Depression, anger and LOTS of crying

I understand what you're going through. I did in home therapy twice a week and I did exercises on my own. I had pain and swelling and my knee was stiff and hard to bend. I was very discouraged with my progress and I was depressed and cried a lot. But by the eighth week or so I started feeling better and was walking better. It will one year on May 9th. I Took a trip to New Orleans in November and did really well. I hope this helps a bit.

Hi, please don't despair. I had very limited ROM for weeks and weeks. I am now 12 months post TKR and now have 70-73 Degrees ROM. I had lots of pain and emotion as fitness was my life.

It is a long road but keep doing those excerises everyday but do not overdo it or you will cause additional swelling.

Keep your chin up.

I am sorry to hear how depressed you are feeling! A knee replacement is a major op and is very painful! Have you been back to the hospital for physio? The excercises should increase as the weeks pass until the 6th week when things should be much easier! Do you use ice every 2 hours? The mental state after any op is usually low and only you can get yourself out of this trough! You say you are by yourself for 95% of the day, I am assuming someone returns late in the day and is there overnight?

I had my second TKR two weeks ago. My husband had to go away 2 days ago for 2 weeks! I have filled the fridge with ready meals and as soon as I get out of bed I put the local radio on which is my friend for the day until the evening when I put the tv on.

Puzzles and colouring also help keep me sane in the day. I am not in a remote place so can walk out on my crutches and I will see life!

You will get over this it does get easier I had my other leg done this time last year. Although it still aches sometimes Idont have the excruciating pain I used to get.

You are nearly at the 6 week point now and should be able to drive again soon. Once you can reconnect with your life you will feel mentally better!

Be aware that some pain meds can give you feelings of depression!

Take care you are nearly there!

i truly feel for you..... i would guess that probably 80% of us going through this felt exactly the same .....i certainly did ! This is perfectly normal. Although my husband cared for me, i felt so alone. If i got some strange twinge or ache or something usual, there was no one to ask if this was normal, thats why this site is brilliant ! whatever you experience, someone else has had it too or even worse. If you were told your op was a success then it WILL get better, but it does take time. In the beginning i kept thinking, what have i done to myself? ,but I'm so glad i had it done.....I'm pain free in that knee! a year on & now Im looking forward to my other knee being done. Hope this has helped in some small way, there's always someone on the other end of a question! Good luck !

I can empathise with how difficult it must be living in a remote area with little support, but don't stress about not having physiotherapy yet. Many have it at an early stage with negative effects. I'm 8 weeks post TKR. I came home with 6 exercises to do 3 times daily. Some of them were agonising to do and I ended just doing what I could, stopping if it got beyond uncomfortable and gradually building up. My ROM stayed pretty static too. I started a post operative physio class at 6 weeks, just once weekly for 6 weeks, and it has gradually improved. I saw my surgeon yesterday and he was very pleased with progress, said my ROM was excellent and wound looked great. He reassured me that the pain, stiffness, swelling, clunks and clicks were all,things he would expect at this stage and for up to 6 months. I was told beforehand that recovery from TKR is long and painful. It comes in 3 stages, at 6 weeks, 12 weeks and a year, but all recoveries are different. Think of it as a marathon. We all start on the same line, but we don't finish at the same time. Some of us will fall down and have to pick ourselves up again. Some will go off course and find they have to,retrace their steps. It's not always a straight line. At 5 weeks you are only 1/10 of the way to full recovery. There are 2 types of exercise, those that help you regain ROM and strengthening exercises. At this stage it's mainly rest, ice and elevation to keep the swelling down that will increase your ROM. You really don't need to do much more than short walks, light domestic duties, heel slides and knee hangs. I think my ROM stayed the same for the first 6 weeks, but there has been significant improvement in the past 2 weeks. It will get better. Are you keeping on top of your pain? I think you should try to speak or see your GP and ask about physio and maybe for something to help with your depression. This is a hard and painful recovery, but you will get through it. Take care and be kind to yourself.

I am sending you positive vibes & prayers. My first knee was two yrs ago and i cried over insignificant things.You are not alone. I asked myself repeatedly why i would do this to myself then would remind myself the pain i was in before the surgery. I'm getting my second one done in May. It's terrible that your Doctor is so apathetic. Please don't loose hope. Listen to some great music and do puzzles. This will be just a memory soon! We all care about you! Your Doctor should be ashamed. Pray

presumably you are not in England. so sorry you are feeling so low and unsupported. It is definitely a rough ride for weeks and months. i had individual physio for a few sessions and now attend a weekly knee clinic where physios help us do more exercises. We also had a very comprehensive manual to go with the op which sets out a series of 7 exercises to be done 4 times a day. keep strong you will get through this x

You need to call your doctors office and demand a script for PT. My doctor prescribed 4 weeks of home therapy and 9 weeks of of outpatient PT. It is important to get your ROM before scar tissue forms. The depression is real and I had a support system. I cried for months and i assure you that it will get better with time, it took about 8-10 weeks before I felt human again. This board is very helpful as we have been through this and can give support. No one understands unless they have been through it.

Sending prayers for your recovery.

Barb

Stiffness goes away gradually over time all by itself. Takes 12-18 months. Normal. So is the depression, but for this, just know that it's actually a Jedi Mind Trick and almost always occurs in body part replacement patients...

Post Op Depression

It's a condition all the docs know about but never mention...ever. Once you know what it really is, you kick it out the back door. Done. Be strong and know you can beat it.