ROM

My View From the Driver's Seat!

 

ROM is the abbreviation for Range of Motion! This has been in the forefront of my thoughts for 8 weeks! My surgery was March 19, today is May 18! The PT goal is to bend to 120! At PT I can bend from 115-118 without help. For some reason, the extra few percentage points of bend, my PT has to bend it and I am not happy with it.
Last night, I rode my bike for 60 minutes! I spent 30 minutes on ROM exercises. When I finished, my knee hurt so bad. I was sure that my scar tissue had returned! I took a pill, went to bed and had a pity party!
Saturday morning, I woke up with my leg feeling like it had a bag attached to it. The inflammation is so annoying. So I fixed breakfast, enjoyed our screened in back porch, watched my birds, before heading out to do morning PT.
I rode my bike for 15 minutes, did my ROM exercises for 15 minutes.
 I decided to try to get in the Go Kart! This was a big deal to me. I love to ride the grand kids in the Go Karts! Jackson, Tucker and Veronika can drive the Go Karts! One of the adults have to ride the younger kids.
We really enjoy these things! Ron made a trail in the woods for the kids to ride the various riding toys! We have several hunting vehicle's that we ride the kids on. Jackson rides a motorcycle. I really enjoy this time with the grand kids!
Before the knee replacement surgery, getting into and out of the Go Kart was difficult. But I could do it! I have been afraid that I would not be able to get into those things!
In PT, I have not been able to achieve the bend that traditional PT sets, 120! I do not really know how much I can bend I home. I am actually ordering a "Goniometer"! My PT measures the bend with this thing!

I have been trying to figure out a way to measure the bend at home. I had Ron watch PT! But he just looks and says, yes, that looks good. I think I am a little weird to want to know exactly what I am doing at home. I have gone to PT for 8 weeks! At 3 weeks, I was stuck at 90! Two weeks later I had the MUA and could bend to 120 pretty easily! But that didn't last long. Evidently, I form scar tissue really quick. The doctors assistance asked me that, so of course, now I assume I form scar tissue quickly. I just know that it hurts to bend again. After the MUA, my muscles hurt so bad, now it's back to the knee joint. I have to do the biking and the ROM exercises at least 5 days a week to keep my ROM.
I have been really concerned with walking and doing the activities I want to do. So the Go Kart is just a sign that maybe my life will be normal one day! So sitting in that muddy Go Kart was pretty exciting!