TKR When to transition from walker to cane?

[bottomshollow]

Oh, harplayer, the dreaded sleepless night monster has attacked!!! There is just something about nighttime---none of the distractions of daytime---that just makes sleep impossible for 2 or 3 months after TKR. Napping during the day is the only answer---you just have to catch sleep as you can where you can. Eventually you'll be able to sleep maybe 3 hours in bed before getting up, then it will be 4, and slowly increase until you finally area able to sleep all night.

As I always say, the secret to recovery is TIME & PATIENCE. You just have to have (or find) the PATIENCE to get through all the TIME it's going to take to get through all the things that go with having a knee replacement. Just keep in mind that this is not forever----it's just temporary---it will pass. Take some deep,deep breaths and relax, and just make up your mind to go with the slow flow and ups and downs of this recovery---I promise you, IT WILL GET BETTER!

Take care of yourself and keep us posted. We care.

 

[harplayer]

Hi Judy!

Thank you do much for the reminder! I guess I thought I had cleared a big hurdle with that nap that I took while actually laying down!

I will absolutely continue my daytime power naps!
I am grateful that I can be very comfortable in my recliner...it does feel however, that I kinda live in the darn thing!

With gratitude,
Harplayer

 

[bottomshollow]

Been there, done that, got the tee shirt----twice. With my hip and then with my knees, I lived in my recliner. I would have been absolutely around the bend without it. It's tough here in the beginning, but in another couple of months you'll start becoming a happy camper.

 

[Lovestoread]

As someone who suffers from insomnia even without surgery interfering, I understand what lack of sleep does to you. I've never been a napper either, no matter how tired I am, but have been pleased to find that since the surgery, I've been able to nap....even on the couch! I honestly have never fallen asleep on the couch watching tv or anything so this is a pleasant surprise! I've been trying to sleep with my ice machine at night, but that stupid hose and my constant tossing and turning just don't mix. After about an hour of this last night I decided I would try to sleep without the machine and I actually slept about an hour or hour and a half several times. It was like a miracle! Not sure why I thought I needed to sleep with the ice all night, but I won't any more!

 

[Dulcimer Diva]

I stopped sleeping with the machine on after one of the rehab nurses says it's unnecessary, especially if the hose is pulling on the knee and interfering with sleep. I don't elevate during night sleep either, at least not higher than one pillow. But I find the machine useful while elevating with the wedge several times a day. And I use a gel-pack on & off far more often.

 

[Lovestoread]

I've tried elevating with one pillow, but even that prevents me from sleeping (or at least tossing and turning, which is what I do best). I figure if I elevate frequently throughout the day, I'm probably ok. I've tried the ice packs during the night, but I've come to the decision that I don't need that at night anymore either. Fortunately, I don't have much swelling, maybe because I'm wearing those lovely thigh-high TED stockings all day! I still like my machine during the day though. I like that cold, icy feeling on my knee.

 

[Dulcimer Diva]

I never wore TED hose, and the only swelling I have is right at the knee joint due to irritation & inflammation. My left leg hasn't been slimmer, with a better defined calf, since my 30s. To revisit the original title of this thread, my new therapist says that transitioning from walker to cane to unassisted should not be rushed--we'll all end up walking independently even if it takes us different lengths of time to get there, and too-rapid transitioning can overload still-tender bone surfaces to the point of inflammation.

 

[Lovestoread]

Makes sense to me, though I only had a cane, not a walker. Hmmmm.....

 

[Dulcimer Diva]

I have a Rollator I bought way back in 2008 so I could endure the long walk from the Jackson St. CTA stop and security lines at Grant Park in order to see Obama's victory speech live; and then have someplace to sit if I got tired. I left my house and halfway down the block, en route to my neighborhood CTA stop, I decided the handles weren't tall enough. Adjusting them meant unscrewing several knobs. I resumed my nice and easy walk, went through the gate rather than turnstile, and spurned the escalator for the elevator. Just as I got off the elevator, my train arrived and I tilted the Rollator back so I could steer it over "the gap" (as Londoners say). To my horror, one of the front legs (with wheel) clattered to the floor of the train car. Embarrassed, I stashed it in the compartment of the folding seat after I sat down. At my destination, I found that even though asymmetrical, 3 wheels were supportive and smooth enough for walking and the endless security lines. But once inside when I got tired and tried to sit in the middle of the field, I had to awkwardly plant my weight on one of my legs. Suddenly a security person saw me and whisked me to the wheelchair platform, where I could hook my arm around a rail and sit securely.

Once back home, we found a carriage bolt & nut to secure the wayward wheeled leg, and though it didn't match the other 3 legs' plastic knobs, it holds securely. I am not above putting it in my car trunk if I know I will be stuck with lawn seats at a concert (or if in the disabled seating section, might face a scarcity of resin chairs). But the one thing I'm still too proud to do is ask to use one of the motorized "scooter" shopping carts at Costco or Target. The regular carts make great walkers.

 

[Lovestoread]

I'm getting a great visual of you maneuvering your rollator over "the gap" and the leg falling off! I would have loved to gone down for the speech, but all I have is a button from a friend who went. I hear ya on not being able to use the motorized carts at the stores. At this point, it would make me feel like I've given up. Not quite there yet. Although I did walk for about a block yesterday, I don't know when I'll tackle the Jewel. Right now, I have a good stockpile, and I've found I rather like making up a list and sending the hubster out on little errands.

 

[bottomshollow]

You guys kill me with feeling like using one of these is admitting defeat or will be a blow to your pride. Just try it once and you'll get over all that. These things saved my life before hip and knee replacement. I would have been totally unable to grocery shop without them---and how many of the people in the stores do you really know---and I can assure you that perfect strangers are not thinking about you any more than you're thinking about them.

My hubby still asks me if I'm going to ride when we go to Wal-Mart now---and I just laugh and remind him that I can walk pain free so "NO" I'm not riding. But I'd use one in a heartbeat if I needed it.

 

[Lovestoread]

You are right, bottomshollow. I do have the wrong attitude about these carts. Maybe I'm just not to the point of really needing one. Truthfully, when I see someone using one in the store, I don't give it a second thought, so why should it be different if I used one? Thanks for the whack to the side of my head. I needed that today. (I'm having a down day....thought I'd be the one who breezed through this without having a pity party, but guess it's caught up to me.) as for the grocery shopping, I am getting a wee bit of pleasure sending my husband to the store with a small list just to see how he does.

 

[Dulcimer Diva]

I'd contemplated going to the manager and asking for the key for the cart (paradoxically, the manager's desk was further than the aisles I'd needed to shop) but then I imagined my OS shaking his head in disbelief--he'll sign only apps for temporary HC placards (expiring 6 mos post-op); turns out my permanent one expires on the same date, so I will have my FP sign the renewal app. The other mental picture I get is of my late mom when she lived in FL, cruising around Wal-Mart in a scooter cart and terrorizing the other shoppers as she happily careened down the aisles. I know I'm a more skillful driver (she kept renewing her license only for ID purposes), but still.....

I haven't considered Jewel (or Dominicks right across B'way) yet, but I have thought of a Whole Foods excursion when I can get a ride instead of having to stand and wait for a cab on the return leg. When there's someone home with me, they can walk to Dominicks or True Nature for me if I need something pronto, or I just put it on my Peapod list if there's no rush.

 

[Lmarshall]

harplayer, I still have a ton of difficulty sleeping at night. I sleep no more than 3 hours at a time, and that is right after I take my pain pill and my Xanax. Once I wake up the first time, I sleep in 1-2 hour intervals. This makes me incredibly tired, and I end up sleeping in late because I never feel like I have gotten enough sleep. Do you have ab elevation wedge? I bought one from footsmart that I use often in bed. I do get tired of it and remove it at some point in the middle of the night, but i find elevating when I first get in bed helps me fall asleep. When I wake up in the middle of the night, I use ice to get back to sleep (thank God for hubby helping me with all this). I can side sleep for an hour at a time with my legs sort of scissored, not exactly lying on top of each other. I try lying on my stomach, but that is still rough. Yet still, I like trying it to give my sides and back a rest. I spend so much time in bed now that I get sick and tired of the same positions all the time. I pile up pillows, removed them, stack them different ways, stretch out, curl up....all sometimes in vain. SLEEP IS A PROBLEM and I have resigned myself to this fact, much like after having a baby means no sleep for a few months. Hang in there, I am sure it will start to get better soon for both of us!

 

[Josephine]

Carts: I was always proud of my skills in using them and specially of reversing and doing a three point turn!

 

[harplayer]

I haven't tried the grocery store yet...it seems like such a big proposition...so,my hubby continues to shop (which is kinda enjoyable for me, as I have been THE grocery getter for 36 years) I am thinking that a scooter sounds like fun! Sleep continues to be elusive...naps count! I did manage a 60 minute car trip riding in the front seat with my knee bent, but needed to elevate and ice as soo as I got home.


Hope everyone is having a great day!

Harplayer

 

[Dulcimer Diva]

I either sleep like a baby--unable to even finish my silent prayers--or (like last night and one time in rehab) go out of my mind with deep aches until the 2 Norco kick in 60-90 min. after I take them. But then I sleep so soundly that I need an alarm to remind me when to wake up and take my meds and have breakfast. If this happens again tonight, I'm adding 5 mg. of diazepam or a Benadryl--rather than the single 5/325 Norco I had to add last night 90 min. after the 2 10/325s. (I'll go into greater detail in my own thread lest this one go too far off-track).

 

[Ready]

Hi Harplayer. Just catching up on some threads I meant to follow but never seem to get to. Sounds like you've had your share of ups and downs, but are progressing.

For years, I counted being able to sleep well as one of many blessings in my life. However, since TKR, ...!!! I've been journaling this whole process. When I rate my sleep, getting a 2 hour chunk is "good", and a 4 hour chunk gets "great". Some nights I fall back to sleep right away, some nights aren't so good. For now, that has to do. I always start with pillows under my legs as well. I put a few ice packs in a small Igloo cooler and keep it by my bed so I don't have to scurry to the kitchen. There's a lot of preparation that goes into preparing for going to bed. Our recliner is being held together with duct tape and I can feel every piece of wood the couch is constructed iwth, but we have new furniture arriving on Friday. I ordered it 9 weeks ago hoping to have it before my surgery. Can't wait to have other option for those sleepless nights.

Hang in there.

 

[harplayer]

Hello Friends,

Had my 6 week post op check up yesterday. Passed with flying colors Have been given Clarence to resume swimming And driving! I also started with my new PT yesterday afternoon...she is WONDERFUL and really seems to ascribe to the " BoneSmart way"! I am scheduled for 3x per week right now. I asked her about my difficulty sleeping in a bed...and my desire to side-sleep...she recommended 2 pillows instead of one between my knees...with the pillows extending the whole length of my legs so foot and ankle are also supported..found a long bolster pillow at Bed Bath and Beyond that seems to donthe trick! YIPPEE! Also was able to get a pedicure and a haircut yesterday..I feel human again! And...wait for it...I drove MYSELF to my appointments! Sweet Freedom!
I do have to say..I was one tired and achy girl last night...thank goodness for ice, elevation and pain meds!

Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend!
Harplayer
(Lee)

 

[Dulcimer Diva]

Oh, the sweet freedom of getting back behind the wheel! Congrats, Lee!