Knee Replacement Surgery

It’s my last day at work and I’ve got loads to do before I leave for 6 – 8 weeks or so. Still I’d rather have something to take my mind off things as I really am nervous now. Considering I’ve had 5 arthroscopies you’d think I’d be fine, but I’m really not and I’m not sure why.

Anyway I’ve collected all my nightwear, slippers, books, Nintendo DS, mobile phone and toiletries ready for going in the morning so there’s no mad rush. Last time I packed for a hospital visit I was giving birth!

As part of my pre-op assessment they discovered that my blood pressure was a bit high so the nurse suggested I see the doctor to get it checked out prior to ‘major surgery.’

I made an appointment and went to see him and when he took a reading it was 154/103 – probably a bit high! Anyway he said it was quite a short amount of time to get it sorted as it usually takes several attempts to find the right medication for an individual. He prescribed me some tablets and I paid £7.20 for them at the pharmacy. £7.20!!

I read the accompanying leaflet and scared myself with all the possible complications, but then found the list of complications of untreated blood pressure and decided to go ahead and take them. The normal dose is apparently 10mg per day but I’d been prescribed 2.5mg which I should take at the same time every day although it didn’t matter when.

As the complications included possible faintness and dizziness after taking the first dose I decided to take it before bed when I’d be lying down anyway. Happily I didn’t even know I’d taken it as I went straight to sleep.

The following Monday after I’d taken 3 tablets I went to see the nurse at the surgery who took my blood pressure again and it was 154/89 which she said was fine.

Thank goodness for that – one less thing to worry about.

I’ve now ordered a back rest from an Amazon Marketplace Seller, and a bolster cushion from another Marketplace Seller. Both of these sellers were much better priced than anything I could find on eBay which was a surprise.

The bolster cushion which I hope will help me to sleep lying on my side, was only £7.95, yet I couldn’t find it anywhere else for less than £15.

I also treated myself to the latest DS version of the new Professor Layton game. I decided to pre-order it as the release date isn’t until the 24th September (tomorrow) and then keep it until I get into hospital. I’m sure I’ll want something to do to pass the time. 5 days is a long time!

Yay – I ordered a single bed from Argos to put in the spare room, which since my daughter left home has been a study-come-dumping-ground, and it arrived today. Read more…

Yep – it came round all too soon. Off I went to the hospital and then had a barrage of tests.

I had to do a wee sample which surprised me, and was also unfortunate as I’d been before I left and so only managed the tiniest bit. The nurse said my generosity was overwhelming!

Read about the rest of my experience.

Read more…

Yes it’s boring but I’ve decided over the next two weeks I must get the house tidied and things cleared away so that:

• I won’t feel that I have to try and get up and do housework-things
• There’ll be nothing for me to trip over

I’m also going to fit grab rails by the side of the toilet so I don’t have to ask for help from anyone everytime I use the facilities!

We have a caravan by the Welsh coast and so we’ll be going up there tomorrow for our last trip for a while. I must make the most of it.

It’s on a very flat site and I’d absolutely love to recuperate there rather than at home, but realistically it’ll probably be a couple of weeks at least before I’ll be able to get there and feel confident enough to stay there by myself. We shall see…..

I’m also going to buy a bottle of Bio Oil as I’ve heard good things about its effect on scars, then as soon as the dressings come off, I shall massage it in morning, noon and night.

This is a nice nightie

A knee length nightie is a must have as well, but have you ever tried buying one that doesn’t look like something your Grandma would be happy to wear? I just want a t-shirt type that’s not too baggy but that won’t reveal my bottom if I just wriggle a bit in bed.

Pyjamas will be a no go as I’m I’m guessing the bottom of pyjama legs would be too tight to pull up over my knee, and if not, they’ll simply fall back down again anyway. And I’m not going to drop my trousers every time someone wants to see my knee. No a nightie it is.

The search continues.

Oh and I’m getting nervous now.

I’ve been quite surprised that no one I’ve seen about my knee so far has asked any questions about my personal circumstances. After all I live in a 3 bed-semi with one loo and that’s upstairs. How will I cope afterwards for the first week or so? What will or won’t I be able to do?

Luckily I have common sense so I’m getting some bits and pieces ready for when I come out of hospital. Read more…

How exciting – not!

Perhaps I should say straight away that I’m 50 and that’s apparently very young to be undergoing this type of surgery? (So that’s one reason I decided to document my experience). Read more…

Hi Everyone, I’m due to have my left knee replaced on October 2nd 2009.

I have tried to find some first hand information on what I can expect from the whole process but without any luck.

So I’ve decided to share my experience here for anyone else who is going to have a TKR (total knee replacement) in the future and hope it may answer some of your queries.