Total knee replacement
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Hi im jason im 43 year old who just had a tkr on right knee on the 11th of april 2017 ,just wondering if what im feeling is normal ,im so depressed ,was suffering major depression before the op now im 100 times worse ,im stuck in a lying down position all day and night i cant lift my leg at all i cant tense my quad muscle i can bend it at all when im walking around on a frame the pain is unbearable,it feels like its going to collapse,when i try to bend it it feels like its going to snap and the back of my leg from my bum to my calf is black with bruising ,im trying to do the exercises but cant manage anything,is this a normal experience to be feeling,has any one got any advice or have had the same experience,im so concerned about it
0 likes, 74 replies
dolores84206 Guest
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Guest dolores84206
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jenny80029 Guest
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Are you going to have some physiotherapy? They will probably be helpful with respect to the exercising. It is MEGA hard to exercise in the first month particularly. Try not to feel bad if you don't feel you are able to do much. It really is hard. Your poor knee is very upset and try to kind to it. It's VERY early days.
Guest jenny80029
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CHICO_MARX Guest
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When you go in, notice the hidden clues of a medieval dungeon master theme. Subtle things like the cowl on the PT of the Iron Maiden in the corner. A PT named Igor would be a helpful clue.
Be prepared...this is NOT easy!!! To break down the scar tissue, they literally put your heel on a block of wood and push down on your knee. Remember the chest-waxing scene from The 40-Year Old Virgin? Worse... Not trying to scare you but be prepared. Took me 10 weeks at 2x/wk to go from -14 / +84 to -1 / +123. Really tough but worth it in the end. Just scream "Kelly Clarkson!!!" "Richard Nixon!!!". It helps...
Michelle3101 Guest
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Hiya. I'm a 40year old and I Had mine Right TKR on the 8th March. I was completely unprepared for the emotional roller coaster I was flung on, I'm not sure if we feel it more so being younger?!. Hang in there, it is very very early days for you. Also if you feel the medication/pain relief is not working please ring your gp and ask to be seen or a phone consultation at the very least. Ice will be your new best friend, I was icing approximately for 20 minutes every waking hour and throughout the night when I couldn't sleep. I'm 10 wks post op today and I managed to return to work yesterday, I'm not convinced I was physically ready but mentally I was going insane. Day off today and I'm resting/icing etc.
Good luck, you will find this forum a huge huge help.
Michelle
CHICO_MARX Michelle3101
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Again, read the Post-Op Depression section...
https://patient.info/forums/discuss/the-tkr-experience-or-wish-i-had-another-kidney-stone--524499
TOTALLY NORMAL! Encountered it for the first time when I had my hip replaced in '09. After hospital and rehab, I cried uncontrollably for three days. Called my doctor cousin. "Oh? They didn't tell you about post-op depression?" WHAT??? Once I knew what it was, I kicked its a$$ in 24 hours.
Returning to work in 10 weeks is a big gamble. Very few pull that off. Most are wrecks when they get home because of swelling and pain. Six months is very common and usually very successful. Anything less (as soon as 3 months) is all individual and may or may not work. You not only have to have your ROM back but you have to have all the strength back in your legs, glutes and hips. This comes from a lot of gym or home exercise time and cannot be rushed (the knee swells again and sets you back).
Here's the post-PT exercise program...
https://patient.info/forums/discuss/post-tkr-exercising-565527
Enjoy. I hope your return to work is the exception to the rule.
Oldfatguy1 Guest
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I guess I read this correctly, you are only 9 days out and starting to question your healing process. Let all of us assure you, you are in your infancy stage and have a long way to go. Immediately start making sure you are on pain meds as scheduled. Without these you can do not do your excercise and without out exercise you wont heal. Don't let anyone, drs, therapists, family or friends set timetables as we are all individuals and heal differently. Take into consideration the damage that was done to you during this surgery. Cutting of soft tissue, severing of nerves, bone being chiseled and drilled, a 3 pound foreign object cemented in place then stitched, stapled ,glued and bounced around. Then you wonder why you are in pain and depressed. I appears that your surgeon, no matter his skill level, wasn't open with you as to what you might have expected. In have had numerous surgeries including 3 separate prosthesis and 5 complete rehabs on one leg. All are different and none were without frustrations. Scroll through and look at the well thought out words of Chico Marx. He breaks it down eloquently (as much as can be expected from a Texan transplant with New Joisey roots. Those from the US will understand that reference). Hang in there. You are in a new world that only the elite understand. I started this trek at age 65 and turned 80 in Feb. My problem was a rare tumor that blew up and has caused 15 years of grief. I'm a rarity and should be used as a reference point but nevertheless, pain and recovery are a part of my life. Hang I'with time and m there...it will improve and with time and effort you will recover.
BTW..you've come to the right spot. Everyone here knows what you are going through and will do everything possible to help you get back on your feet as quickly as possible
Guest Oldfatguy1
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terri59470 Guest
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Not sure if Ive got my timings right, but I "think" its morning for you at the moment - just wanted to say good luck at your appointment, and dont let him end your appointment until youve asked all your questions! My surgeon knows me now, I WILL have a notebook and I WONT be shaking his hand (his way of ending the appt) until theyre all ticked off
Hope you have a good day, and that each day gets a little easier.
CHICO_MARX Oldfatguy1
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You're right...and 9 days out is the PERFECT time to get hit by the post-op depression. Very, very typical.
Eizie Oldfatguy1
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CHICO_MARX Eizie
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Eizie CHICO_MARX
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I must say Mr Chico Marx now that I'm becoming more myself and I'm 12 weeks post bilateral TKR, I so appreciate your humor. You are just what the doctor ordered!😆😆😆
CHICO_MARX Eizie
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Bi-lateral... You're waaaaay braver than I am. Still have one to go. I have no idea how you did that. I was a puddle of protoplasm the first few weeks. Youzeguyz are the real heroes on this forum!!!
Eizie CHICO_MARX
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Hey I know myself well enough that I know I wouldn't have gone through it again!!😳 I'm old (64) but not too old, so the surgeon said okay.🤣
CHICO_MARX Eizie
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I'll be 70 next year...still wouldn't do it. One at a time...
Eizie CHICO_MARX
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Too each his peach!🍑
Eizie
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chris00938 Eizie
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I wish I'd been able to do it Elzie. I might have sailed through both then like I have the first one LOL! Did both of yours feel the same as in pain level and movement level, being done together?
Eizie chris00938
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Chris, the pain level and movement are different. Left knee seems to be doing better than right. Before surgery the left knee was worse so I favored the right a lot. So I'm assuming I made my right knee worse. Now my left knee after surgery is feeling better and less problems. Where my right knee seems to be healing slower and much more nagging pain. Hopefully all will even out in the end!! But at least they're both done!! I'm so looking forward to this "journey" being completed!! Have a good healing day!
chris00938 Eizie
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That was so useful to know - thanks Elzie!!!!! Yes, I think it's brilliant that you've got them both done so as you're healing you know it's the light at the end of the tunnel for you!:-)))))) It really is exciting! You have a good healing day too!
Eizie chris00938
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Thank you Chris! I so wish for you to "sail" ??through your next surgery. ??🙏
sooverthis Eizie
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I also had bilateral TKR. I am 6 weeks out today and everything is going great except I am only bending to 103* and my PT would like 110*. I reminded her that I was about 80* when I started this process! I am 66 and it took me 15 years and my doctor saying that I would not be walking in 6 months to get my surgery done. I knew I would only do it once and so did he, so both knees at same time was it. Both knees have responded differently and it seems like each day is different. Iam riding a bike for 10 minutes and swimming 5 laps (kinda) which feels great. I did all of my exercises in the pool yesterday and the swelling seemed to go down in my knees. I am glad I only have to do this once! So tired of being tied to my house, tired and sitting. I am ready to have this project over and move on. Can't imagine doing it twice!
CHICO_MARX sooverthis
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All bilaterals are heroes on this forum as almost all of us just don't have the guts to do it. Bravo!!! Yes, swimming and doing your exercises in the water is absolutely the best thing you can do. Rehabbed a full hip replacement in the water in SIX WEEKS!!! Great choice.
PS: Tell your PT to chill out. You will get to 0 / +120 when you get there...and not a moment sooner. Yes, it's all about the scar tissue but meet that challenge on your own terms. Push yourself and keep doing the work...you will get there!!!
Oldfatguy1 CHICO_MARX
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Agreed...it work, I've never seen a whale having to have a tkr.
Eizie sooverthis
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Sooverthis, I do agree with you. Never would I have attempted this twice. I'm 12 weeks out and feeling better pain wise and getting a little more sleep. But the bend is a "pain in the knee". I started st 70 but only at 110 with pain. Yuk! Want to be normal again but I understand with new knees we should call it a "new normal" we must adjust to!!🍀🙏
sooverthis Eizie
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So , are they worried that yo aren't at 120 yet? I DO want to be norml, but each day has a milestone. Think the pool work will help, it did help me sleep last night! I am doing everything in PT with flying colors; 15 min on bike, side steps, heel toes, stairs, squats, bands, leg machine, its just my damn knees don't want to go past 103. I did remind her I started at less than 80 before surgery. Hope you have less pain tomorrow! That is what I continue to hope for!
sooverthis CHICO_MARX
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Eizie sooverthis
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Sooverthis, I get the impression they'd be happy with 110 if it's easy for me and not forcing it with pain. What PT is doing now is concentrating on getting my knee straighter. Apparently it isn't what it should be. We were concentrating so much on the bend it seems. We shall see.
CHICO_MARX sooverthis
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That "band" feeling, tightness, clicking, popping, clunking and more can continue 12-18 months post-op. Those things go away in time...a lot of time. I'm 13+ months and still not strong because of my back surgery. I'll get there...so will you. Wish I had a pool near me...
Oldfatguy1 Eizie
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Bend is important but not nearly as important as straight. Unless the leg is at or near 0 the better the chance of having a limp permanently. Try slowing down your entire process. Take longer, more natural studies hitting the heel then ball of the foot, toe and completely the stride with a full bend. If you feel uncomfortable with this at qst, use a cane for balance in the opposite hand (tkr on left, cane in r. Hand). You will get some strange looks doing this out in public and the brain will be telling you to hurry up, you don't have all day but the end results will pay off eventually. Be sure and walk this way with both legs otherwise you'll feel like you are kind of pulling yourself along instead of actually walking.
One other exercise for straight: lay on your back with head elevated about the height of a pillow. Roll up a bath towel and put it under your ankle so its 2-3 inches off the bed. Starting with the quad muscle being tightened by squeezing the muscle and while using the muscles force the entire leg dowbeard toward the bed. Hold for count of 5 and repeat 10 times...repeat twice. As you progress over time add to the hold time repeat numbers up to 15. Gradually add so you are doing 2 sets. One thing that Dr s. And therapists often forget to emphasize, hydrate. Poorly hydrated tissue doesn't have the elasticity that well hydrated tissue has. Without elaticity, you can't get the stretch you need if you do this daily you will be amazed at how soon you will take a couple degrees out of the straightenening process. Ice immediately as with other exercises. My last surgery. (The 11th) was to put in a new prothesis after having the other one removed due to staph. Its a rather nasty process. They go in and remove the hardware, clean, scrape and flush the opening. Then a plastic spacer that has a form of cement filled with antibiotics is put in place with a piece of stainless steel wire that has loops that go inside the bone where the stem of the prosthesis normally goes. They then put some packets of antibiotics in the opening before stitching you shut. The leg is wrapped from from groin to ankle and a soft cast with Velcro closures is used as its necessary to clean the wound and change the dressing once a week. Now for the next 4 months you are dragging yourself around on a walker not being allowed to either bend more than 20 % and only toe touch is allowed for weight bearing. Next a PICC line is placed in your arm and you start vancomycin infusion twice a day, every day for 8 weeks. After that, its back to surgery for your new hardware and the rehab starts all over. In my case, 2 days after the surgery I was at-1 for straight and never lost ground. Unfortunately I've been cut on so many times plus 30 rounds of radiation that I've been told I'll always have a weakness and limp and will probably always need an opiate pain killer. In case you might have missed my original diagnosis, in Sept of 2002 I had a rare tumor condition called PVNS surface and they can't completely eliminate it because there is a small fragment that is located in a cluster of nerves and its too dangerous to mess with it. Strong possibility that I could lose my leg if a little glitch occurred during surgery. I was very fortunate as I was 65 when this blew. Normal age is from teens to mid 40's. My surgeon told me last month he was going to do a tkr on a kid 36 y/o with the same disease. He had already had 3 synovectomies and all the cartilage was long gone.
Didn't mean to bore you with a long drawn out story but you never know what the human body has hiding from you. BTW, I'm now 80 and hope I'm through with surgeries on the knee
sooverthis CHICO_MARX
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You have a a go of it! You are the bionic man! After reading all you have had I realized that I shouldn't complain. I don't have any issues except the tighness and "band" feeling. My knees hurt because of this, but the insides feel so much better. My knees have hurt for 15 years. I was a college gymnast and they were toast. I haven't walked up stairs normally for 10 years. I am so looking forward to being able to be normal. Was a bit aghast when found out that recovery goes beyond 6 weeks. Haha, I am reconciled with it now, but that was tough for me when I got the reality check. I will just keep doing what I'm doing and then some to get better. Do you have an LA Fitness near you. I belong to that and swam a 1 1/2 a day before surgery because I couldn't walk. I am a water baby (at 66) and couldn't wait to get back in and rehab. Yesterday was my first day in the water and it felt so good. Made me tired too, so I slept for 4 hours straight! Yea! Will send good thoughts you heal quickly.
sooverthis Oldfatguy1
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OMG! You have had a time of it! My straight is fine. I was a college gymnast many moons ago and still stretch, point my toes and touch the floor. When asked to stand on incline and stretch my calves they decided I didn't need to do that exercise at PT! Able to everything they ask of me, but the bend of the knee. It will come! I hope you don;t have to have any more surgeries! For me this was my first and I hope my last!
CHICO_MARX sooverthis
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Four and a half pounds of metal in me...more to come. I'm the TSA's worst nightmare at the airport...
Oldfatguy1 CHICO_MARX
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They seem impervious to the amounts and location any more. 1st time I flew after my 1st one I took the card and letter from the Dr. the act just handed it back and told me to go stand over there and the guy with the wand would be with me in a minute. Thatnwas the last time I bothered with documentation. Airports are all different in their approach. Denver, Atlanta and LAX were the most cautious. Internationally, Amsterdam and Inchon, So Korea weren't much More than a nod. Whatever, you have to prepare for the worst and hope for the best at airport security. Not a good place to practice your stand up comedy routine as they are a tough audience.
Oldfatguy1 sooverthis
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Continue to slow down and practice the walk. You'll be surprised how it helps the entire process. BTW, where are you located. I'm I live in a suburb of Kansas City
chris00938 sooverthis
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Sooverthis - my goodness it sounds as though you've done SO SO well!!!! That sounds brilliant. I'm 7 weeks and only just building up to 10 minutes on the bike and only had one done. And I reckon I'm doing fabulously LOL! So I am well impressed with your recovery! Just keep up those bending exercises and I can't see why you won't get there:-))))
martinarvelo sooverthis
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Physios are so full of themselves! at six weeks I was only 85, and got rid of the physio . . Maybe it took a me a little longer, but I got to 135 by about 6 months. .quite happy with that. , . . and not more extreme agony after saying byeee to the physio, just average bearable pain. and perseverance. Having both done at the same time. . I just can't imagine it! bravo!
sooverthis martinarvelo
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Thanks for the encouragement! On my way to the pool now to "do my thing"!