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TKR The Knees and Me - staged

Yeh, not a good idea to cut down too soon...I was down to just 1 Tylenol and Tramadol before bed, copacetic. Then Ingot the bright idea to off the Tramadol, result no good nights anymore. Hard head that I am, I kept it up for three nights, getting only progressively less sleep and more achy.
Good for me that I had my 5 wk checkup today and OS chided me about cutting down too fast and prescribed some combination of a step down from Tramadol. Will pick up the script tomorrow.
Silly me.
 
@nensi, that is what happened to me. I was down to 3 Percocets per day when I decided to stop them. Bad, bad idea. 2 per day is good for me right now :yes:
 
You'll know when you're ready to step down more. On my first TKR I took an entire script of demerol (80) and when insurance said I did not need more, I asked to speak to a supervisor and lit into her on the phone! I asked if SHE had ever had TKR and if not how did she know how I felt after having my leg sawed, cut, hammered and screwed back together! Needless to say, I got approval for the second script. And I took them for 6 weeks. It is what it is. If you need them, you NEED them and should take them. Period. Yes, they make you feel like ****, but the pain is much worse! This too shall pass.
 
I often wonder about the advice we get from the medical profession. How much is knowledge and how much is marketing or politics? We are given Percocet for surgery pain and then told to take only a little since it is addictive. Motrin (ibuprofen) was the wonder drug of all time, good for whatever ails you. Now its use is discouraged.

A few years ago Tylenol was on the fecal roster because it affected the kidneys. Now it is the wonder drug of all time.

Actually, none of this stuff is particularly good for you, but when your leg has been sliced, diced, and hammered, anything that dulls the pain is good. And when the pain is gone, I think most of us are happy to pass on the drug.

I guess my point is, we can do without the mixed signals here. NSAIDs are good for inflammation, as in bruised and mangled tissues. Opiates are good for bone pain, as in sliced and hammered knees. Is there any reason to bring up side effects when we really have little choice but to take the drug?

Rant over, climbing down from the soapbox now...
 
rubyyarn said:
And...don't you know...I'll get off of them just in time for my next surgery
Click to expand...

Oh, yes! I had about a week and a half w no daytime opiates and 2 or 3 days with nothing at all before starting this party over again--and now I'm back to dozy land.

Congratulations on setting the date for #2. I'm finding recovery from #2 a bit harder, mostly because I'm tired of being in recovery, but the good recovery of knee #1 helps me stay optimistic about #2--and it sounds like you've also had a good knee 1.
 
Nothing we take into our bodies is 100% safe and good. Even water can kill you. I think it's a matter of taking medication with care and thought.

I have a healthy respect for opioids. Throughout human history they've earned a solid reputation for killing pain. The way they work on the brain is well-understood. They're safe and very effective if used with caution. But people can and do get addicted to them. This is also well-understood. So doctors being careful makes sense. It's their duty to tell us, and remind us about, the side effects. I knew Aleve, an NSAID, was bad for my stomach, but I took it for several years, in high doses, to combat my arthritis pain. Never took it without a nice snack! But I didn't like having to use it and am thrilled I no longer need it. Tylenol is better, though not perfect, and I look forward to stopping that also. But while I needed those opioids, I had them, and am grateful. My OS told me in advance he would only prescribe about four weeks worth, and that irritated me, because what if I needed more. He told me LATER that he would have prescribed more if I needed them.

Like you say, following a surgery as traumatic--physically and mentally--as this one, medication is a real help. While politics enters into everything (and it does), a good and trusting relationship with your OS is the best way to making sure your pain meds are up to snuff.
 
@gertie, knee #1 was an angel, all things considered. Hopefully knee #2 does as well. Recovery is rather a beast, and when it is over, I want it to be OVER! I couldn't imagine waiting a year and having to do it all again.
 
Rubyyarn, we had our surgery on the same date and are about the same age as I will be 69 next month.

I saw where you had set a date for your other knee. That is great!
 
Rubyyarn, I am hoping to get at least another year out of my remaining problem knee. I know I just wouldn't have the necessary grit right now to tackle #2 just yet, but admire those of you who do it so quickly again. I'm banking on my somewhat sketchy memory to erase the worst parts of recovery once a year has passed and that will make me more inclined to bite the bullet again, lol. If I can get 2 years out of it, all the better! We are hoping to move within a year (hubby is retiring in January) and I'd really like to be in a new, more knee-friendly abode before I upgrade! past several months have sadly been full of losses of friends and acquaintances, all of them too soon. At each memorial, the grievers have implored the attendees to mend any rifts with loved ones. Naturally, you have come to mind. I can't say I fully understand exactly what happened between us, but I can say that I'd like to put it in the past.

I'm sure both of our lives have been full in the time we've been out of touch and that is a loss to have missed sharing in that. I hope we can begin to be in touch again.

Love
jillI upgrade.


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What the heck? I've no idea, hahaha!


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Was just thinking...regarding coming off meds:
I've almost always asked my GP to prescribe me tablets that could be cut in half. Most of the time these exist. After taking entire tablets I would then take 3/4 of the tablet. ( means cutting halves again.. sometimes difficult) then half then just quarters. And with our medical system one has a standard price for any medicine, so I'd ask him for the highest available dose and then half and quarter tablets accordingly thus saving money. Our now alas retired GP used this system for his more medically informed patients. I was able to convince our new one of this system.
Would this work in your countries?
 
@VW54, over here, medications offered (or not) really seem to depend upon the particular physician. Mine insisted on ordering the strongest dose of Oxycodone initially, but I foolishly was only taking half that the first two weeks. I didn't want to be *out there.* So, I was in pain, lots of it. One quick call to his office convinced me to take the full dose. As @SusieShoes stated, it's really worthwhile to have a solid, trusting relationship with the OS. My surgeon made it clear at my first consultation that he didn't want any unnecessary pain, but he would not prescribe any narcotics after 3 months. That said, we do have federal laws governing narcotics and I believe they cannot be prescribed for more than 30 days at a time. If a refill is needed, we have to physically go to the physician's office and get another, 30 day, paper Rx. If unable to travel, we can send someone with ID to pick it up. I have never had my insurance company interfere with any medications, but I think there are some who may. If so, that's a shame in my opinion.
 
Pheebs, I can understand wanting to wait. I might have done so if my left knee had kept quiet. As it is, I am looking forward to having two good knees by this time next year.

Have you started house hunting yet?

VW54, my pain pills are scored so I can cut them in half. That will be the next step.
 
Rubyyarn, kinda/sorta on the house hunting. Our biggest problem is deciding on the particular state/town, (NH? VT? ME?) we have family and friends in all three. We also have family in FL, but have pretty much decided against that. Then there's whetehr or not we'd prefer a house or a condo. With two dogs, a condo wouldn't work very well; pffft! But, for the ageing bod, it's not a bad idea. Decisions, decisions.....The knee has kept me from traveling up North to do more in-person viewing, but I do look online a lot. If I saw something that inspired me, we'd definitely jump in the car. Of course, I'd be stretched out in the backseat, lol, with the pillows and ice, Tylenol in purse.
 
Oh, and the natural knee, Rightie, has behaved beautifully through this recovery. She's only made minor complaints so far, and typically, only on stairs. I've had a few days here and there where she was under the weather, but not too many...yet. :fingersx:
 
Guess it depends on how cold you like it :snow plough:

Actually, all of those places are cold! We moved to Virginia because my husband didn't like the cold. Did it ever cross our minds in our youth that we would someday have to take an old body into consideration?
 
Frankly, we don't like it too cold or too hot, but can't afford Cali and this is where most of our family and friends are, ya know? Weather wise, those states aren't that much different than here; mostly colder at night when I'm hopefully sleeping. Some locations are snowier than others, depending mostly on elevation. Coastal Maine is very similar to Boston temperature and snow-wise.
 
And Maine has lobster! And California keeps talking about seceeding, which could be a problem.

Good luck with the house hunting!
 
At 7 weeks or so there isn't much to say. Still on 2 Percocets and an occasional dose of ibuprofen. Went to the grocery store today and the new knee did well. Can't say the same for the old knee. It started complaining right away. The only way it is happy is when I am off of it. So I limp around as best I can.

I've been doing a bit of weaving and a bit of knitting and a few things around the house. I am amazed at how much I have slowed down over the years in an effort to accommodate the arthritis. That will have to change. It is like the new knee is saying "Go, go, go!" while the old one is saying "No, no, no!"

I'll be glad when all of this is settled a year or so from now :bored:
 
My old knee was giving me a fit for a while. But, as my new knee improved and took on more work, my old knee improved. Hopefully, yours will be the same.
 
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