Hi it's day 5 I'm home and in a fair bit of discomfort! Main problem is at night and knowing what sleeping position to get into? I want to lie on my side but not sure this is ok ( about the only question I didn't ask physiotherapist ) also finding I'm very tearful today and extremely tired is this normal?
In I had a tkr 10 weeks ago yes all very normal I managed to sleep on my side I use a pillow between my legs
Thank you! My surgeon said for a few weeks I will be cursing him! He wasn't joking!
Mandy I am 15 weeks post and I struggle to lie on my back as my leg is not straight enough (I'm waiting for further surgery on this). I've lay on my side to sleep since the third day. I found a pillow between the legs helped. Sleep deprivation is the worst part in the first month. It leads to a lot of tears, which I'm sure most people on here will tell you. I've been crying today myself as I'm still nowhere near a normal life yet. I've gone full circle and now back chasing for another operation date.
Just try to sleep when you can. The sofa was a good place for me to doze off. This is a huge operation so your body will take a good while to recover.
This forum has been a lifesaver for me so keep coming on here.
Hi Mandy
Its fine to sleep on your side. Put a pillow between your knees. You might find it a bit sensitive against the mattress though, if you haven't got a memory foam mattress topper.
Patsy
1st TKR Dec 2012 2nd TKR Sept 2014
Tired and tearful, absolutely 100 per cent normal! What a terrifble shock to the poor old body this is!!! sleeping on your side . . most people agree it's ok, and it's certainly better than the alternative. . not sleeping at all! A pillow between the legs will help a lot. I found sleeping on top the operated leg was the best. Quite difficult to roll over there to begin with . . . but I find sleeping on my back is totally impossible! Sleep when you can. . even if it is morning, afternoon or evening! Sleep is what eludes pretty well all of us! You are at the lowest point now, so from now on, things will slowly get better! It's a very up and down recovery, though, so odn't be disappointed when one really good day is followed by a bad one! Glad you are home and safe, and while not enjoying yourself, at least on the road to recovery!
15 weeks oh gosh I feel for you? I am quite pleased with mobility at the moment but do find if I've been resting it's difficult but once I'm up and moving it gets easier!
thank you I will come on here as much as I can
Thank you! I don't have a topper but thinking it might be a good investment!!!
Thank you so much! I'm finding the support of others on the forum has helped enormously! Advice from others suffering the same symptoms is a huge help
Hi, I'm 3weeks post op and I have only just started to get any decent sleep. I couldn't sleep on my back but was uncomfortable on my side , even with a pillow between my knees. Every time I moved, I woke up. My doctor gave me some mild sleeping tablets which I have taken since day 6 but for the last 2 nights I have only had half a tablet and have still slept about 5hrs. BLISS!! I am normally an 8hour sort of person.
I too was very tearful when I came home and for several days I just burst into tears for no apparent reason but it happens much less now. I still find any exercise exhausts me, even just going up and down the stairs. But I definitely feel much better than I did at first, so believe me , things will get much better.
Thank you it's nice to know I'm not on my own! Even the silliest of things that's normally you take for granted I.e getting on and off the loo is a massive struggle at the moment! I'm trying to keep as active as I can but I guess it's very early days for me
Unfortunately, it's normal, especially when you consider the lack of sleep. It's a yucky place to be, but just remind yourself, it's not going to last forever. While I was in the hospital they encouraged me to try sleeping on my side. But because I had both knees done, it was nearly impossible to get comfortable without excrucuating pain. They told me move to my side and brace myself with pillows as was comfortable, just not to sleep on my back with a pillow under my knees. Well, guess what, that was the only way I could get comfortable. So I did it in limited amounts. And then during the day have extra time to keeping my legs flat. Now (7 months later) I often sleep with a pillow between my knees. Two more weeks and you should see a nice shift that brings things to a bearable place.
Any chance of getting one of those things which fit over the loo to make it higher??? I never managed to get one, but having cistitis at the beginning meant up and down on that damned loo so many times, and what a struggle it was . . nothing to hold on to, useless leg. . . . and as the anaesthetic seemed to fry my brain, it wasn't until about week 6 that I thought what a good idea it would be to put two pillows on the sofa to make getting up easier 
I very soon realised that you're never alone since joining this forum. I'm still being told, at 3wks post op, that it's early days so at only 5days it's very very early days for you.
Fab idea I can see I'm going to be spending a fair bit of my time looking for things to make my life easier!!
Thank you I'll def give that a try co codamol seem to be my best friend at the moment
Yes I've got to keep telling myself that! It's just so nice to chat to people who are experiencing or have experienced the pain and can empathise
Hi Mandy, yes it's normal to be tearful. I find drinking large glasses of water helps. I know it sounds daft but it works on so many levels. The drugs we take absorb the fluid in our muscles which in turn makes them painful. Drink lots and lots of water. Sleep on your side with a pillow full length between you legs. Good luck. Sue S.
Thanks Sue I'm averaging about 3 1/2 hrs sleep a night and I'm sure that's had a huge contribution to the way I'm feeling?
I'm not feeling quite so emotional today but I'm not feeling very energetic either!!! So so tired
Oh mandy. Been there done that.
I had TKR 3 years ago.It was successful and well worth it. Had a lot of trouble sleeping for quite a while afterwards. Even now I still wake up nearly every night which I hardly ever did before. Though atleast I do not wake up in pain anymore
Organise your painkillers so you can still take one or two if you wake up in the night.
I used to sleep on my back at first with a pillow underneath the knee I had had replaced.
Ask physio about sleeping on your side, but I would say you would be able to get back to doing that again comfortably in time.
Take care and keep in touch
Praying for you
Love Sarah xxx