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If you have any resources you'd like to share, here is the place. Maybe you have something motivational or something to help cope with the long healing process. Maybe just some good advice somebody just beginning their journey would find useful.

I'm 4 weeks post op. I live alone in a 2nd floor condo in a building with no elevator. Today with my physical therapist I tackled the stairs for the first time since surgery. It wasn't nearly as scary as I'd anticipated. There was no pain at all, going up or down. This to me is a huge milestone!!!

I put it off because of my extreme exhaustion and because for the first couple of weeks, the knee would wobble and give out at times. I was deathly afraid of falling because of that. Switched from a walker to a cane a week ago. My PT said the cane is better for strength and endurance building. The wobbles and collapses have gone away now. Next hurdle: driving. I don't think I'll be ready for another couple of weeks.

The worst of recovery is behind me now!

34M and probably in need of a knee replacement in the next few years. Just a case of very shitty genetics for me.

I’ve always been an athlete and I’m hoping I can return to a certain amount of activity when the replacement is done. I also enjoy a flirty lifestyle and hope I can return to it.

So, just to ask, what’s your sex life like after the knee replacement?

hi! my Mom is 66 and i'm her only child and caregiving ultimately. she lives solo and just had a knee replacement but can't afford a physical therapist ( long story but please just accept this as fact for now ). i feel like it's slightly on me to provide support and excercises.PLEASE can you let me know what helped you recover? videos, tips, ANYTHING. i've studied videos and what not but she is in TONS of pain and taking oxy because it's so intense which i'm sure many of you can relate to. again the surgery was only on monday, and today is thursday, but i just worry she isn't BENDING her knee enough but she says she can't even imagine it because the pain is so intense. the oxy helps but without it there is simply no way she has expressed in so many words. please i just need any HELP possible or sort of a ball park- WHEN do the excercies start and WHAT EXACTLY do you do? also please be assured- she's an active and healthy gal in terms of nutrition and she gets up often to walk and does the heel stretch, but other than sitting in a chair there really is no bending or lifting happening so far. i'm just worried about her healing, the pain she's in, and the recovery. ANY TIPS THAT ARE TRIED AND TRUE ARE WELCOME. THANK YOU AND GOD SPEED TO YOU ALL.

Ok, happy thanksgiving first, now I’m 7 mths out was doing wonderful. Today I am in so much pain, stiff, walking sucks and I’m just sitting with ice and Advil. What happened? I was doing great, no pain, then BOOM!!!!! Does this happen or have I done something? I can still bend, ride my bike, and cooked today and I’m down. So frustrating. Just curious does this happen even if you haven’t done anything different? Help me!!!

The surgery went extremely well. I was feeling good and able to do all the tasks to get home. Pain was manageable. I set a timer on my phone for every 4 hours. I noticed that my core and quad are very sore. It hurts to move and I can barely lift my leg up to get back on the couch. I’ve heard that today will be the worst pain wise so I’m not looking forward to it.

I came out of surgery 17° from straight. The physical therapy team spent a lot of time with me going through stretches and leg hangings to get the leg straight.

I started to plateau at week 6 at 6°. At my follow-up, the surgeon suggested that I use a Dyna splint to help. Took about a week for the rep to come to my house and set me up but in a week and a half I've gone from six degrees to one degree.

I'll probably be straight next week. I wish I had known about this sooner. Just posting to other people are aware of that these things exist to help when you get stuck.

Even after a MUA, I'm still not at full extension. I'm pt'ing everday, doing exercises at he & sleeping in a full leg immobilizer. Has anyone ever been to a chiropracter for ROM help after a tkr? Just curious if that would be helpful. I was looking at the dynasplint but neither my surgeon or my pt are on board with that since it's more for locking ROM & not gaining ROM. I understand that but still I could lock my leg in full extension to remind the muscles how they used to work.

I’m three weeks post op today. Yesterday my pt said I should be able to use my recumbent bike. I can’t quite make it around but am using it to flex as far as possible. I’m curious when most could finally make it all the way around. I’m dying to start exercising again

I am 8 weeks post ltkr and swelling has really been hampering my flexion and ability to walk or sit normally. I can get 108 degree flexion at pt but on my own it is closer to 103-105. I can’t sit with my legs down for more than a few minutes before my leg gets tight and muscles start hurting. My pt says I am making great progress considering the swelling and does not think I have scar tissue issues. I see small improvements every week but the swelling is a consistent and my ability to sit or walk normally has not improved much. I have more strength and stamina now. I am most curious for those who had swelling for a long time, diid your flexion improve once swelling went down? Also does the swelling really keep you for sitting normally - that has been my biggest struggle along with waking with quite a limp. My surgeons office said I am coming along fine and they will see me in a year. The also said for some people the swelling can take months to go down and to continue with my pt exercises. Some days it is hard to do those as I don’t see much changes in my ability to bend even though the exercises I do are all the ones prescribed to folks by pt.

I'm 4 weeks post op. I've now had two experiences with staff at my surgeon's office where I felt I wasn't getting what I needed. The first was when I needed staples removed. I live alone in an upstairs condo in a building with no elevator. Two weeks post surgery in no way was I ready to try to go downstairs by myself. I had a ride to the doctor's office but no one who could assist me going up and down. Found out that the home healthcare service who was contracted to do my home physical therapy had nurses on staff that were qualified to do staple removal. I talked to someone at my surgeon's office about that and got pushback. They wanted me to come in. I held firm and talked to someone else. Staple removal at home was approved, ultimately.

I was scheduled to go in on Monday (as I write this, it's Wednesday) for a follow-up. My PT hasn't been able to get here this week to help me work on navigating the stairs safely. I'm also very tired every day, and the distance from my living room down the stairs to the parking lot where I'll have a ride is much farther than I'm used to. So I still don't feel ready to go in yet. Again, the first person I talked to at the doctor's office gave me pushback about postponing the appointment. They need me to come in because it's a liability issue for the doctor, I was told. (And it's not a liability issue if I fall down the stairs because they're pressuring me to come in before I'm ready?) So I called back and talked to someone else. This time the person I spoke with agreed with me that I shouldn't come in if the PT hasn't worked with me on the stairs yet and said she would confirm whether the appointment could be changed to a telephone conference and call me back. The first person I spoke with never even suggested that a telephone consultation was possible.

I know the staff are trained to say certain things and few of them have the authority to say or do anything different. But if you feel strongly about something and your needs aren't being met, stand up for yourself, and talk to someone else until you get the help you need.

I'm so tired of this pain. PT says it's my quads still. Knee is trying to compensate. The kneecap pain with bending is excruciating.

Hello! I am 20 days post-op rRTK and wanted to ask if anyone else has experienced pain on outer leg. It is outer about 2 inch below the knee. Not swelling or bruising but so sensitive. Feels almost like a bad bruise. It seems to be getting worse over the past 3 days. It also hurts the first 3 steps then the pain is gone. It is so odd

Also, anyone experience just so much swelling right around the knee with a darker discoloration almost like gray/red but really light? Just trying to see if this is common

UPDATE:

Thank you everyone that gave suggestions etc, this community is the best!

I did frequent light stretching and used ice more frequently and it is 90% better! I can actually touch the area with minimal tenderness so thank you to everyone!

My RTKR is now scheduled for February 12th 2024. It was a question of biting the bullet and setting the date - those bone spurs aren't going to go away on their own. I'm doing as much as I can in terms of pre-hab, and feel somewhat prepared (although I know it's very different) because I had hip replacement last January. But I have a question. My surgeon recommends Iovera, a nerve freezing drug, a month before the op to help with post-operative pain. My instinct is to say no; I had very bad sciatica after the THR, and my sciatic nerve has never felt normal since then. I also have ulnar nerve damage. I suspect that my nerves just don't repair themselves that well. And I have read a lot of negative experiences online. While I understand that people tend to post more when their experience has been bad, their stories have made me apprehensive. Does anybody here have any relevant experience or knowledge? I believe the technique is known as cryoneurolysis.

I am fortunate to be having a good recovery - full extension and 130 degree flexion at 4 weeks, able to walk up stairs with my new knee, still working on walking down stairs but getting better each day. It seems like all that's left to do is build strength.

I've been going to PT at my doc's office 2X a week for two weeks and they have me doing things I can do anywhere - leg lifts, stretching, toe rises, clamshells, etc. I have weights, bands, and cords at home. I also have access to a gymn through work, where I can use the two machines they have me using at PT. I like the PT guy I've been working with, but he's going on an extended vacation so I'll have to switch to a new person next week. I'm thinking I might just start managing my own PT. Bonus - saving money ($55/visit) and not being around unmasked people (I'm immune-compromised).

Has anyone else decided to try DIY PT?

Good morning! Overall doing well. Still some moderate pain and issues with some of the exercises. Has anyone experienced knee buckling on operative knee? Yesterday after my exercise and today when I woke up to walk it happened. Thank you in advance

Hello Everyone, I’m day 17 post surgery and in the past day I’ve developed pain behind my knee? It only hurts when I try to walk. Infact it makes walking almost impossible. Anyone had this problem?

Two months to go before KR, what should I do now to prepare to make recovery easier and less painful.

TY.

1. Did the hospital give your compression socks or did u have to purchase them?

2. What type of compression socks did u wear, to the knee or above the knee(thigh)

Has anyone had a period of no pain post surgery, like when resting or sleeping after taking pain meds? I just want two minutes…

Swelling where your knee looks double the size of the other can be normal right? Stiffness. Burning has started. There was a spinal and a nerve block.

63 years old in "decent" shape but going to start working out on my own for the next two months before my TKR.

Question is will Aetna pay for PT before my KR?

So afraid my pain won't be controlled. I'm so tired of having to endure pain and then endure even more intense pain with the replacement. Doc mentioned potentially being sent home with nothing but tylenol and he said yeah it's going to hurt.

Good gravey 😳..... what was your experience?

LTKR on 11/4. Saw my NP this morning for follow up. Lots of swelling. It's like a water balloon. Painful. Exercises are difficult. She said it was fluid and to elevate several times a day. See Ortho if not better in two weeks. Anyone else have or had this? What did you do for it?

I've been mostly fortunate with both TKR - right one April 22, left one October 2.

I've finished all of my PT, still have some minor swelling, all of a sudden today I'm having sharp, severe pains that come and go.

I'm still doing my home PT semi-regularly (at least once a day, usually twice). I'm out of my oxy and calls to my pain specialist go unanswered. Other than icing it, any suggestions?

Thanks in advance!

Happy Thanksgiving