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Am i over doing it.

Posted , 13 users are following.

lindseyosb32
lindseyosb32

I am coming up to 6 weeks post op for a PKR and i was beating myself up before i came across this forum, thinking i was not doing very well.

I guess it is listening to other people who say they have done better.

At 4 weeks my bend was 110° the pain is manageable. I cannot take ibuprofen so just co codamol and paracetamol. Sleeping at night is hit

Miss as the nerves just seem to go haywire at 2 in the morning. I have had to help look after my grandchildren a day a week so try to rest when i can.

The swelling can be a problem sometimes and i ice it and elevate it but i have just started to walk without a crutch for about 10 mins out side. The

Problem i seem to he having st the moment is i start to limp if i walk for longer than the 10 mins. I am due back to work in a weeks time and have to

Take 2 buses. Not sure why it gets stiff and i limp

0 likes, 52 replies

52 Replies

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  • lighterson
    lighterson lindseyosb32

    Posted

    Sounds like your doing ok, however no experieince with PKR but it still sound like you need more time off. They say 12 weeks for a TKR and that was when I was able to get back to doing everything, evern though still very tired.
  • jannette1
    jannette1 lindseyosb32

    Posted

    Hi Lindsey, I wouldn't go back to work yet until you can walk around

    without your crutches. The reason your knee swells is when you have

    Overdone things. You have done very well to get a good bend at this

    stage, but still have a lot of healing inside to do. I would check with

    your doctor first to see what he says about work. Best wishes

    Jannette

  • sueisobel
    sueisobel lindseyosb32

    Posted

    You are doing fine.  Don't stress yourself over the bend.  Yes it is important, but so is walking properly. Until you are 100% recovered use a cane. Concentrate on how you walk; heel, toe in a deliberate fashion, it will be awkward to start off with, but you have been walking and favouring your sore leg and have got used to walking in a certain way. Go back to your doctor and ask for sleeping meds, it will also help you to cope with the day to day issues as you will be more refreshed.

    Using the cane (not crutch) will help support your knee and enable you to walk longer than 10 minutes, it will also give you a certain amount of freedom as well as making people around you aware that there is something wrong with you and, when getting on buses makes them give up their seat if there none available. Just make sure the cane is at the right height for you, otherwise you might as well not use it and go back to struggling. Also make sure whilst you are out and about that you stop and rest every now and then; even if its against a wall, anything to take the weight of your knee.

    • lindseyosb32
      lindseyosb32 sueisobel

      Posted

      That is good advice i think i might try a cane. I sounds silly but you do forget how to walk properly i walk along the street saying to my self walk properly.... itcwas a bad day yesterday so today i am taking it eady. Had to take stronger painkillers as over did the walking
    • sueisobel
      sueisobel lindseyosb32

      Posted

      Until you are completely healed use a cane. It also gives you a sense of security, when you are out and about, as well as support for your knee. You are right; to walk properly you almost have to use a mantra. If you plan on walking any distance try taking painkillers before setting out, then when you have finished the pain is not so bad (you may still need a top up, but..)
  • tracy2364
    tracy2364 lindseyosb32

    Posted

    I had PKR 6 months ago, I'm 51.  Your bend sounds really good. You will experience swelling and stiffness if you over do it. I wasn't using a crutch or stick at 6 weeks as advised my physio but everyone is different. Even though I started driving at 6 weeks I took three months off of work as I felt that I wasn't ready to go back to work as I still got very tired and the thought of working full time and running a home would have been too much. My GP supplied me with a Fit note and also phased back into work which was great. The recovery period is long and slow. Wishing you well with your recovery.
    • lindseyosb32
      lindseyosb32 tracy2364

      Posted

      Hi tracy yes maybe i will see if a little longer from work will be good. I try not to use a crutch now when walking outside as physio said try not too. I have really good days were feel great and easier walking but then silly me i ho and push myself too far and then have a couple of bad days hopefully more good than bad. Have also just started to try and ride my bike itcwas great yo do that 20mibs into the bike ride i got a puncture and had to walk my bike back home and I think it was just too much
    • tracy2364
      tracy2364 lindseyosb32

      Posted

      Oh that's not good having to push your bike. I can't ride mine yet as still too painful.
    • tashia51123
      tashia51123 lindseyosb32

      Posted

      Lindsey, so you are back riding your bike!! Awesome. I slowly started riding my horse again about a month ago. First without stirrups and for like 10 minutes. I am now able to ride with my stirrups and for 30-40 minutes a few days a week. It is helping my back, hip, and my knees. Working is more painful than riding. It takes me my 2 days off to recover from my work week. Hope you have fixed your tire and are back out there!!
    • lindseyosb32
      lindseyosb32 tashia51123

      Posted

      Hi tadhia, not fixed yet but hubby has promised me by the weekend. It felt good to ride my bike all but slowly i think maybe because there is no weight bearing pressure on my knee it squeezed my knee a bit at first but found some of the pressure released good to hear you are back riding your horse
    • tashia51123
      tashia51123 lindseyosb32

      Posted

      Lindsey, if you are riding correctly there isn't any pressure in your knees either. Riding was never painful before surgery it was everything else that was miserable. I couldn't even walk a Xcountry course without dying. I have promised my family and myself that I will not jump til next spring.I figure that the worst is behind me especially sent I spent years in pain and getting worse. How long did you try other things before deciding on surgery? I had been on Valtaren for over 4 yrs. Went to an Ortho about injections. He laughed at me and said I was past that point. I didn't realize how crooked my legs were til after the first surgery. No wonder my whole body hurt so bad. Hope you get out this weekend and hope the weather is nice.
    • pam92068
      pam92068 lindseyosb32

      Posted

      WTG Lindsey.  I have borrowed a stationary bike and ride every morning too.  This is the first thing I do on my exercise regiment...sure helps to loosen up a stiff knee.  
    • lindseyosb32
      lindseyosb32 tashia51123

      Posted

      Hi tashia my husband and i went backpacking in thailand for 4 months at the end of last year and we returned in feb 15. I did find that the sands on koh samui seemed to punish my knee and it was after we came home that i had a lot of problems with it. The doctor referred me to a condultant after i gad an MRI as i did not have any cartlidge on the inside of my joint. Tried injections and arthroscopy but it did not help had problems walking after that so lucky i have had it done quite quickly

      Yes i feel it can only get better from here as I would like to go back to thailand again fir 4 months

  • pam92068
    pam92068 lindseyosb32

    Posted

    Lindsey as suggested below, pay attention to how you are walking...be deliberate...this I had to pay a lot of attention to.  I am 7 weeks post op and I do navigate inside with no device now.  I still use something outside....just because PT always says...don't fall...don't fall...use something in public and outside.  yEs, way too early to return to work.....I was told minimum 12 weeks off.

    you should still be elevating and icing....I have to make myself rest and elevate daily.....remember lots of healing going on inside there.  I do use extra strength Tylenol pm at night now for sleeping....big difference.

  • melinda11457
    melinda11457 lindseyosb32

    Posted

    Hello, Lindsey, hope your PKR is giving you pain relief from what was going on before. I can't emphasize enough the importance of sticking with that painful exhausting physical therapy....always think stretching and strengthening...don't quit!  As for that crazy nerve pain...oh yeah...still have it but it's getting better at eight weeks TKR? I sure wish I knew the plastic wrap trick after my PKR two years ago. Try it, can't hurt, and I started getting some real sleep. Simply snugly wrap the knee with plastic wrap around two or three times so it sticks down. Then go to bed. You will sweat under the plastic, so if you feel your incision needs to remain dry-place a gauze or dry dressing over it prior to wrapping. Let us know if it helps you.

    Good luck.! 

    • lindseyosb32
      lindseyosb32 melinda11457

      Posted

      Hi melinda funny i saw that trick on you tube with the plastic wrap and i tried it my husband thought i had gone nuts .... i will try it again as the first night i did get a lot more sleep.

      Yes the pain is so much better after habing the PKR infact sometimes it is not so much pain as discomfort.

    • pam92068
      pam92068 lindseyosb32

      Posted

      Lindsey,  I agree not so much pain now for me either, just discomfort.  Stiffness usually comes with the swelling for me and stiffness is bad in the mornings when I get up.  And yes...here too....the overachiever as PT put it...I have over done several times in the 7 weeks.  As I feel better I overdo...I  think the last muscle strain may have taught me to slo down a bit....and more importantly...to add new and extended stuff in smaller numbers.  I now will add+2 stretches or exercises instead of 5 at a time.
    • lindseyosb32
      lindseyosb32 pam92068

      Posted

      Hi pam i am the same i can wake up in the mornings and feel good so try and go about things thevway i have always but then that leads to me overdoing it, the stiffness and swelling get worse and i coukd then kick mtself ... the next day is the worst as i feel i have taken steps backwards. After a few days I feel ok again xx
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