There are many things you can do prior to surgery to help yourself be as prepared as possible and therefore help to make your recovery process as easy as possible. This is a must listen for anyone with a knee surgery upcoming.
Knee replacement surgery is extremely effective at eliminating osteoarthritic pain. But, recent research shows that, “Current practice of total knee replacement as performed in a recent U.S. cohort of patients with knee osteoarthritis had minimal effects on quality of life and QALYs (quality adjusted life years) at the group level.”
The type of anesthesia used during a surgical procedure will depend on a number of factors, but primarily the nature of the procedure and your medical history. Beyond this, you may be offered a choice of options, and those who anticipate being anxious during the procedure may wish to opt for a greater level of sedation.
Amazed, stunned, and speechless, hope rising up in my heart, as a whole new sense of what’s possible for people struggling with those “sticky knees“… for YEARS.
In trying to analyze the whole experience, there was one very interesting factor. At the height of the pain on Marlin’s Story Part IV: Managing Pain After Knee Replacement. Saturday and Sunday, I did no exercise at all. But some kind of survival instinct must have kicked in on Monday and though the pain management regimen remained the same, and I was unable to do any meaningful work with the physiotherapist, I completed two sessions on the X10 machine once the pain meds kicked in.
Merlin’s Story Part V: Conclusion. I named my X10 machine ‘Brunhilda’ and we quickly became fast friends. She sat among my plants and books and work files like a sentinel looking out the window to the trees outside. She was strong and relentless and kind and rewarding. I could set my target, crank up the Mozart to levels that drowned the pain, pace myself, and have small victories which I would celebrate with my recovery coaches. My knee surgery recovery and the X10 were now working in synchronization.
To walk properly you need that zero degrees, so that your heel can hit the ground first. After surgery, sometimes what happens is your brain can start sending messages to the leg on how it should move and where it is in space. Your leg can sometimes have a delay on that message. It’s almost like your muscles have to relearn what their job is.
What image comes to mind when you hear of a person undergoing a total knee replacement? Someone sedentary? Someone in their “golden years?” What if I told you that image has changed drastically in the last decade?
Some answers to lingering questions about recovery after knee replacement. Can you reduce recovery time? Can you regain strength (in this case 10 months after surgery)? Can you achieve natural range of motion even after severe complications? Verified research here on the effect of using X10 for recovery.
An athlete all his life Tom writes about the challenges of total knee replacement recovery under circumstances of extreme pain. Mary Elliott does an in-depth interview for the podcast and Tom Jurewicz shares his story in this signature article about perseverance, courage and recovery.