TKR So grateful to have found this community

[Jockette]

Surgeons and PTs are often in too much of a rush to get a better bend and somehow they don’t take swelling into consideration. But, there is no “window of opportunity “ to get ROM. I am one year out and my bend continues to get better.

Rest, rest, rest, ice and elevate to help the swelling go down. I was still quite swollen and hardly doing anything at one month out. Don’t let their agenda push you to do anything you don’t want to do. The most important thing you need is time to heal. And healing takes a long time. Forcing things only sets you back at this point.

 

[Relle]

@SusieShoes thank you for your encouragement and kind words. I told my PT what I'd done and also that my knee had become stiffer as a result. It was like he didn't hear me, which I found quite frustrating. I am determined to take extra special care before I see my OS and if he want to go ahead with the MUA I will tell him I would like some more time. He seems like a reasonable man so I'm hoping he will agree.

 

[Celle]

I told my PT what I'd done and also that my knee had become stiffer as a result. It was like he didn't hear me, which I found quite frustrating.

OK. He doesn't get it, but you do, and you'll know not to do it next time.
Be firm with this PT and refuse to do anything that doesn't suit your knee.

 

[kneeper]

Sometimes we seem like we aren't making progress in a given week, but by the end of the next we have.

 

[Relle]

When will I learn! Here I am wide awake at 2.30 am, ice pack and pain. Went out for lunch yesterday which in itself was okay but on the way home decided to visit a friend for a while. Felt so good to be "normal" for a little while. there was a small group of us so I didn't want to fuss and tried to ignore my pain and discomfort by fiddling around and rubbing my leg to try and stop it hurting. When I arrived home my foot and ankle was swollen so I iced and elevated, that's how I stayed for the evening.
I know this has set me back. PT later today and he will be annoyed with me again.
Lesson learnt.

 

[Jockette]

I know this has set me back. PT later today and he will be annoyed with me again.
Lesson learnt.

You enjoyed your outing, that is the main thing.

You came home and dealt with the consequences. Sometimes those consequences are worth the enjoyment of doing normal things, which is our end goal.

You learned, maybe don’t do quite as much next time.

Forget about how annoyed your PT is going to be. It’s not up to him what you do. You got a great physical therapeutic experience that you can’t get in his office. It’s called Daily Activities and more useful than the exercises he will have you do.

If it was my knee and I had over exerted myself I would cancel the appointment.

 

[Mutti3]

The four week point was exactly then I overdid ny walking 1hour in a grocery store. Swollen knee, discomfort, and Elevate/ice the rest of that day. The next day I had a PT session that was mild, only treatment of massage , estim, and ice. Was told try not to over do. My momentary overdo didn’t set me back. I continued to progress, lost no ground.

 

[Relle]

Thanks again for the great advice. My knee is finally settled after an hour with the ice pack, ready to try for another nap. I'm sure I will feel better come the morning. I still find things feel worse at night.

 

[Jockette]

After I posted I remembered an early experience. I was 5 weeks post op last year at Easter. We were invited out to dinner Easter afternoon because we were not going to be seeing our kids. Another friend invited us to her family’s Easter dinner on Saturday evening. She said, “you’ll be more comfortable at my house than in a restaurant tomorrow”. So we went to her house and had a lovely evening meeting the rest of her family. No consequences.

On Easter I did go to the restaurant with our other friends. Big consequences. Maybe it was too soon to go out again with limited ability to elevate. There was a problem with our reservation and I ended up standing too long. I brought a small stool for my foot but the table had a pedestal foot style that made it hard to put the stool where I needed it. I had to sit twisted a bit so now my bad back was unhappy.

I was swollen all the way down my calf and ankles and still was Monday afternoon at PT. (I had not yet learned I didn’t have to go under such circumstances). I had a different therapist that day and it was the easiest session I ever had. They always started me out on ice and tens, and then thigh massage, and that’s about all she did that day. She also gave my advice about my cane. So, a good appointment that day.

It was a while before I had such a big outing again.

 

[kneeper]

I did a similar thing visiting with a friend early on. I thought it would be rude to have my leg up on the couch and boy was that silly. It wasn't like she'd have cared. I wound up quite sore and swollen and had to ice, elevate and medicate to come back to "normal" swelling.
We've all done something silly, so we get it. We try to warn people, but it's often something you just have to learn for yourself by accident. ;)

 

[Relle]

I've certainly learnt my lesson. We are going to a wedding on Thursday which has me concerned as I know it will be quite drawn out. I had already decided that I wouldn't be staying for the entire evening and will make sure I take cushions to be able to elevate my leg. The chair I sat on at lunch yesterday was also uncomfortable and I was sitting with a twisted body for about 2 hours (service was slow). It's know wonder it has caused me grief.

 

[SusieShoes]

Here are a couple more tips for going to that wedding. You already mentioned two nice pillows/cushions for elevation. Good thinking!

Ice. Do you have an ice chest? Bring along ice packs or some nice big bags of frozen veggies. Ice on the car ride up. Ice in the church. Ice at the reception. Ice on the ride back. The more icing you can do, the more comfortable you will be. Also, a large enough ice chest makes a dandy ottoman should you need one.

Remember that icing might chill you, so have a jacket you can wear. If no jacket, a nice throw will do the trick (also for the ride).

Bring your cane, even if you are not using one or are still using a walker. You will need the cane for any steps, and also for the bathroom. Be aware any toilets might be low.

And yes, we all seem to at some point overestimate our knee's (and our energy's) ability to bounce back. We can tend to harp on that, because we've all been there.

 

[Jockette]

Bring your cane, even if you are not using one or are still using a walker. You will need the cane for any steps, and also for the bathroom. Be aware any toilets might be low.

I agree, have the cane with you! I was 5 months post op when my son got married. There was way more standing than I could handle and I didn’t elevate much, and at the end of the night I desperately needed that cane to walk out to the car.

 

[sistersinhim]

I used the cane to prop up on. That's a knee saver, too!

 

[Relle]

Will definitely take my cane as well. If I feel it is too much we can come home early. Not going to jeopardise my knee again.
I feel like I have made no progress with my recovery for weeks. If anything have slipped backwards. Rom is still only at 60. Finding it hard to get around. Will be very surprised if OS doesn't want to do an MUA when I see him next week. I have been reading threads describing other people's journeys before and after MUA so less daunted but still hoping for improvement before then.

 

[SusieShoes]

Crossing my fingers you see that improvement. Do lots of resting before the wedding and after. Remember also you can tell the surgeon you want more time (should he suggest an MUA). Your stage of recovery, around one month to six weeks, is often frustrating because swelling is slow to resolve.

 

[sistersinhim]

Rom is still only at 60. Finding it hard to get around. Will be very surprised if OS doesn't want to do an MUA when I see him next week.

You are just a little over a month out from a major, traumatic surgery. Are you doing too many activities and exercises? They will make your knee swell and reduce bend. Swelling is what restricts ROM. An angry knee comes from doing things its not ready to do, so it swells. It's a domino effect. Swelling=less ROM. Cut way back on what you are doing and rest that poor knee of yours!

 

[kneeper]

It took me a good 6 weeks to get to 90 due to swelling. I was sitting around 70 at 4 weeks, but as the swelling came down I started to gain. I did very little exercise and very few daily activities and mostly focused on icing and elevating. I definitely paid for it when I went out to lunch, for example, and had to sit with my leg down for an hour.

 

[Relle]

I understand what you are saying about overdoing it. I think that is likely. Physio has me doing more and even though he is not necessarily pushing me I have noticed I can actually do less and feel more constricted around my knee and calf muscles. I will be sure to tell my OS this.
Don't know how the OS will react. This will be the first time I have seen him since hospital. He is reasonably young and I'm thinking a little bit more progressive than others I have heard of in the area.

 

[Mutti3]

I hope your first visit with the OS goes well. Is your appointment soon?