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12 months post revision

Posted , 6 users are following.

irish_linda
irish_linda

hi all well its 12 mths post op in my revision today ,   i can say that at last i have a real life ,must admit ive had a very hard time over the last 3yrs .     3 yrs ago i was in alot of pain with two painfull knees one a little worse than the other i had a limp could not walk very far and on pain relief constantly  i went to see surgeon got bi lateral dec 2012 it went wrong with a broken leg to go with the bi lateral to cut a very long story short one of my knees was quiet good and i supose i practiclly ignored this leg as the other was a mess with no bend and crazy pain all the time  . so 12 mths ago i had a revision it was the last throw of the dice i had to take the chance my life was hardly worth living so i went into the op knowing this was my only chance of having some kind of life and im so glad i did go for it i chose my surgeon very carefully this time , he was very confident he could help me but he gave me the story we all had of what could go wrong  and also added that my chance of sucess could only be 15%  but he never said i could be worse as other surgeons did. it has been hard since the op because they have to go in futher and also rods so progress was alot slower than a regular tkr ive had alot of physio since op i only stopped physio a few months ago but that didnt bother me now im walking better can sit propperly as ive a better bend i was only 70 deg im now over 95 not perfect by any means but good enough to sit without helping myself into and out of the chair  i can go for walks ,mind my 4 yr old grandchild and play some sport .i will always be aware of this knee  but compared to the way i was last year i now can live with the way it is i dont walk with a limp (after the revision my straightening was not 100% but its so much better now) i still take ani inflamatorys as its still abit swollen but not worried about that im taking pain relief but i have cut it way back and i hope to be off it soon if somebody last year told me id be this good a year down the road i would not have believed them its been a long road but i think at last i can think of real life with me in it not looking at everybody else living theres i hope this post can give some of you hope to get to the end and start living your lives again and that revision is not the end but the beginng

1 like, 13 replies

13 Replies

  • marie47485
    marie47485 irish_linda

    Posted

    You have achieved so much! I think other people will be inspired by your post, makes me realise how lucky I am & should stop me feeling so sorry for myself because I am not driving yet 3 months after my knee replacement. We really all have our pace I was comparing myself to other patients now I am going to stop! I wish I had discovered this forum earlier in my recovery, I was so depressed despite my wonderful sister taking me into her home to help me get better I also think I took to heart too may comments from other people they all seemed to know somebody who recovered more quickly than I did! I have had a few setbacks but am determined I will get there in the end. So lovely to hear how well you are doing I cannot wait until I can play more with my 6 year old nephew. You have really cheered me up, thank you for sharing your experiemces & proving there is light at the end of the tunnel & it is worth the weight.
    • marie47485
      marie47485

      Posted

      Ha ha trying to type with no contacts in, should be wait not weight smile

       

    • irish_linda
      irish_linda marie47485

      Posted

      hi marie its ok to feel sorry for yourself we all have at some point in this journey why shouldnt we?  its got to be one of the hardest things we have ever endured ive had 2 children and would have gone through the mill as others have giving birth to 9lb babies but nothing compares to having tkr it is a very very big op and recovery is slow painfull and depressing at times  very few havent felt like you ,everything you said and more ive had and it took over my life you will get there and sooner than you think just look forward to christmas when your nephew has his presents and you can play with him thats 4mths away so keep thinking im going to enjoy christmas this year good luck
    • marie47485
      marie47485 irish_linda

      Posted

      Thank you for your reply I am taking onboard everything you have said & looking forward to Christmas & seeing Ricardo's face on Christmas morning. I feel I can cope better knowing there are others who know exactly where I am coming from as they have been through it . Your positive attitude has been better than any medication, thak you again.
  • Diane12345
    Diane12345 irish_linda

    Posted

    Hi Linda, 

    I'm so pleased for you that things have improved and you have a good quality of life now, as you have been through a lot. You have given me hope

    that my life will get easier as its so hard to imagine right now.

    wishing you all the best

    Diane

    • irish_linda
      irish_linda Diane12345

      Posted

      yes diane i too thought like you couldnt imagine it could get better its no easy journey and no quick way to get to the end unless your one of the lucky few that it was sucess from the start  as i said to cheryl we have to believe it will happen  not so easy when all the chips seem to be stacked against you !!! im always going to be reminded of this knee its always going to give me some bit of pain or stiffness from time to time but i know il keep up a certain amount of excersise to keep it moving but it wont rule my life anymore as it for the last few years it ruined my life  so the best of luck to you
  • cheryl90571
    cheryl90571 irish_linda

    Posted

    Always a pleasure to hear success stories and the long journey to arrive at success.

    Thanks for sharing this. It makes my struggle seem more do-able.

    • irish_linda
      irish_linda cheryl90571

      Posted

      thanks cheryl  one day at a time its hard alot of the time we have to believe we can do it
  • pam1313
    pam1313 irish_linda

    Posted

    I am so pleased for you and glad you can to finally look forwards and not back. Anyone who hasn't experienced this journey has no idea the effect it has on your life and at times you can begin to despair.  I am so glad I found this forum as it's wonderful to share experiences/problems/fears with folk experiencing the same things.

    I'm 21 weeks po now following new plastic knee cap and metal trochlea, but am suffering with muscle wastage. I saw consultant yesterday, got all upset because of my slow progress (and am also a bit depressed), but he told me all was fine and my knee was improving, which I know it is. He put it all in perspective telling me it could be a further few months yet until muscles are more restored, but that it would happen, I just had to carry on with exercises and get on with life. He's right! 

    • irish_linda
      irish_linda pam1313

      Posted

      hi pam i had that problem it took ages to build the muscles i think its amazing that the muscles waste so easy after this op now that your at 21wks it might be a good idea to join a gym to build your muscles i did just that and i was lucky that i could join the gym a month at a time which was great because joining for a year was daunting as you feel you might not get the value when i joined the gym instructer gave me a rehab program and he took me through it slowly and i went 3 times a week anddidnt stay longer than an hour and some days only 30mins it took weeks to build up some muscle but it got me out of the house and i met lovely people in the gym so maybe you could look into that ,
  • veronica91735
    veronica91735 irish_linda

    Posted

    So pleased to read this - I am still waiting for the results of the aspiration - despite 3 phone calls to the new surgeons secretary!

    I hope that whenever they revise mine, I can write something similar in 12 months time. Just to walk (let alone play tennis again) will be a miracle - & as for going up & down stairs - I live in hope!!

    Well done to you, & thanks for the inspiration. Can I ask if you still have sesitive numb areas on any part of the knee? It's driving me mad!!

    Veronica. Cornwall

    • irish_linda
      irish_linda veronica91735

      Posted

      you will get there in the end the stairs is so much better now i used to hate the stairs always going down with what i call baby steps not now thank god  and yes the numbness dose ease off and you start not to notice anymore ive still parts that are numb and its only that you ask about it that ive put my hand down to check so i supose thats the answer you forget about it as its very small bit of numbness i dont think it will ever go but its not bothering me  when i used to go shopping and i saw a stairs i wouldnt even think of going on them i hated it i felt everyone was looking at me thnking i was climbing stairs like a 90yr old i looked for the lift all the time but now it is so good to be able to climb and desend steps without getting a look from anybody  (im not vain or anything but it was embarasing ) so im living proof that you can get your life back good luck to you veronica
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