@Stiff knee NC Hi again, and there's not a whole lot I can add to what we already know about "waiting and seeing what happens with time".
Personally, I'll always have a stiffness problem with this right knee, and I have to be happy with almost no pain but definite lack of ROM. The unknown is how much ROM I'll get back, knowing I won't get anywhere near what I want. I can bend to 90, but riding a stationary bike is challenging. It has to be the perfect bike where I can adjust the seat to a sweet spot. My stationary bike (home) is set either too high for comfortable peddling (but I can get all the way around easily) or too low to get comfortably around without forcing it and hiking my hip to the point of aggravating my back. I don't want to spend $600 on a new one though, considering it's only 4 yrs old and works perfectly. Instead, I'm using my elliptical to loosen the knee for 4-5 mins, then riding the bike for 3-4 minutes.. That seems to get me my "best" ROM so far. This bike will never let me ride for fitness/intervals/weight loss though. We're looking at making changes to our home equipment in the fall, so we'll see what I decide then.
Overall, I DID improve during months 11-12. There is no pain/aching when sitting/standing, and I can stand for over an hour without thinking about it (well, except if the other knee is acting up). I can clean for 3 hrs or shop for 3 hrs or cook for 3 hours!!!
I think my move to the new house in February, plus all the work on the old house in March, was actually a Godsend. It forced me to use the knee more all of Feb/Mar/April---and I was surprised at the good results, even if the ROM was severely limited at the end of the day. My surgeon agrees I need to not baby it as much as I did up through months 7-8. If I do too little, I seem to get more pain and stiffness, just like if I overdo it. I think I've finally found a happy medium though. I keep adding more strength-training in baby-steps, and that seems to be a better way for me to advance in my fitness....even if slowly!!
I hate to say it, but I've gained 15 lbs and spent way too much time on the couch all winter and early spring. It was a super stressful time, for so many reasons, and I let my diet and fitness go.
Now that I'm back on the healthy food and exercise wagons
, I'm afraid of the left knee getting too bad and needing replaced sooner than I wanted. It's not in the best shape arthritis-wise, but I DO NOT want another TKR anytime soon. We're hoping for two vacations next summer (2021) to make up for 3 ruined summers in a row with knee surgeries and COVID-19. We want my 14-yr old to enjoy some trips with us before heading to college in a few yrs.
This all just weighs on me though, and I'm afraid to push the good knee too far and have my left knee revolt.
Anyway, I'll leave you with what my surgeon told me at the 1-year follow-up. Many of us with lingering stiffness/swelling/inflammation need up to 2-3 yrs to see the final improvement/final result we're going to get. Sometimes longer.
He knows the he** my right knee had been through, and he knows the arthrofibrosis/scarring situation I dealt with before in 2015-16 (from super aggressive PT) and following the other surgeries with no aggressive PT. He likes to remind me I'm kind of in a category all my own and to be patient. He said he's seen continuing improvement through that 3rd year post-op, so DO NOT GIVE UP!!!! I don't know where you are stuck in terms of ROM or if it's just a nagging, tight feeling you're fed up with.....but there is still plenty of time for improvement. He gave me hope, as he's seen a handful like me before in his 20+ yrs of TKR revisions and primary TKRs. I once had a normal knee arthroscopy on this same knee take 10-11 months to get back to normal in 1998, and nothing was done inside except explore and see if there was a problem (one wasn't found)....so I know I am a super slow healer and fit no mold.
It is what it is, and I have nothing but time ahead of me to see what happens.
I wish the best for you and hope something here is useful for you.
--Lisa