Sleeping Question, overall discomfort..

[lissa]

It's Lissa again! 2 questions
I'm at 6 weeks today. With both knees recovering,(1) how do are you sleeping in your beds? I cannot get my legs to lie flat enough on the matress for sleeping...they feel like they are on the rack! Therapist put me on two long pillows..total lenght of leg...and I hae been sleeping on those since week one. All of a sudden, I realize I am not totally flat. So, checked the quad stretch on a hard wooden bench and sure enough, back of knees are about an inch and a half from hitting the bench flat. Hmmm! So, can work on pressing knee gently down with exercise...but the bed thing...should I be flat on a matress by now? So busy bending...haven't really looked at locked knees while standing. One leg sure is not as straight in locked positioin as I thought it was..hmmm..what'd think?

(2)When you are walking, or exercising at 6 weeks, are you feeling painful stretch both on inside of knee and outer leg muscle? It all subsides after exercise...but quad stretching...and knee flexing are still really irritating...what's the general take on that?

 

[Texas]

Hey Lissa, Yea I just used the body pillow, that big ole long pillow and sometimes alot of pillows till i got it right its tough in the beginning it took me till 8-9 weeks till I was comfy...lay on your belly with your legs hanging off a lil and it will help them straighten out i hope im explaining that right just let them hang it will help...As you can tolerate my pt would put lil ankle weights o so it would help to straighten it...6 weeks you probably will still have pain....try that exercise it worked great i got it from here.....you will be ok still early....hang in there when i hit 12 weeks big difference really.....

 

[ship4]

Lissa,
I slept in a recliner for about 12 weeks. I had purchased a twin size feather bed and made a cover for it out of a queen size sheet that was removable. I slept in the recliner with my legs elevated above my heart for a long time. When I finally go into a bed I required a broken link removed: https://www.legwedgepillow.com/index.html to be comfortable while sleeping on my side. It was an adjustable one.
The pillows under the knee were a no-no by my OS and PT. I had to have them under my calf and ankles with the knee straight......

 

[Linda2]

I would just sleep in any way you're comfortable and work on the extension separately. There are many ways to work on it.

 

[FrogFeathers]

I've had edeman issues for years before I even had my TKR, so sleeping with my legs elevated wasn't any problem for me.

I slept in a hospital bed for two weeks and in my dad's EZ-lift recliner for two weeks. I tried to sleep in a bed at my parents' house, but I couldn't, even with some elevation. At my own house, I slept with my legs elevated the same way I did before surgery. Of course, I was only home about a week before they did the manipulation on me and then I slept with my leg in that stupid CPM machine (I loathe the machine!).

Even now, at six months out, I still sleep with my legs slightly elevated. I usually sleep on my stomach now, with just a normal pillow under my feet to slightly bend my knees. And once in a while, I do a straight up elevation of both of my legs.

Anywhoo, I hope that helps a bit, even though I rambled a bit.

 

[loggon]

Lissa

Are you still taking PT? If so have the therapist help you find
a position or if not taking PT do as Linda said sleep anyway
you are comfortable.

But do work on getting the extension straight I think you said is
was not straight. Have your pt check it. There are exercises for
that.

Good luck

 

[lissa]

I would just sleep in any way you're comfortable and work on the extension separately. There are many ways to work on it.

Thx! PT allowed me thin long pillows at night..and work on extension seperately..as you said..needed reinforcement..so much does!

 

[lissa]

Hey Lissa, Yea I just used the body pillow, that big ole long pillow and sometimes alot of pillows till i got it right its tough in the beginning it took me till 8-9 weeks till I was comfy...lay on your belly with your legs hanging off a lil and it will help them straighten out i hope im explaining that right just let them hang it will help...As you can tolerate my pt would put lil ankle weights o so it would help to straighten it...6 weeks you probably will still have pain....try that exercise it worked great i got it from here.....you will be ok still early....hang in there when i hit 12 weeks big difference really.....

Forgot about lying on tummy and hanging legs over the side..its on the exercise list..I also rest ankle on top of thick telephone book..I like the 12 week feeling so much better, pain and aggrivation wise...will think forward! Thx

 

[cindy88fan]

Lissa,
The exercise of hanging your ankles over the bed...:thmb::thmb::thmb:. That feels so good. I'm a belly sleeper so when my PT told me to do this a couple weeks ago..I was excited....anything to get to my belly. It's been 6 weeks today since my BTKR also and I'm aloud to sleep on my belly now. My incisions are closed and very firm and tough. I just have to put a small thin pillow under them for added softness but I love it. And when you are on your stomach with a thin pillow under the knees helps the extensions also.

I'm not feeling any pain on the outer leg or inner leg during walking but I am with you on the knee flexing...ouch! Quad stretching...I love that. My quad are sooo strong now.

I'm with you, come on 12 weeks. I find it funny, remember when they all said we'll feel sooo much better at 6 weeks? Yes, it is true, I do feel so much better at 6 weeks, now it's 12 weeks. LOL:hehe::hehe::hehe::hehe::hehe:

Good Luck on your recovery!!!!

 

[loribee59]

what about sleeping on the side..? I'm a side sleeper. I usually will have one knee bent and another knee straight.

for now, I'm starting my 3rd week, and I'm sleeping on my back with two pillows piled up high for my right knee, and I keep that straight, and I have just one pillow for my left knee and that's also kept straight.

 

[Hearth_Cricket]

Hi Loribee!
You and I are surgery twins...I had my second TKR on 8/11, as well...my right knee this time.

Ah the sleep question...always a challenge after TKR. It's funny but I don't clearly remember (time-wise) how long it was before I was comfortable enough to sleep in bed without squirming, turning, arranging and re-arranging pillows, etc...so this time, I decided to sleep in the La-Z-Boy recliner from the start. I tried sleeping in bed with my husband last week and boy, what a production! I tossed, turned, squirmed, moaned, groaning, arranged, rearranged the pillows and finally fell asleep from exhaustion around 3 am or so...woke up stiff as a board ALL OVER! I'm still trying to figure that one out...so back to the recliner it was, the next night.

I've been sleeping in the recliner with one long pillow under the length of my operated leg and none under the other leg comfortably with no pain. Then the other night, I tried the couch, lying on my side with a soft pillow lying lengthwise between the legs...nah, nope, no way was that comfortable enough to fall asleep...that production lasted about 90 minutes before I got up off the couch and landed myself right back into the recliner. LOL

So, I'm trying to determine how soon I can return to my bedroom and bed and I'm thinking maybe at 6 weeks or so...Tomorrow marks 3 weeks post surgery and I'm hoping that I can get by in this recliner just 3 more weeks. I take one Hydrocodone before sleeping and usually wake up 2-3 times a night because of my menopausal bladder, not the knee. In fact, the knee discomfort is minimal at night, as long as I'm in the recliner...but not so great on the neck and shoulders. But, I'm dealing with it all.

Hope that you can find a dooable sleeping place and position for awhile...like someone said in another thread...nap, nap, nap during the day if you can. I'm averaging about 5-6 hours each night and 1-2 90 minute naps throughout the day. Fortunately, I can nap during the day since I no longer work...I hope that you're able to nap during the day to catch up your sleep deficit.

Keep us posted!