How to regain positivity after TKR
Posted , 11 users are following.
4.5 weeks after TKP op. No pain when walking but a lot pain afterwards exercise and physio and at night. Is this normal? How much should I walk?
Only taking 2 paracetamol occassionly.
Would like advise on how to be positive.
This may sound ridiculous but I feel like I have PTSD from the op. I feel like I my body has suffered from an assault.
So i need to get past this. Any advice would be welcome.
I forgot to add that I managed to get a kidney infection which hasn't helped..
Thanks
0 likes, 40 replies
Mollybawn
Posted
Mkhp Mollybawn
Posted
Mollybawn Mkhp
Posted
Will do that if I don't improve. Thanks
martinarvelo Mollybawn
Posted
It is very normal indeed, and on two paracetamol a day you are probably suffering more than those who stick to a good pain control regime. Not sure of your reasons for that, but perhaps it's inevitable. if not, then good pain killing drugs would be a good start to getting rid of the feeling that your whole body has been assaulted. I do know the feeling, and I think it's pretty common. It is a huge shock to the system. I was walking about a mile and a hal by six weeks . . but my specialist said it was too much and to cut back a bit, which I did. Everyone is different however. Maybe you ar pushing yourself a bit too hard???Good luck, and if you can, take some decent pain killers!
Mollybawn martinarvelo
Posted
My GP me a prescription for paracetamol and small no of difene.
In fairness I was trying to cut back on paracetamol myself because my tummy was feeling a bit sick but I need to rethink that.
Becuse
martinarvelo Mollybawn
Posted
I was on Zaldiar, which is a mix of paracetamol and tramadol, and it was an enormous help . . . GP's just don't seem to have any idea of what the recovery from this operation is like. paracetamol might ease a slight headache, but this is really something else!
Mollybawn martinarvelo
Posted
Thanks for the input. The support is a great help. Just spent an 1.30 hours making a box for my vegetable seeds!
Going to order more now so I'll be ready when Spring comes and inform for a bit of gardening.
cheryl90571 Mollybawn
Posted
Hi Molly!
Been reading all the responses to you from all of our great people here!💗
LOTS of fantastic ideas!
Wanted to add a few thoughts...
Yes! The Total Knee Replacement is a very involved surgery --probably MUCH MORE involved than ANY of us could have possibly THOUGHT it would be! The good news is that our bodies are incredibly amazing and, after the TRAUMA takes place in surgery, our body rises to the occasion and FIGHTS RIGHT BACK for us!😊 Swelling kicks in to surround the "injury", insulating the hurt parts from any more attacks. The body causes us to feel thirsty due to the medications and anesthesia SO we drink more water. Drinking more water serves several purposes: 1) hydrating us which is always a good thing, 2) diluting toxins in our body, and 3) ELIMINATING those toxins through LOTS of urination.
Now the ball is REALLY ROLLING!😁 We are up heading to the bathroom OFTEN! THIS process gets our bodies MOVING with a definite purpose! (I was up every 20-30 minutes the night after my surgery with an entourage of two nurses and one aide and my IV pole with all the tubes PLUS drains and extra tubes. After the first few excursions to the pot, we all became like a FINE-TUNED MACHINE!😊 This was when I broke into a bad case of the GIGGLES, and from then on it became more of a sorority hazing stunt with EVERYONE involved giggling!😁😁😁😁
The more you move, the easier it is TO move. When you are tired you WILL sleep. It may only be for ten minutes, but the body WILL just force you to SHUT DOWN. Pain medication I found, can be a double-edged sword. Yes, it helps with pain, BUT it can also cause nausea, loopiness, and VERY WEIRD feelings. Every person has his/her own unique reaction to various medications. Note any that don't seem to work. Try others. Opioids didn't work well for me. I stopped taking them.
Learn to love NAPS! My best sleep those first six months came when I would drift off for 10 minutes or so out of sheer EXHAUSTION. I often would drop off sitting up while icing and wrapped in MANY afghans!
Well, back to our amazing bodies...
It has fought back, used swelling to protect us, reminded us to hydrate, keep moving AND it knows to react strongly when we put in a medication that it doesn't like!😵 It makes us sleepy so it can get busy HEALING US. YES! Our bodies are amazing!
What WE need to do is PAY ATTENTION to what our body is telling us.
Maybe you are walking TOO MUCH. Maybe you are not resting your body enough. Maybe you are thinking more about what you aren't yet able to do than all you have ALREADY ACCOMPLISHED.
Be KIND to yourself!
Work WITH that amazing body you are in!
You are still very early in the game!
You will soon see lots more progress! Yes, you will!
Wishing you much success!💗
Keep us up to date on your progress, OK?
(TKRs June and October 2015)
Mollybawn cheryl90571
Posted
Hi Cheryl,
Your right about pain medication being different for everyone. Opiates seemed to make me sick. I'm not used to taking much meds anyway. Anyway I'm feeling the "love " on this forum and it does help.
cheryl90571 Mollybawn
Posted
Glad to hear that you are "feeling the love" here! 💗
I was fortunate to find this site several weeks following my first TKR. It helped TREMENDOUSLY to know that there were so many from all over the world who understood, REALLY understood what I was dealing with and could answer all the questions I had as well as provide information to me on things I hadn't even THOUGHT to ask about!
I know what you mean about medications! My body is very wary of a lot of them! Oxycodone made me SO, SO LOOPY! Dilaudid, which was given to me once in the hospital, put me in OUTER SPACE!🌙?🌪 Tramadol gave me all the symptoms of a bad FLU without the fever.
I had the best reaction to Toradol (by IV in the hospital) and the nerve block which I think provided Lidocaine in a continuous drip that first 24 hours.
Be well!
Think positively.
Look forward to healing a little bit more each day!😊
marilyn10235 cheryl90571
Posted
Hi Cheryl
I loved your post!! I agree on it all.
I was given iv morphine on an infusion pump after op. I didn't get on with it & wonder why oh why anyone would take it for fun!! Urgh!!
I do take co codamol (I am hoping to go back on the waiting list for TKR left knee on June) which I can get on with & had gabapentin in hospital.
I hope you are healing well.
Keep up the wisdom.
All the best
Marilyn
XX
jane37928 cheryl90571
Posted
Lovely post Cheryl 😊 I especially love the trip to the bathroom giggles - laughter always helps x
cheryl90571 marilyn10235
Posted
Hi Marilyn!
Thanks for the kind words!
Never had morphine, but I probably would have a similar reaction to it! Strange how some of us have so many bad reactions to so many substances!
I hope you will be able to get your second knee surgery soon! Of course surgery is SURGERY, and NOBODY is thrilled about having SURGERY, but the getting fixed and back to living life again part...WELL, THAT certainly is worth the inconvenience, in my opinion!
Will be praying that all comes quickly for you and that you will soon be tripping the light fantastic!😊🎵😊💗
cheryl90571 jane37928
Posted
Thanks, Jane!😊
Sometimes things get SO BIZARRE that I find myself laughing at the craziness of it all!
I agree about the laughter!😁 I would imagine thinking of how the situation would look if it was in some random nursing educational film on "Getting the patient safely to the bathroom after her leg was disassembled and put back together". My idle mind worked overtime as I laid there planning my escapes.
My second round of giggles came the next morning when my hospital PT had me in the chair by the side of the bed and wanted me to "MARCH " my feet up and down. Of course my RIGHT Knee marched. It didn't just have SURGERY. Then I tried my LEFT SURGICAL KNEE. I willed it to move, I really did. I tried and tried. I kept looking at it. Nope. Nothing happening. I tried again. I got MY TOES to move up and down! The ridiculousness of the situation hit me, and, yes, I started to GIGGLE again!
My PT was a party pooper. He didn't share my sense of humor (and absurdity!) of his RIDICULOUS REQUEST to ask me to "march" my 1000 pound surgical leg as though it was a normal leg.
He gave me a strange look, mumbled something under his breath ( probably something like "Why do I get all the weirdos?"
, wrote something on his clipboard (probably "Patient overmedicated and delirious"
and left.
Well, I DID finally get that leg to "march", but it was many WEEKS after my surgery that THAT happened! It happened after MANY trips to outpatient PT with my beloved Sandy who shall remain as one of my dearest friends and strongest alies in my battle to bring LEFT KNEE to normalcy! Sandy challenged me every session, but she gave me do-able challenges, praised me, encouraged me, and made me proud of my efforts as small as they were at the time. We giggled, I worked hard, we giggled, I got stronger. I marched, I balanced, I made that bike pedal like a champ, I lifted those legs up, and I GRADUATED!
Three and a half months later Sandy and I started the whole process over again with RIGHT KNEE!
We worked hard, giggled A LOT, I was continually challenged with just the right amount of challenge, and I GRADUATED AGAIN!
I find myself in tears as I write this. The whole experience of these two surgeries and all that they entailed has forever changed the way I look at the world, hospitals, nurses, aides, physical therapists and the importance of GIGGLING!😁
How different my experience would have been if I had forgotten to LAUGH!😁😁😁😁
Here's to all of us!
May laughter be a part of our day, and may we all get better and stronger and healthier in this NEW YEAR!💗😁🎵
angela010663 Mollybawn
Posted
Everything slowly gets better! Your body DID suffer an assault.
Im about 4 months out, still battling post surgical depression, always exhausted physically and emotionally. lapsed on exercising too, but have now recommited to get on track . We have to give ourselves a break and take it easy..slow, steady, but easy. Ice and elevate at night. Follow the advice of your physical therapist. But dont stop exercising!! I kind of fell off the exercise train..and my range of motion has regressed and my leg muscles are weak. They say it takes a year....
Lots of good advice here..Im just a newbie. Good Luck!