I don't know exactly where you are in your recovery from surgery, but, wanted to say everyone, here, is worried for you and wishing you a speedy recovery. Are you home yet? Let us know. I hope your recovery is fast and as painless as possible. 🌹
I had surgery on Friday, October 28. Yep, I had a total knee replacement on my right knee so now I have a man-made joint and a titanium rod in my body. I was GOBSMACKED to learn that this surgery is deemed to be outpatient OR the hospital will agree to keep you one night and I chose to stay.
As luck would have it, I needed to arrive at the hospital at 5am on Friday however the doctors didn't arrive until 7am and the surgery began shortly thereafter. I do remember waking up at about 10am in my room and the room seemed to be no bigger than what I expect a prison cell to be, for real. The only difference being, there is a small and bathroom with a toilet, sink and shower at the end of the room by the door! The room is wide enough to accommodate the hospital bed and one reclining chair plus some of the "hospital stuff" like the rolling poles that your I.V. bags hang from a small potty chair, because they don't want me walking YET as well as my "walker", you know those metal things old people use that have cut open tennis balls on the leg of the device to allow it to slide better.
For the record, I was able to squeeze in a one hour nap in the afternoon but recovery is tough in the hospital. The guy next door to me is hard of hearing and he's had his television on and on loud for the biggest part of the day. I said something to one of the nurses when they came in at 10:35pm to take my blood pressure and temperature. She mentioned that the man was hard of hearing but I said t was not and the volume was loud. She ducked into his room, noticed he was asleep and turned it off. It's now technically Saturday and 1:47am and he's been awake for more than an hour and his television is back on. And to add insult to injury, the guy across the hall is snoring and I can hear it in my room.
All I can say is that the hospital is not a place where "sick" folks are able to get any rest! --------------------------------------- added after 6 hours
Boy was I greatly MISTAKEN! What I thought was a small room that I could see from my chair was NOT a full bathroom, it was just equipped with a toilet.
Not sure if I mentioned this, when I was out of surgery and brought to my room yesterday, I noticed it was about 10am. I have had lower back issues for years and the only way I am comfortable is when my legs are elevated HOWEVER, this was not meant to be in the hospital. With that off the table, I was relegated to the recliner probably from noon yesterday and that's where I woke up today. Apparently, they do not want me to stand up because my blood pressure has been low and they are concerned about falling. When I woke up this morning, it was only because this device they have me connected to was beeping and was annoying the crap outta me. Oh, speaking of crap, this is the perfect segue into my next thought..... So it took hospital staff over 15 minutes to get to my room to reset or stop this device from beeping so when she got here, I spoke to her about MY plans to use the authentic porcelain commode instead of the potty chair because I planned on having an authentic bowel movement and I would be damned if I was going to do that in the middle of the room. I want a bit of dignity! Got to the porcelain commode, mission accomplished! That wasn't a complete but scaled down version of a bathroom, the room was no bigger than a broom closet outfitted with a toilet.
Hospitals are a necessity but they leave a lot to be desired in comfort. It seems almost every procedure is an "outpatient" one these days. I hope you have little pain or large pain killers. Good luck --------------------------------------- added after 14 minutes
You don't seem old enough to require a complete knee replacement. Are you fully retired? Never mind. That's a secret that a lady (like you) should divulge only if you want. Hope you get to attend many dances.
I fussed with approximately 4 orthopedic surgeons beginning prior to COVID about possible surgical protocol and 4 orthopedic surgeons said "no, you're too young" but I was able to retire in 2020 due to COVID and earlier this year, I believe March, I was lucky to find a surgeon who agreed that surgery is necessary and he worked with insurance to receive authorization from Blue Cross to proceed with the surgery. Just an f.y.i., I injured myself at Blue Cross years ago when I was employed by them so I wonder whether that hadany bearing on their approval decision?
It may. We have Blue Cross Advantage HMO ant they've been ok 95% of the time. They covered all procedures with reasonable co-payments. It's the tier 4 meds we have a problem with. Finding qualified surgeons is a chore. We rely on old friends (doctors whom I've worked with) for recommendations and second opinions. How long b4 they want you to walk?
bella!, I have just seen this now and I have to agree with CAT here - Don't push it yet. Having had a partial knee replacement some years ago I know something about this process. Your knee has been removed and replaced with an artificial joint which will take time to fuse with the remaining bone in your leg before it is fully healed. The recovery time should be similar to a leg break. My advice is to follow your doctors advice but also get a good physiotherapist who can advise you on exercises you can do to limit muscle atrophy while you are recovering, that won't upset the setting process. Good luck with your recovery.
I haven't even seen MY DOCTOR! To be honest, I don't believe I saw him yesterday before the surgery and I surely didn't see him after the surgery, either! My understanding he's at the Michigan vs Michigan State football game this weekend. For those that are not from Michigan, this American style football game is a big deal because these universities are big rivals. I'm still sitting in the same recliner I was in yesterday. I do the leg exercises. And I do what I'm required to do, plus!
Hope you get better and walking right again soon.Just follow the dr's advice.1 freind of mine had both knees done and he needed to loose some weight and hasn't.He has complications now.
Oh, I feel for you, as I was reading your post, I was visualizing myself in your predicament and I was starting to feel uncomfortable. I don't think I could go through what you went through. Next time your in need of the nurse, just unplug the heart monitor and they will be in in twenty seconds hope your feeling no pain
Have a speedy recovery Bella your in a better place recovering from home when I was in the hospital 4 years ago they tried to starve me and they wouldn’t let me get any sleep even though I was only there 3 days I couldn’t wait to get home
Thanks, cody. I had a rough evening yesterday. Went from the chair and into the bed hoping that the pain would subside. It didn't happen and at 10pm, I asked for a "pain pill". WHOOP THERE IT IS, 6 hours of uninterrupted peace and sleep. Fast forward to 4am and then it all starts again. Yep, vitals, blood draw, etc. 6:30am-ish starts doctor rounds, 7:30am come Food Service, 8:30am is Physical Therapy, 9am I'm back in the room needing a nap.
That all sounds bloody awful, so I hope you can escape soon.
When you get home, I wish you a speedy recovery.
A tip based on the experiences of my mother in law;
if your knee starts getting less flexible, practice is important.
However, if that doesn't help, there could be scar-tissue growing in places that it shouldn't grow. A small percentage of patients has that and there is no remedy other than keyhole surgery, where they remove the scar-tissue and then have a machine keep your knee in motion. They had my mother in law wait two years, without any improvement, before they finally did that. Then she recovered very quickly and she's now doing great.
It's not meant as discouragement, but just as a precaution.
Get well soon!
It's that time of year, folks, yep, the McRib is back at McDonald's and on the "farewell tour". Is that even possible? No more McRib ever? NOOOOOO!! Actually, when I think of the McRib, I think of Scorpio69, aka Scorps and his "love" of this fast food favorite!
If anyone connects with him ( dgraff ), let him know I was thinking about him with every bite I took, smack down to me licking my fingers clean of barbecue sauce! Consuming this annual delicacy was 10 minutes of pure bliss!
I think it is Banquet brand tv dinners from walmart,that if you get the "barbecue ribs" varity,it taste and Looks exactly like what is in the mcrib sandwich.
STOP NOW! I enjoy a McDonald's McRib once or twice when it has its annual return. I surely don't want to think about or visualize the ass meat of any animal then stamped on by a work boot. I kinda think that hospital food falls into that category. The only thing I'm readily able to identify here is bread and of course, condiments because they are in sealed packets. I surely hope that the off white stuff that is slapped in between the bread is turkey.
You expressed your feelings via the safety and the anonymity of the internet. It's just my opinion that when we have to convey our thoughts and feelings face to face, we're more apt to act with some civility and control.
Absolutely. I guess my post was not quite accurate. Sometimes, when chatting here or in any forum in the internet, I feel like I'm face-to-face with the other person, but, if we were face-to-face, the other person (in this case Scorps) would not be posting the trashy, misogynistic, right wing, bigotry that he used to post here, in the forums. Many times directed squarely at me. I've been active in the forums for several years and came to the conclusion that the male members seem to think they are the only ones that are supposed to have any opinions, let alone socio-political ones. In many respects, the internet allows us to be more truthful when dealing with people we don't agree or, perhaps, like. When some member calls me "sweetie, or baby, or beautiful, or sexy" I respond with " lollipop, lover, handsome, Daddy". When I'm called dumb, ignorant, N......er lover, stupid cunt, I respond with "mysoginistic and other stronger choice words"
As luck would have it, I needed to arrive at the hospital at 5am on Friday however the doctors didn't arrive until 7am and the surgery began shortly thereafter. I do remember waking up at about 10am in my room and the room seemed to be no bigger than what I expect a prison cell to be, for real. The only difference being, there is a small and bathroom with a toilet, sink and shower at the end of the room by the door! The room is wide enough to accommodate the hospital bed and one reclining chair plus some of the "hospital stuff" like the rolling poles that your I.V. bags hang from a small potty chair, because they don't want me walking YET as well as my "walker", you know those metal things old people use that have cut open tennis balls on the leg of the device to allow it to slide better.
For the record, I was able to squeeze in a one hour nap in the afternoon but recovery is tough in the hospital. The guy next door to me is hard of hearing and he's had his television on and on loud for the biggest part of the day. I said something to one of the nurses when they came in at 10:35pm to take my blood pressure and temperature. She mentioned that the man was hard of hearing but I said t was not and the volume was loud. She ducked into his room, noticed he was asleep and turned it off. It's now technically Saturday and 1:47am and he's been awake for more than an hour and his television is back on. And to add insult to injury, the guy across the hall is snoring and I can hear it in my room.
All I can say is that the hospital is not a place where "sick" folks are able to get any rest!
--------------------------------------- added after 6 hours
Boy was I greatly MISTAKEN! What I thought was a small room that I could see from my chair was NOT a full bathroom, it was just equipped with a toilet.
Not sure if I mentioned this, when I was out of surgery and brought to my room yesterday, I noticed it was about 10am. I have had lower back issues for years and the only way I am comfortable is when my legs are elevated HOWEVER, this was not meant to be in the hospital. With that off the table, I was relegated to the recliner probably from noon yesterday and that's where I woke up today. Apparently, they do not want me to stand up because my blood pressure has been low and they are concerned about falling. When I woke up this morning, it was only because this device they have me connected to was beeping and was annoying the crap outta me. Oh, speaking of crap, this is the perfect segue into my next thought..... So it took hospital staff over 15 minutes to get to my room to reset or stop this device from beeping so when she got here, I spoke to her about MY plans to use the authentic porcelain commode instead of the potty chair because I planned on having an authentic bowel movement and I would be damned if I was going to do that in the middle of the room. I want a bit of dignity! Got to the porcelain commode, mission accomplished! That wasn't a complete but scaled down version of a bathroom, the room was no bigger than a broom closet outfitted with a toilet.
I can't wait to break outt this hell hole!
--------------------------------------- added after 14 minutes
You don't seem old enough to require a complete knee replacement. Are you fully retired? Never mind. That's a secret that a lady (like you) should divulge only if you want. Hope you get to attend many dances.
Wishing you a good recovery
When you get home, I wish you a speedy recovery.
A tip based on the experiences of my mother in law;
if your knee starts getting less flexible, practice is important.
However, if that doesn't help, there could be scar-tissue growing in places that it shouldn't grow. A small percentage of patients has that and there is no remedy other than keyhole surgery, where they remove the scar-tissue and then have a machine keep your knee in motion. They had my mother in law wait two years, without any improvement, before they finally did that. Then she recovered very quickly and she's now doing great.
It's not meant as discouragement, but just as a precaution.
Get well soon!
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Our President believes he's startinb with two words.....
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--------------------------------------- added after 80 seconds
Oops, that was "STARTING" not what I spelled!
If anyone connects with him ( dgraff ), let him know I was thinking about him with every bite I took, smack down to me licking my fingers clean of barbecue sauce! Consuming this annual delicacy was 10 minutes of pure bliss!
BackYard Barbecue. Yea right. Ground buzzard with rotten mater sauce.
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