Exactly two weeks ago, on 18 July, I had a full knee replacement performed on my left knee. Since then I’ve been healing and having a physical therapy specialist come to my house, three days/week, to help further my recovery. Each day has shown progress, with some days seeming to have me slide back a bit, but the overall trajectory has been one of healing and recovery of functionality. I still have a ways to go before it’s complete, but I’m to the point where I can walk about the house without an aid; if I need to leave the house, I can walk with a long oak walking staff I picked up over a decade ago at the Gettysburg national military park.

The photo at the top was taken by my wife as I was napping in my chair. This was five days after the surgery. That’s Luke in my lap. I had the blanket across my lap so that Luke would have something comfortable to lie across. All the little animals in this household have been concerned that “the big guy” is recovering from an “injury.” They’ve expressed that concern by shadowing me as I move around the house, and when I’m resting, the cats at least either want to lie atop of me or right up next to me. The two dogs want to be next to me in the same room. Everybody has wanted to be a nurse.

All the PT and animal nursing has helped me to reach the point where today I’m going out to shop for groceries at my local Costco and Publix. The last time I went shopping was the day before the surgery. I haven’t been out since. But supplies are running low and we need to refill a few things. Before you write in the comments I should use a delivery service to delivery groceries, please don’t. I tried that back in late 2020 when the pandemic was really taking off and my first (and last) foray into having groceries delivered by a third party pretty much was a mess. I placed an order with a local Publix using their app, and when it finally arrived, the items weren’t what I ordered, if the items were filled at all. I paid for everything, but I’ve never used any delivery service again, and never will. After that I just wore a mask and went out to purchase what I needed. Today my wife will drive us both and I will ride around in a cart to keep from walking too much.

As I said, progress has been steady, if a bit slow. I’m working on range of motion, trying to bend my knee at least 90°. Next Monday I go see the surgeon and he’ll take a few pictures of the knee as well as check the joint. The incision has sealed, with nothing left to show but a scab and adhesive flaking off where the surgeon literally glued me back together. I actually look forward to that visit.

Update

I went out and succeeded in picking up everything we needed. At both Costco and Publix I used their respective Amigo electric carts to travel about and pick up everything. When my wife and I got home we piled our purchases into a wheelchair to move them into the kitchen. That took four trips. I was able to put everything away. After that I took one of my meds and collapsed to rest. It was harder than I realized. Before the surgery I never gave shopping a second thought. Now I have to give it a lot of forethought and plan accordingly.

On Thursday I had my left knee operated on. This is the second operation on that leg. In November 2012 I had a partial put in the left knee. It was good for about the first eight years, but after that the left knee slowly grew painful, until January of this year when I tried to drive my wife to see a specialist down in Ft. Lauderdale. The pain in my left knee grew so intense while I drove that she had to take over. That’s when I realized I needed to replace the partial with a complete replacement. And so the search began for someone to perform that procedure.

I would have gone back to the original surgeon from 2012, but the group he’d been a part of had changed hospitals, and he’d moved out of the area. That’s when I decided to use the same surgeon who’d replaced my right knee with a full replacement. So yesterday I went into a same day surgery center and had the procedure done. They spent 45 minutes working on my knee and I spent about two hours in post-op recovery before I went home.

I had to wait for a while in the waiting room, as I was the last procedure of the day. By the time I finally went back and was prepped for surgery it was 1 pm in the afternoon.

Here’s the surgical team right before the important work was to start. The surgeon is the second from the left, looking straight into the camera.

I’ve now been home for a while, taking my medications and doing my basic exercises. I’ve had a physical therapy nurse come by and work with me, and to get me going. I’m required to get up and walk every hour, and to exercise three times per day. All in the comfort of my home. When the nurse came by to change my dressing today there were four little tiny spots of blood. No discoloration, no indication of infection. The incision had been glued back, and the surface of my knee was very smooth. It’s swollen because of the procedure, but that will go down over the next days and weeks.

I’m motivated to get through this and to come out of the end of this in better shape than when I went into it. This left knee has kept me from doing what I need to do, and I needed to get it fixed now while I still have reasonable physical health.

These photos are the matching set to go with the photos they took for me back in February 2016. And I used the same camera, a Sony NEX-5N with a Sigma 2.8/19mm EX DN prime. An old camera still going strong.