My pain was not too bad after my TKR. The worst for me was getting into the next day after the surgery since we had smaller SUV and the front seat didn't go far enough back where I could easily get my foot inside without overbending the knee. That gave me about 3 days of pain that wasn't normal. I think my pain was around 3 to 4 on a scale of 10 for a week or so. They prescribed Tramadol but I never took any. I took high dose Tylenol when I was having some pain. My daily rehab for the first week was mostly walking around the house and in the driveway with a walker and also riding a recumbent exercise bike. I didn't use high resistance because I just wanted to work on the flexibility. I also did the post op exercises several times daily given to me by the surgeon's care team.

Since it was my right knee I was not supposed to drive for 6 weeks but I felt I was OK by the end of 5 weeks so I started driving again. I did carry a cane with me for the first 5 weeks but didn't use it all the time. I still take stairways carefully but I think that's more my age and degenerative arthritis than the knee. A very Happy and Healthy New Year to you and your family also!!