Knee Replacement - Getting Prepared

My TKR is scheduled for 8/17/18. It's a big relief to finally get this thing going. For those of you who have had this, what would you say are the biggest challenges the first week?

The biggest challenges will be pain and difficulty sleeping. That will improve over time. I was advised to always take my pain medication on time and not wait until the pain got worse. It's easier to deal with pain before, rather than after it gets bad. Also, don't forget to take those stool softeners. Good luck. Let's hear afterwards how it went.

Thanks. I've heard the same about pain meds. Is there any adaptive equipment that you found useful?

I play alot of tennis and waited 12 years and saw 3 surgeons doing all things available, sinvic shot series 3 times, cortisone shots every few months in the end. I was afraid to do it. They finally gave out on me one day allowing about 30 minutes per day of walking. Couldn't try PRP, waited to long. I regret putting it off for so long. I tell friends if Dr. says you need it DO IT. It is as good as your willing to do your rehab. I did robotic assist but others are happy without that. Robot gives better alignment of hip, knee, and foot bones which is what your goal will be. Be sure to read all online info on what you will need at home so your prepared. It was really painful so take your meds as prescribed to control that. You should expect not getting much sleep for a while. I read that but had a hard time sleeping even with Benedryl my doctor said that is normal and eventually I would sleep. Just be patient about that ( easy to say, hard to do ). Also, try to start doing arm and leg exercises before surgery to have that muscle strength to help while your knee heals. I say arms because I had both done at the same time and no strong leg to assist getting up etc. My arm strength was needed.

My doctor at Mayo also said I needed to go to rehab not in-house. Believe me, if you can get a ride to therapy getting there is extra rehab. I laughed to myself when the rehab therapy included simple motions like getting in and out of bed, standing, up from bed and chair, putting on shoes, socks, standing, getting into a car etc. There is probably more physical therapy in getting up, showering, getting dressed, and into the car than you will receive during the hour at therapy the first few of weeks.

He also wouldn't prescribe the ice machine or CPR "motion machine". He wanted to make me do all the work rather than a machine to keep it moving. My therapist said that's because the brain, muscle memory, isn't involved when it is done by CPR machine. At some point, your brain will have to work the knee so skip that step by doing rehab "Old School". I researched it and like my Dr. said it's 50-50 with or without it so no reason to not do it yourself and get stronger sooner. I can see that the ice machine would have been easier but read it's cold at night. I purchased a large gel ice pack like in a hospital online. It worked fine. And ice will be the best thing you can do often during the day and night.

With the TKR it is alot of work and I wish I had done it sooner. You must commit to rehab therapy. No short cuts. Good luck

Yikes sounds like your doing all you can. What do Therapist and Dr say? Do you think being a partial makes a difference? Sorry to hear this. Hopefully, time with your efforts will help too. Best of luck. Perhaps a second opinion would help.

Good, Sound Advice! I, too, have been through much of this.

I had a TKR in 2013 and a second one 5 months later. The second one was much easier because I knew what to expect. I was able to manage more without help at an earlier stage. You really should have someone stay with you for at least a week or so and someone to drive you to appointments the first couple of weeks. I'm not much for pain meds, but I did use them the first week. Since I couldn't drive for a couple weeks, my physical therapist came to my home. That was a Godsend. Make sure you continue all prescribed exercises, and walk around the house, as prescribed. By a week, I was just using tylenol and by two weeks. I was walking outside without a cane. I used a Walker to get to bathroom and around the house the first week.

@mimi99 welcome to Connect. Thank you for sharing your experience with both knee replacements. It's really helpful to others, myself included. I am currently waiting for an appointment with a knee specialist to look at a possible knee replacement. I've been working on some pre-knee replacement surgery exercises as well as the physical therapy exercises needed after the surgery. I know they are both needed to help make the surgery rehab go smoothly.

John

@fjkphx, If you are struggling with your range-of-motion exercises, I was given a knee brace that had knobs to turn that would bend your leg for you to assist my exercises. Have ice packs in ready supply as well. Beyond that, the thing I wish I would have done differently when I had mine was to push myself a bit harder in the beginning with the exercises that were given to me to improve my range-of-motion. You don't want to push yourself too far and damage it, but there will be some pain and that is OK. I also rearranged my house and furniture a bit to make everything more accessible for the first few weeks when things are the hardest. If you don't have a stool or chair in your shower, I reccomend getting one of those, for safety reasons, along with a shower handle if your shower does not already have one.

I'd also recommend a reacher that can be used to pick up things from the floor. I needed it when I had my hips done, but also found it useful with my knees. I still use it at times.