as many of the more frequent readers of this forum may remember,, I've had both knees replaced recently, the pain level even with meds they provide is extremely high
(I figured Id post an update.. and bitch about current conditions a bit)
now from talking with others who have had this work done, I can assume the pain level drops off slowly and while time frames vary wildly, between most people, most people say that within 3-4 months, the pain levels have dropped noticeably, and you can resume a semi normal life style.
I seem to be in the unfortunate group where the pain persists for about 4 months as only now is the first knee's pain level becoming mostly acceptable.
but keep in mind surgery between the two knees has been about 90 days, so just as the first knees pain is coming under control I had the second knee done, thus starting all over,
I had that first knee replaced in mid September 2022, I just had the other knee was replaced on December 29 2022, and the pain as I've learned and expected is basically making me rather miserable 24/7, doctors are very reluctant to provide serious amounts of pain meds, or at least in effective quantity, as they seem much more concerned with my potentially becoming a drug addict than with pain control. yes I do have what they say is adequate amounts of meds, but in my opinion I've built a tolerance, that effectively makes them almost useless, and swapping to a different med has proven to be useless in pain control in my experience.
I seem to spend a considerable time watching the wall clock, waiting for the appropriate time to slowly arrive when my next dose is allowed to be taken.
the bad part is even after its taken there's very little relief, and I damn sure don't want to take the meds more frequently than assigned due to fear Ill run out totally , before they will prescribe a replacement prescription.
the one minor exception is a muscle relaxant that seems to provide minor pain relief, but talking to several other people who have gone through this process, they all say its worth the pain, but you'll be almost 6 months to a year after the last knees done, before you see the benefits. I really had no choice as both knees were bone on bone, no Cartlidge left and I was in agony
I really want to work on my shop and cars, use tools etc. but just standing or walking without considerable pain, is a huge challenge currently
(I figured Id post an update.. and bitch about current conditions a bit)
now from talking with others who have had this work done, I can assume the pain level drops off slowly and while time frames vary wildly, between most people, most people say that within 3-4 months, the pain levels have dropped noticeably, and you can resume a semi normal life style.
I seem to be in the unfortunate group where the pain persists for about 4 months as only now is the first knee's pain level becoming mostly acceptable.
but keep in mind surgery between the two knees has been about 90 days, so just as the first knees pain is coming under control I had the second knee done, thus starting all over,
I had that first knee replaced in mid September 2022, I just had the other knee was replaced on December 29 2022, and the pain as I've learned and expected is basically making me rather miserable 24/7, doctors are very reluctant to provide serious amounts of pain meds, or at least in effective quantity, as they seem much more concerned with my potentially becoming a drug addict than with pain control. yes I do have what they say is adequate amounts of meds, but in my opinion I've built a tolerance, that effectively makes them almost useless, and swapping to a different med has proven to be useless in pain control in my experience.
I seem to spend a considerable time watching the wall clock, waiting for the appropriate time to slowly arrive when my next dose is allowed to be taken.
the bad part is even after its taken there's very little relief, and I damn sure don't want to take the meds more frequently than assigned due to fear Ill run out totally , before they will prescribe a replacement prescription.
the one minor exception is a muscle relaxant that seems to provide minor pain relief, but talking to several other people who have gone through this process, they all say its worth the pain, but you'll be almost 6 months to a year after the last knees done, before you see the benefits. I really had no choice as both knees were bone on bone, no Cartlidge left and I was in agony
I really want to work on my shop and cars, use tools etc. but just standing or walking without considerable pain, is a huge challenge currently