I had a knee replacement. My left knee was totally blown out as a young man and had to live with it surgically repaired for many years till it was replaced when I was 57. Leading up to the surgery I made it a point to cut weight, workout like a mad man to prepare myself for a fast recovery. Post surgery I went home the following day with no help. Here is some advice. Do twice the physical therapy that your therapist shows you while hanging out. You MUST ice the knee to the point of feeling really uncomfortable but not to the point of frost burn and do it twice as much as you can handle. Another tip, let your therapist bend your knee for you until you are screaming for your mommy. Can’t hurt the knee because they are trained and breaks up scare tissue. Within 3 weeks I walked 3 miles on the beach followed by an hour icing session. As for stairs the best you can do is go out of your way to use the stairs. Take your time with a railing preferably a narrow staircase with railings on both sides. Within a month I promise you if you take your rehab as serious as you have ever taken anything important to you will be kicking yourself in the butt for not doing it sooner. If you’re active in life you will become more active with that new knee. Exactly one year from surgery I did an inline skate 27 mile marathon and won my age group and actively bike and skate at 66. You can do it if you use your heart!!!! Best of luck! And don’t forget to overice post surgery
Hi! I am a 57 year old and my knee is a mess too! I get my knee replaced in 5 days. I am so worried about leaving the hospital & transferring. I can only stay one night & may not have a ride home. Any advice? Will I have major trouble getting into a car? I'm sure a volunteer will be there to supervise.
@@shelbylou02 Hi Shelby, unfortunately they will not let you drive home on your own. Maybe Uber? I am sure your anxiety is heightened but believe me a couple months down the road you will be very happy you had the surgery. A day or so after you get home a physical therapist will be by to see you. I hope they assign you a good one. During the first 10 days you will experience pain forcing yourself to regain your range of motion in your knee but it is part of the process. After a few physical therapy sessions my therapist actually sat on the floor and assisted me bending my knee further to not allow scar tissue to lock up your knee. My therapist guaranteed by him manipulating the bending process it will have very positive results in getting the range of motion back. Yes, it hurt but again part of the process and no damage is done. Never been a big fan of icing swollen joints but the icing is a bit uncomfortable but super important to help with pain management and reducing swelling so you can get awesome range of motion. Make your physical therapy your number 1 priority the first couple weeks and you will be so happy the rest of your life with a pain free knee. I wish you well and a speedy recovery!! PS……ice more, swelling less.
@tombartley2711 I live in Canada, so our process is a bit different. Our physio is included & I am all booked in for 7 days after surgery. We go to a clinic for it. You're correct; an Uber would be a great option. We are released the day after, so I'm afraid. 😨😱 But I really appreciate your response! Thank you for the tips! 😄
Here in Annapolis Maryland, the PT folks have you up, out of bed post op day 1, navigating stairs and the mock up car! For six weeks here at the house, the song "Up with the good, down with the bad!!" resonated to the point the kids next store began to sing along! Sorry Dr.Z. but surgical leg didn't "cut it!" 😊 Another informative video, great job by all three.
Hi Denise. Shout out to Maryland! Thanks for watching and glad to hear you are well on your way. Yes we are mobilizing on day one as well and this is often the day of discharge. Good luck and thanks for the positive feedback.
A little off topic but when I broke both my ankles, I didn't have a "good" leg to stand on! Going up and down stairs was the hardest thing that I had to relearn during recovery and also I had trouble trusting using escalators. Happy to say that all is back to normal now but I was very grateful for the physiotherapist!
Just wanted to say I love your "upbeat" attitude. It gives me hope and inspiration for my upcoming TKR. I had arthroscopic surgery and this new surgeon says that shouldn't have been done as now my knee is bowing in. I had to have arthroscopic surgery on opposite knee for a meniscus tear. From favoring the other knee i am wondering
I haven't had the surgery yet but getting home care for my bad knee. So I'm going to try this before I have the surgery. Very helpful. I'm also doing the exercises you suggested. They are the same my home therapist suggested. I want to get my right knee in as good of shape so when I do get the surgery I heal faster. Would like a video on braces. I have one the doctor ordered (Velcro) and should stabilize the leg but seems to always loosen up. I have a walker but don't want to depend on that.
Hi Rosemarie. Glad we could help in any way. Good luck with your upcoming procedure and we will definitely consider doing a video on bracing. Thanks for watching.
I just turned 14 today, and that’s how i walk the stairs everyday (without a cane or a crutch). I have a meniscus and LCL injury and i’ll have to get surgery next year.
Thanx! I was discharged before trying any stairs. My building has 15 stirs to get into my apartment. I am going to try it after my first physio appointment. 😊
I have 14 steps to get up to my 2nd floor apartment. Right NOW, I'm not even taking stairs normally. The right hip is the one needing replacement. Right now, I'm stepping up with the left leg and bringing the right leg just high enough to step onto the SAME step as the good leg. I want to do that the day I come home from surgery. Just ONCE. Then I can be homebound for six weeks if my surgeon wants. As far as I know now, you have to stay in the hospital for three nights before most insurance will cover a rehab center. My surgeon and administrative person are trying to get something worked out regarding a rehab center for me. Haven't heard yet if they've found some way for me to stay in one without being in the hospital for the required time. I'd rather be in my own place anyway. I just need to be able to get up the stairs ONCE. I should have someone helping me once I'm at home.
I wish these recommendations were done by doctors and therapists that have actually had knee replacement themselves. After surgery, my body is “in shock”. I need 24 hours just to rest. But, the therapists are trying to get you to walk almost immediately. It’s too soon.
Hi The Grey Path. You make a valid point. However with medication we hope that the pain and shock can be controlled enough to mobilize patients safely. Many institutions have successfully transitioned to both day surgery and next day discharge and this is in large part due to early mobilization. We do not mean to minimize the difficult path patients experience as soon as the spinal wears off. Thanks for sharing your experience. Thanks for watching, subscribing and sharing if you did.
thanks for making me smile while I learn. headed for knee surgery in two days. I am going to practice with my cane on the stairs today and tomorrow so I am ready to blow the PT away when they get me up after surgery :)
So, how difficult is recovery if you have moderate to severe arthritis in your "good" knee? I'm getting a total knee replacemnt next week. That's my situation. My hospital referred me to this video! Tfs 😄
You should do the video with a hinge brace or immobilizer like a person who has had hip or knee surgery would be wearing. I just had patellar tendon repair and cannot bend my knee at all. That demonstration still lacks how to move a straight leg from step to step. Thank you for the video. It was still a help.
Hi Lauren. People who have hips and knees replaced would not be wearing a brace. We would need a separate video for the patellar tendon repair folks. Best of luck with your recovery. Thanks for watching and subscribing
I’m 12 weeks post RTHR ( posterior) my ortho Dr won’t allow me to go to PT to strengthen very week leg muscles. He states PT is to hard on new joints .. is that the thought with most Ortho Drs after THR ?
Hi Erik. Probably 8-12 weeks later. Probably matters if it is your plant leg or not. Nice game though. Best of luck. Thanks for watching and subscribing if you did.
Thanks guys for your very informative and amusing video. Even though I had hospital physiotherapy training I got a little bit confused when I got home and your video certainly confirmed that I was doing things correctly. One very useful tip I was given in hospital was up to heaven and down to hell with heaven being the good leg and hell being the bad leg. I found this to be an excellent reminder of which leg I should be starting off on depending on whether you were going up or down the stairs.
Thanks for sharing the video.I have femure fracture and spine infusion surgery.Also has railing on left side.When getting down ,where to hold on to for good leg?
I have had three PTs at my house say the same thing..THIS VIDEO IS DANGEROUS My husband had Total Hip Replacement and we have stairs everywhere. We used this video and he kept feeling extreme instability. Placing the cane on the lower step causes you to lean forward over an entire flight of stairs and balance your entire body weight on a one inch stick while forward pitched with a very sore leg coming down to land on. ALL therapists at our home agree cane stays with you on the step, leg forward and down while you remain upsright and stable, THEN the cane meets the op leg. Sounds simple but on our many staircases it was a PROFOUND difference and MUCH safer
So my handrails in my building are on the left and my operated leg is also the left knee so do I need the cane if I’m supporting myself with my left hand on the handrail. Would I need a cane for my right side?
Hi, you started the video going up the stairs with the "Right Good Leg." However, when you turned around and went down the stairs your good leg its on the opposit side than before. Does that change anything, on which leg should go down the stairs first? Thank you.
This was driving me crazy. I went back and re-watched her going up and down the steps three times and noticed the same thing. She went up the steps leading with her right leg, calling that her good leg and came down leading with her right leg calling that the bad leg.. That was very confusing.
Hi David. Well you will have to alternate. Go slowly and obviously things will be a little more difficult. Good luck in your recovery and thanks for watching.
My surgeon says I am getting an athletic knee. Is that a joke, or is there a knee replacement by that name because they know I am an athlete? Also mine is robotic surgery and should last only an hour. Please speak to that.
Hi Sheila. Not sure what the athletic knee is but there is some marketing that goes along with surgery. We do computer assisted surgery and have been doing that since 2007. Robotic surgery is similar and has become very popular in the US especially. Our surgeries typically take about an hour as well. Hope that helps. Thanks for watching and good luck.
This is great for those who have handrails... But guess what, not everyone has handrails. All surgeries aren't elective, some are emergencies. No time to plan for handrails. Sure wish these videos would consider that. Thanks, anyway.
Why did you leave your cane down on the first step and say to push off of it, but then said to do (bad and cane) both together as you did all the rest? Was the first step just an oops?
Hi Cody. When going up stairs you use the good leg first and hold onto the rail with the hand on that side. On the way down, hold the rail and put the cane down first and then follow with the operated leg. Hope that clarifies things. Good luck. Thanks for watching and subscribing if you did.
Hi Peter. You simply have to do your best. These are simply guidelines. Go slowly. One step at a time. Good luck. Thanks for watching and subscribing if you did.
I mean she did an opposite of going up and down making no sense whatsoever her right leg was good going up no her right leg was the bad leg going up and her left leg was the good leg going out either way I'm not sure what I'm saying but it was wrong
Hi Jannie591. Sorry you feel that way. There are many other channels where the doctors are all business and very serious. It just isn't our style. We are happy to get the information across in an informal and entertaining way.
Talking Docs please ignore Nicki Hall’s nonsense. There is enough misery in this world without her adding to it. You are clearly considerably better off without the likes of Nicki Hall. My recommendation to Nicki Hall would be do everybody a favour and don’t go anywhere else. I appreciate that you may well have been having a bad day but there is really no need for such rude behaviour.
@@TalkingWithDocs The pic is from a local garden centre. I am 9 weeks in from a total knee replacement. It just feels like ive got it strapped up, would you say thats normal ? Im still taking pain killers as it keeps me awake at night. Love your videos keep up the good work
I was told the same at a London hospital, Then one day i forgot and I stepped down with the good leg first and the operated leg couldn’t bend to come down so i fell flat on my face,Then two years ago I made the same mistake but this time the bad leg bent totally backwards and snapped the bone to the extent that my surgeon said it’s only the Implant holding my leg together, so now I am so panicky when I go near stairs
I would suggest what my kids do, the tuck and roll, hasn’t failed them yet. Can I at least mention that the physio has cool shoes? We should be friends.
What if you have two bad legs I tore my acl on both knees one which is over 12 years and the other just recently so my left knee that I did not do surgery and does start to get tired after a certain amount of time I’m going into surgery for my right next week and I’m just trying not to wear out the other bad knee
Hi J cruz. Best advice is to get the right one fixed and recovered and then reassess how the left one feels. Best of luck. Thanks for watching and subscribing if you did.
I am still having difficulty with stairs at 7 weeks post surgery. I think it may be because my "non-operated" knee also needs surgery and the post op knee has to do most of the work. Any suggestions? My other knee surgery is three months away and I have completed my formal physio.
Hi Bev. Yes that can be a challenge. Just push through and do the exercises on both legs. One at a time. It will come. Thanks for watching, subscribing and sharing with someone if you did.
I really enjoy your videos, however I’d recommend using different terms than ‘good leg bad leg’ to differentiate between the leg that’s hurt/healing and the one that isn’t. (I understand this as a typical pattern for so many patients and medical professionals) However, Our bodies are living organic matter and like all alive things respond to love, light and positive support even in terms of how we refer to them.
