I am a complete mess as I near my surgery on 10/9/17 for a left TKR. Perhaps in part because it is on the heels of my right TKR on 12/5/16. I feel a panic I don't recall ever having felt before. I wonder is this really necessary! I am walking and even practicing restorative yoga. My knee sometimes feels okay and then without warning I'm reminded that it really hurts and is prohibitive. Wondering if anyone has any advice to offer.
Hi Tammy!
Focus on the FUTURE with two GOOD KNEES! Think about how GREAT it will feel having two knees that are dependable and allow you to get your life back again.
Of course there's the recovery thing. You already know about that. It's annoying, but it doesn't last too long.
Hi Tammy!
Focus on the FUTURE with two GOOD KNEES! Think about how GREAT it will feel having two knees that are dependable and allow you to get your life back again.
Of course there's the recovery thing. You already know about that. It's annoying, but it doesn't last too long.
Everyone heels different every surgery has different results take your time be patient and do as mush as you can at home
Good luck. !!!
Pressed send before I was done!
Also, think about NOT having to always think about KNEES! You will be able to move around, do what you want and eventually even FORGET about KNEES!
My surgeries were three and a half months apart (June and October 2015). Your upcoming surgery will be on my two year anniversary for Knee #2.
Today I mowed the lawn, planted 150 bulbs, made stuffed cabbage, did five loads of laundry and watered the garden. My arthritic BACK hurt, but my two knees were real troopers.
I wish this for you, too!♥️
Sending prayers of calm and strength and courage to you tonight!
You can do this!!!
Deep breath...you beat it once, you'll beat it again... Hope these help...
https://patient.info/forums/discuss/tkr-strong-594566
https://patient.info/forums/discuss/tkr-and-ptsd-569521
I was exactly the same, with the same feelings, had to really push myself mentally to go forward with second knee four months after first. I'm now nine weeks with second and you do cope. The knees have been very different remember that and also its testing on patience levels. I'm glad I had it done and am now going forward in time to full recovery , look at it as a phase in time and the benefits will be huge and eventually the whole lifechanging experience will fade in the past. This forum really helps when your worried or feeling down and you realise all the things you are feeling are normal, the support helps you through. Big smile and go for it😀😀😀😀😀
Very deep full lung breaths! 😄
It is a big step of Faith, but choose to trust, you have done it and you can do it again. Blessings to you!
There you go you and Chico have been my port in a storm , wise words and encouragement and empathy. Thank you xx
The usual advice is one of 2 things, and those are sort of polar opposites. The 1st is to think about how fantastic you'll feel and all of the wonderful things you'll be able to do and accomplish and the other is, where is the closest bar and what time does it open. The real truth, IMO, is somewhere in between. Do what you can to get ready. Strengthen the quads with exercises a couple times a day, hydrate your body as much as possible and eat as much as you want, whenever you want but just make sure its as nutritious and tasty. You know you're in for a beating but frankly dwelling on it isn't going to make it either better or easier. Try relaxing as much as possible, living in the now and not the future. Music, books, movies, a good meal in a nice restaurant, short visits with friends and family but whatever you do, stay away from conversations and fixating on the surgery. The last series of surgeries for me were sort of a hop, skip and jump thing. Lab results showed a serious staph infection and they wanted to operate the next day but due to being caregiver for my wife who was in advanced Parkinson's disease, I had to make some arrangements for her so they allowed me 72 hours MAX. The entire process is a 3 or 4 step procedure depending on how you look at it. 1st, they removed the prosthesis, flushed the entire area with antibiotics, inserted a plastic spacer filled with antibiotics , closed the wound, put the leg, hip to ankle in a soft cast, inserted a picc line for twice a day, 8 week antibiotic infusion protocol and in 3 days shipped me out to a rehab center. After 3 weeks I was sent home so I could start caring for my wife again and finishing the 8 weeks of infusion . after 4 months, back to the operating room and reinserting the 3rd prosthesis with a 3 week revisit to the rehab center and then home for a couple weeks home health before outpatient PT. The reason to the long drawn out version of this, I had so little time to think about the future because I was continually trying to survive the present. That may have been the best thing possible for me, I had a very limited time to think about the next step because it was already there. If that was today and the situation with my wife, I would have to put her in an assisted living program and then spend all the time focusing on myself which honestly would probably be worse for both of us. I find just living in the moment much easier than doing a lot of over planning. Just an addendum to the story, my wife's condition has deteriorated considerably since then. Depression, anxiety, dementia and muscle weakness have caused her to become much more fearful and frail. In the past 18 months I have had no more than 4 hours away from her at a time and that just being on 3 different occasions. I am now starting the process of preparing to place her in assisted living on a permanent basis with the 1st of the year being the proposed timetable. The weekend after next will be the 1st step and she will go into a respite program a few blocks from our oldest daughter. The thought of this, the planning and the anticipation is so much harder on me mentally and physically than all that other stuff combined. This is a lesson in what can occur when the brain is allowed to wander and become the most active part of the process. You know in your mind that you'll make it and you also know that dwelling on it is going to make it worse but its so d*** hard not to get caught up in it. As I've tried to say universal different ways, take any escape route possible. You're not a coward because you're running from it, you're a very intelligent person because you know how to handle it. Good luck and as always, you're among friends and fellow survivors right here and well all do what we can to make it better.
Now, order up, its getting close to last call.
Good advice! Thank you Cheryl!
Oh gosh! You're right! It would be awesome not to think about my knees every single day!!! I love gardening, but haven't been able to for the past two seasons. Your words are inspiring!!
Chico, I was so hoping to hear from you!!! I benefited so much from your posts last time!! I knew you'd have something profound to say and you didn't let me down!!!!
Should have posted this weeks ago! I am so happy to hear from folks who have had similar experiences!!!
Thank you Jenny! Your words mean so much!!
You are a rock! I thank you for helping me put this in perspective!!! I wish for you and your wife relief in the future. I know I will read your post repeatedly over the next week and a half and each time I will say a prayer for you.
Thank you Daddio! Patience is a virtue!
Thank you so much Jackie! Chico is such a wealth of knowledge and has an incredible sense of humor!
I had my TKRs done 1 year apart. They were totally different! The first was so painful and slow to recover. Like you, I dreaded and wondered if a second one should be done. BUT, the second one has been great. Less pain, more mobility, faster healing. And even the first one seems to be benefitting from the second one getting better. It is REALLY TRUE...each surgery is different. Go for it! Good luck! Cathy.