15 weeks post TKR

Bones, joints and muscles
1

Knee is mending as well as can be expected, however i am now 15 weeks post TKR and throughout all off the 15 weeks i have always had pain after carrying out physio exercises (sometimes not a lot of exercises) with the intensity of the pain varying which can last from 1- 3 days. My question is this:-

1. Is the pain due to overdoing the physio exercise

2 Is the pain due to all the tissues, ligaments etc knitting together within the knee

3. A combination of 1. and 2.

At times even although i am in discomfort i try to carry out some physio exercises rather than resting my knee for a few days since i am afraid that if i do not carry out the exercises then my knee will not 100% heal completely.

Would like to hear other people experiences, for example has anyone had a 100% result with carrying out very little physio or just carrying out physio when the knee was pain free i.e. just let the knee heal in its own time. 

Although i know that my knee is healing as well as can be expected i am sooooo frustrated that when i want to push along to get back to my relative active lifestyle i seem to keep hitting  barriers in my recovery i.e. it appears my knee will recover in its own time no matter how much physio i try to do, Although i have been carrying out the physio for 15 weeks i am afraid not to carry out the physio as this may lead to not eventually a successful knee 

2

Do you take some pain relief medication before doing them?

That may be helpful.

Does the pain last a long time afterwards, i.e. longer than an hour?

3

To be honest I don't know. I know people who have done no physio because it's too sore and they can't bend their leg. I did not do my physio as much as I should have, I used to pretend to my husband is done it but hadn't. I did try every other day but it was really sore. My knee is great, I can fully straighten my leg and can squat. I can't kneel though, it feels so alien.

4

Jenny80029, i have not taken any pain relief for the last 6 weeks (due to horrendous side effects from the medicine). Pain can last for 1-3 days

 

5

It's not going to do any harm to give your knee a rest. It is a long healing process.

It's impossible to say without knowing the whole picture in terms of your activity over and across the days, as well as the added physio, but it might be worth experimenting yourself. Give yourself a couple of days off exercises and see how it is then. Obviously it's important to do them, but it's generally tempting for motivated people to push too hard in the hope that it will speed things up, which is not the case.

I would maybe see a physio and consult with them if possible, but one that has a lot of experience with TOR.

Is there no pain medication you could take at all, even something mild like paracetamol?

I used a TENS machine and found it helpful.

Elevating and massage is good too.

Epsom salts brilliant. In the bath.

Take a look at my profile, and copy address of my knee journal in browser to get to it.

I wrote all about my experience, now 18 months,..it's great.. but it is a hard experience in that first 6 months especially.

My experience was that it takes a very long time. Respect your body and let it set the pace, while being faithful tot he exercises, you also need to ensure you don't push too hard. It is a bit of a balancing act.

It will be worth it, but pain is going to make you feel very down emotionally. I would try and reduce it, with more rest, your knee may not complain so much.

Hope that helps.

6

TKR

7

😁😀 I laughed at your pretending to husband comment!

8

jenny80029, Thanks for your input, i have experimented between rest and exercise and i must admit i cannot come up with a set pattern between what is best: rest or varying the amount of rest / exercise i carry out - most frustrating - it appears as if my knee has its own time scale for healing. With regard to knee discomfort i do not find that paracetamol helps.