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TKR Swollen 9 months post op<

My prescription is 2 hourly which is why I didn’t want to go by the clock but then in some ways it works against me - I have 3 - 3 ½ hours sleep and wake up in pain. It would be easier if i could have something longer lasting over night.
 
Well not sure if there is anything that lasts overnight. I would definitely try to wake up and take those pills! Also do you ice and elevate during the night? That really helps with pain as well! Those long lasting ice machines are wonderful for that...
 
Ok will try with my 2 hourly nighttime meds - not sure that we have ‘long lasting ice machines in the UK.
 
cannygirl said:
long lasting ice machines
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I'm sure you do have them. They are the ice water circulating machines that you put clumps of ice and a little water in. They are electric and a pump forces ice water through a tube to a baffle that you put around your injured spot. There are many different manufacturers out there and you can check them out on Amazon or Ebay or somewhere like that.
 
@cannygirl you are a brave lady to be in a hotel to visit family so soon after surgery. At that period after my surgery I was a mess at 4 months an some days still a mess. I barely made it to OS for weeks. Don’t give up just take the suggestions from the people on this site and things will get better with time. Someone said it best the OS don’t tell you are family what to expect, I have had a right hip replacement and it was nothing compared to my left knee replacement. My poor husband was in shock and still is at time. I cried for weeks and I never cry. Someone sent a guide to follow for recovery use it because it works.:elevate:
 
cannygirl said:
Ok will try with my 2 hourly nighttime meds - not sure that we have ‘long lasting ice machines in the UK.
Click to expand...
Do you mean your prescription is to take medication every 2 hours? For the first week I could take mine every 3 hours--including overnight--but I moved to every 4 hours soon after that.

For the first few weeks I woke up every 3-4 hours too even with pretty good pain control.
If you can get several gel packs so that you can use one on the front and one on the back of the knee; and then have a couple in the freezer cooling that works well too. Then you always have some ready to go when one batch warms up. I had an ice machine but only used it for the first couple of weeks as it was a bit of a hassle for me being on my own.
 
Well I have just had s night with 2 hourly meds (on alarm). I have not had any pain but have disturbed my husband! I have investigated a cold/ice pump and they are available in UK but not common. I’ll give it a try and hope it arrives before everything closes down over the New Year.
 
No pain is good! I'm sure your husband understands.

You will love the ice water circulator!
 
Today has been better: home is definitely better than hotel! I am managing better elevation and regular meds. I photographed my knees for comparison but the size of my ‘new’ knee is pretty awful!


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Isn't it great being home?! Being able to take care of your needs is so much better than trying to depend on someone else. Don't worry about that swelling. It will come down, especially if you take it easy and treat that knee like the newborn baby that it is!
 
Night 19: tried something new as I realised that my regular meds weren’t going to see me through the Scottish public holidays. (Everything closes down until January 3rd). So I doubled my Slow release meds, set up my new “Cryocuff” cooler and decided to pump cold water around my knee when I woke up during the night. This worked better than I expected and got through to 8.30 before having to take an Oxynorm. Today, I have managed to stretch out the time between meds by an hour or more. I wonder if I am turning the corner? I am still irritable and impatient as this all seems to be so slow. Movements are so difficult and doing anything with my knee feels as though I am trying to move sand within a straight-jacket. There is no give in the knee at all. It is not like a balloon, more like a large melon which could burst at any time!
My annoyance is also that my brain isn’t working. I can’t concentrate to read or do anything meaningful at all. Well enough complaining- maybe my next post will be more positive. Thank you for listening
 
There are many "corners" to this recovery. :heehee: If stretching the meds is working for you, ok--but just don't stretch too much too fast as then you may find out the hard way you are rushing things. Each time I stretched a dose I gave it a few days at that level before trying to stretch again.
You are very early in the recovery and having your knee feel like a watermelon is pretty accurate--you have a lot of swelling. Keep up what you're doing with the Cryocuff-you can use it most of the day while you elevate.

I couldn't read at all with my first knee. I would listen to books on CD and dose off...
The meaningful thing you're doing right now is letting your body heal. You have permission to be "lazy." :heehee:
 
Thank you for this advice about the meds. My GP was very cautious about prescribing enough to cover for the full 2 week’s holiday and so I was trying to find a way to make it work without sending me off the deep end! I won’t change anything tonight or tomorrow. Yes I am using the cryocuff regularly but sometimes I get a bit shivery so stop for a while.
It helps to have someone reassure me that I am fairly normal at the moment.
 
I know what you mean. I had my knees done in the summer --it would be 90 degrees out and I would be icing and covered up in a fleece throw. I would take "breaks" for 20 mins-half hour.
 
There are many ups & downs with TKA. Your experiences are normal it will begin to improve soon.
 
Good to know it is normal- it surely doesn’t feel normal!
I think I have a heat pad somewhere
 
No the heat was for the rest of me. I am getting a bit shivery with the cold packs on my knee!
 
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