TKR When oh when oh when

[Merlin803]

I may be a complete very small minority on this but thought I would share my experience with taking gabapentin just in case it affects anyone else similarly - It was a few years ago and not related to knee issues but I was prescribed it to actually try to help with Migraines.

After I started taking it, I became increasingly angry and easily irritable, which is uncharacteristic of me. It was pretty much every day and I would consider it almost rage inducing. I would wake up the next day and couldn't understand why I was so mad about the smallest things.

After about a month of this, I quit taking them and got back to normal. I researched it and it appears that it may cause this effect in some people.

 

[Jammy]

@Merlin803 - Wow, that is not something I have heard anything about. But I am normally pretty crabby so I don't think I could tell the difference.

@ridemorewaves - That is a consideration, but I recently had my bloodwork done, and it was very good. I take compounded hormones also and those too were very good, according to my doctor.

An update: Instead of seeing a new doctor, who by the way, would take months to see, I managed to make an appointment to see my surgeon yesterday; she just came back from having her baby. Again, she is very good at communicating, which is one reason why I don't see anyone else. She showed me the CT scan and went over it with me and listened to my litany of complaints, which a lot is stiffness and some pain on the left side of my knee where a lot of the surgery took place. Pain still! She suggested I wear my knee compression thing which I had stopped doing, and to ice more, which I also stopped doing. She gave me a script for an MRI to do on my back, which she thinks could be an issue. (It has ached for a while but I think it's because I'm a dweeb and sit at a desktop computer and write a lot.) She also suggested going back to doing some PT, which I agreed to, after she said she'd tell the PT no pressure, and also for the PT to do some work on my back. She gave me the name of a chiropractor she liked, but I just checked and of course she doesn't take my bad Medicare plan. But I am going to look into seeing one that takes my plan. I have to try! On a really weird note, I got wild yesterday--no, not THAT way, ha!; I hadn't vacuumed in like a month and I vacuumed almost every room in the place for about an hour. I was really tired but not very sore. Today my knee feels pretty good! So maybe I just need to move around more? Vacuum every other day? Who knows!

 

[sistersinhim]

I hadn't vacuumed in like a month and I vacuumed almost every room in the place for about an hour. I was really tired but not very sore. Today my knee feels pretty good! So maybe I just need to move around more? Vacuum every other day? Who knows!

Wow! Now that sounds really good! I pray it's the beginning of the end of your discomfort.

 

[Cinders2023]

But I am normally pretty crabby so I don't think I could tell the difference.

Ha! I thought the same thing about me when I read about the gabapentin being a cause of irritability.

I wanted to let you know I also wear a compression knee sleeve most of the time. I find the compression for some strange reason helps me not notice the tightness in my knee as much (I guess because it’s tight the whole area the sleeve covers instead of just the front of my knee).

I have also started walking about a mile on most days. I am watching my grand kiddos 4 days a week and have a wagon with a push handle like a stroller. I find I can make longer strides when I push a cart or stroller so I have been trying to do this most days. I am getting by with Tylenol and celebrex, but pain is much better than it was at 8 months. Hoping you are just healing slow like I am. Glad you could vacuum and it didn’t hurt! Want to come do my house? 5 dogs and I have to vacuum every dayit‘s great PT!

 

[wilsonma]

I am on my second TKR and have never done any PT. I just get back into daily activities. When it hurts-back off. I have had great recoveries and both had times, when the pain became "too much", I have found ice to be the thing that gets me over that and gets me to the next stage of recovery. The ice wraps really help my sleep but sometimes, when too painful, I just get up, watch some old funny shows on tv. I head back to bed when I get sleepy again.
Anyway, I dont recommend any PT that hurts- just get back to your normal life activities.

 

[JusticeRider]

@Jammy and @Cinders2023 I agree about the compression sleeve. I depended on mine for quite a long time. I hope you both continue to improve, even if it is so much slower than you’d like. Still rooting for you!

 

[Jammy]

Just a small update, in that I have been going to PT again, because at this point I'll do anything (as Meatloaf sings, But I won't do that!). But I did sign up for more. (I guess it's like seeing an old boyfriend who's bad for you, but you think he's changed.) I'm seeing two PT's, one woman I already saw way back my first go-around, and a guy for times she's not available. I am not as sick and weak as I was in those days (January, February) and so far so good. Basically we're working on straightening out my knee. My extension is not right yet, 10 months later, and as a result I think it's affecting the way I walk and I can't bend my knee without pain. My surgery was in December and this is still going on, are you kidding me? And the tight band feeling, well that is just terrible. Plus there's a lot of clicking going on with my knee. Like I'm an old person? Creepy. You should just hang me on a door for Halloween! Also I had an MRI done on my back on Friday and someday will find out if there's anything going on there, since my surgeon thought something could be up with my back. I feel a pinched nerve on my lower right hip. PT at this place doesn't seem to focus on backs at PT, so I will see. Well, this turned into some serious over-writing. Please edit as you wish, but if you want a quick summation, here it is: wah wah wah!

 

[Jaycey]

I guess it's like seeing an old boyfriend who's bad for you, but you think he's changed.

What a great analogy! Unfortunately it sounds like you need a second pair of eyes on that knee. Although these symptoms are common post TKR - if you have not seen improvement you need another option.

PT at this place doesn't seem to focus on backs at PT, so I will see.

Having a history of spinal issues I can confirm you should not work any spinal issues with an inexperienced PT. There are spinal specialist out there - usually more senior members of staff.

Hope you get some answers soon @Jammy !

 

[Jammy]

@Jaycey - I got the MRI so I would think my doctor would be able to at least look at it. I dunno, some people on BoneSmart aren't better at 10 months. I have said this before, I might not be one of the success stories here. I live in a sort of small city, and there are a limited amount of TKR surgeons here, and I would need one who does revisions. My surgeon does revisions. I might have to go to a large city like Fort Lauderdale. I picked the one I have from great reviews, and at this point don't really trust my instincts to pick a better one. I am a lot older than a lot of my friends and don't know people who have had TKRs; I also don't work, so where would I get a great recommendation? Even if I got one, I need a surgeon who does revisions, right? I'm on the fence about a knee revision, the stats of success are not good. Anyway, I wish I hadn't listened to my husband who told me that the bone on bone situation was going to get worse and therefore encouraged this surgery that has basically ruined my life.

 

[EalingGran]

My extension is not right yet, 10 months later, and as a result I think it's affecting the way I walk and I can't bend my knee without pain. My surgery was in December and this is still going on, are you kidding me? And the tight band feeling, well that is just terrible. Plus there's a lot of clicking going on with my knee. Like I'm an old person?

So sorry you are having such a tough time. I just hope the back MRI might give some helpful info and the new PT is useful but not too rough.
Do the physios (PT people) have any ideas about why your extension is off?
My back definitely impacts on my knee.
Sometimes I have trouble putting socks on- it's not my knee flexion but my really tight back stopping me pulling my foot up.

 

[Cinders2023]

Oh @Jammy we are soul sisters! I have wondered if going back to PT to re-learn to walk would help with my new onset right hip pain??? My hip and lower back just scream when I have been on my feet for a while. I too feel like this surgery has ruined my life, but I am determined to push on until I get it fixed. Is your OS thinking you need a revision? Can they find a reason your knee hurts/is stiff/doesn’t bend? Maybe ask the admin on Bonesmart staff for some recommendations for docs in your area?
Just wanted you to know I hear you, and I agree, wah, wah, wah!

 

[Jammy]

@EalingGran - I thought your back problems had improved? I was proud of you for doing pilates. I keep "thinking" about doing it, but classes aren't cheap. As it is, my PT is $35 a pop. Not great for a gal on a budget. I guess I could do that at home, but that is lonesome. I am hopeful that, like you, I will get better in the next few months.

@Cinders2023 - Hi girl, yes, we are similar in many ways! No my OS was not saying I need a revision. It's just what I have decided I'll need after still having leg and knee pain for 10 months. What else could fix it? Well, I am trying PT. Today is the day after the second session of Season 2 and right now my leg/knee is super tingly and achy. By the way, my lower back screams when I sit and type for a while. Ugh!

 

[EalingGran]

thought your back problems had improved? I was proud of you for doing pilates. I keep "thinking" about doing it, but classes aren't cheap. As it is, my PT is $35 a pop. Not great for a gal on a budget

My sciatica is almost gone since my leg was straightened. I still get the odd twinge on long car journeys.
My chronic lower back pain and stiffness are an ongoing project. I have very significant lumbar arthritis/ spinal stenosis and scoliosis on MRI. The first thing my surgeon said at my last review was a comment on how bad my back MRI was. He was surprised I wasn't in more pain. I am pretty stiff and in some pain after rest but it improves with moving.
I manage it and my knee rehab with pilates. I dont take any painkillers. I am not doing it so often currently because my daughter is doing a postgraduate course and we are doing more childcare. I really need to do the back exercises daily.
I do have some regular private pilates sessions but, as I think I mentioned previously, my teacher has masses of brilliant classes free on YouTube. I try to do her lower back regime and side lying glute strengthening ones at least 3-4 times/ week even now. I am using a resistance band or light feet weights for the leg strengthening exercises.
Google Katja pilates and they come up. There is a huge range from very gentle to some tougher ones.
I am also trying to lose a few pounds. One of the downsides of being better is that we are socialising a lot more and I have gained 6-7 pounds. I find even a small amount of extra tummy weight puts strain on my lower back.

 

[EalingGran]

I guess I could do that at home, but that is lonesom

Do you have someone you could do the YouTube classes with? I have a friend with some joint issues and for a while we had coffee dates where we did a class on the TV first. It helped to keep the motivation up. It is hard though. When you feel rough you don't feel like exercising and when you feel better, like me, you have better more fun things to do!!

 

[Cinders2023]

@Jammy are you working on anything in particular in your season 2 of PT? I have thought about trying another round to teach me how to walk without killing my opposite hip. I have been doing some walking while pushing a stroller to try taking longer strides walking heel to toe to see if that will help. My husband and daughter said I am walking better, but it all still hurts and is stiff
Hope your PT is helping this time. Keep us updated.

 

[Jammy]

@EalingGran - I have mostly gained my weight loss of 9 pounds back. I didn't think of that, but maybe that's why my back hurts! I started doing crunches for my back woes like I used to do years ago. Nothing major, just do 30 of them, 3 times a day. I keep my back flat against the floor and try to push up. I'm only on day 2 but hoping it helps.

@Cinders2023 - I am doing the same exercises I did in round 1 so far. Heel slides, leg lifts/hold, the clam, and I also do the bike for 10 minutes. I'm there about an hour. I don't ice after, too cold. Things don't hurt as bad as last time. My PT gives me a nice knee/leg massage and then we start with the exercises. I have felt perkier these past days also because I'm taking 1/4 of a tramadol first thing in the morning. It must have something in it that perks me up. Have you tried it? For my walking I go to the grocery store about every day. It used to be nice to walk where we live but the road's all messed up and not walkable. Yes, things still hurt. But we are women, we are strong, we will prevail!

 

[EalingGran]

Can you kneel if you pad the knees?
I find the best back exercises are cat/cow stretch and then the back extensions lying on your tummy like cobra pose.

 

[Jammy]

@EalingGran - yes, I put a pillow down for my knees and have done some downward facing dog and cat/cow stretches. Feels great. I like to do stretches after I do my knee exercises. The latest news is that on Friday, I talked with my surgeon about the results of the MRI done on my back. (She thought my back could be a reason for my leg/knee trouble.) I can't remember which "L" it is, but she kind of made it sound like it was serious and said this could be why there's pain in my leg and knee, and why I have tingling and numbness there. She is sending the back MRI to a pain management doctor that she works with, and said he can give me an injection. Hopefully that will help. I said, "Injection of what?" and she said she thought it would be cortisone but I would find out more when I met with him. She did seem to think it would help me feel better. Really? I am skeptical, but hopeful.

Meanwhile, why wouldn't she talk about my getting PT for my back? I will ask her next time I see her.

@Cinders2023, if you are experiencing any back problems, besides all the knee BS, let your doctor know. It sounds like you might be. I would ask for an MRI on your back. My back hurts when I sit and type too. But it would be a big letdown for everyone to not have the Jammy newsletter available to read.

 

[EalingGran]

She is sending the back MRI to a pain management doctor that she works with, and said he can give me an injection. Hopefully that will help. I said, "Injection of what?" and she said she thought it would be cortisone but I would find out more when I met with him. She did seem to think it would help me feel better. Really? I am skeptical, but hopeful.

I have spinal stenosis at L4/L5. When I was very valgus I had horrible sciatica- which thankfully is much much better now my leg is straight ( just the odd twinge after prolonged sitting).
My surgeon recommended a back guy when it was bad, and said he thought I could benefit from a steroid jab. It sounds like it can really help.

 

[EalingGran]

The other thing I found definitely helps is a sciatica cushion. A quite firm memory foam cushion in a sort of horseshoe shape. I use it for prolonged sitting at my computer or watching TV. When my sciatica was really bad I had a lighter version that I took out to cafes etc.
It takes some of the pressure off the sciatic nerve.