vackerman's Journal, 05 January 2011

So glad to hear you are getting stronger since surgery. Hope there is an easy fix for getting the incision site healed. We think my husband needs surgery (maybe a total knee replacement?), but since he is the only bread winner of our family, he wants to put it off for as long as he can. :( He is also hesitant, thinking that he will end up losing his job after his surgery. There isn't any light duty work in truck driving, as it isn't just driving, they have to empty out their trailer at every stop they make on their route.  

The incision is starting to look a little better thanks, it had me a little worried the other day. As for your huband that's a really tough call. I do know that it appears to me that the total knee replacement seems to be an easier and faster recovery. Not entirely sure why, but I've seen several people older than me doing quite well quickly (compared to me-mine is a 6month recovery). That still means about 6-8 weeks before you're up to walking around much and I have no idea about weight lifting like unloading a truck. I have a friend that works for UPS and has shoulder issues and is putting off surgery for the same kind of reasons as your husband. I feel for them both. I'm blessed to have the time to do this. I wish you and your husband the best whatever you decide.  

My husband had TKR just over a year ago & although he's retired I know he could definitely not have handled a heavy duty job like that a reasonable time post-surgery. However, he's also very overweight so that that plays into it also. Not sure if your husband has weight issues, kcook, but if he's not excessively overweight & follows up with his physical therapy to the letter, he could return to his job. At this point my husband has a fantastic level of mobility & being in the gym with me has helped both the mobility & strength of his leg. So that's my 2 cents. Oh, & there was also a short period of time his incision looked pretty grody but it never did get infected & healed up very nicely.