Life after a joint replacement: Share your experiences and advice!

Hi  @ C ChetwyndMy right k

@ C Chetwynd  My knee when it s replaced I was told it was bone rubbing on bone. I was also told there was OA in the other one as well but when I got the replacement done the left one should be OK.

I'm 71  and have had 2 THR's  , 1 TKR, 1 Shoulder replacement.  In fact in the last 18 months its been 3 major operations.  The THRs were a few years ago but recently it was a knee replacement, then a shoulder operation, and a few weeks after that the same should was replaced and it looks like I'm heading for another TKR but trying not to.

Not sure what to use apart from the usual meds and I don't want to dose myself.

Hileena

@Hileena‍ 

Thank you for your message. You have certainly been through a lot of operations. I admire your courage. I am not a coward and am not afraid of having TKR, but because my mobility is not all that good and I walk with crutches, I am a little bit reluctant to have the surgery. Besides, I care my 81 year old husband who had a major surgery for the Cancer of the Oesophagus 23 months ago. I worry about him taking the right medication at the right time and other aspects of his care. I suppose I have to be well enough to carry on caring for him, and perhaps ought to consider having the op done soon. Wish there were alternatives. Stem Cell treatment is not available in this country except in Harley Street, London, but i can not afford that. I will have a good chat with my GP and then decide

nineteen_gale

I had both my knees replaced at 47, bad decision 2 years on and I am still in pain everyday. Need hip doing but no thank you.  I had a steroid injection  into hip two weeks ago and that seems to help. 

@BeswickM I have had my right hip totally replaced twice.  After my first one, I knocked it loose by falling at the bark park taking our dog for a walk!!  Both were very successful replacements, and they flew by uneventfully.  A friend of ours had his hip replaced years ago, and I remember him saying "if you every have to have your hips replaced, exercise, a LOT".  I took that advise into account and did just that.  I exercised and when I was done, I exercised more.  I would stand with my walker watching tv and walk in place, and bring my knee up hip level and down again.  Every moment I was relaxing, I would try to remember to exercise in some fashion with that hip!  It must of worked!  I was doing stairs w/in 7 days of my first surgery and about the same with my second.  I also found that using a cheap bag of peas to ice with was terrific.  By the time they thawed out, ice time was over.  I just threw the bag back in the freezer for next time ( I did keep a couple of bags on hand to make sure I always had a frozen bag).  They are also pliable and do not hurt the incision site.  Just remember to exercise and when you think you have exercised enough, do it some more!  You will get stronger faster and bounce back just fine!  :)

 I exercise every single day several times a day always have I have a full bend on both knees, but the pain is no less than before they were done.  The only really plus is that they no longer dislocate.  I am a healthy weight, I eat well and I understand the importance of keep moving.  I have had a chest infection this last week so not moved a lot and the pain is so much better (apart from that ache which really hurts  every bone when your arthritic and you get colds etc). It's tempting to become a couch potato for that reason but having been a gymnast and a keen runner and cyclist and gym goer it is not in my nature to keep still so onward with the pain and pain management I must battle.

Yes exercise is the key to how you recover!...my mum had her hip replaced and was told to walk every day and try to go a bit further each time...she didn’t bother and did not recover at all...i have made sure that i exercise every day doing the ones taught to me by the physio at the hospital..i usually do these while waiting for the kettle to boil plus i do aerobics (if it’s an exercise that i find hard i adapt it to one that i can do) and also do weight training and can now squat with weights which i have only just started to do..have no pain now..the only thing i find is that my knee is a bit stiff coming down the stairs.

. Thank you kindly for chatting to me. Vickicoffe.  I'm a year n a bit on now . I am doing les mills workouts now.  You're a very determined lady, people like you I look upto and not use it as an excuse to do nothing. It's our new lease of life . Which like me I'm sure you're thankfull for . Kind regards Marie Beswick.  

Youre so very welcome @MBeswick!  I just hope your recovery went as well as mine!!

Well it’s now a year+ since i had my left knee replaced and i finally feel that it was worth the stress of the operation (and several cancellations) but now my other knee is starting to hurt!

It does not feel the same as my left knee but i am aware of the pain so something must be wrong...i have  just started going out jogging which has improved my low mood and is helping me to sleep as before i was only managing one/two hours a night so don’t really want to stop but i wonder if i am putting too much strain on my right (good) knee as i tend to try to keep the weight of my *new* knee so putting extra strain on the other one.

It’s not the sharp pain that i had with my left knee but could this be the start of arthritis? I may try using Flexiseq gel again as i had good results with that before..any advice would be helpful.

I have had a partial knee replacement and it is the best thing I’ve ever done ,I was back at work at 5 weeks gently as I’m on my feet all day as a hairdresser but has been wonderful, pain gone after 2weeks but must exercise lots to get going.