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Revision TKR Turtle's Revision scheduled for July 19, 2016

Hi Dorothy, Hope the break is just what you needed. I think its very brave of you to give it a try. Even a change of bed can be challenging. I've yet to venture more than 10 miles from home. xxx Carol
 
turtle68 said:
Dr. said I was doing great in comparison to the mess I was a couple of weeks ago. Hope you get the deal finalalized on your house. Right now we're sitting in Houston waiting for our plane to arrive to take us to Chicago. Seervice has been great. My hubby went to the bar and got me a huge bag of ice. Hang in there I'm trying to stay calm because dr. said life stress can cause chemical changes in your brain, thus leasing to depression. He also reassured me I don't carry the addict gene so not to worry about taking pain pills.

Hugs, Dorothy
Click to expand...

Looking forward to hearing of a great time with the grandkids.
Thanks again for your concerns in my thread.
 
Not really sure which thread is mine. Josephine or bottomshollow, could you please change the title of my thread to Turtle Speeding Along. Resting and elevating today, after a week of travel caught up with my knee, along with a stomach bug, and viral cough my knee has decided to be stiff and sore, so just resting, elevating, icing, and doing light stretches. Funny as the time goes by I've finally learned that this is nothing to be disturbed about. Just following the BoneSmart Mantra whilst watching the golf tournament. Happy Sunday.

Dorothy
 
Change in thread title has been made per your request. Have a great Sunday!
 
Well, here we are five months out from RTKR, and in spite of the bumps along the road, I'm starting to feel like we're really getting somewhere. Josephine After a few weeks of easy walking with not too much tightness, just a little pain while walking, my knee decided to seize up again to where I could hardly bend it. IMO it's just a little flare up of the tendonitis or pulled groin and abductor muscles. I'm treating it as you advised before, rest, ice, elevation, and tylenol. I was already much better this morning, but still tight, so I'm resting as much as I can, and doing gentle stretches. We're in the midst of a move so as soon as I get settled in a couple of weeks, I'm going to see my OS for a heart to heart as to how to proceed with PT, etc. I read with great interest your article about tendonitis becoming chronic, and I definitely want to do whatever I can to prevent that happening. It'd been a long road to get this far and I am so very grateful for BoneSmart. Everything II have learned here has been right on, and I don't know where I'd be without it. Thanks to you all from the bottom of my heart.

Dorothy
 
Well, after traveling with no problems and the knee feeling almost normal, today I can hardly walk. My knee continues to throb, is stiff and feels like it's going to give out on me. I think I'm going to see my OS sooner rather that later, as I feel this is the muscle pull/tendonitis hanging on after my Levaquin treatment. I was on prednisone for asthma treatment last week, now I feel good, just pain. Just another bump along the road. Has anyone else had this experience with the tendonitis, and if so what worked for you? trailspud How are you doing and dealing with the side effects of your bout with the Levaquin? Hope you're doing well. I have to keep reminding myself, as my daughter the scientist always does, this is not a linear recovery, but it is moving along with more and more bouts of normalcy every day.


Dorothy
 
turtle68

I'm healing very slooowww. I did my last PT session on Wednesday the 24th after seeing my doc on the 15th. My extension is stuck around 5 and that's my focus. I may try an extension brace soon if I can't get closer to 0. My flexion was 108 (compared to 118 at 5 weeks out in early May before my knee blew up). My knee circumference decreased from 39+cm to 37cm during 5+ weeks of PT. I have been able to start doing the elliptical machine again w/o pain or additional swelling, but I am limiting myself to 20mts. every 2-3 days. I do think the Levaquin played a major role in the big setback. I think its "poorly understood" effects on connective tissue (my doc's words) caused the severeness of the initial pain and swelling, but also impacted the healing process in a significant, negative way. I was pretty down a week or so ago, the only time I have been really negative for either TKR, but I sort of feel like I have some momentum in healing now. I'm cleared to do more strength training with my knee. The ITB area is still troublesome, but better enough to allow more work.

One think I have done is use the recommended oral supplements for Levaquin tendinitis: Magnesium (not the "oxide" version as it is poorly absorbed), Vitamin C (3000mg+/day), Vitamin B, Krill oil, Vitamin D, and a multi. I also ordered some topical magnesium gel from Amazon. Whether or not these help, I'm not sure. I like how the topical gel feels and since using it, I feel some itching under the surface which may, or may not, indicate some healing taking place. It's at least a reason to give myself a couple knee massages each day.

I think you might benefit from specific exercises prescribed in PT. I hope you can figure it all out and things start to improve markedly.
 
Thanks for responding so quickly. This is definitely frustrating as far as delaying recovery but I plan on seeing my OS next week and working to see what I can do to get past this. It was good after a bout 3 weeks ago. I was on prednisone last week for an asthma attack, so I wonder if that caused it to flaare. I was really down also for awhile, but I am determined to get past this. Right now I'm afraid to do anything but knee slides, extensions, and walk. I've tried the bike a few times, but that just aggravates it. It's definitely on my dr.'s charts everywhere "NO LEVAQUIN". Good luck with your recovery. What specific PT exercises were you were referring to? Thanks again for your help.
Dorothy
 
Hi Dorothy, and thank you so much for your good wishes on my grandson's birth! It's always so nice to see you, and I am sorry I've been absent so much, but trying to make up for it.

So I'm sorry to see you have not been doing so well, sounds like your asthma has been giving you trouble. I don't have it myself, but my husband had really bad asthma, and when he took the prednisone, it was not fun times. It really causes a lot of problems, but at least you can breathe. My daughter also had a few attacks when she was little, but she somehow outgrew them, and has had only a little bit here and there, never really know what brings it on, but for instance, whenever we went to Germany and stayed in this little apartment we had for the last two years, it would flare up. I had several ideas what it could be, but who knows. It was newly painted, new laminated flooring had been put in, there might have been mold or mildew, also heavy smokers lived there previously, so it was a mystery to me, because she almost never has any here in the US< unless she eats a lot of grains or wheat, also beer, which is made from grains, hers seems to be an allergic reaction. Only to say I feel much empathy, it's so scary to deal with this condition, and I was wondering if you know what brings it on for you.

I'm dealing with swelling and stiffness in my left knee, so again feel empathy for you and the tendonitis that has you dealing with knee problems - I have to read back in your journal later on, have to get ready to go now, but really interested in what happened .. did you injure it or just over did walking etc.?

More later, just wanted you to know I really appreciated your continued caring and loving messages, it is so nice that you care!

Best wishes, promise to come back and check out what's going on with you. Hang in there, it does take time, and be gentle to that knee, have you tried to do a little massage with your own hands, that seems to have helped mine a bit.
:friends:
 
Hello turtle,
Thank you so much for leaving encouraging words on my thread :) I am so glad you can last past 7:00 :heehee:
To visit with friends. It makes all the difference in the way we feel.
My next milestone is going back to work....I only work p.t 7-11pm ( sun.-thurs.) I work alone so can sit when I want...
Even ice. I can't wait....I am bored, bored, bored :beg:
Who would know cutting ones toe nails would be a reason to :happydance:
Have a great day,
Diana.....June sunbeams :SUNsmile: progressing nicely.....
 
trailspud, Hi thank you for asking -literally moving right along here. Almost at 6 months, and the muscle strain/pulls are almost gone. I'm still careful as I can still feel it occasionaly in the groin, and abductor muscles. I've been much more active as we're in the middle of a move, but I'm very grateful to have decent ROM. My OS doesn't measure it, just moves it all over and says it's okay. I go back in 3 months and they will take x-rays.

How are you doing? It sounds like you had a good outing over the weekend. Hope you've recovered nicely, and have another great weekend to look forward to.

Dorothy
 
Glad you are recovering. I'm better, but not where I want to be. It was nice to hike a bit and not have my knee swell up or increase in pain. I think it's just going to be a very gradual thing. Best wishes on your move.
 
eastside85, What a joy to be enjoying that new baby. So Sorry your daughter had such a rough time. We're in the middle of a move here. We have sold our house and are building a new home i a Del Webb Community. We're moving in with our daughter for a few months until our house is built.

And yes, the tendonitis, which believe was caused by an antibiotic, Levaquin, which I was put on for a UTI which has a warning that it can cause muscle damage, even ruptured tendon, at 9 weeks out. Fortunately, I already good range of motion, but it has taken a long tiime to heal. I' at almost 6 months now, and it still swells and gets stiff if I do too much. When it happened it was kind of like what you described. I was doing leg raises and almost felt something snap or pull, and felt pain in the groin and extreme tightness in the adductor muscles. I have been wearing a compression stocking most of the time which seems to help with the swelling. But thankfully I am doing much better and feel great after dealing with all the other issues. Life is good.

Dorothy
 
It's moving day and here I am icing and elevating while movers are packing - boxes all over the place. It's taken a lot of work and organization to get to this point and although my husband has done all the heavy stuff getting ready, I'm afraid I've joined the ODIC but it's not so bad because I feel at this point I will come back quickly just following the Bonesmart mantra. Will give a full update later when we're settled in at our daughters.

Dorothy
 
Hi Dorothy, I bet you are really pleased to be at this stage. The next bit is going to feel like you're on holiday. What accommodation have you got at your daughter's? Is it a completely separate flat?

It was a lovely day today. Mike and I went to the seaside. We walked along the front and stopped off for a drink. By the time I got home I was very tired. Its odd you would think lots of walking would loosen the knee. It seems to have the opposite effect.

I see you are online. I read a message the other day which seemed to suggest there was a way to message each other when both on line without having to post messages. Going to check that out. Carol
 
Hi Carol, yes it feels wonderful to be at this stage. We were just talking about maybe going to a movie tonight but will probably opt for relaxing. We were out Thursday and Friday nights, and last night I think I crashed by 9:00 p.m. We're staying in a hotel nearby for the next two nights and then our daughters on Wednesday. She and Deb have a 3-story townhome, what you would probably call a rowhouse, so we're staying on the 1st floor, which is basically an in-law suite. Deb's mother usually lives with them, she is from Ecuador and just left for there last week so it worked out really great. If something happens that delays the house, we can move into an efficiency or extended stay type place if she needs her space back.Their place is lovely and sits right on a small park.

We're probably going to take a trip to the Hill Country and maybe the beach in Florida if we can squeeze that in. I would so love some beach time. Your excursion to the seaside sounds wonderful. How far are you from the coast?

I hear you on the walking. With all that I have been doing, my knee has been really swollen, so just icing and elevatingz, but I'm not sure that it helps that much at this point. Feels like it maybe just sore muscles from being much more active than usual.

Now we're just waiting for a call from our realtor because we still don't have a closing time for Thursday. They're coming from Canada, so I think title is still waiting to hear from their lender. Communication has been slow.

Is it nice and cool in the U.K. now? It's really hot here - feels like 100+, but, hopefully, fall is on the way.

Dorothy
 
Hi Dorothy, its a bank holiday here in the UK. Come the beginning of Sept. the children go back to school and the summer is pretty much over. Some of the leaves are starting to fall already. The day's are drawing in and it gets dark about 8pm now. Its a shame I so love the summer - and this is the best one we've had in 6 yrs. I don't know if it will ever happen, but Mike and I have been toying with the idea of going to somewhere like Spain for a couple of months in the dead of winter. What's holding us back is that a hotel room for that length of time wouldn't be comfortable enough, and villas aren't that economical for 2 as they usually sleep upwards of 6. Still its work in progress.

I've found that doing my pedal exercises is making my leg more stiff, so I am going to give it a rest for a few days and see what happens. I hope it doesn't reduce the bend. I'm going to give dancing another go tomorrow. Fingers crossed. My part-time job hasn't taken off yet. May be she's had second thoughts. I honestly don't mind either way. Its good when its like that.

Hope you're having a good day. How's the pain level? x Bugs C
 
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