2 Days post op - first rehab session

A lot has gone by since my last post in just 2 days. The first day is probably going to be the worst day of this entire recovery process, the femural nerve block wore off and I was on so many painkillers that I was in and out of consciousness for almost 20 hours.

The painkillers were messing with me too much (completely destroyed my appetite) so I just quit them about 24 hours ago. This made standing up a huge problem because the blood would rush down to my knee and this would cause pretty significant pain. I woke up this morning ready to go into rehab, had a slice of toast which was all I could stomach, and saw the therapist. She simply did some measurements of my ROM (range of motion) and I have -5 degrees extension and less than 100 degrees flexion..which isn't all that great but after all it is only day 2. I felt this therapist was a bit young and inexperienced which makes it a good thing I was only going to see her once anyways since I was switching to an PT closer to my campus. So scoping out a PT is just as important as scoping out a surgeon!

I got home and started feeling weak and dizzy because all I have had since 10 hours before my surgery to that point was a few slices of bread and some juice. I still couldn't eat but decided to force feed myself some chicken. It let me get up and walk off my stomach pains a little bit as well as get my knee feeling comfortable to bend and straighten. I think I have gained a couple degrees of flexion since this morning simply by crutching around the room and swinging my bad leg as I go.

Despite being discouraged at how little I am able to do at this point, the rate of recovery is really stunning right now and I can only pray it continues to be so.