Weakness

Hi

Sorry it is difficult to explain these feelings, I suppose I mean like jelly leg, Down to my foot, no strength and I was worried I'm loosing muscle control.

So do I ease off or keep on with the extra excercises ?

Sue x

My knee feels exactly like this. I'm 10 weeks following patellafemoral replacement. Knee very stiff, tight, and I too have problems with quads. Physio given me exercices to try and "wake up quad", sounds ridiculous I know, but that's what he's told me. You begin to wonder if knee will ever feel right again. And I'm still not able, or confident, to drive. All in all a real pain in the ....!  Just got to be patient, roll on good weather when we can sit outside and let a bit of warmth get to our knees! I thank God for this forum everyday because until I found it it seemed like it was only happening to me. I know I get to speak to others with same issues when attending my group Physio classes, but there's not enough time to go into any detail. Perhaps hospitals could think about setting up groups with people who have been through this sort of thing, we could then go and pick their brains about their experience. Medical people are wonderful, but unless they've been through it themselves they've no real idea of how it affects your day to day life, and the dark thoughts that come during the sleepless hours of the night.

Okay, yes, I remember that jelly feel, though it was much earlier in the process. My PT said to work through it. It was more of a mental game and he would watch me walk and he said I was walking funny. But it was the walk I'd become accustomed to. So I had to really think each step out. And I'd have to force myself to walk faster. After 7 months, I still enjoy a more leisurely stroll, then my brisk walk of years gone by. Are you going up and down stairs? By 6 weeks I was slowly doing that (after a bilateral TKR). I had seen a video showing a lady who'd had TKR and she bounced down the stairs, but at a side way step. I thought, "Heck with that, I want to go up and down stairs like a normal person." So I pushed myself, working on that stretch and those muscles and now I'm doing it just like I did 10 years ago. Though, there isn't quite a bounce in my step. All that to say, pretty sure this is normal and you need to keep pushing yourself. I even grabbed onto the handrail and made myself do some modified squats. This actually helped with some tightness too. Pretend you are a ballerina.

I've become accustomed to my way of walking too. I'm only 56 but have waited 11 years for an op because I was considered too young before. For the last 11 years I've worn an elastic knee support which although it enabled me to carry on working, it did the job of my muscles......which have now decided to go on strike!  Just got to.keep working at it I suppose but it is so frustrating.

As for being a ballerina - even I can't pretend that much lol! Thank you for your advice though, it is much appreciated.

Pam, you've got me beat on the waiting game. I only waited 9 years (I just turned 51). About 5 months before the surgery (on my 50th birthday weekend), I pushed myself too far and couldn't walk without a severe limp. My aunt and mom both cautioned me that I needed to be careful as to how that would mentally challenge me. So I jumped in a swimming pool and started walking in there. But it wasn't easy to right away leave the limp behind. Each time I got in I'd have to retrain my brain to trust that it was going to be okay. And it was. So, after my surgery (though not in the pool) I had to play the same mental game. It's amazing what our minds do for and to us.

As far as the knee feeling right again...I'm so done with the awkward numbness. I can't really tell if it's decreasing or not, though one leg it doesn't seem to go down as far, so maybe. But, I'm walking and standing and able to do things that I've not been able to do for years, and if that's what I have to settle for, it's not such a bad deal.

I am astounded at how these doctors refuse to do TKR because of age. To allow patients to suffer pain for all those years, not to mention the impact on your quality of life, when you should be in your prime,is morally wrong. I was uninsured so had to wait 2 years which was hell (Australia). Then I ended up borrowing the money & paying for it & had both done at once. It is so wonderful to be able to walk without pain again, although still dealing with the various discomforts that they throw at you on this recovery journey. I am 68 yrs young, & feel like I have some of my youth back since having the surgery.

Sarndra, I couldn't agree with you more. I finally decided the heck with waiting, I can't. And I'm so glad. And wow, when I hear of some of the newer procedures that are being done (one person recently posted from Australia) I think that if I need another bilateral in 20 years, there will be some more great advances and perhaps less invasive procedures (one can hope, can't they?). Oh well. It was what it was. And at 51 I'm looking forward to doing things I've not been able to do in the past 10 years!