Moonshine Therapy

 

Got your attention, huh. I have progress news to share, but first the moonshine therapy. Actually I’ve never tried moonshine and never intend to, but someone did suggest that it might help me “limber up” while Drew works on my range of motion. Then he wouldn’t have to keep saying, “Relax that muscle” (as if I can while my knee is being squeezed in a vice grip), “Let that leg fall into my shoulder,” “You’re still tightening up. Loosen that muscle.” I wonder if moonshine really would work.

I’m almost at the 3-month mark. On the recumbent  bike in  PT I’ve been pedaling forward as far as I can and then backward as far as I can. Well…today I got down on the mats and rolled the front and sides of my thigh on the hard foam roller to loosen the muscles. Then I tried the recumbent.

I was soooo surprised and excited to be able to pedal forward in complete  revolutions! Yippee!  Drew eyed my leg as  I pedaled and said it was at least 100 degrees. Then we measured my range of motion. Was 112 (with pain). So it’s getting there slowly but surely, but that’s fine with me.  The slow but surely part.

Am taking occasional Tylenol now … before PT and on an as needed  basis. Works effectively. Dreaming of spring . . . .

I believe that we were meant to live as social creatures, to reach out and bless each other’s lives. – Author Richard Paul Evans

Back to the Office!

 

Glad I took two months off work for R&R. But this past Monday I was equally glad to return to the office. Drew helped me with a program that will fit with my work schedule. I've allotted 30 minutes in the morning and most evenings for flexibility and motion exercises. Once a day 3/4x per week I additionally do strengthening. I like the side stepping down the hall ‘cause a side benefit is that it seems to help with my lower back. Have other exercises I throw in here and there, like leg raises, leg balances, heel raises…

Still going to outpatient PT 2x per week through the end of January. Even the “torture chamber” where Drew bends my knee is ok ‘cause I know it’s helping in the long run. Did I mention that I yelled at him one day to STOP! And he did.

Oh, we practiced getting down on the floor and back up. Now I’m ready to garden for sure.

What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

A Bump in the Road

 

On the road to recovery I’ve encountered a bump in the road. Drew said that most folks who return to PT after the initial knee replacement therapy come because of secondary problems. Perhaps with the  back or other knee – areas that get a bit “out of whack” compensating as the body adjusts. I identify. Especially at night it’s uncomfortable turning over because of pain in a spot in lower left back. I have a couple stretching exercises, along with massaging, that will hopefully help.

In my last post remember I said I would continue with exercises at home over the holidays when I couldn’t get to PT. Well . . . that has mostly not happened. Being on the go, a house filled with people, activities, etc., put a damper on taking time out for exercises. Getting back into the swing of things today I noticed that the bend is not quite where it was last PT session.  I have two days to get prepared for Monday’s PT session.

New Year’s Eve (2 days past the 2 month mark) hanging out at Pullen Park with my honey, granddaughter, daughter and son-in-law. My mantra: Every day is going to be a little better. I’m gonna make progress today.

Thinking of my friend Brenda who had knee replacement yesterday, January 2, and wishing her well.

Everything on earth has its own time and its own season. Ecclesiastes 3:1

I’m driving!

 

I just love Dr. Fagenbaum. Today’s checkup visit was majorly encouraging. He was quite pleased with the progress I’ve made in 7 weeks. No cane. Able to bend past 100 degrees. Incision looking good. Said my knee would probably not look like a normal knee for almost a year … when puffiness and swelling are totally gone. That’s ok. Just so I know.

Shared my concern about ROM being 120 by the end of January. He explained that 120 is the tops that this knee can bend. His example was a car that can do 160 mph, but that doesn’t mean he would drive the car that fast. My knee can technically bend to 120, but he would be pleased if it gets to 115.

Next week I only have one PT appointment because of the holidays.  Week after that, no appointments. Out of town, company, etc. Dr. Fagenbaum said that would actually give my knee a chance to rest. Of course, I’ll still be diligent with my at-home exercises and stretching.

Have a last prescription for pain meds to be taken one pill every six hours as needed.

And did I mention I’m driving! When I came home, first place I drove was Chick-fil-A. Yum.

(Pic from www.mycutegrapics.com. Free for personal and educational use.)

Stiff and Achy

 

Just completed week 7. Yesterday I reached 108 ROM, but it wasn’t without PAINful effort as Drew (PT) gradually bent my knee. Today areas around knees (yeah, both of them) have been stiff and achy.

Went to bonesmart.org, Recovering From Knee Replacement. Said it’s important to remember that sometimes pain can persist in one form or another for many weeks. “This is normal.” According to this site, “the early, sharp pain gets replaced with a deeper, more achy pain. This second type of pain still needs to be treated.  In addition, your physical therapy may cause some pain in your joints. You can prepare yourself for this pain with a dose of medication about an hour before your physical therapy sessions.”

So, am wondering if I started cutting back on the pain meds too soon. Around December 1, I went to a half pain pill and a half Tylenol every 5 hours with a full pill an hour before PT. I see Dr. Fagenbaum tomorrow for a checkup. Will talk to him and get back to you.

In PT in addition to the ROM, been working on loosening, stretching muscles. Purchased the Intracell Stick, which I feel like is helping – “A Toothbrush for Muscles.”

Over 24 years of research in this stick. Function of this technology is to extinguish trigger points (contracted fibers that feel like bumps in the muscles) and allow tight, contracted muscles to relax and recover.

Can’t close this post without mentioning maybe the best article I’ve ever read about the knee and its health. In the January 2014 Reader’s Digest, page 55, “A Day in the Life of Your Knee” by Jill Provost. Unique writing. It’s worth the read.  Goodnight.

Encouraging Progress

 

This past Tuesday was the beginning of week 6. I confess I’ve been stressing out a bit about ROM (range of motion) on my replaced knee. Last week it was 97. Goal for PT completion at the end of January is 120. My daughter, Heather, reminded me that was about two months away…and each week yields better results, so I could do this.

This week in PT Drew added deep tissue massage to my thigh … and calf massage. I think that must be so my leg would limber up and he could bend it more! Thursday he told me a silly knock knock joke to get my mind off the pain of bending. But that’s ok ‘cause I’m seeing progress!

Thursday evening I noticed a change in the feeling in my knee when I walk. It doesn’t feel nearly as much like something thick in my knee. I can tell it’s on the way to feeling more like a normal knee. Part of that is related to the decrease in swelling. I can actually see the outline of my  ankle bone and of my knee – not just a swollen glob.

Drew asked me the first day in PT about my goals. The first thing I said was I wanted to be back to gardening. Well, Brenda, this picture from sunny Friday is for you. (Brenda is an AVID gardener who is having knee replacement January 2.)

Note the gardening gloves and shears (and cane propped behind the fence). I was good for about an hour of tidying the flower beds. We have a very hilly yard, so I did need the cane a couple times. Need to ask Dr. Fagenbaum about sitting on the ground and getting up using mostly my “good” leg. That has to be possible.

The journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step. – Lao Tzu

Elevation is key!

 

This morning around 2:30 couldn’t sleep, so I was on my phone checking out my favorite go-to website bonesmart.org and what it had to say about pain and swelling control . Elevation is the key! I’m a visual learner, so the pics with X (don’t do it this way) and check marks (do it this way) were just what I needed.  The foot should be above the hip and the higher the better in order to get good drainage for the lymph and tissue fluid that is the primary cause of swelling.

At my first Trinity Wellness appointment Tuesday, PT Drew stressed elevate and ice, elevate and ice. . . once every hour is ideal. Haven’t reached the ideal, but I am upping my game. 

My first official outing was to Gary and Ellie’s house for Thanksgiving dinner with Asbury friends. Could have gone out before now, but I chose not to. My job is resting and getting stronger, and I haven’t wanted to risk picking up a cold or other virus. Thankful for the recovery I’m experiencing. Happy Thanksgiving!

Do what you can, with what you have, where you are. – Theodore Roosevelt