TKR ROUND 2: MotownGirl made it to the other side

[MotownGirl66]

@Josephine - Yes, you are right and I had forgotten everything I had read in the library the night before my surgery. My PT came this morning and I told him I didn't do any of the exercises he wanted me to because I was still recovering from the damage he did on Tuesday. Today, I was quite forceful with what I would do and what I would not do. I reminded him I have 55 sessions and there's no need to rush. He agreed and backed off.

 

[MotownGirl66]

Post Op Day 10: Today is one of the best days since surgery so far. My swelling has subsided substantially, too. The home health nurse removed my staples (21) this morning and it feels so much better. Still resting, sleeping, icing, and elevating. I started using a cane on Tuesday and I think I am walking good with it. I go up and down the stairs as needed. I wear a pedometer and yesterday I logged 5 flights of stairs and 1,400 steps.

 

[MotownGirl66]

@Jozilla - Interestingly enough, my surgeon didn't give enough painkillers either. Just yesterday, he wrote an RX for me for Norco, but for only 20 tablets, 1 -2 at a time, every 5-6 hours. Heck, those won't last long.
Thanks for the kind words about my son...hoping to get him back home in time to attend his Grandfather's funeral (he died this past Tuesday -on top of everything else!)

 

[MotownGirl66]

@Jamie-thanks! I am an icing fool these days! Day, night, nighttime, sleep time, etc...I can see the bones and arteries in my foot again. My shin bone skin is crazy painful- like my doctor must have gripped the heck out of it during surgery.

 

[Josephine]

Well that's good news and I am very proud of you for doing that. And you are already seeing the benefit.

 

[kneeper]

Great. Between getting the staples out and getting the swelling down you won't have that bursting bratwurst feeling in your leg.

 

[Minnie's knees]

@MotownGirl66 5 flights of stairs on day 10..wow that's great. I hope I can do 2-3 flights by that time. How did you do with your stairs the first few days? I know I will be more comfortable upstairs where bedroom and family room is at.

 

[gr82cu2]

Robyn I'm so sorry to hear about your son! It must be so distressing to not be able to get to him. And your father or father-in-law passing......how sad! Sometimes in life we are tested to the limit.

Be really careful about taking Ibuprofen if you are still on blood thinners. It thins your blood also. Celebrex is ok though.

I just caught up on your thread from the past few days. I'm glad you seem to be turning a corner but continue to follow the mantras and be gentle with yourself. Take care!

 

[kaw205]

Hi Robyn, Just stopping in to wish you a good morning and so sorry about your son.
It sounds like things are changing for the better. The pedometer is a great idea. I'm adding it to my list!
karen

 

[MotownGirl66]

@Josephine - thank you. Tomorrow is another PT day and I'm not dreading it since I took charge.
@kaw205 - thank you. My son was discharged today and my husband is bringing him home. I love my pedometer. Did over 2,492 steps yesterday & 8 flights of stairs. I do them one at a time...up with the good leg, down with the bad first, with a tight grip on the handrail each way. The pedometer only counts the stairs going up. @gr82cu2 - yep, I've stopped any ibuprofen and am just taking the Norco every 5 hours. I have break-thru pain in the middle of the night still.
@Minnie's knees - the first few days I did not navigate the stairs at all. I'd say it was a good 4-5 days after my discharge before I had to fend for myself because my husband needed to see to my son who was in a hospital 4 hours away. It's amazing what we can do when we have to, right?
@kneeper - the glory of the staples being removed!

 

[MotownGirl66]

Post Op Day 11:
Still swollen around the knee joint. The calf and quad swelling have decreased a lot but the knee joint itself is rock hard and numb. The bruising/discoloration is still present and my leg is not as tender to the touch as it was. I'm trying to sleep on each side. I put a pillow that extends from knee to ankle between my legs and try to sleep. Those positions last less than 2 minutes each side. It quickly becomes painful.
I'm walking with a cane, quite clumsily. I tripped over it this morning in the kitchen and did the one-legged hop until I caught myself. No fall!
I ice the heck out of it and this evening, when I turned off the ice machine, I noticed my knee was considerably stiffer than it had been prior to the icing. I even tested it by doing my exercises and I saw that my ROM was diminished. Did I freeze myself? It's loosening up. I have it hanging off the side of my bed.

 

[gr82cu2]

I kept tripping over my cane too and ultimately decided it was more of a hazard than a help. I've never had my knee feel stiffer after prolonged periods of icing but it does get stiff if I don't move it and keep it in one position for too long, ice on or not. 7½ weeks later my knee is also still rock hard and it's as though the skin is stuck. Try moving your skin around on your op knee and compare to your non op knee. I'd be interested to find out if it is like that for others. I think it must be swelling but at the same time my knee no longer looks terribly swollen and it doesn't feel squishy with fluid. My skin is stuck ½ way down my lower leg, especially on the outside. I'm happy to hear your son is being discharged from the hospital. I hope he has a full recovery.

 

[kneeper]

You do have to focus with the cane and make sure you coordinate your steps. I think my knee was briefly more stiff after icing but didn't have any loss of ROM effect.

 

[Josephine]

Still swollen around the knee joint. The calf and quad swelling have decreased a lot but the knee joint itself is rock hard and numb. The bruising/discoloration is still present and my leg is not as tender to the touch as it was.

Well, what do you expect - you still not yet two weeks out! It will continue like this for at least another 3-4 weeks. Have patience. This thing does not get better in a few days not even a few weeks!

I'm trying to sleep on each side. I put a pillow that extends from knee to ankle between my legs and try to sleep. Those positions last less than 2 minutes each side. It quickly becomes painful.

You shouldn't even try sleeping on your side at this point. You surgery is still too new for you to do that. Sleep on your back with your legs elevated.

I ice the heck out of it and this evening, when I turned off the ice machine, I noticed my knee was considerably stiffer than it had been prior to the icing.

Define 'iced the heck' in hours! And did you have a protective cloth between the ice wrap and your skin?

 

[Jamie]

If you're primarily a side sleeper like me, I'll give you a little trick I used to get comfortable when sleeping. It requires a LOT of pillows and ice. I stacked two pillows at my feet for elevation of the opreated leg. Then I put my operated leg on top of those pillows with another pillow in between my legs. Another two pillows ran parallel to my back on the center of the bed so that I could like basically on my back but kind of lean into those back pillows. It was sort of a "half-side" sleep that really was comfortable. Then I put large ice packs on both the back and front of my knee, took a pain pill and I was out for at least 4 hours....sometimes longer.

 

[Shmi47]

@motowngirl so sorry for your experience. I too had such an awful hospital experience and it doesn't even compare to yours! It is awful to feel so helpless and the only caregiver are not giving care. I do hope your pain eases up from here. I keep telling myself there is only one way here and that's to be better every day. Some days though are just tougher than others. I spent many nights in rehab getting so anxious and crying at night they started giving me Xanax. It was my savior through the night. Rest, medicate, ice and elevate. Take care of yourself and we are here for you.


42 and Btkr 9/5/14

 

[jeano]

My variation on Jamie's side sleeping arrangement is either two pillows between the legs, or the leg between two pillows, depending on which side I'm on. My operated leg is usually happiest if it gets to be on the bottom, but the right shoulder doesn't like being slept on much. I rarely sleep on my back.

 

[MotownGirl66]

Post Op Day 13:
@gr82cu2 - The skin on my knee is still rock hard, too, and I tried what you suggested. The skin doesn't move but I think it's because it is still very swollen and needs all the skin it can to handle the swelling. It's very numb - when I touch it, it feels strange.
@Josephine - I do use a protective barrier between my skin and the ice wrap. I ice about 90 minutes, then take a 2 hour break, then resume for another 90. I may take a 4-5 hour break before resuming. I primarily sleep on my back with my legs elevated. I tried side sleeping because I was in pain and was moving around to try to get comfortable. I was about an hour out from getting my next dose of painkillers.
@Shmi47 - Wow! Bilateral knee replacement just a few days before me! God bless you! I am not sure I will do this again for knee #2. I hope things are looking up for you? Are you back at home now?

My pain is being managed well since I ceased Dilaudid. I went to my son's grandfather's funeral yesterday & was out of the house for 3 hours. It was very difficult trying to sit still in a pew with my leg partially bent for an extended period of time. As soon as the service was over, we drove straight home and I immediately went to bed, leg elevated, ice machine running full throttle. But, looking back on yesterday, it was good that my knee was bent for as long as it was, because I normally wouldn't have suffered that willingly.

My son is home so he and I are camped out in the living room. It's good that I have him to take care of because it makes me get up more often that I normally would. Still wearing my pedometer and logging steps and stair ascents.

Best regards,
Robyn

 

[kneeper]

Post Op Day 13:
@gr82cu2 - The skin on my knee is still rock hard, too, and I tried what you suggested. The skin doesn't move but I think it's because it is still very swollen and needs all the skin it can to handle the swelling. It's very numb - when I touch it, it feels strange.

Robyn

That can take a long time to go away--it doesn't mean anything's wrong.

 

[Jane B.]

I had my knee done two days after you, and I am barely doing a stair (single) and I'm up only for short periods. I went into the hospital with a hematocrit of 38 and left with one of 25. I'm assuming that's why I feel weak. Did you have a transfusion? And no way could I sit in a church pew for three hours. No way.
What is the expected timeline for your son's recovery?