TKR Thegoose2 on the go<

[thegoose2]

Got to the hospital at 5:15 yesterday and played the waiting game. Pre-op nurse was very unhelpful and once she went through her list of what needed to be done we never saw her again. No heated blanket!
Fortunately the parade of everyone else was wonderful. They were a caring and enjoyable team so I went into surgery as comfortably as I could.

Woke up in no real pain and I have to say that remains the case. First walk to the rest room hurt at the tourniquet site as everyone said it would and the knee felt wobbly a couple of times. Otherwise the issue was no toilet raiser so getting up was difficult. We now have one and it makes a huge difference.

PT had me walking the hallway. Hard to believe there is so much to think about just to walk! Went well but was tiring.

Staying ahead of pain with Norco every 4 hours. I expect today to be more difficult with PT and going home. But I have to say I am in no pain while in bed, while sitting, and minimally (at the tourniquet site) when up and about. Some stiffness but I don’t know about swelling under all the wraps. And bless my walker!

Hubby has stayed with me and has been amazing. Another blessing.

I know it’s going to be a series of ups (now!) and downs (depression, pain, set backs) but right now I am so relieved to be on this side of things!

BTW, it turned out the reason my left knee hurt more than the physically worse right one was because my left kneecap had slid to one side. So it was a more interesting surgery than expected and I will have a more interesting scar!

 

[Denny39]

Good morning @thegoose2. You are off to a great start by being connected to Bonesmart so soon. It seems that most of us go, or went, into this with no real idea of what to expect during the recovery. You will soon receive guidelines from Bonesmart. You will also receive encouragement and support from members via this thread. If you have any questions or concerns, post them. Someone, or Several someone’s, will be able to help. Please pay particular attention to Bonesmart advice on PT. Some make the mistake of trying to do too much too fast. That can actually be detrimental, especially in the first 2 weeks. I am at 6 1/2 weeks, and walking I think just about as good as I was before surgery, on a “bad knee day”. But then, the pain was slowly getting worse; now it’s slowly getting better.

The short haul is admittedly not much fun; but the time will come when you will be enjoying your new pain-free knee. As a friend of mine put it before I had my surgery; “You will get your life back”.

 

[thegoose2]

@Denny39
Exactly! We look at it as an investment in our future.
Thanks for the encouragement and advice. This site is another blessing!

 

[Jockette]

Hi and Welcome to Recovery!

I will leave you our Recovery Guidelines. Each article is short but very informative. Following these guidelines will help you have a less painful recovery.

Knee Recovery: Guidelines
1. Don’t worry: Your body will heal all by itself. Relax, let it, don't try and hurry it, don’t worry about any symptoms now; they are almost certainly temporary
2. Control discomfort:

rest
elevate
ice
take your pain meds by prescription schedule (not when pain starts!)
don't overwork.​

3. Do what you want to do BUT

a. If it hurts, don't do it and don't allow anyone - especially a physical therapist - to do it to you
b. If your leg swells more or gets stiffer in the 24 hours after doing it, don't do it again.​

4. PT or exercise can be useful BUT take note of these

the BoneSmart view on exercise
BoneSmart philosophy for sensible post op therapy​

5. Here is a week-by-week guide for

Activity progression for TKRs​

The Recovery articles:
The importance of managing pain after a TKR and the pain chart
Swollen and stiff knee: what causes it?

Energy drain for TKRs
Elevation is the key

Ice to control pain and swelling
Heel slides and how to do them properly

Chart representation of TKR recovery
Healing: how long does it take?

Post op blues is a reality - be prepared for it
Sleep deprivation is pretty much inevitable - but what causes it?

There are also some cautionary articles here
Myth busting: no pain, no gain
Myth busting: the "window of opportunity" in TKR
Myth busting: on getting addicted to pain meds

We try to keep the forum a positive and safe place for our members to talk about their questions or concerns and to report successes with their joint replacement surgery.

While members may create as many threads as they like in the majority of BoneSmart’s forums, we ask that each member have only
ONE Recovery Thread.
This policy makes it easier to go back and review the member’s history before providing advice, so please post any updates or questions you have right here in this thread.

 

[thegoose2]

@Jockette

Thanks! I already read and printed most of these during my pre-op days so I’d have them on hand for now. Great info!

 

[thegoose2]

So I have seen my surgeon, Rt, advocate, some other doctor whose role I am not sure of, had pt and everything else necessary for discharge. Will go home after lunch as they want me to do one more round of meds before I leave.
Not much discomfort even after pt but I am following the every 4 hour pain pill regime to the minute. Would have to say that so far the worst it has been is maybe 1.5. I know today is a good day and things will be very different at home, but I am celebrating today’s goodness!

 

[Kenello]

Congratulations! Enjoy and remember to take the meds on time even if you are not in pain!

 

[donnag1108]

Take your meds!! I learned the hard way. Congrats on going home!

 

[sistersinhim]

Welcome to Bonesmart. Your recovery is going super well!

 

[thegoose2]

Finding that everything is exhausting but not painful so I’m not complaining.
Thanks for all the encouragement. And yes, I will be popping those pills every 4 hours no matter what!

 

[thegoose2]

Question:
I thought somewhere on the site I saw a chart for phasing out pain meds while upping Tylenol. Now I can’t seem to find it. Can someone tell me if it exists and if so, where?
Thanks!

 

[thegoose2]

PAIN!!!
Icing, elevating, kept knee straight as dr advised overnight. They changed my pain meds from every 4 hrs in hospital to every 6 at home. Will call when they open and change it back. Currently chasing the pain—not fun. REALLY not fun but I am still trying to remain upbeat. It will get under control; I will feel better; it is still VERY early days...

 

[Jockette]

Let your knee have a slight bend, it will feel better that way and won’t cause harm.

 

[ebungalow]

@thegoose2

Sending sympathy because I know where you’re at.

Yes, it definitely gets a lot better but DANG, it’s rough to be in that pain while it lasts.

Hopefully you can catch up to the pain quickly with a meds change.

 

[SusieShoes]

Is this the pain chart you’re looking for?

https://bonesmart.org/forum/threads/weaning-off-prescription-pain-medication.19226/

And you can let your knee bend a little! My nurses told me to keep my knees ramrod straight, else dire consequences would ensue, but I’d read a lot of BoneSmart before surgery and knew I could bend them. So I did. I was SOOOOO much more comfortable! Much less pain. Also, I recovered just fine.

 

[thegoose2]

Thanks for all of suggestions. Bending slightly did help but surprisingly what helped more was my first pt session. Felt sooooo good to move things around. Pain level more manageable now but some achy muscles as well! Have not been able to connect with dr but will reduce my timing to 5 hours if I can’t reach him before my next pain dose.
My pt seems like one of the reasonable ones as opposed to the aggressive kind so I am relieved about that too. And everyone keeps saying I’m doing great for 2 days out. So even with the harsh pain earlier I remain encouraged.

 

[donnag1108]

Oh I feel for you. This pain has been like nothing I could have imagined. It doesn't help to hear it but it does get better! Advocate for better pain control until you get what you need. I'm so sorry your hurting but hang in there it will get better.

 

[kneeper]

I wouldn't have been able to go every 6 hours with pain meds as early as you are post surgery. It took me a couple of weeks to go from 4 hours to 5 hours.

 

[thegoose2]

Got tramadol to help bridge the gap. Definitely helping but boy am I zonked!
This is all so confusing in terms of what to take and when. I am mixing the tramadol, the hydrocodone and then I also have muscle relaxants. And since I can’t do nsaids, there is a blood thinner as well.
Advice on overlaps? Advice on how vital the muscle relaxants are? Should I save them for pt days?
Thanks!

 

[sistersinhim]

I can't comment on the muscle relaxants since I never had them after any of my surgeries, but I did to take my pain meds every 4 hours for the first couple of weeks. @Josephine, would you advise @thegoose2 on how to take her pain meds, please?