1 week pkr Advice

Posted , 4 users are following.

1 week PKR, home after 2 days. Keeping knee straight no problem but difficult bending to any degree.  Not sleeping much as can't get comfortable. 

Any advise welcome. 

How long do i need to keep dressing on wound for have dissolvable sutures and drain wound.

Thanks

1 like, 4 replies

4 Replies

  • Posted

    Sleep will be one of your biggest issues. I dont know many that sleep much for the 1st month....some like me.......much much longer. A pillow between the legs....make sure and take your pain meds on a reg schedule day and night. Rest every chance you get so you keep up your strength. Hydrate continually. A dried out body won't relax as well as a hydrated one. My recliner and I became one as I found the elevation and icing took a lot of pressure off the lef, hips and back.
  • Posted

    6Oldfatguy1 has MANY great ideas! I totally agree with them!

    Here are a few out-of-the-box- ideas that have helped me tremendously.

    For some reason nighttime is paintime for me. Maybe it is my body reacting to me doing too much throughout the day. Maybe it is that when you sleep you TRY to find a comfortable position and STAY THERE. Either way, for the last four years my arthritis has been really hard at work making me uncomfortable...especially at night.

    I have fought back with some techniques. Some may work for YOU!

    1) Rest throughout the DAY. Keep comfy pillows a soft afghan or throw and some eye covers handy. When you begin to feel sleepy, GO WITH IT! I find that a nice 20 minutes or half hour or even an hour if you can get it in the DAY really is a wonderful gift to yourself!

    2) Have a nice cup of tea or hot chocolate. It relaxes you and can often send you to DREAMLAND! (See #1 to be prepared for DREAMLAND!)

    3) Go to bed when you are tired. For me that can be 10:00pm or even 2:00 am. Laying in bed just TRYING to drift off to sleep is very unsettling, and it usually produces anxiety that KEEPS YOU AWAKE!

    4) Put on cologne or nicely-scented lotion before bed. The pleasant smell will help prepare you for a comfy night.

    5) If you have any areas of your body that hurt, try using Icy Hot roll-on on them. My lower back often aches in competition to be the MOST ANNOYING PAIN. Icy Hot tames it, and the resulting warmth produces a "counter irritant" that relaxes you very well!

    6) I like to have lots of stuff to DO on my nightstand. I have books, pictures of our new granddaughter, my Kindle, my journal, cards to write and send, magazines, and my phone. I logvon to this site throughout the night as well. I figure if I can't sleep because of PAIN, I will AT LEAST have interesting things to entertain myself!

    7) My husband has been kind enough to give me the bed all to myself as I recover. This is really helpful because finding a comfortable position after KNEE surgery ( or ANY surgery!) is ONE HUGE CHALLENGE! By having the whole bed to myself I don't have to worry about staying still or even keeping on my own side of the bed. Honestly, sometimes I wake up to use the bathroom in the middle of the night, and I am CROSSWISE on the bed or even facing the opposite direction! If I would videotape my night's "sleep" it would probably get MANY "likes" or "votes" or whatever on the Internet!

    8) Get up and CLEAN something! I was having lots of pain this one night and just couldn't find a comfortable position! I got up, reorganized my medicine cabinet and actually felt A LOT LESS PAIN just moving around. Another night that week I cleaned out my closet. Same thing! I felt better, AND I ended up with a great-looking closet!

    9) I talk to God and thank Him for everything in my life that is good and going well and let Him know how much I appreciate all He does for me.

    10) I stretch, breathe in and out, and listen to some music. Music can take you to a peaceful place where pain takes a back seat.

    Maybe some of these ideas will help you!

    Mag you have pleasant dreams!

  • Posted

    Hi Tracy , you are such early days, I had pkr on both knees, in May and second in July this year, am a lot better now, but still nights are worse, have to turn a lot,to keep comfy, day times are much better , walking is ok at pretty much normal speed for about 30 minutes, then when out with the dogs that 30 mins will turn in to 50 on the way back, as I get slower and slower, but bonus the dogs get a long walk, lol, . To keep the bend, any time I was sitting with my feet on stool or in bed, keep sliding your feet up and down towards your bum, repeat repeat repeat, VERY important to get that bend, to start with your leg will hardly bend at all, but you'll be surprised I had an 90 bend at just.
    • Posted

      Sorry traci not sure how I did that, . Anyway 90 bend at just two weeks, with the second one, and that's because I learned that with the the first one, best of luck, it can be quite a long haul, but I'm just seeing light at the end of the tunnel, and it's all been worth it. 😘

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