Sick Leave

No, In Australia susan.

Quite unfair then in Australia.   Your employer wouldnt get away with that here.  Sick leave is continuous, you don't get breaks for holidays and then carry on sick leave!   I find it strange.   You will need a good recovery period though.  You aren't sleeping well now.  You need rest and time to exercise etc, which I feel can't be done whilst working.

Hi sarcee. Was your 5 months planned absence or have you added time as you needed it? I had no idea the toll the op would take and thought I would bounce back in no time - boy have I had a wake up call!! I have plenty of sick leave available and go back to see my surgeon for my 6 week check next week. I just wondered where I stood in relation to other people's healing process. 

I too was off for 3 months and am in a computer based job. There was no way that I could have gone back before that time both physically and mentally. To be honest I still don't really feel mentally fit for the job!!

Hi Sarcee. I'm in school too and 9 week post op. I'm hoping to go back sept when il be 15 week and hoping I can manage full time. I'm walking and exercising but I must admit my knee us very stiff each afternoon after I have walked about a mile I'm just hoping the next 6 week will sort me out as I don't want to be off at the beginning if a new school year x. Does your knee still get very stiff after exercise and use ?

No I just went back and forward to docs as and when sick note ran out...take your time... I'm only 53...very active with 5 young grandchildren and I found it tough going xx

Hi Linda to be honest I don't do any exercises any more as have been on the go day in day our so by the time I get in I'm exhausted...knee is doing well though bend not as good as other leg but I'm not expecting it to ever be like new...is almost straight when standing too so happy with results...be prepared to still be tired though...its 6 months for me now and still quite tired....in fact one afternoon I nearly fell asleep in class!

Hi Clarkey1962. My emotional state is as worrying as my physical state at the moment. I am very emotional, which is pretty normal, I cry at the drop of a hat at the best of times but this is usually for a reason - at the moment I'm bursting into tears for no reason whatsoever - it is very strange! But, the pain and the not sleeping are all taking a toll I think - I was so unprepared for this. I wish I'd got onto this forum and read up before I started this journey. Thanks for your input. Much appreciated. 

Sorry for my silence - internet data issues. Thanks for the advice. You are right, my employer would prefer a block absence rather than present and then away again. To tell the truth I know I could not do it atm. I'm still not sleeping and wonder if I will ever get a night's sleep again! I'm so emotional too - burst into tears when I saw my GP about another matter on Thursday. All he did was ask me how I was....he offered me happy pills, which I refused!

I am assuming you are still taking pain meds to some extent. If not, I suspect t you quit too soon and all at once which can be a problem. I have taken pain meds to some extent for nearly 13 years and yet I can quit within a few days by planning. I am one month today, walking with a cane and in all honesty, doing too much

On top of that a late afternoon storm tore a 20' + long limb off a tree. So by planning I know it has to be gone by monday morning as that's when the lawn care people show. Also it's going to be mid 90's a high humidity

So early,I'll take a pain pill then sunrise or a little later I'll take a third of the branches and quit

, shower and eat and rest. Then later evening cut the other in half after taking more pAIN MEDS. Again I'll shower, have dinner early take a max dose of meds. Mom morn I'll pull the Damn thing to the drive and notify the city to bring the books. I'm moving and omplishing but not spinning my wheels xand making myself more miserable and I'll cut back on meds for several days until home health PT comes, medicate, excercise and rest. Look for the combination of working to Accomplish and not be frustrated. All the time slugging huge quantitles of water which keeps everything lubricated. I will be staying away from the harem as there is no need for taking chances of getting hurt and I besides, they can wait. Try to add a little humor in your life to break the chain of hurting mentally. Rest when you are tired and don't worry about the time of day. Take it when you can get it. That will relieve your mind and body of straining for sleep. Your body k owe best so listen to it. Don't listen and it's like coming in at 3 a.m. with alcohol on your breath and lipstick on your collie and trying to a plain you've got caught up in a very intimated revival meeting and during communion someone.got caught up by the spirit and jumped up knocking the wine all over you and then was so into her fellow man which caused the lipstick when she starting embracing every one......and....I was just the closest to this person catching the brunt of the rapture...........

You've worn yourself out, are wide awake and haven't convinced anybody

of anything except you're a bit mad. Remember...

Rest when the opportunity presents itself....do t foght

Hi Pam I was interested in your post. I am 55 and have had knee trouble for many years since a sports injury in my late 20's. I had surgery then and the knee was never100%. I had tkr 5 weeks ago and for some reason the quad on the operated side refuses to activate. I am still unable to lift my foot when sitting and am doing muscle stim and all kinds of other exercises to try and restore the function. Did you have the same issue with your quad? Additionally my benefits provider would like me to go back to work this coming monday...however my surgeon has given me 8 weeks at this point..and I am not feeling ready. As someone else posted some days I am all over the place emotionally..especially frustrated with myself and glacial paced progress. Thanks

Don't be down on yourself.... This is just another one of those strange quirks that go with the surgery. Maybe you could check with with a therapist and see if a different excercise could be introduced. One additional possibility, slow down the entire stretching process, holding each rep to a longer count. All you need is that one slight connect a d you're on your way. As long as you can delay

Going back to work, do it. You can't heal properly when you are tired. Also, increase your fluids. Sometimes we get busy and forget the obvious. Even slightly dehydrated soft tissue can't stretch. You may be doing a pretty good job of drinking but just add several glasses of water daily to your intake

Thanks..I am willing to try anything. Someone said that they despair of feeling like their "old self" and that is certainly how I feel at the moment. If I had known what I know now I would not have had the surgery, but will perservere and look for that improvement.

I would say you fall in the 75-80% of those who, like me, had absolutely no choice. Generally speaking, the people who are having the most difficult times are ones that were just given the general overview of the pain and revovery time without getting the story of h ow intense the pain would be. Surgeons jobs are to cut you up, put you back together and leave the rest to someone else.Unfortunately we don't see those someone else's unroll the surgeons have struck. Having gone thru this opening and closing part 5 times I can assure you doesn't get much easier, you just know a little more of what to expect. I know of no one that has been advised that their will be some pretty nasty emotional side effects and the feeling that you are having is all too common. Soon you will start hearing family and friends relating all those stories of the miracle 3 day wonders that have it done on Tuesday and are out dancing Saturday night. That's all hearsay and those stories just have a tendency to pull you down. Tell 'em to take a hike and you'll catch up with them when you feel better. As so many on here have said, this isn't a 1p0 meter dash, it's a 26 mi marathon. Iron man competition at its finest. You'll go through this phase, feel better then as something else is starting to heal, there will be another bite in the butt. These things come and go...some come back and go again. In the meantime, you are getting better, stronger and more convinced you did the right thing. Don't use these short term periods as benchmarks. Look back from a 3 month interval, then 6. Complete healing may take a year and I bet no Dr ever told you that. Stay with this forum. People change but empathy and good information stay consistent. This is my 11th surgery on this leg. I am hurt and right now I'd rather be in bed but I'm with my leg in ice because I overdid it today. Pain pills and ice and tomorrow I'll have forgotten about today's dumb stunt and probably do something equally as stupid. We'll heal in our own time and way but we will heal. Good luck and don't be timid about expressing yourself. We're spread all over the world ( I'm from the middle part of the US) but as close as next door neighbours, maybe closer.

I cudnt lift my foot independently for about 3 weeks following op, and worried that something was seriously wrong, then all of a sudden I cud do it!. My quad muscles are getting stronger, my exercise bike has been my saviour, but progress is so slow. I also don't like the inconsistency, for  a couple of days you really feel like you're making progress, only to be seemingly knocked backwards for the next couple of days. I've learnt that when I feel good I dont then do too much......it's a vicious circle! I had physio (torture!) yesterday - it feels good at the time, but it's hell this morning lol!

But.......onwards and upwards!! 

Thanks Pam. I am hoping that I will have that surprise one day soon...because, like you, I am wondering if something is seriously wrong. The professionals - physios - that I have spoken to say this is something that happens very rarely. Great if I was buying a winning lottery ticket but not so much for this type of thing! My Dr is back from vacation August 13th so am looking forward to seeing him then. I'll be 8 weeks post op by that time and really hope to have real progress. My knee is also extremely tight so can't use the bike properly as yet.

your handle should be oldsmartguy! Thanks this was exactly what I needed to hear. I'm in Ontario, Canada, but people and reactions seem to be the same the world over. You're right that they don't tell you all the ins and outs and each person will progress at their own rate. Leaving the physio last week there was some guy ...about 15 years older than me..2 weeks post op (still had his darn staples in) riding the stationary bike then swinging his legs off the table...I was not thinking kind thoughts his way .

Hi Pam

Likewise, I wonder if I will ever a) get a night's sleep again and b) ever be me again and c) ever walk properly again. Admittedly I'm not quite 6 weeks out from surgery but, never having had major surgery before, I was not ready for this!! Thanks. 

You're great - I love your posts to everyone and value what you say. Thanks.