Well, it's a total knee replacement........

[a kennedy]

2 pre-op surgery appts, surgery, 2 post op appts, and 18 physical therapy appts!!!!!! Holy crap......appts start on Sept 17, and final PT appt ends on Nov 275h.

[Phoenix61]

1. At least you'll be good to go by the start of

the holidays.

[a kennedy]

9. That's true.......

[underpants]

2. Da nanana

[empedocles]

3. Arthritis IS reversible

if that helps

[redstateblues]

8. how?

[empedocles]

15. HIIT, high intensity interval training

Look it up. Worked for me. Avoided a 2nd knee replacement in 9 months training. Overall health improves a lot also.

[empedocles]

19. Didn't mean to be so brief

on the run and had answered in more detail in a related thread. Sorry.

[TexasProgresive]

17. Bone on bone osteoarthritis is not really reversible.

I am close to that, and was suffering a lot of knee pain before I retired. I took up road cycling again and have built up the supporting musculature around the knees. Another plus with cycling which is low impact is motion really is lotion. I just had a knee x-ray and it is just the same as 4 years ago. The knees are arthritic but not causing me any pain. Hamstrings, quads and calves are another story, but that's ok.

[LeftInTX]

24. Arthritis is not reversible

Exercise helps, but it doesn't reverse it. Minor arthritis can have severe pain, but it is not unusual for the pain to go away.

Knee replacement is not done for minor arthritis.....

[Historic NY]

4. Just finishing up a Meniscus Tear....

I feel good....I feel fine....least is wasn't the whole knee. Last couple weeks of post op pt.

[a kennedy]

10. Good luck on the PT and the healing process......

[LeftInTX]

25. I had that a few years ago.

It went really well for me. I was surprised. I'm a big wimp. Although I woke up singing, "If I had a hammer".
Hubby was upset that I didn't ditch my crutches the first day, the way he did several decades ago.

[snowybirdie]

5. Go for it!

Did it six years ago. A good decision. Pain gone! Only thing is you have to do the follow up therapy religiously, and then some. It really helps the healing process. Good luck!

[a kennedy]

11. Don't Have a lot of pain.....but bone on bone rubbing, and I just't cant walk normal

without a horrible limp......have heard that the PT. Is a must and to stick to it. Thanks.

[calguy]

6. I had that knee surgery two years ago

it wasn't near as bad as I had been lead to believe. Once you get through it you'll be totally glad you did it. It'll never be like it was before it went bad, but it'll be 1000% better than it is right now. The best advise I can give you is do the PT. Don't expect any instant miracles. Just keep after the PT, keep working it and working it even after you're done with PT appointments and in time it'll be almost as good as it was before. Good Luck

[a kennedy]

12. Thanks for the advise......have heard the PT is a must and be very dedicated to it.

[smirkymonkey]

21. PT is not always fun, but it is so worth it if you stick to it.

You won't regret it. I wish you the best of luck.

My dad had total knee replacement in his early 70's and he's pushing 80 and getting around just fine. He was skiing up until about a year ago, but still golfs, walks, works out (when my mom pushes him), but he's in much less pain and seems to be doing fine. Not limping anymore like he used to.

[Solly Mack]

7. Wow. Sounds grueling.

I don't envy you but after it is all over, you'll feel better, yes?

Think about that - once over, all the better.

It's how I got through cancer/surgery/healing/treatments.

One day at a time.

[a kennedy]

13. Cancer/surgery/healing/treatments???

All I have to get through is knee surgery, not cancer.......I’ll try to remember one day at a time. Thanks.

[Solly Mack]

14. It's corny but it does help. Get through one day and then on to the next.

All you have to do for one day is get through it. Do what you can. Don't worry about what you can't do. In time, it gets better.



Oh, and you have the absolute right to groan, moan, and grumble about it.


Fuck that suffering in silence bullshit.

[a kennedy]

29. Love you Solly Mack.......and thanks.

I consider my grumbling and moaning a gift.

[TexasProgresive]

16. Promise yourself you will do the PT faithfully no matter how it feels.

You will thank me for this advice in December when you are as good as new.

[a kennedy]

28. Nodding......everyone says that about the PT.

Friends that have hips replaced have said the recovery from hip surgery is so less time consuming then knee replacement..... it all say as you....PT IS THE KEY TO FULL RECOVERY. Thanks.

[MFM008]

18. Been there

Done that (both).. things will get better.

[pansypoo53219]

20. DO YOUR PT!

[murielm99]

30. Thanks for the reminder.

I hate the PT, even though it works for me. I should put up signs all over the house.

[mnhtnbb]

22. Had a total knee replacement a year ago

and had several friends who had done it and they all advised DO YOUR PT! But I also was warned by PA and Ortho surgeon and PT it could take a year to feel normal.

Well, I have still been limping and having some pain which I told them about at my 1 year follow up a week ago. X-RAYS showed knee was in perfect alignment but that hip has now become bone on bone. So now I get to have a hip replacement in September--to match the one I had 11years ago on the other side.

Good luck with your procedure. I bought two gel ice packs to rotate in the freezer. Icing helps a lot for reducing inflammation. Definitely worth it and I put the ice packs in the freezer before I left for the surgery. They were ready to go when I came home. Be sure to take your pain pills as prescribed to stay ahead of the pain.

[a kennedy]

27. Am actually nervous about the pain after the surgery......as I really don't have it now....

Dr. Said that I might just get by with aspirin for the pain afterwood. Icing is a priority thanks, will have them ready to go.

[mnhtnbb]

31. My surgeon was of the opinion

to hand out serious pain meds and I was encouraged to take them in order to really get up and get moving and also push through the pain doing PT. Having had a hip replacement 10 years earlier I can say the knee was much worse. More pain and longer recovery. How much of that was due to the hip deteriorating--now that we know--is unknown. That hip was fine when first x-rays of knee showed it was deteriorating, so that hip went downhill in less than 2 years and mostly while I was recovering from the knee. Despite not knowing about the hip, everyone said no pain no gain on the knee and to expect it could take up to a year for it to feel normal. It was because of that I didn't go back to the Ortho sooner to complain that I was still limping and having some pain.

[csziggy]

23. Be sure to do all your physical therapy exercises!

If they give you exercises to do in between the appointments, do them as often as they recommend. If you have the option to get into a rehab facility for the first week, that really jump starts the recovery.

From experience, a total knee recovery hurts less the day after surgery than the damaged knee hurt the day before. Seriously, that was true for both my knees. Then the first day at the rehab hospital they had me climb a short set of stairs!

I swear PT is the key to a good recovery from these things. I've had meniscus removed from both knees, both knees replaced, one shoulder rebuilt, the other shoulder just "cleaned up," and carpal tunnel surgery on both wrists. PT brought all those joints back to nearly full function.

On the other hand, they keep finding new things wrong with me - last fall a bad aortic valve led to the discovery of a mass on one kidney. So I began this year with new aortic valve and down a kidney, and a new course of physical therapy (cardio rehab).

Once I finished my rehab, I started going to a gym and that got my back so bad I found out that I broke my L5 vertebrae over 35 years ago falling off a horse (at the time I was told it was just soft tissue damage). Now I get to have my lower back fused and go through another bout of physical therapy. Yeah.

[a kennedy]

26. OMGOSH csziggy......