Your input needed - please!

[Rowdy66]

Diane, I am so sorry you have a doctor who is not willing to let you decide about what you need. Believe me, if everyone of those oh too cautious doctors had been through what we have been through and are going through they would certainly change their attitudes toward pain meds. Perhaps if you had had a normal recoup period you would be closer to being able to cope without pain meds but your situation has been anything if not abnormal. You have been through the fire and now that you can see your way clear to a better day you do need pain meds to help with the PT. I would follow Jo's advice and try the tears even if it meant putting an onion in a hankie. Sorry if I sound a bit militant but I do know how important pain control is during this all too important time.

I am really happy for you now that you have finally turned the corner and I am going to be praying you will be hiking with your grandkids in June. Lots of luck and good thoughts. Janet (Rowdy)

 

[Linda2]

Try consulting your primary care doc about pain control. They are often more cooperative than the surgeons. They are also helpful with anti-inflammatories or whatever might help the swelling.

 

[Grandma]

Yes Janet, I sure agree with you - it would be nice to have an older dr. that had gone through a knee replacement! As far as an onion in a hankie goes, I don't think I'll need one if he refuses to give me another prescription. Worse case scenario I will have to take as many X-strength Tylenol, maybe mixed with Robaxacet as it has a muscle relaxant as well.

I still have some Oxy left from the last prescription but I'm trying to save them for physio.

I went for a mini-hike/walk on a snowmobile trail today and it felt good mentally but my leg was bothering me by the time I got back to the Jeep - I'm not a good judge of when to turn around. lol

I'm really paying for it now though and yes, I elevated and iced when I got home.

Linda2, it is my primary care doctor I'm having the dispute with. My OS only gives you a prescription when you are discharged from the hospital - enough to do you until you can see your MD.

I'll see if I can get my PT to go to bat for me as I see him right before my doctor appointment tomorrow.

Thanks for the encouragement!


Diane

 

[Jamie]

Diane, keep after your doctor. If that fails, look for a pain management clinic in your area. You NEED the medicine to keep pain at bay until you are no longer hurting. Seems like a logical request to me, but I guess some doctors just don't get it. Wait till they have THEIR knees replaced!!!

 

[Judles]

But by THEN, its ALWAYS too little too late!!!. :(

 

[Jamie]

Yeah....by the time some of the young pup doctors are ready to have their own joints replaced all the technology will be changed and recovery will be no big deal and they'll go....see? told ya it was a walk in the park!!!

No fair!!!!

Sooooo....in the meantime, a person just has to keep after them when in pain so that the pain is adequately managed. It is SO VERY IMPORTANT.

 

[Josephine]

This makes me feel so guilty and spoiled. This morning I had to ring my doctor, the one that came out to see me last week, for a review. As we concluded the conversation she asked me if I needed any more analgesics - right now I have a pharmacy full of 3 or 4 different kinds of prescription medications.

 

[Rowdy66]

Jo, you of all people should never feel guilty about anything here. You have given us all more than you will ever know.

Diane, I hope you get the pain meds. The suggestion to check out a pain management clinic in your area is a good one although if memory serves me you live in a fairly out of the way place and that may not prove to be much help but you never know. Just keep after the doctor you are seeing and hopefully you can wear him down. I really don't get their hesitancy about giving pain medication especially in your case. It isn't like you are going in without any visible problems. My goodness could your need for continuing pain meds be any better documented.

Oh, well, I will continue to pray that you get the pain pills and try not to wish bad knees on the doctor. Love ya, keep your chin up, you sure sound like you are doing well. In fact you are pretty amazing going hiking this soon and with all the problems you have had. You go girl. Janet

 

[backbay38]

Diane you might try reminding this doc about all you have been hrough with that knee and the infection, incision etc etc etc and remind him that this isn't the usual, simple TKR recovery and that therefore -- your pain and recovery might take longer than he thinks is "usual". As if there were such a thing with this operation! Perhaps in this case if you can make a logical case -- he'll accept it. YOu said you were going to ask you PT to help and that, it would seems to me -- would buttress a logical argument. So firswt try logic and then -- hysterics

 

[Grandma]

Just to let you know - my doctor is back in Australia for a month so I had a substitute and he renewed my Oxy for another month - easy as pie!

Hopefully by the time my doc returns I will no longer need them.

My PT won't let me go at it as hard as I would like because about 1" of the incision is still threatening to pull apart. He is limiting me to 3 lousy minutes on the bike - I think 10 would be better but can't argue with him I guess. He promised to be aggressive as soon as he feels it is safe to do so.

I'm not a patient person - or at least I wasn't - I have to look at all this as a learning experience (big sigh).

Diane

 

[calling_all_angels]

Diane,
With all you have been through I can understand why PT wants you to go at easy.
But I do understand how hard it is to have PATIENT's I keep thinking I should be back to abie-normal by now. LOL The first knee is doing better but, the left knee is only 6 weeks and I keep forgetting that. My patient's with the last knee just isn't there.
I find that I try to just ignor it. LOL
^i^

 

[Josephine]

Well, pleased about the pain meds you got. That's good not to have to stress out about it any more. As for the exercising, yes - you must be patient. If that wound has to heal up on its own again, it will take even longer. Think on that!

 

[Jamie]

Grandma....so glad things are taking an upturn for you now. But....as far as the patience you now must practice.....just breathe.....in....out.....take lots of calming deep breaths. Think about the future and your new life and realize that this period that seems like it will never pass is but a small blip on the radar screen that is your life to come. Go slow....small steps....and if you get impatient with where you are, make a list of the things that can do now that you couldn't do a week ago, two weeks ago or a month ago. Hang in there and you'll be at the place you want to be very soon!!!

 

[Simon]

My OS is one of those old doc with a TKR. I did not use him for pain meds because of a distance issue and it was easier for me to use my PCP. I was lucky that outside of the Rx when I left the hospital I only needed 1 refill and I still have almost all of the strong ones left but I know the PCP would do what was needed.

The OS was very good about going back to work, he just said if I wanted more time off that was fine, just call the office and tell them what I wanted to do and he would sign the letter.

I agree some of this guys need to suffer some pain themself.

Good luck

Simon

 

[Grandma]

Thanks Simon. I must admit I envy your speedy, relatively pain free recovery. It's not that I begrudge you a fast recuperation, I just wish I could say the same.

At least I'm on the mend now and starting to notice some improvement in my abilities.

Diane

 

[Judles]

You'll get there, Grandma!!! Every day it will get better and better! Keep the faith!

 

[Rowdy66]

Diane, was checking in this morning to see if you got the pain meds you needed and was soooo glad to see you had gotten some oxy. You sure do deserve it. One thing I noticed in re-reading some of the posts from page 16 forward was that you mentioned taking a lot of Tylenol. I felt I should caution you about Tylenol lest you not realize that it should only be taken as directed as it does cause liver problems if taken in doses more than recommended.

When I was taking Tylenol my son was doing his pharmecutecal class at the U of A and he just insisted that I not take it at all rather than risk something happening. I know he is probably overly protective of me but still I felt I should caution you about it as so many people view it as a harmless drug. Something I learned about the hard way.

Twenty something years ago a friend was feeling like she was being neglected by her husband and decided to take an overdose of Tylenol and kill herself. Halfway into it she changed her mind and an abulance was called. Unfortunately she died anyway six weeks later due to the liver failure the overdose caused. Since then I have heard of others who have had the same thing happen so I have a healthy respect for Tylenol and all its' generic kin. Just want you to be safe.

Hope you are listening to the PT regarding taking it easy, you have finally gotten on the right path and I know you are raring to go. Try to keep in mind how much you have been through and keep to his or her plan. I only say this as I get the hint you are a bit like me, lol.

Will keep checking in to see you are okay. Have a good week. Love ya, Janet

 

[Grandma]

Thanks for the info Janet, I have always thought of Tylenol as the good pain killer as opposed to Aspirin, the stomach killer.

So what do you take now for pain relief? I tried yesterday to take a combination of Tylenol and Advil, both extra strength instead of any Oxy at all. Boy am I sorry! Last night and this morning when I woke up I was in so much pain I could hardly manage. I took an Oxy this morning and have taken one every 4 hours but although it has helped quite a bit, I'm still in more pain then normal.

It's not just my knee, which is relatively good today, but I am plagued with arthritis - hands, back, shoulders, elbow, you get the picture. I take Voltaren for its anti-inflammatory properties (which is, I think, why I'm not really supposed to take Ibuprofen) but I still need something for the pain. Up to last year, when my knee became so bad, I took one or two Oxy a day for arthritic pain and had done so for at least three years. I haven't gone into my other problems as this site is for knees not overall pain.

I'm not sure what I am to do now, I guess I'll just have to wait until my regular doc is back and have a long talk with him about my pain management in general.

Diane

 

[Linda2]

Lots of folks take Tramadol or Darvocet for breakthrough pain. You could ask about them. Also, sometimes your NSAID just doesn't do it for you anymore and you need a different one. My rheumatologist was the one that told me that--also that some work better for one condition, and another might work better for a different problem. The art of the deal is finding one that works adequately for all our sore parts.

While you're being patient about your ROM you might do lots of leg lifts, quad sets, and ankle pumps. They won't threaten your incision but they will help you get stronger.

 

[Josephine]

NSAIDs like ibuprofen and Voltaren are in the mild to moderate pain relief group. Tramadol is a synthetic morphine but not as strong as 'real' morphine. I take 2 Trams and 2 paracetamols every 4 hrs and sometimes, if it hasn't done the biz by 1 hour later, I take a 3rd Tram to top up. Then I take the next dose of both at the 4hr point, ignoring the top-up pill. I'm written up for 3 Trams, you see, so if I only have 2 I can take the 3rd any time in between.

(Does that make sense!)