Become an Insider

TKR Sandi's knees, take 2

@becticu I rode in the front, with the seat all the way back there is quite a bit of room.

@sooz58 I am very much looking forward to having 2 good knees, and really happy that once I am done with this, it's the last time. That's my current mantra "never again, never again". Good luck with your surgery.
 
Post-op day 2. I'm not feeling too badly. I'm taking 5mg oxycodone every 4 hours and 50mg tramadol, 1000mg Tylenol every 6 hours. I know it is really early, but I am already frustrated that I can't lift my leg on my own. I'm grateful to have my family around to lift it up onto my pillow stack.

I don't think that my brain is as foggy this time, I don't really know why. I am taking the same medication as last time. I'm glad to be a little clearer, I hope it lasts. Now, if I could find that elusive box of patience, it would be good.
 
Sandi, if you could just bottle and sell that patience, you'd make a lot of people very happy!
 
Glad you're clearer-headed and hope it continues. And yes... never again. The results may be worth it, but this surgery is not for the faint of will!
 
Congrats on knee #2!
 
@sandi4213, I think that @Pheebs52 said that patience was found in a shiny red box under the bed! As you know, you will lift the leg in time...sometimes our energy. The good thing is you know that's normal. That's some of the advantage of staged the second time around. You remember, oh yeah I had that before and it went away or whatever. I hope you sleep well with little pain tonight!
 
Oh yeah, @sistersinhim , if I could find and bottle patience I'd be rich! Apparently someone stole my shiny red box @becticu . I wish they would bring it back.

I think the hardest thing about staged knees, is finally doing more (stairs, etc.) and then going back to ground zero.
 
Ah Sandi, there's no place like home! So glad you're there now! May the Sleep Fairies be with you tonight.:sleep:
 
Day 3 post op. I am sleeping 2-3 hours at a time, which is a big improvement over the last knee. Pain meds are keeping up pretty well, just some achiness sometimes. I am able to do ankle pumps (they sent me home without teds!) buttock squeezes, and I have started very gentle heel slides. I can only move a couple of inches, but I'm not going to push it this early.

One interesting note, my extension seems to be better this time. Last knee it was the last thing to come and I had to really work on it. My daughter commented yesterday that my leg was so much straighter this time. I'm happy about that.
 
What a good report Sandi! I sure hope this recovery is smooth for you. That is also really good to hear about the extension.
 
Hooray for silver linings! Each knee is such an individual. Look like your right knee has the extension thing down already. :thumb: Doing those gentle, small exercises really adds up. At least, that's what my rehab PT told me, because I was doing them all the time: little heel slides, ankle pumps, some (very gentle) leg swinging over the side of the bed. Not only good for preventing blood clots, but also helps move fluid around inside the tissues. All I knew was it felt right to move sometimes.
 
sandi4213 said:
I think the hardest thing about staged knees, is finally doing more (stairs, etc.) and then going back to ground zero.
Click to expand...
Yes, yes, yes, and yes! We get that taste of "normal" and then, whoops, we're back hanging out with our leg on a stack of pillows!

Sounds like you're doing well in these early days.
 
Hope you're taking it easy and give yourself time.
As has been said before, you know what to expect on this "second take."
Nap, relax, and know you have cheering squad here.
 
Congratulations on your knew knee! You were smart to wait a bit longer between them...wished that would have been an option for me...but hang in there! You know it will come in it's own time!
 
@VW54 I am definitely taking it easy. I have been elevating almost constantly and icing trying to get this swelling down so my knee will bend. I'm just not seeing much improvement in the swelling yet, but I know it's really early and all of my tissues are angry :gaah:I will sure be happy when it goes down, though :roseshwr:
 
@LindaO I literally had last week and this week to do this and have someone home with me for the first 2 weeks. Between vacations, 4H at the fair, and school starting, everyone else will be gone during the day after next week. I originally had surgery scheduled the 1st, but then my os became unavailable. So, it was now or not this year. Also, I am saving a lot of money getting it done now that my out of pocket is done.
 
@sandi4213 Re: swelling--I'm at about 10 days post-op and am starting to see a reduction in swelling and feel as though my knee bends more easily when I walk. It's a subtle change but it's there (patience, patience).
 
Post op day 4. I slept pretty good last night for this early. I slept from 10 to 12, took meds, right back to sleep till 1:30 meds and then was awake till about 3:30. Went back to sleep until about 7. Not bad for 4 days out. I got a shower this morning, too. That was nice.

I really think I have more swelling this time, my leg is just gigantic. I have been elevating and icing about 80% of the time but I'm not seeing much difference. Anybody have any ideas?
 
Hi Sandi, I'm glad you got some sleep last night. For some reason my second knee swelled like crazy where my first not so much. I have a comparison picture somewhere in my thread of day 12 for both knees. I iced and elevated with not a lot of difference. My PT used kenesio taping on my knee. That actually helped with the swelling. I also got a lymphatic drainage massage which helped a lot as well. You've got this, just take it one day, one hour or one minute at a time. :friends:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Active Antimicrobial Hydrogel

Staff online

  • djklaugh
    djklaugh
    Staff member since December 30, 2020

Members online

Total: 894 (members: 2, guests: 892)

Latest posts

Back
Top Bottom