Beforehand, dig out an extra roll of toilet paper and set it handy. You probably will have trouble digging it out when on crutches. (And that’s when it will run out. Especially if you are are antibiotics for a while.)
Instead of a suop bowl, get something like a tupperware container with a cover, to carry your soup in. Also, leave a set of silverware at the place where you’re eating; less stuff to carry around. And have a stack of napkins or a roll of paper towels there, too.
Regarding meals, eating something is important even if you don’t feel hungry. (And the meds + inactivity do affect your appetite.) Soup is good because it takes little effort. Especially homemade that can be microwaved. Also stuff that can be eaten without the effort of food preparation: fruits, raw vegies & dip, cheese & crackers, etc. And if the meds are making your stomach queasy, things like crackers are non-offensive foods. (Actually, none of this may apply – if your mother is there, you will get meals just like when you were a child, all your favorites made for you, and probably nagged into eating, too.)
Crutches will cause inflamed, sensitive areas on your underarms. Especially as you put a lot of weight on them. Have extra padding & some lotion on hand for this. And switching to a cane when you can will be a good change. (Sometimes, this will help – sore underarms may encourage to begin using your leg again, and prevent scar tissue.)
For my wife’s total knee I built a stand for the recliner chair. Had the chair about 3 inches off the floor so when she sat down it was not as far as normal
They make a thing to help pull on socks.
Check out the car that you will be driving home in. Before surgery my wife put a leg brace on so she could not bend her leg. Then practiced getting and out of the car. We figured out how to adjust the seat so she could get in and out.
From my experience with foot surgery: Make sure that any bath mats have a good non-slip backing. You’re going to be awkward and off-balance and you may be dizzy from pain meds. You don’t want to fall and you definitely don’t want to do it in the bathroom.
Thanks for all of the advice, everyone. There’s a lot of stuff here that I hadn’t considered ahead of time.
Heh. About a year to recover fully.
Yeah, I’m not looking forward to that part. This is my second ACL injury. After the first one, they just put me through rehab without surgery. Having to sit around after the second injury and lose all of the muscle that I had built up really did suck.
My own hamstring (or something similar – definitely something from my own leg, and not a cadaver part).
If you enjoy video games, they help a ton in helping you ignore the post surgical pain, that part that leaks through the painkillers. At least in my experience, if you play an engrossing enough game and the damaged limb is propped up in an immobile position, you stop noticing the pain at all.
Before surgery day, put a plug strip next to wherever you plan on cocooning for the first few days so you can plug in the CPM (continuous passive motion) and knee chiller. (and chargers for phones, tablets, etc. that may normally be elsewhere in the house)
The newer chillers don’t even use ice and need no user intervention other than pressing “Start Therapy” The one I have right now (I’m one week post-arthroscopy) just has a small reservoir of water that it circulates and chills internally.
Beware of frisky dogs (or cats) that may want to jump up on your leg…
That seems to be the best choice. Wish I had known that. Good luck with rehab. I was back to playing softball in 8 months, basketball after about a year. But not at as high a level as pre-injury.
On your rehab… don’t be a wimp. It’s going to hurt, but you can tell the difference between “ok” pain and “Oh shit… I’m tearing it again” sorts of pain. Do what they say- all of what they say, unless you feel that you’re re-injuring it. It’ll suck, but in the long haul, you’ll be glad you did.
Having it done at day surgery is pretty amazing, when I had mine done 30 years ago I was in the hospital for a week and on crutches for 6 weeks. They wouldn’t let me out until I could prove that I could manage stairs safely and get in/out of bed without help.
The only advice I have that hasn’t already been mentioned is to attach a bicycle water bottle holder to one of your crutches. The hardest thing about crutches is getting from the fridge to the sofa with a beer.
Well, the surgery is all done. It all went well. Now the hard part starts.
Thanks to whoever reminded me that putting on pants is a bitch with a busted knee. If you hadn’t I probably would have shown up in jeans, and that would not have ended well.
I’d warn you to be cautious of opioid pain medication. A friend who recently had surgery took about a third of what was prescribed, and when he stopped taking it he felt like shit. His doctors told him he had withdrawal. My mom was on IV morphine after major surgery, and when they withdrew it, she cried for a full day. There’s data on back injuries that shows a strong negative correlation between how much opiate painkiller is prescribed and how quickly people get better – and yes, that holds up when you normalize for how bad the injury starts out.
I don’t have personal experience with post-surgical pain, but talk frankly to your doctors about the options.
I do have experience using NSAIDs for non-surgical pain, and in that case, I am completely on-board with “it’s easier to keep ahead of it than to push it back down once it gets going.” But I think that’s partly because of the anti-inflammatory nature of NSAIDs, and not just the painkilling aspect.
So… how YOU doing? Seriously, two days later, how’s everything going? Ma making you crazy yet? Cabin fever setting in? Figuring out a routine and how to accomplish stuff? How’s the knee?
The OP could rent a toilet seat elevator with handles . It would a good idea to have shorts to wear around the house , they’ll be easier to put on than pants .
If the OP has no washcloths he should buy some to take a sponge baths in their bedroom , I would try to stay out of the bathroom as much as possible if it too small to use crutches safely. Their mom can bring the water into the bedroom .
I had to give a lot of my clients sponge baths in their bedroom or living room.
Made sure they have a phone close by at all time and rent some movies you really been dying to see.
Seriously, two days later, how’s everything going? Ma making you crazy yet? Cabin fever setting in? Figuring out a routine and how to accomplish stuff? How’s the knee?