mbrown, thanks for the encouragement! It's good to know that others have been able to manage their pain on a similar level of meds. All my life I felt like I had a low pain tolerance b/c things like papercuts and bee stings drove me nuts! But I'd never had major surgery or broken a bone before. So when I didn't have a lot of pain after my breast reduction surgery (which everyone warned me would be miserable), I felt really lucky for the first time in my life LOL!
You are right KarriB, it's probably too early for me to make the trip to the movies. We live about 30 minutes away from the theater, and I can imagine my leg transforming to a log well before we even got there. Now if I could just bring the ice machine with me
.... OK, maybe not!
Since my hiking days have been put on hold, my hubby and I invested in a Jeep Rubicon to take on all the rock crawling trails out here. I was really bummed b/c one of the major trail events is going on mid-January, and hubby wanted me to go. Something told me I wouldn't be ready for it yet, so I declined. I'm so glad I did, as I realize that 6-8 hrs in a sitting position (not to mention the rocking and rolling) likely would have tested my limits of sanity!
In home physical therapy was this morning....and all was going well. Then PT said 'your leg isn't extending fully, do you mind if I gently help to stretch it?' He specifically said the word GENTLY. He GENTLY pressed down a bit....then leaned ALL his weight onto my leg. Sweet Mary, Mother of God! He's lucky I didn't come up swinging! I let him know in no uncertain terms that it was NOT OK to do that.
Of course, if I'm being completely honest, it actually felt good about 10 minutes afterwards, to have a little extra stretch. But I knew the swelling price to be paid would not be worth it. And now, of course, my extension is just back to what it was before.
So that leads me to my next set of questions.... How does a person tell if their lack of ROM progress is due to scar tissue forming OR due to less obvious internal swelling? I'm not necessarily asking for myself currently, but more for the future weeks ahead.
For instance, although my outward swelling has decreased tremendously in the past 4 days or so, I still feel the little tendon pops or ligament adjustments like I did when I had swelling from my knee scope. These are usually little 'tweaks' inside that either feel like a rubber band popping or like a structure under awkward pressure until it moves to a more comfortable place.
I do, however, have a 'pull' during flexion at the upper part of my kneecap (just to the inner side of midline) that only seems to give if I increase the stretch millimeter by millimeter. Even then, it is still uncomfortable (sometimes painful), and it doesn't feel like it's moving any father than my 95 degree mark, no matter what. I know I still have some swelling, but it feels differently than the other 'tweaks' and adjustments my knee is making.
Is it fairly obvious when it is an adhesion or scar tissue that is blocking progress? Also, if it is identifiable early, is there really anything one can do about it? Or is it a 'you get it (and do manipulation or surgery) or you don't' kind of thing?
Thanks for listening to me rant!
Liz