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TKR Starting to wish I'd never had a knee replacement

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Sorry but I think I smell a whiff of snake oil. Please be careful. There is as far as I know NO treatment for anything that has zero chance of adverse effects and that includes icing and elevating and resting (you COULD burn your skin, you COULD compress a nerve or hamper circulation depending on how you elevated, you COULD increase your chance of having an embolism if you embraced rest to the point of not moving at all....) so if someone tells you they have a miracle cure with NO possible negative effects I would RUN for the exit, or in the case of most of us here, hobble, gimp, or very carefully walk with appropriate assistive devices, but still toward the exit. Your mileage absolutely may vary.
 
[Bonesmart.org] Starting to wish I'd never had a knee replacement
Hope you and yours have had a wonderful Christmas holiday with lots of family fellowship and sharing of gifts and lots of good food to eat.


I’ll be looking for you at the BoneSmart annual New Year’s Party. It’s been a very eventful year for most of us---and will be a very eventful year coming up for others of us looking forward to surgery in the new year.


Remember to bring food and drink to share---and pictures are always appreciated and loads of fun to share.


SEE YOU AT THE PARTY!!!!!
[Bonesmart.org] Starting to wish I'd never had a knee replacement
bottomshollow
 
I think your chiropractor was talking about:

Graston Technique® is an innovative, patented form of instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization that enables clinicians to effectively break down scar tissue and fascial restrictions. The technique utilizes specially designed stainless steel instruments to specifically detect and effectively treat areas exhibiting soft tissue fibrosis or chronic inflammation.

Originally developed by athletes, Graston Technique® is an interdisciplinary treatment used by more than 17,500 clinicians worldwide — including physical and occupational therapists, hand therapists, chiropractors, and athletic trainers.

GT is utilized at some 1,880 outpatient facilities and 49 industrial sites, by more than 270 professional and amateur sports organizations, and is part of the curriculum at 57 respected colleges and universities.

I have not talked to anyone who has gone through this but it sounds interesting. You may want to do some more research on this technique before doing it. This is my 2 cents.
 
I HOPE that's what the chiro meant becaused that pulsed light/laster stuff is used primarily for cosmetic improvement of scars, age spots, and the like. Cant figure out how that's going to resolve adhesions etc inside a knee....
 
Jean ... I do feel for you. I guess you are desperate to try something, anything, to give you some relief from all you are experiencing. I know nothing personally about the treatment, but have you "googled" it to see what it is about? I have googled it myself and found most articles were very much in medical speak, but it is thought to be very therapeutic for conditions which require longer treatments for relief. I also found out that it is considered to have virtually no side effects. Most things to do with lasers seem to be expensive though.

If you do decide to try it, please let us know how you get on and for your sake, I really hope it works for you and produces some relief.

I sincerely hope that 2014 is a much less stressful and painful year for you. Hugs ... Ellen
 
@lindaladyishere, I am sorry that you are struggling. However, there are many on here that have given you advice and tried to answer your questions, yet you are not listening to them. You talk about being in so much pain, but then in the same breath you talk about a 4-hour shopping trip. Hello?!?! Why the heck would you go shopping when you are having such horrible knee pain? Why are you continuing to do the very things that are aggravating your knee? You also say that your Ortho is not listening to you. Are you listening to him? Communication is a two way street.

Has your Dr. and or PT told you that a knee replacement recovery can take anywhere up to 18 months before you feel better? 18 months is a long time- this is a marathon, not a sprint recovery.

I am sorry to sound harsh here- and I am not trying to be harsh, but I think if you truly took a break that you would start feeling better.

Many of us all over did it and pushed more than we should have in the beginning. We have had episodes of depression and helplessness with a recovery that feels like it is going nowhere. We understand what you are going through and we are here for you, but you need to listen and let us help you.

Take care and I hope today is a better day.
 
Oh i have so slowed down on everything since my trip to the ER....

Had my first laser treatment onTuesday....didntfeel much relief in pain, but did notice i could go up the syairs leading with my surgical leg, although that leg is veryvwry weak, had to do it slow n hold on to both rails. Today at physical therapy i was measured at 107 degrees. PT didnt know much about that treatment, but said for a small number of people heat works better than ice, so she is going to start using heat on me. Then i went back for a second pulser laser treatment today...the laser beeps on problem areas, n i will say every where it beeped are areas that i have pain in. However it did not beep on the major part of my leg where i have the most pain. PT said that area is were the nerves r reconnecting, im hoping that they will reconnect right n that the pain will stop in that area. Going for another laser treatment tomorrow.
I started taking 1 Hydrocodon pill a day, could not take the constant pain, n IB prophin does not help at all, so if ny OS refusses to give me anymore refills i will have to kill him (j\k)...
 
You know, you're not at 3 months yet. I was still taking pain pills regularly, icing and elevating. It sounds to me like you could be overdoing it. I was also prescribed a mild anti depressant as I was beginning to despair I'd ever be normal again
 
lindaladyishere said:
I started taking 1 Hydrocodon pill a day, could not take the constant pain, n IB prophin does not help at all, so if ny OS refusses to give me anymore refills i will have to kill him
Click to expand...
Linda....taking one hydrocodone a day when you are in pain is worthless. If you're hurting, you need constant pain medication in your system for it to do any real good. If your surgeon will not help you with pain medication, you need to see your GP. It is possible that they could give you Tramadol if no one wants to prescribe anything stronger for you. Ibuprofen is not a pain reliever, so it's actually good that you've given it up. Tylenol is much better as long as you stay within the guidelines of no more than 4000mg per 24 hours and take 1000 mg with each dose (be sure and count any acetaminophen in other things you might be taking like the hydrocodone).

I went back and read through your thread and here is my opinion. Take it for whatever you think it's worth to you.

You are a scant 3 months out from your surgery. You spent the first 2 months overdoing things on a pretty regular basis and have had significant pain from that. When you do this and don't rest enough to let the pain subside, you end up with what is termed "chronic pain." It is much harder to overcome than the initial pain you had in the first month or so.

You CAN overcome it, though, if you will follow a strict program of resting, icing, elevating and taking your pain meds on a regular schedule. Your only exercise should be moving around your house, gentle stretches and bends several times a day, and maybe one very short errand out of the house for about 20 minutes a couple of times a week. Your pain is not going to improve in a few days and maybe not even in a few weeks. Although you would see things getting better slowly, it will take a lot of time. You'll need to be dedicated and patient with yourself. Your body is wounded and it needs to have the time and energy to heal itself. You can only get that by keeping your pain managed and your body resting.

Your chiropractor's description of scar tissue in a knee operation is not correct. Scar tissue does not develop that way. Frankly, I'd be surprised if your problem is scar tissue. It's swelling and overuse of some very tender body parts in your knee. You may find yourself better after these treatments. But, if you follow the approach I've outlined above, you will also feel better and you'll save a lot of money. The key to your success is going to be your willingness to stop pushing yourself, manage your pain, and let your knee recover slowly.

I wish the best for you. I know you are suffering. Please take care of yourself.
 
Well said Jamie , I agree with all of that and start being kind to yourself . Once I had accepted that it was a long haul and I just had to sit it out till I recovered I actually started to feel better about it all
 
I have been taken it easy....not doing too much. I am continuing with the laser treatments and do think they have helped a lot. ROM is now 108 and I am not in as much pain but I still have pain and some shooting pain in my leg when I'm resting. When I do have to go outside I'm so scared because of the snow here. I should probably use the cane when I go out.

Have to go back to work in two weeks which scares me because once I return then I'm stuck with no more time off. However, my boss is understanding when I told her I have to listen to my knee and that when my knee\leg hurts I will have to go home and not work 8hr days. I have a job with a lot of flexibility so I think that will help. I am glad to see improvement and can't wait till I see more. I do think most of my problems were with the internal swelling. Well, just taking one day at a time.
 
This is great news. Just try to continue keeping your activity minimal for a while...especially once you go back to work. That will be activity enough for quite a while! Glad you have an understanding boss.

You might want to purchase some ice cleats to put on your shoes or boots. One brand is Yak Trax. You can find them on Amazon or in most hardware stores. They do a fabulous job of giving you traction on ice and snow.
 
Sorry you are having such a hard, painful time. I understand. Shortly after surgery I pulled a muscle getting into bed ( I'm quite tricky! I kinda fell into bed. Ouch!) when I did the exercises the PT told me to do I broke down into hysterical crying from the pain. I was just following instructions.... I hadn't found this forum yet. That wasn't the only time I broke down. ..... You are entitled to let loose when you need the release.
Take care!
Betty
 
Ice cleats, what a great ideal!!!! Right now I take baby steps when going out and there is always small mounds of snow I have to step on which makes me sink and wobble and scares the hell out of me. Not to mention when I have to go to a store or gas station the floors are always so wet. Will go to a hardware store tomorrow!!!! My track record is falling once very winter, hoping to skip this winter...please Lord. Thanks Jamie
 
Hi Linda ,... sorry I haven't visited for a while. How good to hear that you are having some improvements in your ROM. Very happy for you. :yay: It is good that you feel the laser treatments are helping. If you can afford it and feel some benefits, then why not do it, is what I say.

I am also very glad that you are taking things a bit easier. Did you get your cleats or Yak Traks or whatever to help you walk in the snow? I hope the severe weather problems over in the US have not impacted on you too much.

I am back to work tomorrow. Not sure how I feel about that. It will be good to have people all around me during the day though.

Take Care Linda and I will check in again with you sooner next time.

Thinking of you ... Ellen :flwrysmile::flwrysmile:
 
Havent been on here for a while...back working the first 2 weeks back i was really tired. Today was my last day in PT.....a lot of progress made in ROM today measured 115 degress, PT pushed it back to 117 :) about 2 weeks ago i learned how to walk up n down stairs without stopping on each step. Much less swelling feeling when i standing or walking.....i still hav. ALmost a constant pinching in the back of my knee, PT 2 weeks ago figured that out...my hamstring....it can really hurt at times..it really bugs me n i hope that will get better with time....my left leg is still really really weak, but it takes much time to get the strength back in it, so ive been told. I am really happy i can bend it, i was stuck with low ROM for so long, but no more!!!!! :) mentaly i am so much better, no more emotional break downs, this truely was one of the most difficult things i have ever been through....hoping now i can help people going through what we all went or are going through :)
 
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