Some of you might have noticed I haven't been active on the site this week.
Reason being, I had knee surgury and have not been able to be on the computer, which I'm sure seems reasonable..I expected that since I do have to sit at a desk and it's not comfortable, due to the position of my leg beneath the desk
What I didn't expect was the extent of the pain involved. My doctor told me I would be uncomfortable for a few days, with complete recovery in a few weeks...But boy,I don't know what his definition of uncomfortable really is..Though he did prescribe a strong pain medication, he must have known something... I really didn't expect this amount of Discomfort...;(
The surgury was successful and I do feel somewhat better today but that's because I just took my medication, though my leg is starting to throb as I sit here...
The object of my writing this is to stress, it's so important to really press your doctor for information about exactly how much pain whenever you agree to have any kind of surgery and to really know what to expect...I did not expect to be unable to sleep because, there is no comfortable position except flat on my back...waking up in the middle of the night whenever you shift position or if you bend that leg...He didn't tell me I couldn't bend my leg in any way. Try walking down stairs even if it's just 4 steps like I have without bending your leg..He didn't tell me just how excruciating it would be ...I'm sorry Doctor but uncomfortable doesn't cover it..
I guess its all semantics and maybe it's the pain meds causing me to ramble, but I just didn't expect this...Thankfully the worst is over now and with each day I expect to feel somewhat better, I just wish I knew in advance how bad it would be...And, the weird thing is my surgery was simple, arthroscopic, not as difficult as it could have been had it been a full blown surgical procedure...When I had my back surgery I know that it was going to be a bitch and I expected it but this really took me by surprise..
So ask, no, demand a full disclosure from any doctor about any procedure...Until I see you next time...thanks for letting me ramble..I'm off to bed now..
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Comments: 43
First let me say that I am very sorry for your pain and hope that you are feeling better very soon. Unfortunately, I do not think that doctors really know how much pain any individual is going to experience since it is impacted by so many factors.
About a month ago I completely closed the car door on two of my own fingers! I was in a real rush and just wasn't paying attention. Of course, it hurt some and I went inside and iced it for less than 10 minutes, becuase I was still in a hurry.
The long and short of it is, there was no swelling and no bruising and the next day you would never know I had done this. In fact I did tell a couple of people, and they were amazed.
Now I take lots of vitamins and have a very nutrient dense diet, and I am sure this greatly impacted the way my body responded. Someone else may have had to take the day off from work as a result of the trauma to the fingers.
If you don't have a problem with vitamin C, and it won't be contraindicated with the meds you are currently taking, you might want to take a couple thousand mg for the next few days to aid in the healing, and healing will naturally cause the pain to subside. Good luck!
Good luck! I hope you heal quickly! :)
You need to tell your doctor what you are feeling. He or she may have correctly told you what most people feel, in which case s/he needs to investigate why you are having major pain.
Don't make me come over there....
C alone might work to help you if you take 2000-3000 mgs for a couple of days in 500-1000mg increments throughout the day. Do not use time released. Also drink half your weight in ounces of water throughout the day. This will lubricate your joints naturally, as well as serve to flush your system. I drink this much water every day. You may not even need your analgesics if you do this. Just a suggestion that may be better than what you are currently doing if it is not working. The last thing you want is a higher dose of the pain killer. All that will do is keep you less attuned to what you body is doing in the healing process. Pain is a sign that needs to be addressed, not smothered. The C will expedite the healing process. Good luck and keep us posted!
I wonder if something may have gone wrong in your surgery and you are experiencing more pain that is normal and have you contacted the doctor and told them you are having way more pain than you expected.
I would make sure to contact at least the nurse and explain this to them. I would think feedback like this would also help him to inform in the future.
I am in need of double knee replacements and I feel that at this time in my life, (59) I would rather just get around with a cane and a scooter than subject myself to surgery. Besides, since I am counting my pennies for retirement, I can't take a chance on the hospital springing me with thousands of dollars of surprises, even with health insurance. Thank you for helping me sort all this out.
i think doctors several problems when it comes to "discomfort". 1. if they've never been through surgery (etc) they may not know the degree of pain involved. 2. personal pain tolerance and other factors affect how much pain one experiences 3. they may not want to scare people off. to me it seems doctors tend to sugarcoat things. Maybe you could try something else to see if it's better at managing the pain.
happy healing!
and don't rule out asking for a different pain killer. not all pain killers work on all people. for example, i'm not affected AT ALL by asprin; i take Tylenol for headaches; muscle aches (overuse) require Motrin.
Part of my problem was that I was a bit cocky going in....I didn't realize one of the problems I would have would be walking since I have an issue with my other leg and can't use it as a good leg which I've been trying to do...See, I had back surgery 4 years ago, pretty serious one at that, a spinal fusion, the operation was a success, or so they say, but I had nerve damage to my legs from the scar tissue that formed aroung the surgical area causing neuropathy in both legs...Sooo, now I don't have a good leg to stand on so to speak.;(...so I hobble around and it's causing my back to hurt...oyyyy, what a delimma...
Thanks to all for your imput, and good wishes.
The worst thing about it that I'm walking so wierdly that it's affecting my lower back and my good leg, which really isn't good at all since it's the leg that has the neuropathy....
I'm a mess, but a better mess...;)
Amanda, I don't know how you do it...I get confused when I'm on these drugs and have problems typing...:)
However, there is a wide varience in pain thresholds for differnet people. My daughter can withstand much higher levels of pain than I...and her first born daughter seems to be similar to her in that regard.
Hope you are better now.