Day 12 - Taking it easier

Yesterday was a busy day, with not very much resting time. So today I decided to take it a bit easier, and rest more. I almost succeeded.

I am reaching a point of frustration. The scab on the incision is tight and annoying. I am very tired of the bandaids on the 4 removable stitches..nine more days of those! Last night when I pulled the old bandaids off to replace them, my skin came with it in a couple of spots..Ouch! Now I have to try to turn or trim the bandaids so those spots can heal. 

I am tired of baby stepping up and down the stairs--of elevating my feet--of not being able to bend my knee fully---silly me!! I forget it has just been 12 days since I got this new knee. 

This frustration is to be expected. My therapist told me that the first two weeks the improvement was fast and exciting, and then it hits a plateau and slows down. I am not sure if this is the source of my frustration, I think I am just being impatient.

On the "up" side of things, I got out my flute today, and found that I could play so much better standing up! I truly enjoyed myself. I am again discovering things that I didn't realize I had "lost" prior to surgery! My sound is much better with my weight on my left foot--how long has it been that I could not stand with my weight on that foot....or even balanced between my feet?

Tomorrow is another workout with my physical therapist... Have some questions prepared..Onward!!

Day 11: Sabbath

Today was a big day. I attended church services, which means walking and sitting and standing. It was good to see everyone, but I definitely felt tired..home and an ice pack, feet elevated above heart for 30 minutes.

Then we were off to the theater. We were lucky to get a seat in the last row, with no one in front, and no one next to me, so I could get my leg up during the evening. (This is theater in the round.) we took a quick walk though the parking lot during intermission, which felt good.

The scab on my incision is getting annoying. Not quite itchy, but it is stiff. I so want to rub something into it to soften it, but I  know I must not. It needs to heal completely, without anything on it. There are absorbable stitches, which are covered with strips of tape, and glue the tape has begun to peel. I am glad that I can clip the loose edges of the tape as it lifts up. 

I have spent the last 2 weeks wearing shorts, as I cannot stand having clothing rub against the incision scab..today was tough because I wore a skirt.

Tomorrow I plan on a lot of resting!! I will still are a walk, I just don't know if I will try to increase my distance.

My goal is to do a full circuit of our block by Tuesday. That's about 500 feet more than now. The full circuit is 1/2 mile. Once I can do that comfortably, my next goal will be to double it to a mile a day.

Days 9 & 10

Yesterday, my iPad didn't like Blogger, and trashed my entire post. There is something very quirky about it. Sometimes I finish a post, and it vanishes without a trace. Other times it refuses to let me start a post, but most of the time, it works. And there seems to be a length limit on posts on the iPad. I get so far, and then the screen will not scroll any further...weird. I still don't feel up to sitting at the computer, at least not for very long, so I am working on the iPad almost exclusively.

The last two days are a bit of a blur. I had physical therapy on day 10, each time I learn new things about my body, and gain forward motion. I asked my therapist why the knee is so stiff and hard to move: Answer: intracellular swelling. The build up of fluid within the joint! So the cure is to keep pressing, and to try to keep the lymph moving.

There is NO WAY I could push my knee as far on my own! Soooooo thankful for the help of a terrific therapist.

I increased my walk each day, but have not slept well, making me tired. I am getting very tired of the stitches and the incision...they are a bit itchy. Yeah. That means healing...my dear husband says "Fatigue makes cowards of us all" - I am feeling a bit cowardly. Tomorrow is a big day: church and out to the theater in the evening! (Season tickets). 

Day 8: A Day of Delightful Discoveries

Today I have made the most wonderful discoveries, and the most wonderful progress! I am full of wonder, like a small child discovering things for the first time. 

So lets start with the mundane: walking. Isn't it amazing how we take walking for granted? Today I have "graduated" - I am now placing full weight on my leg, and only carry the cane around for assurance in case I get a little wobbly. 

I had an appointment with my physical therapist this morning, and the focus was on gait, stride, posture and self-confidence. I am almost embarrassed to admit that fear was my biggest problem: I was afraid to put full weight on my leg, even though there were glimpses where I thought maybe it was ready. With the assurance of someone else,  trusted, and the leg did not let me down. 

A few days ago that I was doing things that I had not been able to do for weeks and months. Today I made another thrilling connection: the muscles of my upper back have been negatively affected by my knee. 

For the past 3-4 months, I have needed to sit in a chair when I practiced my flute, because my knee would get too tired standing. For the last 9 months I have been struggling to hold my shoulders back and low, the flute parallel to the floor, and neck in a elongated, but relaxed. I thought my muscles had gotten too sloppy, that I had lost muscle tone and needed to work weights to rebuild.

Today I sat in a chair, but with a valid reason! I am still at possible danger of blood lots, so need to be moving or elevating the legs. So I set up 2 chairs face to face, with my legs on one....and...SAT UP STRAIGHT EFFORTLESSLY!!!! Shoulders back, flute level, neck relaxed and up.....without even thinking about it!! 

And my TONE!!! My TECHNIQUE!!!  Absolutely ASTOUNDING!!!!

I had no idea that my knee was dragging my music down.  Feel like today I received all the results from the last 9 months of practice! Everything I have been working on clicked into place. And the very best of all....at my lesson my teacher said: "THAT'S the beautiful full tone I have been looking for...full and round, instead of thin." Music to my ears..in more ways than one.

Yes, today was delightful. 

But here's the thing: remember that old song, "Mama Said There'd be Days Like This"? Yeah. This is a high day, and MY I'm always said every high day will bring a corresponding low, be prepared for it, and you can work through. So I am going to savor today, tuck it in memory so that I can bring it out to she'd a bit of light to travel though low days that will surely come.

Onward! 

Day 7

This is the first day I have been on my own for part of the day. I am now able to put full weight on my leg, at least for a moment. I suspect that I could do it longer, except for the fear! 

Being able to go about in the house with a cane instead of crutches makes things much easier, since I can carry something in my free hand, so it's easy to fix a simple meal or get a glass of water. 

I also got in a good practice session on the flute, and for the first time since 3 weeks before surgery, was able to practice while standing (for about 10 minutes). So sweet! It was such a delight to focus on my music instead of the tiredness/weakness/pain in my knee!

My incision is healing nicely, but it is starting to feel a bit itchy. I am keeping it covered with soft gauze, even though it is "dry" and I was told that I did not have to cover it once it was dry. 

Compression stockings, I am happy to say, are not so uncomfortable as I had imagined! Too bad they don't make them beige or in colors..I am not crazy about going about with white legs. Then again, white DOES go with everything. 

I am eager for tomorrow's workout with my physical therapist. It is amazing how very hard it is to lift my leg...or bend my knee ... I am discovering muscle imbalances I never knew I had! 

Days 5 & 6

(Saturday & Sunday) Whew! Busy days!!!

So, for the past two days, I have been happily discovering a ton of little things I could not do even a week ago. I really had no idea how much I was restricted in activity! For the past two weeks, I have not been able to come down the staircase without putting all my weight on my hands and swinging from step to step, placing barely any weight on my left leg. It is truly amazing, 4/5 days after surgery, and I navigate those same stairs...baby stepping, I foot at a time....with almost no weight on my hands!

Something you might not know: I learned this from teaching step classes: going DOWN steps is one of the hardest things you can do to your knees!! That's why in most gyms, it is considered illegal to go forward off the step in a class. (Teachers still do it..why? It makes the class fun. Students encounter it in other classes and ask for it.) 

So I have known for a long time, that you can back down a staircase and it is easier on your knees. I have even done it a few times! The parking garage staircase in Old Town Pasadena where I go for my flute lessons is especially wicked. I have been backing down it for two weeks!!

Anyway, go to my 30 Day Project page for the stats--suffice it to say that every day it gets better. I am beginning to be tired of sitting and lying down. At the same time, I am just plain tired. My very wise daughter pointed out that this recuperation is the same as being pregnant. My body is working very, very hard, even if I am just sitting. 

As I write this, Monday morning, it is exactly 7 days since I got this knee. My progress is astounding and awesome. I am truly grateful that I found myself in the hands of a competent orthopedic doctor who made a correct diagnosis and offered a solution. I am grateful that I am in a position to cover my share of the expense. (Hopefully I will still feel this way as the bills start to roll in...)

GOALS FOR THIS WEEK:

1. Graduate from crutches to cane
2. Go to Old Town Music Store to have a flute lesson
3. Increase my daily walk to 1/2 mile
4. Increase the flexion in my knee as much as my therapist feels possible. 

Day Four - Friday - Physical Therapy Begins in Earnest

I am losing track of counting the days, so now I am adding a day of the week...it is hard to believe that this is only 4 days after surgery!!! Each day brings noticeable improvement. According to Sally, my Physical Therapist, that quick change continues for a couple weeks, then you hit a kind of plateau, so I am going to take advantage of feeling and enjoying every little accomplishment. 

Sally came today, and this was really our first "workout." When she was here on Wednesday, she took baseline measurements of the swelling, how long it took me to navigate a short walk, discussed my plans and goals.

I think the success of physical therapy is the same as that with a personal trainer or coach: your personality and style must match in such a way that you work as a team. Sally is perfect for me. She treats me with respect for my knowledge/experience as a trainer, and still maintains the "alpha" role.

Today's big event was our session, which to me feels like the first "real" workout. First she assessed my knee, and gave me a bit of a massage on that leg. Then we accomplished one task: lying on my back, "good" (R) leg bent and "bad" (L) leg extended. Lift L leg up 12 inches, hold, lower slowly. No sweat, right? HAH! At first I could not lift the leg by myself. but by the 5th and final lift, I did it on my own. Our discussion during this time gave me insight to how much I can do, the difference between good pain and bad in this circumstance, and other exercises I can do on my own. 

As soon as I was up on my feet I noticed that me knee felt freer movement and less stiff. I walked across the room with about 90% weight on my new knee. Sweet! I took my daily walk, and increased the distance to 440 feet. I now have 117 degrees of flexion (bending) of my knee. Getting up and down from sitting no longer requires me to slide the leg forward straight, but I bend it (slowly). Later on I walked out in the yard and had my grandson water some dry areas. Progress!!

Addendum: this blog would not be honest without a few negatives: I am getting bored with moving so slow. My leg is starting to itch, and my skin is tired of the bandages. (I have a long gauze strip, with sticky edges all around that cover the incision...2 more days of this, unless the incision is still oozing. And 4 bandages to cover the 4 stitches that will have to be removed in 10 more days. These all require daily changing.) I am awful sick of sleeping on my back.