Today has been good. I was very sore when I went to bed last night, even after a session with my ice pack. This morning, the knee was a little stiff when I first got up, but I iced it and then it felt a lot better. Also, I have only had one pain pill today and I still feel really good! My steri-stitches bandages are starting to come off. There were eight of them, but now there are only five. Three came loose and I pulled them off after my shower this morning. I'm not so creeped out by the scar now, so that's good.
One more thing - I am walking a bit more without my crutches! I am down to one crutch, and today I have been walking around (very carefully) with no crutch at all. I can feel the knee getting stronger and more stable. It's bending pretty well and I can keep it bent at a 90 degree angle for awhile without pain. I can also stretch it out pretty flat. At PT, the doctor measures the bend and the flex. On Tuesday, the maximum bend was 98 degrees and the maximum flex was four degrees. (My goal is 120 degrees bend and zero degrees flex.) On Thursday, the measurements were 105 degrees max bend and three degrees max flex. YAY! (When I saw max bend or max flex, that means that I am pulling on the bent knee to get it as bent as I can, or for max flex, I'm pushing down with all my might, using my leg muscles, to get the knee flat.)
I am continuing to ride my stationary bike. I got up to 13 minutes today with no problem. The first minute or so is a little painful as the knee loosens up. I use the bike to warm up. At PT, they give me a heating pad and electrical stimulation to get the blood flowing. The doctor also said I could go over to the gym and walk around the track. I may try that tomorrow.
The doctor did give me a new exercise last night, and it was painful and I was bad at it. Something new to work on! This exercise involves standing on a step with my repaired leg, bending the repaired knee and touching my left heel to the floor. Yes. It sounds simple, but it is not simple for me. You have to be sure to keep your hips straight and in alignment. My left hip wants to dip down with the left leg to get to the ground. Very bad! It's good to have something new to work on.
Remember a few posts ago, I wrote about an exercise where I had to lay on my belly, squeeze my buns together and raise my right leg? I couldn't do it. I had to have MT or T help me with it. I'm happy to say that I kept working on it, and now I can raise the leg at least six inches off the ground. There is still some pain (but a lot less) and I really have to concentrate on it, but I can do it. I'm sure that I will be able to do the step exercise too.
That's all for today, folks. It's time to watch some football! GO UTES!
1 comment:
1that's super good, you're doing great!!! :)
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