Revision TKR Totally recovered at last!

[kneeper]

The energy drain can last a long time. Could you have your daughters do a supply run for you next weekend? stock up on everything? And maybe like Glamg says even stay with you overnight and do some other stuff?

And/or do you have some friends who live near you that you could ask to add items onto their grocery runs here and there? I had a friend who I could call when I didn't feel up to shopping and say--if you're going to the store in the next couple of days could you get me a loaf of bread and some cereal? or whatever.

I hope you are able to catch some naps this weekend. wishing you

 

[newlybionic]

@KarriB and @Glamg1979 and @Celle for your thoughts. Since I went back to work 2 weeks ago I just feel like everything at home is out of control. I feel bad asking for help at this stage of my recovery. I'm just going to try to do only what needs to be done and nothing more right now. I do have a friend who can help me with my house and I know she would be glad to do it for me.

I've thought about another round of injections on my old knee. I've had several types in the past but with minimal help. I think it's hurting more because I'm doing a lot more being back to work. It was actually really very good early in my recovery because it was getting a good amount of rest. I'm off tomorrow (Sunday) but I'm not looking forward to a 12 hour shift on Monday. Add to that is the stress of having to learn quite a bit of technical info at work and I am just worn out. I'm going to try sleeping in my bed again tonight. I have tons of pillows in all sizes and shapes and I'll grab my ice packs too. They last for a few hours.

 

[newlybionic]

Thanks @kneeper . My girls send me food too. They were here last weekend for my birthday and brought a few frozen meals. I picked up a cooked chicken and salad mixes from the store on Wednesday. One of my girls has sent me meats from Omaha Steaks ( not a commercial) so I always have some proteins. I have some frozen veggies. It's just hard at the end of the day to even cook something because I'm so tired.

I keep in mind I can retire early at age 62 if need be. 1 year to go!!

 

[KarriB]

I can see how you would be too tired to cook after working. I'm too tired and I'm not recuperating anymore. Last Sunday I made a pan of lasagna and just warmed it up every night. Amazingly, my house was the neatest it's ever been while I was recovering because of my best friend. She is OCD and did a different room every day. Wish I lived close enough to help you out. I'd be there with food and a vacuum.


Sent from my iPhone using BoneSmart Forum

 

[newlybionic]

I really should make a large meal like lasagne or even a stew when I'm home. I've got to go pick up new glasses tomorrow so if I can get to the store I should just pick up some stew ingredients and put it in my crockpot to cook. I could always freeze some. My youngest daughter loves it but I don't think she'll be back until after Thanksgiving.

 

[Thesoutherncook]

This must be "that" week for us. I was so blue most of the week that I could have cried at any minute and wanted to throttle my DH! So, living alone is not all bad.

Have you tried Melatonin to help you get to sleep? I use it when we travel to Europe because I have such a hard time adjusting to time changes. Might help???

Do you have a "service" that will run errands for you? We have one called "Emily's Elves" and they will do whatever... Cleaning, yard work, errands, sitting..... Might be worth it for peace of mind. I get overwhelmed when it all piles up! But, I do love Celle's philosophy about the dust bunnies!
Hang on, that rollecoaster has to get moving again!

 

[Tigerlily]

Oh boy! Your surgery was a week before mine and you are already back at work for 2 weeks! I see my OS next week and find out when I have to go back. Really afraid about it, you and I have the same profession, and I know when I go back it is 8 hours on my feet. I'm hoping he will extend my time off work a bit longer, I really don't feel ready and reading your thread...

 

[KarriB]

I use the no boil noodles so the lasagna wasn't hard or time consuming. Throw chicken breasts, then a box of stove top stuffing in the crock pot, mix cream of chicken soup with some sour cream and spoon it over the chicken, cook for on low for 3-3 1/2 hours. You'll get a couple days out of it. I'm all about easy.

 

[Slainte]

It helps me to do housework by the clock, and pretty much only on weekends as after a day of working at my job I am done. And that is a desk job! So I work for 10 minutes and rest and elevate for 20 minutes. By 1pm I slack off. But my clothes are clean, the health department won't condemn my kitchen, and we are ok. There are a few drifts of dog hair here and there, but I do not really care. I am putting me first right now.

 

[newlybionic]

@Thesoutherncook I will go pick up some melatonin tomorrow to try.
I had a slight tick of the roller coaster starting to move again. I can across the binder my doctors office gives to all patients. I came across a few things that I actually laughed about.
1 Take a book to read while you're in the hospital. ( I had a hard time reading a menu for dinner!)
2 if you work in an office you can go back to work in a month. Heavy labor jobs in 3 months.
3 Elevate and put ice on your knee after exercises and at night for 20 minutes.
And this is my most favorite and please no one take offense 4 You can resume sex in 3 weeks.

I still have a smile on my face. It's only once I found this forum that I didn't feel like such a failure. I'm going to suggest some changes and also this forum be added to the book. It would have made things easier.

 

[Glamg1979]

You know what is adding a lot of stress and fatigue to your recovery ? My opinion it is starting a new job! Even under the best of situations it is exhausting. New people, new procedures and learning a new area of nursing too!! Don't take offense but we have our age against us when it comes to learning new skills
So pat yourself on your back and realize you are a strong person to take on all that you have and doing a great job!

 

[Kssii]

Ah sleep--that distant dream of the TKR's! Ok, I do melatonin--dr. told me I could take up to 10mg. and I "think" it helps. (I am not willing to go without it to find out!) I take it right at bedtime to help me stay asleep in the middle of the night. I also take Ambien a couple of times a week if I just can't relax enough to sleep. I find it will take me below the pain threshold so I can rest. Starting about week 6 I took a tylenol 3 at night which seemed to take the edge off pain just enough to sleep. Most nights I still take 1/2 of a tylenol 3. Of course I am dealing with not just the TKR pain (the least of my worries) but also the unrepaired knee and a shoulder that needs replacing.

 

[newlybionic]

It is harder learning now than when I was younger so I have my trusty notebook with me at all times. I'm very lucky that I really like all my new co-workers. This is a very technical area of nursing with a lot of chemistry and parameters being utilized. I was supposed to be at work at 5 am tomorrow but fortunately my schedule was changed to 9 am. I won't be done until 9 pm though. I'll have to pack two meals with me and of course some Tylenol. I'm not sure about my schedule for the rest of the week. If I'm working on Tuesday I'll have to be back at 730 am. I'm planning to go to look for some melatonin at the drug store in a little while if I can pull my self together.

 

[newlybionic]

I looked into melatonin but I can't take it because of an interaction possibility with another medication I'm taking. I've taken the weekend to get done what only needed to get done and to just act like my dogs all day. Sleep, eat and use the facilities. ( I have three of them).

I do have a question that I can't seem to find an answer for. I looked through the library and haven't found the info. I definitely had some adhesions in my knee ( my OS diagnosed that when I still had a few left). I did all the exercises from PT and attended every session believing that I would get adhesions if I didn't stay on their schedule. What caused me to get adhesions then and if I were EVER to do the other knee would I be more prone to develop them again? As my old knee is feeling worse every day I'm already worrying about this.

 

[kneeper]

Josephine and others can help you on this one, but iirc, adhesions do not come from not doing enough PT.
And too much PT can inflame your tissues and make recovery harder.

 

[SarahJane]

Glad you were able to laugh a bit at the notebook's so-called information.

I'm very sorry you're having a time of it. If I lived on the same coast I'd be happy to meal-swap with you. I, too, live alone, and would love to have someone to exchange meals with.

When I was in school, my roommate and I would make a huge crockpot of soup. She was a baker, so she'd make two loaves of bread. We lived on those all week. At various times when I've lived alone I've done the soup thing. In preparation for my surgery, I made some casseroles and put them in individual serving containers and froze them. If crockpot cooking seems too daunting for your energy level right now, supermarket rotisserie chicken and -- if they have them in your local supermarkets -- salad bars are a good way to go.

I'm glad your daughters are bringing you meals for your freezer. If you're a soup person, you could ask them to stock up on various canned soups and individually packed crackers, even protein shakes or Ensure. Easy-peasy dinner -- heat and eat, open and drink.

Nurses are among my heroes, @newlybionic, so thank you for rolling up your sleeves and keeping those synapses firing on all cylinders when it comes to the chemistry and parameters. Hope your 12 hour day goes well tomorrow, and that your schedule in the week and weeks to come is humane and kind to your biological clock as well as your knee!

One thing I found when I was working that I'd use a lot of caffeine to keep me going when I was having crazy hours, and then I'd be too wired to sleep at night. I occasionally take a quarter or half tab of trazodone to get to sleep. Warm milk or chamomile tea, long and relaxing warm baths, and 5 minutes of meditation right before sleep help. I might ask my MD about melatonin. I'm on a bunch of meds and always double check, like you, about possible interactions and contraindications. There are a lot of studies out there about shift workers, sleep deprivation, etc. Maybe you could thumb through nursing journals or PubMed if you ever have any down time.

 

[Celle]

I definitely had some adhesions in my knee ( my OS diagnosed that when I still had a few left). I did all the exercises from PT and attended every session believing that I would get adhesions if I didn't stay on their schedule. What caused me to get adhesions then and if I were EVER to do the other knee would I be more prone to develop them again?

Surgeons frequently say you have adhesions, and almost everyone gets a few during the healing process. However, almost all of them go away naturally, as healing progresses, and they don't cause any trouble.

Did you read this article?
Scar tissue and adhesions - what's the difference?
and this one? The first part is particularly relevant to your question about doing PT.
MUA (manipulation under anaesthetic) and adhesions

You see, in spite of what you were obviously told, it is not necessary to be diligent with PT in order to avoid adhesions. In fact, over-zealous PT can lead to possible formation of adhesions. This is because too much PT, too soon, can irritate and inflame your soft tissues. Inflamed tissues get hot. That heat leads to dryness and dryness predisposes to adhesions.

If you had any adhesions, they have probably gone away now, as your knee is progressing well. What probably inhibited your flexion (bend) in the early days was most likely swelling, which can linger for quite a long time.

As long as you don't overdo things and inflame your knee, I would say you are no more likely to develop troublesome adhesions in your next knee replacement than anyone else.

There are two things I seem to keep repeating on BoneSmart:
1. There is no need to exercise diligently or zealously in order to keep adhesions at bay. Problem adhesions are rare. They aren't just waiting to pounce if you don't exercise enough. Just a small amount of exercise is all you need and too much exercise can increase the risk of developing adhesions.

2. There is no magic "window of opportunity" within which time you need to get ROM, or else all is lost.
Your knee won't set like concrete if you don't exercise enough. That is a myth that should have died long ago:
Myth busting: the "window of opportunity" in TKR
ROM can continue to improve for a year, or even longer, after surgery.

That's the end of my lecture for today!

 

[newlybionic]

@Celle I really needed the lecture because even though I read those articles I had a little voice of my doctor, PT and me ) blaming myself for my problems. I still am fighting those thoughts with what I consider the reason for me not to be 'perfect' now.

 

[referee54]

here are a few drifts of dog hair here and there, but I do not really care.

That is the attitude!! It gives the home the "lived-in" look!!

I am putting me first right now.

As you should----your knee and your recovery should come first.

What caused me to get adhesions then and if I were EVER to do the other knee would I be more prone to develop them again?

Some people get them---many do not. It is not automatic. I had them in both knees after my BTKR, and I had to work to pop them.

My OS told me that many folks do not get them, but I was in the unfortunate minority that did get them---and you cannot predict them, either.

 

[Wanttobebiking]

I absolutely agree with Referee and Slainte--your knee has to come first. Costco has great fresh options for dinner that you just pop in the oven. And cleaning can always wait. It does get better, and soon your body will adjust to the extra activity. And in the meantime, if you need to take a few hours off, well, you need to take a few hours off--or at least try to take enough breaks. The trouble sleeping could also be partly due to a new job???? Good luck with your 12-hour shift tomorrow--that would be a long slog for anybody.