Update - Manual bend under anastetic

lyrica has been mentioned here many times and my doc prescribed it too. i started on saturday and will be gradually be building up the dose as it is supposedly great for nerve endings and - total bonus if you ask me - also acts as a bit of a happy pill according to the leaflet. as of today i take it twice a day and i am feeling quite groovy at the moment :-)

i have to keep telling myself that i want to fly to bali next year. with a 120 degree bend. "bali - bali - bali" is my new mantra :-)

hope your sleep keeps improving. sleep is sooo important! apparently the most healing gets done during the night when we sleep. perhaps some herbal sleep remedy?

Hi Britta, I'm liking the sound of Lyrica, can you buy it over the counter or would I need to see the doctor. My nerve endings could certainly do with something. Love from tucks

hi tucks ... no, you can't buy it across the counter in switzerland, you may be able in the uk but i doubt it.  we have started with a low dose and are building up every second day until i am on the full wack by the time of the manual bend. it is quite powerful stuff, i feel like i have taken a happy pill sometimes. i read it is also very effective for anxiety.  and of course i have PLENTY of that in prep of november 4.  so great all around.

when i went to the chemist, they were sold out!  not sure what this is being given out for ... there cannot be that many TKR's in the small place i live in, surely??

hi lisa ... my heart goes out to you. it is so frustrating, isn't it, we go in with the hope that things will get better - making all the suffering worth it - and then this! what do you put the poor bend down to? did you get physio? one of the ladies on here really, really gave me food for thought. she said she did the exercises about 8 times a day. this would explain why she has an excellent bend. i did mine twice a day if all went well. put me to shame!! but then again, the pain was so bad, it was hard to motivate myself.

my surgeon tells me that the manual bend has to be done within 3 months of the operation, after that he considers it too risky. so my thoughts are with you and please update us on what your surgeon tells you.

i have definitely learned a lot for when i have my second one done, that's for sure! good luck, lisa!

Hi there Lisa . So sorry about your bend its quite low at the stage your at. I don't nessisarily feel you have underdone your excersises . I have only done mine 3times a day and when the pain got to bad I left them off for a couple of days. I had a bend of97 first day post op and 107 on my first visit to physio, on the second visit it was 127 and I was discharged. I can ow walk nearly 3/4 of a mile each day. Somedays my leg aches so much I give it a rest for a couple of days. Now I only do excersise 2a day. I do feel for you the op is bad enough to put up with without having this extra problem  there must be a reason and I would get to see your surgeon ASAP. We all heal differently regardless of age so don't feel you have let yourself down. It's one thing after another isn't it, I feel as if this knee has taken over my life if I'm not sitting cursing it I am sitting crying over it lol. Wish you well and do so hope you get it sorted soon love from tucks

hi carol in perth (my favorite city in australia!!) -- so this is really interesting. despite having lyrica since the get-go, your bend is 80? see, here's me thinking that if i had taken it from day one, i would be much more advanced and would have been able to work through the pain?! what's the story behind your relatively low bend?

i went to the physio in my doctor's practice yesterday and she did completely different exercises with me and reckons i have a 90 degree bend. every extra degree bend will help me next week. she was brutally honest with me and told me i will be in a lot of pain next week which scares me and reduces me to self-pitying tears. i feel like i will be going back to square one!

i wish you the best of luck, carol, and a big, big dose of courage for both of. as far as i am concerned, they could just knock me out for three days while i get past the worst.

Aaww, Britta, I hope you can try these new exercises at home and hopefully your bend will improve enough to prevent you needing the manipulation procedure. Thinking of you. Jen x

Hi Britta. As you say, every little degree helps. I think you are entitled to self pitying tears!  It is the thought of the unknown that scares me the most and I know I am only having swelling drained, it still scares the hell out of me.  I have been told by my GP that it is "uncomfortable". Someone else who had swelling drained said it hurt a lot and he was in tears throughout the procedure! I really don't envy you with the manual manipulation, but you seem such a strong person I'm sure you will give it your all. Even after the drain, I may still have to have the manipulation - yikes!!! I will be thinking of you on the 4th while my consultant is torturing me with the drainage. All the best for next week - you never know these new exercises might give you enough extra bend to not have to go through manipulation.  Here's hoping!😉xx

Aaww, Ruby, poor you too. Hopefully the drainage will not be as bad as you fear. Good luck, will be thinking about you too on the 4th. Jen x

Hey Britta, wouldn't that be great? Knocked out but on the continuous bending machine for 3 days. The hospital I had my op done they stopped using the machine 7 years ago. Although they must still have them as my surgeon kept wanting to use it on me, the physio kept saying no.

I honestly don't know why my bend is so bad, I did swell up hugely though! 

I'M seeing my physio next Friday, so hopefully the bend will be better.

Seeing the Stones tomorrow night, on crutches and a seat!

Regards Carol

Wow! Exciting seeing the Stones. Watch you don't twist the knee if you get on your feet for a bop! 😄 . Let us know how it goes. 

wow, well that concert will be amazing! lucky for them that they never needed TKR otherwise they wouldn't be rocking at their age ;-)

i know, oldfatguy tells me they have mothballed the bendy machines eons ago. but in this particular case, i.e. having the knee bent, how else will they keep the knee moving 48 hours non-stop after the bending? the physio can't do that. and i wonder what made other countries give up the bendy machine? and what makes switzerland keep them? would you mind asking your physio why she/he is against it? just out of sheer curiosity (mine) really :-) all these questions! but i am guessing we all get there eventually.

hmmm, mine was like a block of wood. i couldn't sit on the edge of the bed and let my leg hang down. i was in acute pain. the muscles at the back of my thigh were screaming. it took ages and ages for them all to relax. i was just doing some exercising now, sitting on the edge of the table, and noticed "hey!, no pain!!"

fingers crossed for a better bend for you next week!

Britta, I did ask the physio, she said that rather than the machines giving the knee a "memory" to bend, they didn't.

I must admit that at the time the last thing I wanted was a machine making my knee bend. Really I just wanted to be left alone. Now I'm not so sure.

How long is your scar? Mine is 22cms long and I had 45 staples.

Wouldnt it be good if we could post pics on here?

Good luck with your surgeon

Hello to both of you 

I took photos of my ugly scar  at different stages I'm now just over 7 weeks post op

the first photo made me feel sick it was so ugly

i had no staples just one long stitch which  dissolved.

the scar is now amazing  just a thin line my knee is still swollen and bruised but I'm really happy with the scar.

It definitely would be good to swap photos ....as this site is brilliant for the advice and encouragement we get from others 

keep smiling 

Jean 

Hi. my scar is quite long and I also had loads of staples. Like Jean, I couldn't look at it as I felt sick and as for touching it YUK!!  I am nearly 12 weeks now and although the scar is long, it is just a thin pale pink line.  I have recently been rubbing Bio Oil into it as it is supposed to help fade it.  Well, I don't know yet but it has made me feel better lol.  I also took pics of it and looking back at some of them, it's amazing how different it looks.  Sometimes it's hard to believe that that thin long line has and is still causing so much pain 😀 xx

You are so right Ruby 

i too use bio oil  whether it's better than anything else I wouldn't like to say

i just wish the knee worked as good as the scar looks ...lol

it's tight ...fat....and still bruised but I guess that will go in time.

as it's coming up to Winter I can always cover the knee with black tights.

ha! you just made me hunt down a measurng tape!!  my scar is 14cms long so i can only assume that you have much longer legs than i do ;-) mine is still quite pink and initially it was really fine, but has become a little bit wider over the last weeks.  no bumps, no swelling, no bruising.  so i am really pleased with what my doc did here.  he also used self disolving stiches which i am told is more time consuming that the staples.  i am not complaining.

interesting info re: bendy machine.  so next question: if you were to have the knee bent under anasthetic in the uk, what happens after that?  how do they ensure you keep the improved bend?  just exercising?  daily physio?  i really cannot put into words how terribly afraid i am.  i am definitely going to have to have a chat with my surgeon tomorrow re: medication, what and how much are we using post op?

there is an icon (far right) which is called upload an image.  i am assuming you can post a photograph using this?

jean ... i think you CAN upload a photograph.  see the last icon (far right) which is entitled "upload an image".  that should do the trick, no?

Thanks britta I just tried it but the pics come out really tiny 

it was just that someone said they wished you could put photos on here 

we were just discussing the scars at different stages but I imagine everyone notices the difference in the wound as the weeks progress.

i thought I'd turned a corner as I've been virtually pain free for a few days ...then "Bang" today is really bad again

i see my Surgeon tomorrow  so fingers crossed he will say things are progressing as they should 

Jean 

Yes, I am fairly tall, with long legs. My scar is a bit red and sore today. Even my PJs rub it. 

I honestly don't understand the operation to bend. My dread is that it will swell up again and be back to square one.

So, I suppose you are my guinea pig lol x

Hi Britta. I wonder why some of us get good bends straight and other struggle with them. Maybe it's to do with the surgeon and how he does the op,or is it the way our bodies react. Physios also seem to have there own ideas on what's best. Your doctor did well with you yesterday though. I wish you well my freind hope next week is not to traumatic to you. I will be thinking about you love from tucks. 11weeks tomorrow  xx

All the best for next week my freind its a hard road to recovery without these extra complications . Love tucks

Thanks for your support, Jen. I've probably built the scare factor up higher in my mind lol. Don't you find this rotten knee op has taken over your life? It has mine 😒.  I am determined that after 4th November - D Day(drainage day!!), I am going to just get on with my life and treat the knee as a nuisance that needs special exercises an nothing else lol.  On a side note, when everyone says they are doing exercises 3 or 4 times a day or whatever, is that one particular exercise each time or several 3 or 4 times a day?  I have been doing between 4 and 6 different exercises 2 or 3 times a day. Have I been doing it wrong? Is this why at 12 weeks I am only at 95 degree bend? 

Any advice would be gratefully received😊 xx

Aaww, Ruby, don't blame yourself, we've all had different advice on exercises it seems. I've found it hard for the physio to be precise on how many to do and how often. I've just added up and I was doing 13/14 different exercises 3 times a day but I gave up on that a few weeks ago and sort of spread them out, doing different ones at different times. I'm now concentrating on these hamstring strengthening ones which the physio told me to do once a day (they take about 45 mins) and I'm just doing a few basic ones as well once a day. I'm a bit obsessed I think, thinking that the exercises are the main thing to help me get back to normal but who says I'm right?! I found the best one for the bend is the one bending into the second step on the stair. I used to do that perhaps 4 or 5 times a day so maybe that will help you? I was lucky and my bend has come on well but we all have different problems. You've got to try and live a normal life too haven't you? So, if I were you, just do the odd exercise to help your bend whenever the opportunity arises. I'm sure you'll improve in time and, hopefully the drainage will help. Good luck,xx 

Oh my goodness - I have not benn doing enough😪. I thought I was doing ok.  Each exercise session consists of 10 straight leg pressing back of knee into bed and holding for count of 10; 20 squats; 20 stand to sit on chair; 20 knee bend slides; 10 knee bends sitting and bending op knee under chair and hold for count of 10; 20 standing knee bends - bending knee back and pointing heel towards backside and holding for count 10.  I also walk as much as I can. I have done the stair bends that you suggested and I will add them into the mix.  Thanks so much for your help and advice, Jen. I wish I had asked about exercise earlier, maybe my bend might be more than 95 by now.  Xxx

Don't beat yourself up, Ruby.  If you've been doing those 3 times a day that seems good to me. You've been doing 20 reps for a lot of them whereas, although I may have done more different ones, I was only doing 10 reps for each. We are all different too remember. Keep positive 👍 xxx

I just want to wish you all the best

keep your chin up x