I know it’s my decision, but I keep swinging back and forth.... I’m scheduled Nov 18 and I don’t know if I should do it or not... I had a second meniscus clean-up last November and it never improved. My goal was to be able to run up the basement steps by the end of December - never happened). I have very little meniscus left, severe arthritis, been through cortisone, gel last summer that didn’t help, BUT I had synvisc gel this August, put in a different location, and it’s actually taken the edge off it. They let me schedule tkr so I could get it in this year, as I was assuming the gel wouldn’t help at all. So Pros n Cons of tkr after having the synvisc -
Pros
My son is 16 and I want to be more active with him before he’s gone
my insurance deductible has been met already this year
I just turned 59 and am so stiff from not walking/moving right - I move and feel like an old lady
its very difficult to do things that require getting down near the floor (giraffe style)
the damage is there and won’t get any better
sick of limping
uneven ground - like hiking is more difficult, downhill is difficult
earlier this summer I tripped n fell when I was outside watering and turned and tripped over onto some rocks - I think I would’ve caught myself if that knee wasn’t so stiff and slow
sometimes it aches at night (though not horrendously, and not every night)
if not this November, then not til next November because of schedule
Cons
I’m terrified
the gel has made it more tolerable
i still mostly do “life” just in a more subdued way (ie I can go for a walk, just not to fast or too long, and if it is long, it might hurt more, but I can still do it, the gel has made stairs a bit easier, though going up is iffy)
more severe kinda pain isn't consistent now - sometimes standing and then moving is really bad, and sometimes it’s nothing. Same with sitting and standing
Even if it does really hurt, and is really stiff, moving a bit loosens it up
the thought of a fake knee freaks me out
there are times I think I walk normally, even if my husband disagrees lol
i don’t think of my knee every waking minute
part of me wishes I didn’t give gel another chance. If my knee was like it was, I’d be more ready.
Should I deal with the pain since now it’s not as bad? Anything else I could do for the stiffness besides meds - chiro? What would you do - just go for it, or put it off another year or so?
Pros
My son is 16 and I want to be more active with him before he’s gone
my insurance deductible has been met already this year
I just turned 59 and am so stiff from not walking/moving right - I move and feel like an old lady
its very difficult to do things that require getting down near the floor (giraffe style)
the damage is there and won’t get any better
sick of limping
uneven ground - like hiking is more difficult, downhill is difficult
earlier this summer I tripped n fell when I was outside watering and turned and tripped over onto some rocks - I think I would’ve caught myself if that knee wasn’t so stiff and slow
sometimes it aches at night (though not horrendously, and not every night)
if not this November, then not til next November because of schedule
Cons
I’m terrified
the gel has made it more tolerable
i still mostly do “life” just in a more subdued way (ie I can go for a walk, just not to fast or too long, and if it is long, it might hurt more, but I can still do it, the gel has made stairs a bit easier, though going up is iffy)
more severe kinda pain isn't consistent now - sometimes standing and then moving is really bad, and sometimes it’s nothing. Same with sitting and standing
Even if it does really hurt, and is really stiff, moving a bit loosens it up
the thought of a fake knee freaks me out
there are times I think I walk normally, even if my husband disagrees lol
i don’t think of my knee every waking minute
part of me wishes I didn’t give gel another chance. If my knee was like it was, I’d be more ready.
Should I deal with the pain since now it’s not as bad? Anything else I could do for the stiffness besides meds - chiro? What would you do - just go for it, or put it off another year or so?