Stir-crazy!

As of Friday (Surgery + 23 days), I have been off the painkillers! Woohoo! I will still have to take some before physical therapy to get the most out of my sessions, but that's all. My first out-patient PT appointment is tomorrow. Up to now, someone has been coming to my home for PT.

This weekend, my focus was getting out of the house because I have been going absolutely stir-crazy in here! My husband and I went to a local wine bar on Saturday and shared some wine and munchies, since I can drink wine again. It was a little difficult to get comfortable, but I ended up using a case of wine (it was Educated Guess Cab Sauv) as a footrest. It was just right! My knee did stiffen up by the time we left though. I appreciated going during lunchtime since it is less crowded. My gimpy status is rather obvious and I don't like to be a spectacle.

I have been so enthusiastic about getting out of the bedroom, that I wanted to try using the CPM (leg-bending machine and warm place for recovery cat to sleep - cute picture, not gross) overnight instead of having to use it during the day and chaining myself to it in my bedroom. I attempted this last night, but it soon was proven to not be an option. Even though I reduced the speed at which it bent my leg and the angle to one I knew my knee could manage comfortably, my knee just could not take it anymore after 3 hours. It started to ache and throb. So, I guess I still need to use it during the day for multiple short sessions. Boo.

There is one other thing that I have been meaning to include here, but it doesn't really fit in with other topics. The side of my knee opposite to the injury side has an area a few inches across that is completely numb. If there is any sensation when touching it, it is more of a burning feeling. From talking to others and reading, this seems to be a common side effect of open knee surgery since nerves get severed when making the incision. It's pretty weird though.