When I go to bed my knee feels like a dead weight.
Posted , 8 users are following.
I'm 6 weeks post op and progressing well,but my knee just ses so heavy when I go to bed and if I do manage to settle I only get a few hours sleep and then restless for rest of night. Is this normal?.. Will this heavy feeling go away?
0 likes, 11 replies
yve20637 Pepperpot68
Posted
i feel exactly the same ( only 4 weeks post op). The lack of sleep gets me down.
linda_50869 Pepperpot68
Posted
Well I'm 18 months post op and I've learned to accept that my knee will always feel different. it used to feel like a brick .....now it just feels.....heavy....it is heavy....its made of titanium and plastic and it's cemented in! however it works and is less painful than my old one so.....you'll get used to it ....best of luck
alison42818 Pepperpot68
Posted
Hi, I'm 8 weeks post tkr and its just getting a little better now helps not having to sleep on your back like your layed out to rest. Keep up with your progress.
Alison
larive Pepperpot68
Posted
HI,
Yes this is normal .It is difficult to get comfortable in bed for the first few months but it eventually settles . As you recover and the muscles etc around your new joint strengthen the feeling of heaviness lessens considerably . I am now 11 months post bilateral total knee replacements . I still get a bit of tightness and swelling towards the end of the day but now sleep well . I am not aware of the joints feeling heavy BUT i'm not sure if this is because I had both mine replaced at the same time so I don''t have a comparison? for me getting back to work and into a routine helped with sleeping
good luck
CHICO_MARX Pepperpot68
Posted
Yes, this is normal...and yes, this feeling will go away. You are only a mere six weeks into a year-long recovery. Accept it...embrace it. Fighting against it is useless and tiresome. Be Zen: The knee will be healed when the knee is healed...period.
Some sleep tips...
Sleeping After a TKR
Things return to normal very slowly and cannot be rushed (like a hip). Push the knee and it expands like a balloon. You just have to do this once to learn the lesson...we all did. Concentrate on the ROM for the first 90 days and then to the exercise program that rebuilds your dead quads, glutes and core. Very important and cannot be skipped. Time, work and patience...
purplerlover CHICO_MARX
Posted
I go to bed every night with my ice cooler. I fall asleep with it on. It shuts off, when I get up several hours later I refresh the water bottles and go back to sleep. Not perfect but works really well for me. Ice is your friend.
I am at 6 months. I can just now lift my leg into the tub without it feeling like 50#'s of cement. Now now it only feels like 25#'s.
Hang in there it will get better. Hopefully sooner than 6 months for you.
CHICO_MARX purplerlover
Posted
I had a great cooler machine. Loaded it up at 11 pm while the extra packs refroze. Lasted to 6 am and then swapped. Elevated all night with the ice machine on. Did that for a good 3+ months. The machine was a life saver.
At 6 months, You are hopefully well into the exercise program to rebuild your dead quads, glutes and core. Once you are strong again, the pain subsides quicker and you set yourself up for a great one year ann-knee-versary.
purplerlover CHICO_MARX
Posted
I wish..... Just found out I have tilted pelvis and Patella is not tracking which explains why I am so slow in my progress. And pain is still bad. I hate thetourniquet pain. Surgeon took the xray you suggested Chico , which he said was a waste of time ,to discover these 2 things. My insurance gave me 2 more PT appointments. They are teaching me other exercises to do. But I will have to fight my insurance for anymore. Thing is as I progress ever so slowly I need to do more advanced exercises. If my insurance cuts me off I won't know what exercises to do next. But I am NOT giving up.
I just hope the exercises will be enough and I won't have to have surgery to fix it. I will NOT go through this Hell again.
CHICO_MARX purplerlover
Posted
You just have to hang in there. It's a year long recovery that takes time, work and a lot of patience. I completely rehabbed a new hip in six weeks...thought I could do the same with the knee. That brick wall I ran into hurt in a lot of ways. We've all been through it, although your patella issue is infrequently reported. Your ortho would have to address that.
However, a "tilted pelvis" can be addressed by a chiropractor. This is a very common condition among TKR patients as we subconsciously shift our weight to avoid pain. Hips and/or lower back go out of alignment, SI joints lock, sometimes the sciatic nerve gets pinched. I got my case of sciatica at 5 weeks...took my chiro a few weeks to get me realigned. You may want to consider it.
purplerlover CHICO_MARX
Posted
Chico I tried a chiropractor for 6 months and he actually hurt me. I kept telling him and he never changed. His machines didn't help much ether. I stopped going and started PT which actually helped me. Too afraid to try again unless there were a gentle Chiropractor.
Brendastar Pepperpot68
Posted
I am only 10 days out of TKR and I can't sleep because of that same feeling. I can't stand that feeling. What do we do?