TKR Winner winner, chicken dinner! Bionic Liz's new RTKA

[L.I.T]

Is it wrong, when your PT tells you that 'technically' you've met all the discharge requirements, and don't *have* to come back to PT..... And, in response, you feel a rush of panic, and say "No, I have to come back! I NEED the ultrasound! I don't mind paying $100/hr as long as I can get my ultrasound!"

The first step is admitting I have a problem....

I swear, they do the tens, then the ultrasound, and all of a sudden, all of the stiffness, tight bands, and pain are barely noticeable. Mr I.M. Plant rejoices in the warmth, and becomes Superknee for physical therapy. Meanwhile, I am blabbering, telling my PT "no, it's never like this at home! I can't do this at home - only here after the ultrasound! I can't even lift my foot/leg properly to step over something! I swear... I'm not lying!"

So PT went well - really nothing changed except I managed to get down to zero extension. That's why my PT said 'technically', I had met discharge criteria. I think he wanted to give me the option for doing some things at home and not having to pay out of pocket. But, in truth, for *my body* (aka hyperflexible), I haven't quite met equivalent criteria. So I still have a ways to go. On my 'pseudo-good' leg, I have -10 extension, and total flexion where I literally can push my heel into my bum. So while 130 and zero sounds GREAT, I have to pretend to take off 20 degrees of flexion and 10 degrees of extension. Still a ways to go. Plus, I would like to learn how to squat, get down on the floor, and I do (truthfully) need to build some muscle back up. Plus, I kind of appreciate having someone (sorry PT Roger) with whom I can pepper questions. So a PT-ing I will continue to go!

Still, the ultrasound.... Be still my heart! 1/2 day of less swelling and pain....

Confession - I actually asked my therapist if they had an old ultrasound machine that I could buy for home. NOOOOOOOOOOO, I don't have issues....why would you say that?

Oh, and for the record, my knee is now back to it's standard swollen, stiff state, as expected. But, boy those few hours were nice

 

[KarriB]

PT massage was the same thing for me! I got my OS to write another script for 2x a week, so I could wean off PT instead of stopping cold turkey. TENs was good too and some people have bought their own from Amazon.

You'll get to squats eventually, but working on them at this point will put too much stress on your new knee. The same goes for building muscle. Hold off until month 4 at least because you want to be walking normally and back to life first, then worry about squats and muscle. I did use some weights in PT, but not until 4-5 months post op.

 

[Mireille]

@L.I.T You really make me smile and laugh, thank you! You should think about writing a book on knee replacement, it would go in the motivational section.

That ultrasound sounds great! I don't know if my PT offers that so I'm going to ask. They use the TENS and I love it but I want to have the same problem you have

Keep up the good work!

 

[L.I.T]

@Mireille, Awwwwwww, thank you. My brain has never been quite 'right'. As a child, I was the quiet nerd in the corner who was afraid to be myself because I was weird.... So when I finally 'bloomed' (late, as usual).... Well, I've been torturing people ever since

Actually @Cratchit had it completely right. Deep down, I'm an extremely hypersensitive person (my poor poor hubby), and I tend to *feel* very deeply on both sides of the spectrum. Looking at things from a different perspective, and using humor, are my ways of moderating the extremes. Otherwise, life is a bunch of crazy highs and tragic lows. You can find my picture in the dictionary under DRAMA QUEEN

 

[L.I.T]

(Liz raises her hand)

Oooh, Oooh! I have a question for the wise and more experienced than I.....

With regards to the incision scar.... Outside of maybe or maybe not rubbing oil/cocoa butter/etc on it.... What should I be doing to 'care' for it? And when should I do it? Should I be massaging it (and if so, how and how often) ? Making sure it is 'mobile' (because it's not very)? Anything I should do to try to increase the flexibility of the skin/scar to accommodate my ginormous new knee?

I really haven't given it too much thought, as I still have 2 tiny scablets from my 'safety stitch' that I am waiting to vacate the premises. But I should probably think about these things. Particularly since my overactive imagination comes up with crazy ideas like my scar fusing to my patella

 

[Celle]

You don't have to do a thing to your scar. Put moisturiser on it if your skin is dry - any sort will do. There's no need to try and mobilise it. It will gradually become more mobile as healing continues.
Just let Nature do her job.

And it's OK to keep going to PT if you still feel it helps.

 

[Cratchit]

Actually @Cratchit had it completely right

Ah well, see, I know my own tricks best!

 

[Mireille]

@L.I.T your brand of torture is pretty darn entertaining. Keep it coming!

I'm a regular comedian at therapy to help me cope with the stress and anxiety but during my time at home my sense of humor seems to elude me. I'm sure I'm driving my husband of 25 yrs. insane. He's too nice to admit it but I know. Heck, I drive myself crazy with this darn knee.

My BFF and I often joked about my lack of patience. I am not patient. That's certainly not helping the matter. I've had over 20 surgeries since 2003 including 3 scopes, 2 on the right and 1 on the left. Nothing has kicked my behind like this. I was delusional thinking I was going to bounce back quickly like I've done before.

I have to do my left knee and was planning for July. I'm terrified. May delay until I'm crawling my way around like some giant, slithering snake.

Moral of the story, we each have to try and find our own way of coping and making this whole process less traumatic. Seems like you are on the right track!

 

[L.I.T]

@Josephine Just a quick question. On Jan 9, my PA removed the 'safety' stitch from my knee. The holes closed at the two ends, but I still have scabs over the two middle holes. No drainage or redness, pain or swelling. But he mentioned that I should be able to go swimming 5-7 days after the stitch was out...... I haven't yet, since the scabs are still there. I have already taken a course of azithromycin for other reasons.

Does this look like something I need to be concerned about, or is it just taking a long time to heal b/c it's on a very tight part of my knee that is stretched a lot?

In the picture, they are the two 'eyes' on the side - one still has some purple marker in it.

 

[Josephine]

Looks absolutely fine to me! Get in da water!

 

[L.I.T]

The ache! Ooooohhhhhh, the ACHE
It is the King Kong to my Ann Darrow (OK, if you pretended that Ann Darrow was a mousy looking "sturdy" girl!)

It follows me around ALL-THE-TIME and is driving me batty. I can make it go away, but only by moving and being active. But as I learned on Saturday, too much moving (to stop the pain) only causes more grief later, as the Kong silently grows stronger from my overworking the joint. Then later pain is even worse.

Icing is wonderful... For about 20 minutes - then, for some reason, my body goes into freeze mode - my knee aches (there he is again) from the cold, and the rest of me (shrouded in blankets head to toe with heating aparati included) is still freezing.

Everything else is about status quo - ROM is fine, even if extension waxes and wanes a little. Although my knee bends as if it has hydraulics. I was on my back the other day and lifted my leg into the air with my hands - I let my foot 'drop' with the gravity - instead of just 'falling' down, it just slowly crept it's way to the end of my ROM. (It was a bit humorous, I admit... While it was happening, my head was playing "all-my-friends, know the low rider" song).

But I diverge... The ache is wearing me down. It wakes me up in the middle of the night and prevents me from going back to sleep. It makes it miserable to 'rest' my leg. It *mildly* responds to pain killers, but I'm also trying to wean off except for PT days, when I need a little extra afterwards. I now have a limited supply of the good stuff, and am supplementing acetaminophen (paracetamol) for the max dosage.

What do you guys do to get this monkey off your back? Or is this just a wait until it finally goes away thing (and if so, pleeeaaasssese tell me how long) ?

 

[Spex10]

a piece of string?

 

[KarriB]

It seems you might be under medicated. I know you said you're trying to wean off, so if you don't want to take anything more then take a look at your daily activities to see what you're doing that may be causing the ache. At 4 weeks I was just beginning to take less oxycodone and doing a bit around the house.

 

[Celle]

I agree with Karri.
It sounds as if you'e trying to wean off the analgesics too soon.

Have you considered Tramadol? It's a useful "step-down" drug and you can combine it with Tylenol/Acetaminophen. You do need to wean off it gradually.

 

[Cratchit]

I`ve had varying degrees of different types of pain during this `adventure`. At one point I was down to just taking some nightly and none during the day. Then the `thing' hit, whatever the thing was and I had to increase my pain meds back up to 3 - 4 x day. I, too, wanted to wean off meds but I ended up taking backward step in terms of mobility because I just wouldn`t move because of the pain. So I upped my meds, moved a bit more and gradually things have improved and I`ve been able to cut down on meds again.

So basically what I`m saying in 5K words instead of 4 is go with the flow! If you need more meds, take them, When your knee is ready ie less painful, you`ll be able to take less.

As for Ann Darrow, doesn`t she develop a soft spot for the ape?!

 

[L.I.T]

I think you guys are right. I have had to up my household activities, as hubby hurt his back, and is a bit tired of being of service to this old broad... I keep forgetting that things like doing the dishes, daily kitty duties, getting my own ice and breakfast, and doing laundry now count as 'strenuous' activities. I also lost some extension that my PT believes is a result of swelling in the posterior capsule. He suggested I cut down the daily activities (hubby just looked at me and walked away at that suggestion) and to go ahead and take more pain meds. He reminded me that by tensing up from the pain, it's being counteractive. I think I can get by on 2 pills a day (one morning and one at night). Hopefully I won't have to call the OS office for more. They gave me 90 on my first script and 60 on my second. Sheer numbers make me feel like a dolt!

I'd better give the 'disclaimer' here about my hubby - he's also been on steroids (for his back) for a little over a week now. He's just generally irritable all over. I'm SURE heehee under normal circumstances he would be thrilled to be at my service. *cough, cough*

@Cratchit, I believe you are correct... But I AM trying REALLY hard to learn to love that alien inside my knee

 

[L.I.T]

@Celle,

I did think of tramadol, but I do take Lexapro, so I would worry a bit about serotonin syndrome. I think I will be OK. If I need to call to get more, I will. Maybe they can give me step down hydrocodone (do they come in less than 7.5?) or something else. I usually don't need much during the day. My PT also suggested switching between ice and a heating pad for pain (since I've been freezing my bum off with this cold cloudy weather we've been having). Thermaphore, here I come!

 

[Cratchit]

Aw @L.I.T , it's hard to love an alien that's hurting you. When I first broke my leg l totally dissociated from it. I couldn't connect the image on the screen as being my leg and when it hurt and l couldn't move because of it, l wanted to get away from it. I had similar feelings when the pain was bad after my TKR, l just wished it wasn't my leg and wanted to get away from it - much like Ann Darrow. It's hard, too, that you cannot get the full support of your husband because of what he's going through. It all sounds very, very difficult for you and the kind of situation which requires a big bear hug and a box of Kleenex.

Please don't just get by on your pain meds. I don't know how the system works over there but l know it's miserable being in pain. Wish l could give you a great big snuggle hug - and take King Kong away.

 

[NightQuilter]

Don't think of yourself as a dolt because you may need to be on the good stuff a bit longer. Like Karri, at 4 weeks out, I was still needing the meds. Of course, after righty, I was going to have lefty done 7 weeks later and tried to go cold turkey at about 4 weeks. Learned an ugly lesson there! Wean, don't cold turkey! Nevertheless, 4 weeks was way too soon, especially if you are having to do a bit more of the heavy lifting around the house. I had the Sainted Joe (hubby supreme) taking good care of me, which was fortunate.

Care for the scar - it was suggested to me that for the first summer, put a 50 sun screen on the new skin. It was a lovely look in Hawaii at 4 months out - me lounging with a white worm down each knee! Much happier when I was in the water scuba diving!

When the night pain started, I started taking Aleve PM/Tylenol PM along with the meds (always staying in the safe zone). If I did awaken, it was much easier to fall back to sleep.

 

[L.I.T]

Awe, @Cratchit... You are too sweet. I will be fine. I just wish I knew what it was. Someone at PT today (another patient) suggested that maybe it was the weather. We have had an unreasonable 5 1/2 days of straight rain and sleet. Now our Temps are going to drop in the 20's(f) tomorrow. I suppose it's possible, as rain/weather fronts used to irritate my knee before. But it mostly happens in the evening/night and not during the day. Who knows. Of course, hypochondriac me doesn't want anything to be wrong... So I will do what most women my age do - take some meds, grin and bear it, and hope it goes away

@NightQuilter, I had the best visual of two white leg worms! Last year when we went to Hawaii, I wanted to be eco-considerate and NOT use the sunscreen that would kill the coral. When I later looked at all my beach pictures, I realized that in my black cover up, I looked like I was dressed in kabuki!

Ah, such is life!