I cant help because by then my knee was nit that painful and off all meds , I would see your specialist or gpI’m not very impressed by a lot of physios and its my opinion that they push people too much and over do it , I did really no physio just did my own thing at my pace and really had no problems ,if my knee was extra sore i rested it or just did gentle bending and pushing flat on bed .I cant see the sense in some physios forcing knees to bend when they are really swollen , and I have read that now some surgeons dont think you should overdo it before 6 weeks , I didnt both times , had hardly any swelling and by 8 weeks off all pain meds then I did go to pool and just walked , ask a doctor not a physio ,also can you take some nerve pain killers for a while like lyrica ? Dont just put up with it this doesnt sound right to me
Ask your PT when you can start increasing your step count. Yes, it’s painful and slow but you will need to gradually up your step count and track it. Get a fit bit or similar and chart your progress…great for your state of mind.
Next, you’ll need to rebuild your quads, glutes and core…the muscles that support the knee. This will take pressure off the joint and put it back on the muscles where it belongs. In time, you will have less knee pain, walk correctly, regain your valance and be able to do stairs alternately like you did before.
The whole thing usually takes a full year. Do the work, give the knee time to heal and be patient. A knee cannot be pushed but you do have to push yourself to achieve these goals.
I did keep walking, but not such huge distances as some others and I found that quite depressing too. As well as the knee pain, it created back and hip pain, which I have still. As Chico has said, I would stick with 20 minutes, but maybe gradually work up distance by lengthening stride and increasing speed so you cover more distance. That’s what I did and then got to 30 minutes by increasing my step count. I’m not yet at the point that I could go for a long walk, but that’s mainly back and hip rather than knee. Yesterday I spent a long time on my feet walking round a stately home and garden with many steps and steep slopes and my knee is quite sore again today, but I know now that it will improve again. I need to have the other done, as that leg is so crooked when compared to me new, straight leg and I’m hoping that will help the back and hip. We will get there, but slower than those who didn’t have knock knees.
My favourite mantra is ‘It’s not about waiting for the storm to pass, it’s about learning to dance in the rain’. When I’m feeling down I try to remember it, not always successfully I admit, but it does help me.
What a lovely mantra. THANK YOU.