) and tried and his comment was your file sent to the PT listed all your medical conditions and the possible reactions you would have and how some concerns that are seen with you are to be expected and she will have to think outside the box. I posted what worked for me. I will not post anything like that again as per your request.
jerseygirl-in-ca
member
@Josephine For me the comorbidity is anything but the autoimmune diseases (10 of them) and Fibro. I am forced to have to worry about inflammation and and their long side effects. Thank you for your help
bumknees09
member
@jerseygirl-in-ca - no offense to @Josephine bit, I appreciate everything you've put on here! I don't take hardly anything anybody says as "gospel "it's a crapshoot at best how anybody is going to react to any number of things. that's a fact! Some of the things that I've gotten on here I've mentioned to people I actually know who have had TKR and they looked at me like I had five heads and said "where the heck did you come up with that?" So, everything should be somewhat taken with a grain of salt. Anywho, I'm pretty sure everybody on this form is just trying to get a little bit of help and perhaps get a little bit I help. That's my MO anyway. Carry on.
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jerseygirl-in-ca
member
@bumknees09 The lack of ability to straighten (which I did not know) was causing so much pain, and I do not move because it is painful from who knows, swelling, fibro, the reconstructive surgery, the bone grafts and resection. I have no idea.
I counsel people on autoimmune issues and am on 3 international panels but all of this knee stuff is new to me. People at the hospital and Drs are so lost with all my medical issues and backed way off out of fear. Even the Addison's they knew nothing about. I can only say what helped me. Finding people with some diseases have stretching issues that go on for a long time like years was so good for me to know. I have found such great info and support here on this group so do not want to cause an issue. I was just passing what I was trying and found worked for me.
I have such severe fibro/ am pan-pituitary, that I am used in the studies that SS uses. I have three foam mattress pads because I hurt and do not turn in bed without a great amount of effort. I am not alone in this and surgery causes such inflammation i some people that does not show in visible swelling that I wanted to try some things based on my research.
I only passed to a few of you because you seemed to be as frustrated as I had been. If I in any way pushed you in the wrong direction I am sorry. I just know frustration when nothing is working and you feel like it must be you that is wrong or worse than that "not trying enough"
I counsel people on autoimmune issues and am on 3 international panels but all of this knee stuff is new to me. People at the hospital and Drs are so lost with all my medical issues and backed way off out of fear. Even the Addison's they knew nothing about. I can only say what helped me. Finding people with some diseases have stretching issues that go on for a long time like years was so good for me to know. I have found such great info and support here on this group so do not want to cause an issue. I was just passing what I was trying and found worked for me.
I have such severe fibro/ am pan-pituitary, that I am used in the studies that SS uses. I have three foam mattress pads because I hurt and do not turn in bed without a great amount of effort. I am not alone in this and surgery causes such inflammation i some people that does not show in visible swelling that I wanted to try some things based on my research.
I only passed to a few of you because you seemed to be as frustrated as I had been. If I in any way pushed you in the wrong direction I am sorry. I just know frustration when nothing is working and you feel like it must be you that is wrong or worse than that "not trying enough"
I think pain control is important. I think people with fibro have extra pain issues like you said. Our tissues seem to get more enraged than average
after surgery.
after surgery.bumknees09
member
Hello everyone, tomorrow is Friday, August 15 and I have my follow up with my OS! I'm pretty positive as I'm sitting here that he's going to recommend MUA. My range of motion stinks. I still get shooting pain down the right side of my affected knee. I'm frightened beyond. What if he's right? What if I have adhesions? what if it won't bend anymore what if what if what if??? Sounds like I'm having a panic attack? Well I guess you could say I am. A few medical people have said to me "he's a great DR, if he recommends they MUA , just do it! you wake up you're all set. He wouldn't recommend it if he didn't think you needed it. You trust him to do your TKR" all valid comments but it doesn't really make me any less nervous. Again looking for anyone who's had an MUA with a great result. That might be helpful for my mind! HELP!!!!!!!
You may be surprised. My PT was all "window of opportunity" but my OS had me move my leg around and said I was doing fine. He didn't even ask what the measurement was.
Sure enough in the next 2 weeks I gained 10 degrees on my own.
You can always hedge and say you'd like to think about it or you'd like to give it another week or so. No law says you have to do it.
Sure enough in the next 2 weeks I gained 10 degrees on my own.
You can always hedge and say you'd like to think about it or you'd like to give it another week or so. No law says you have to do it.
bumknees09
member
@kneeper - I wrote out what I'm going to say to him actually. Ha ha! And I believe that's it. That I want to couple more weeks to see how PT goes etc. It's been way too heavy on my mind. On another note I'm still backed up or backed up again meaning constipation. Late this afternoon I did a mineral oil fleet enema which produced nothing! I then used a regular fleet enema… Nothing still and that was well over an hour ago. How is that even possible? I'm just ranting but I'm so taken aback and freaked out by all this I don't even know what to do. Stool softeners, prune juice ,prunes, milk of magnesia, MiraLAX a week ago, loads and loads and loads of drinking water. Really do not know what else to do!
Josephine
NURSE DIRECTOR EMERITA
And after all that, so what if he is right. You still don't need anything done in a hurry. Adhesions are not like cancer. There is no urgency.
And undergo the risk of an unnecessary GA? That is not to be taken lightly. GAs are okay in the right time and place but this would be unnecessary -totally.
Make that a couple more months!
scaredinCA
graduate
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Bumknees09, I feel so bad for you.. You must be feeling unwell and worried by now. I would make that a top priority to tell your doctor. You really do need to find a solution asap.. Have you tried Metamucil yet? It doesn't work fast, but it does work eventually. I hope you don't have a blockage or kink in your colon somewhere.
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