[CathyandSteveG]

thank you very much. I AM getting better...i know that i am....i just want it to be over....I am goofy that way.

You all have been so helpful....and i am so appreciative!

I knew this was going to be a process and time was the answer.

The one area i KNOW has improved is sleep....I can sleep a full 6 hours now without waking up and getting a new ice pack or taking a pain pill...and that is tremendous progress.

[virgind]

Pain pills are good but they tend to keep your body from healing itself. When the body has pain it will try to heal that area faster.

[CathyandSteveG]

An update…..I went to the doctor today for my 8 week check on my knee. The good news…he is ecstatic at my flexibility of 130 and says it is impossible to do better than that…the bad news…I now cannot hyper extend like I could 4 weeks ago….So I have to work on it. He says much of it is from swelling…from OVERDOING…imagine that?!?!?!?

He said he would rather I overdo that not do enough….i am leaps and bounds beyond the others he operated on the same day. I do not have to go back until next april 27. He says it will continue to hurt for a year but will diminish with time. We discussed allergy to the metal...he said in my case he did not beleive it was an issue at all.

I have not taken the pain pills in a couple of weeks...just ibuprofen and tylenol. It still hurts...but it is better than it was.

So ……I am not jumping for joy that I had this done yet….but i am sure I will in the future.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by virgind

Pain pills are good but they tend to keep your body from healing itself. When the body has pain it will try to heal that area faster.

My Surgeon told me exactly the opposite. He said to take pain pills when needed.
He told me the body is slower to heal when it is also fighting pain.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by CathyandSteveG

I vacuum, I clean house, I mow with the tracter, I go up and down stairs, I work. The issue is not bending my knee...the issue is the deep penetrating ache ....the swelling, then the tightness. Maybe I just expect too much.

Have patience grasshopper. Some heal fast, some take longer.
I'm glad to hear that you've had such great results, especially your flexibility.
But as all of us who've had a knee replacement can tell you, it takes time.

[Polar Bear]

Originally Posted by Barefoot

...But as all of us who've had a knee replacement can tell you, it takes time.

Yes. And faithfully performing the recommended therapy.

[CathyandSteveG]

Originally Posted by Barefoot

Have patience grasshopper. Some heal fast, some take longer.
I'm glad to hear that you've had such great results, especially your flexibility.
But as all of us who've had a knee replacement can tell you, it takes time.

thanks sister friend.....and i appreciate those who have gone before me and can share their wisdom with me!

My doctor also told me the same that yours told you about pain meds....TAKE THEM! and i did for 6 weeks.....but i feel better not taking the narcotics now...they really messed with my tummy and the pain is much more tolerable so over the counter meds help just as much.

[MikeyBoo54]

I see you all stopped discussing this about 3 weeks ago so forgive me. I had my knee done on December 1. I still have a little swelling and I still have that ache, although not as severely or constant as I used to. My doctor told me that it would take almost a year before it was back to near 100%. I have the flexibility and the strength but still have some trouble going down steps. I am beginning to think it is mostly in my mind.

Also, he told me I would take more time to heal than others. I am 6'2" and 280 lbs with heavily muscled legs. He said it all have to heal and it just takes time. What has helped me the most was swimming. I can exercise but still not have weight on my knee.

Good luck. I understand the impatience but believe me, it doesn't make it feel any better. I am just waiting it out and not letting it hold me back.

[CathyandSteveG]

thank you for sharing that...I am 11 weeks from surgery today...the deep inner ache is gone...most of the pain is now on the surface and where the drain was.....i still take lots of motrin and use ice packs.....and i still have lots of swelling the more i am on it. About three weeks ago i started having pain in my hip and my back....i think it is from not walking correctly....i "favor" the knee especially in the evening.

I am holding my doctor at his word...at the 6 month mark i will like him again...lol

I am small...and the doctor did indicate that was an advantage so i can understand your size might make recovery a little more difficult. I hope you progress quickly and you feel better real soon. I am still not to the point that i would recommend someone go through this...but maybe that is on the horizon.

[Terrell D Elliott]

I am sorry to hear about your pain, I had total right knee replacement last Nov. and never had much pain. I did the exercises they said but was not impressed with the rehab place so I started going to Anytime Fitness, riding the bikes and leg lifts etc. I did wear those support hose and finally bought a pair that zip up. Please do check for blood clots. Good Luck.

[virgind]

In respects tp pain meds the quicker you get off them the faster you will heal.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by virgind

In respects tp pain meds the quicker you get off them the faster you will heal.

Originally Posted by Barefoot

My Surgeon told me exactly the opposite. He said to take pain pills when needed. He told me the body is slower to heal when it is also fighting pain.

People experience pain differently. There is no shame in taking pain medication if it's prescribed and you need it.
When I had a TNR in 2013, I found the prescribed meds caused a mind fog, so I graduated to Tylenol within the first few weeks. But Tylenol is still a pain med, even tho it's sold without a prescription.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by CathyandSteveG

thanks sister friend.....and i appreciate those who have gone before me and can share their wisdom with me!
My doctor also told me the same that yours told you about pain meds....TAKE THEM! and i did for 6 weeks.....but i feel better not taking the narcotics now...they really messed with my tummy and the pain is much more tolerable so over the counter meds help just as much.

Cathy, I think it's been three months since your TNR? I hope that things have improved a lot for you. Please let us know how your knee is doing.

[CathyandSteveG]

Thanks for Asking! My three month mark was last Monday the 27th....I have improved greatly. I am still taking Tylenol but the pain has changed from that deep penetrating pain to a more tolerable pain that feels more like the nerve endings are reconnecting.

I am walking much better....there is still a little LAG...for lack of a better word....the new knee does not respond quite like a natural knee...but i think with time that will come. I still have some swelling...especially if i have been on it a lot....but for the most part...i am doing great.

I am not to the place i am happy i had it done....but i can see that i probably will be within the next few months.

I asked a friend of mine the other....which was worse...your hip replacement or your knee replacement?...his response was the knee took much longer to recover from. i asked the dr the same question and his response was also the same.

I am doing well....and i so appreciated all the helpful responses I got from the folks here.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by CathyandSteveG

My three month mark was last Monday the 27th....I have improved greatly. I am still taking Tylenol but the pain has changed from that deep penetrating pain to a more tolerable pain that feels more like the nerve endings are reconnecting. I am not to the place i am happy i had it done....but i can see that i probably will be within the next few months.

I'm glad to hear that you are gradually improving.
After two years, I still have swelling if I "aggravate" my new knee, nothing that an icebag won't help.
I cannot kneel on the knee where I had my TNR, while others have no problem doing that.
At my two-year checkup, I asked my Surgeon why I wasn't A-OK (but I'm much better than before the TNR).
He said "Some people react better than others to having strange things implanted in their body".
I hope I never need a pacemaker.

I see you have a horse farm up for sale, sounds great.
I had a horse, Jets Encore, for 23 years and I miss him terribly.