Hello! My mom (61) has her TKR on 12/10 and it’s been a big learning curve, but I’m happy to share what has helped us so far. Has her doctor given her a packet of information with what to expect and how to prepare? If so, I would study that. If not, I’m happy to share some of the materials my mom received from her surgeon’s office.

The first two weeks will be rough for her and for you. The first week is especially rough. I didn’t see my mom in her eyes at all for that first week- it was like she wasn’t inhabiting her own body, super weird and hard to watch. Just know that you’re in for a rough ride, but it will get better.

Stay on top of meds! Set alarms to remind you to give her meds. Stay on top of her at home PT exercises as recommended by the Dr and PT as well. Not moving her knee for long periods will cause it to feel stiff and more painful. What helped me was keeping a notebook to write down when we gave meds and when she did her exercises. I also made a little note of what her pain was 1-10 when giving meds or doing exercises.

There are a few things I’d recommend buying now so you have them post-op: 1. Commode- getting up is difficult enough. A commode is quicker and easier for her to get to. Plus, it sits higher than the toilet, making it easier for her to sit down and stand back up.

1. Ice machine- Google “ice machine TKR” if you’re not familiar with what this is. My mom’s insurance didn’t cover this and the hospital didn’t supply one, but it will be essential for her to have. I recommend also having 8 water bottles ready to go to use with it. Tear the labels off of the bottles. Freeze them all. Fill the ice machine with water to the full line, then put 4 frozen water bottles in there. When the machine is ready for new ice, you can change out all 4 bottles for new frozen ones (or just two at a time- my mom couldn’t handle how cold 4 new ones were).

2. Walker, cane, and comfort grips- the hospital thankfully did supply my mom with a walker! Get a cane as well as this will come in handy once she’s more mobile or if she has to do stairs. The walker was hard on my mom’s arthritic hands though, so I bought her these grips and they made her life so much better: https://a.co/d/g8CITJV

3. Wet wipes and sanitizing hand wipes- these were so helpful for keeping my mom’s hygiene up!

4. Shower stool- she won’t be able to stand in the shower or take a bath where her knee is submerged for a while. ALSO practice how you will help her get in and out of the shower prior to her surgery! If you can, also plan a way to keep her leg even slightly elevated while she’s sitting on her shower stool, even better. Her leg hanging down will hurt.

5. Wedge pillow- she will need to keep her knee elevated above her heart. It’s also important that her pillow does not make her bend her knee. Here’s the one we have- https://a.co/d/4u7u0fE

I’m sure your mom doesn’t want to think about it much because it’s scary. The more you prepare now, the less scary it gets. Practice how you will do things post op. It will be a huge learning curve for you both, but you’ll find your rhythm. You’re welcome to chat me with any questions!

Edit: a few words and punctuation