Knee replacement tomorrow

Welcome back, welcome to the New Knee Club .. As posted I had mine 5 months ago, exactly 1 week before Christmas day.
I hosted 10 for Christmas day lunch, obviously with some help.
I only went up and down stairs once a day, but keep up the Ice and painkillers, you will be surprised how quickly you recover.
Good luck you will be fine.

What me impatient just a bit. Advice was a bit patchy they flew in a scottish team to deal with everything apart from the actual surgery. They were very nice but not too helpful.. on enhanced recovery which meant discharging you as soon as mobile. Tough on hubby.

I have been given a leaflet for exercises and will be sent physio appointment in three weeks! I like the idea of hiking to see gorillas but may need to wait a while. Getting downstairs is my first taskl

A while ago you would have been kept in hospital in bed on a machine that bent and straightened your knee automatically !
Staying upstairs and bending as far or as little as you can seems eminently preferable !
Xxxx

I measured just above my knee with a tape measure to check whether the swelling was going down.
My recovery from knee replacements took much longer than from my hip replacement. You're at a very early stage.

When you look at what they do for a knee replacement, you'll wonder if you'll ever walk again! However, slowly and gently, little bends more frequently are apparently the key here. My experience with most operations is that the first day is awful, the second day slightly better, the third day seems like a huge leap backwards but from then on, for the most part, every day gets a little easier. Obviously that is a rough timeline and relies on no complications. They often add a long acting pain killer during the op so after a fortnight, the pain levels might up a bit but are usually manageable with over the counter medications.

Thanks for updating us Parky. It’s very boring staying in bed but you really do need to give it time. We live in a 3-storey house so I do understand the stairs problem.

My oh had knee replacement 10 years ago. They kept him in 5 days as he couldn't manage the stairs. He was put on a machine that bent and straightened his knee in gradual increments automatically which improved his bend and he was allowed home. However he was struggling with stairs etc so I found a company on the internet ( near Nottingham) that would hire us the same machine they used in hospital. Initially we paid for 2 weeks then paid again for 2 more. It worked wonders for him and his knee hasnt been a problem since.

I like the idea of static stretching machine. Bit of an ask where we live. At least the cat is happy and keeping me company just wish she would find the mouse she brought in as a present then let run free!

Those passive exercise devices were stopped from use by NHS as they didn't actually work any better than actual walking. I was on one briefly after my manipulation under anaesthetic which I had to have due to a physio forcing my swollen knee to bend!!

That's interesting aveline my thought is to be careful with exercising too much with swollen knee.

You'll know the Bonesmart mantra - just as you can't bend a hose pipe full of water so you can't bend a swollen knee!
What dissipates the built up swelling is icing, elevation and movement. (I know I'm repeating myself!)

How are you now Parky? My husband had a total knee replacement 4 weeks ago. He is 66 and it was in a very bad state. Came home 2 days post op with sticks. Do you use ice packs that are able to be frozen over and over? Very useful. Boots sell them.
He managed with only paracetamol and ibuprofen after the first couple of days. The swelling has gone down considerably and his leg is so much straighter.
Initially we thought we would need to make up a sofa bed downstairs during the day but actually, he has coped with the stairs. He has been doing the exercises religiously and then icing. He found sleeping solely on his back hard at first but now manages some time on one side. Lying in bed or sitting for periods of time can be painful so he gets up early and needs a sleep during the day to compensate. For the last week he has been gradually increasing walking distances and can now manage a slow 25 minute walk. Today he drove for the first time.
He is so glad he had it done, after such a long wait. Everyone’s experience will be different though. His brother has had both knees done. The first was very successful, the second not so much.
Persevere with the exercises and icing, take the painkillers and don’t be in pain. I hope you also make a good recovery.

Had mine done 6 months apart about 7 years ago.
I was bone on bone and could hardly walk. Now ,no pain in my knees whatsoever .

The first couple of days were painful , I did the exercises, gradually increasing them and was out and about and driving with no aids within 6 weeks. DH was still working at the time so had to manage around 10 hours each day by myself.

I wish you a speedy recovery .

Hang on in there parky. The swelling will reduce and you’ll be able to face the stairs. I used a wrap around flexible ice pack holder which secures with Velcro). it stayed on my knee without problem for the time advised in the accompanying leaflet and I’m sure helped. Elevated both legs as that was more comfortable, the swelling soon went

I found I could sit on the bed, lean back and swing both legs up, not elegant but it worked

My tkr was last September. I was fully mobile quickly, easier for me as we live in a bungalow. Some of the physios exercises I did, some I didn’t as they aggravated a spinal issue. Although I exercised it was far less than recommended, I found gentle walks and ordinary life far more helpful.

Discharged with two sticks and a frame. The frame was initially useful for night time toilet trips but abandoned after a week, the sticks well before the six week checkup.

My worst day was day four, really down and fed up. The worst week was week three when I hit plateau and thought I’d never mend properly. Silly as I was very mobile, walking outside and only using paracetamol for pain relief. I did see a private physio who knows me well, she offered encouragement and reassurance also helped get the leg straight, bending it was no problem once the swelling decreased.

It seems all consultants are different in their advice, at my checkup mine said he’d rather patients did normal things than worried about physio.

Eight months on I can get down on the floor and up again, climb stairs, walk as far as fibro impacted energy allows, do my garden, keep up with a seven year old hurricane and generally forget my knee.

The surgery nurse recommended Vaseline for the scar once the stitches were out. I’ve no idea if it’s general advice but it helped me.

The early stages can be difficult but they will soon pass. You’ll be fine I know it. Listen to your body. It’s usually right.

A Spanish physio suggested rosehip oil. She was surprised that oiling the scar is not routine in UK. I used rosehip oil and think it helped. Argon oil is an alternative.

Thank you. Very encouraging posts. You have done well cornergran I'm feeling a bit better but now have constipation which is worrying. Haven't been since op in spite of prescribed laxative. Gone from 2 to 3 times a day to none aah. Anyone else had this problem?

It’s a very common problem Parky, often caused by pain killers. Can you up the laxative? I use laxidol, a powder mixed with water and dose can be increased to 8 packets a day ( rather than the usual two) so a flexible option, which eventually worked. Utter relief.

Lots of water plus strong coffee and oranges helped me. Good old prunes play a part too. You're not alone. This is a very common problem after taking these drugs.

Yep agree constipation a problem with the painkillers. I use Bran from the health food shop in yoghurt /breakfast cereal about x2 teaspoons a day.
My chum a Hospital Dietician recommended this, gentle and works well.

Maybe get someone to get you some Magricol from the pharmacy which is a stool softener and helps enormously with constipation. The GP can prescribe too and is safe to take with laxatives.

Do the exercises religiously as soon as you can. I know they're a chore but it really does help. I hope you're getting some physio too.
And keep taking the meds.
I was lucky to have had mine done privately a year ago, they were fantastic with pain control and sent me home with lots of chunky analgesics.
A year on, the knee is great but the first few months were fairly hard.

Forget the exercises!! Just keep moving about. Knees and hips are for walking so keeping this up is all the exercise you need. Otherwise you risk inflammation and set yourself back. Check the research on this.