Memory loss - previous knee replacement!

I guess time does have some memories fade. I am not a "Mom", but some have told me that you forget the pain of childbirth and then decide to have another child; only to say WTH! LOL!

Well...I know the same happened to me with my right knee replacement. I did not remember a thing from my left replacement which was done March 2015.

When I was in the hospital and the nerve block was wearing off I had the most intense burning around my knee and pretty strong pain in my quadricep. I laid there thinking WTH! The nurse and PT explained that the net few days would most likely be the worst for pain.

I was hoping to feel better at home. Well....not much better. I knew I needed to manage swelling and I laid with my leg elevated and the colpac placed on the knee. I stayed ahead of the pain by alternating between Oxycodone and Tylenol. There were moments that this worked and others that I was reminded that I had major surgery.

I kept trying to remember the previous replacement. I did remember that my leg was wrapped in an ace bandage as I has to place press and seal over it for showering. This surgery I had the ace bandage until I got home. I could then remove it. I also had a waterproof bandage so no need for anything else when showering.

I also remembered that my medications were different. In 2015, I was given OxyContin - a time released medication - once a day and also Percocet every 4 hours. I am not sure if this made a big difference in my pain management this time.

I had in home PT the day after I arrived home. I was happy about this...well...until doing the work! Holy pain! I know that this is normal however it is challenging to prepare yourself for it! I made it through the session and it was decided that I would have PT 2 times a week for 2 weeks and then transfer to outpatient. This was Friday so I had a few days to practice the work and to get the swelling down.

My outpatient PT had told me that less will be more in knee replacement recovery as the swelling impedes range of motion. I had to reset my mind for this. I am typically the do...do...do person. And with my hip replacements I was able to do more, especially walking. The knee and walking does not mesh immediately.

To me, my swelling was not decreasing so I decided to put the ace wrap back on. Not too tight and not for too long. I continued to ice and elevate and within a day I began to see a difference.

My next challenge was remembering how much I did PT exercises each day with my first replacement. Again, memory loss! In my mind, overachiever mind, I should be doing these 2-3 times per day. I did struggle with this; the pain was restricting me. I email my outpatient PT and he reminded me that "less is more". He also gave me an exercise using a step that was easier todo in order to increase range of motion.  I was able to do this exercise more than once a day, along with some leg extensions (side and back). I decided that seated slides and other more intense range of motion exercises need to focus on quality vs. quantity. Overall, I knew this was wise.

When in-home PT came in the first week I was getting to 90 degrees and then to 98 degrees on the third visit. I was happy with this.

In the first week home I also had a massage! Best decision EVER! My massage therapist is my neighbor (lucky me!) and she came to my home. For 30 minutes she worked on my piriformis, IT band and quadricep. She also did light circular motions on the sides of my knee. Pure heaven!

I was walking outside a bit. I have a cul-de-sac across from the house and I refer to it as "rehab loop"! I have walked here for both hip replacements, especially in the early days of recovery. I found that being outside was wonderful for my mental health as well as my gait!

I talked to PT about using the treadmill, slowly, in order to focus on heel/toe walking. I was approved to use it! YAY!

I had a good routine for my PT and overall recovery. I accepted the need to rest and actually embraced it. I had my last in home PT on October 12th. The next day was STAPLE REMOVAL!

As I was paying some bills on line I thought I should look through my WORD documents? Why? I wrote a blog for my first knee replacement. It was on a "ning" website that I no longer have access to. I thought...hhhmmm....maybe I wrote the entries in WORD and guess what!?!?!?! I did!!!!

I was able to read through each entry. No more memory loss! It all came back reading my words! I was happy to read and remember that this recovery is really not much different than the first! Relief!😜

Next up...Staple removal and Outpatient PT 😃