Ahead of the Curve.

Had an appointment today with the orthopedist.  The physician assistant said I was "ahead of the curve" and usually not at this point until about 3 months post-surgery.  (I'm just past 8 weeks.)  The doctor said I don't need any more follow-up appointments for a year unless I have any problems.  Yippee!

Lessons Learned: #5

Hospital care is expensive:  $35,000 for three nights.  (Insurance reduced claim and paid $25,000.)

Bye, Bye PT

I had my last physical therapy session today.  No more bend, bend, bend, ow! Bend, bend, bend, ow!  I am a happy camper today.  : )

Lessons Learned: #4

Much pain, but tremendous gain.

Lessons Learned: #3

Being dependent on someone for even the littlest of things, even for a few weeks, gives one a new appreciation of what it must be like to be permanently disabled.

Lessons Learned: #2

Using a walker or cane in public will almost assuredly mean a good samaritan will open a door for you. 

Lessons Learned: #1

Daytime TV leaves much to be desired.  However, during my recovery, I did discover HGTV with its many home buying/renovating programs.  Unfortunately, I found that too much HGTV can make a person feel her house is quite inadequate.

125 Degrees!

Physical therapy is brutal sometimes.  I swear, every time I go to PT, the therapist bends my knee a little farther.  I think he decides in advance how many degrees he's going to flex my knee, and he pushes and pushes and pushes my knee until it gets there.  So today his goal was 125 degrees, and yup, he made it.  I'm told 120 to 130 is good, so at least the pain is worth it. 

I went bike riding twice this past week.  Both times it hurt pretty bad for the first 4 or 5 blocks.  Hubby was riding behind me, and he said as my knee came up, so did my butt.  LOL.  I was pretty sore after the second ride, which was farther than the first.  Hubby says I tend to overdo sometimes.  Well, often.  I confess, I have a tendency to do more than I should.

I'm going up and down stairs normally now and have been for about a week.  I thought I'd never get there.  Going up and down leading with the same foot each time got tiring (and it made me feel a bit like a child).

My knee aches when I sit in one position for a long time, and I especially notice it at work if I don't change positions often.  The physical therapist said it can take up to a year for my knee to actually feel like a normal knee.

And did I ever mention that two to three weeks of sleeping only on my back was driving me crazy?!

All in all, I'm pretty darned happy with my knee replacement.  I would not have said that a few weeks ago, but as the pain subsides and I'm able to do more, I can say it was a very good decision to have the surgery.