The patient manages both preparing the leg to receive the new knee and the recovery process post-surgery. The Guiding Hand principle discusses what it means to assume these responsibilities and consists of two parts. The first part is I will be good to myself, and the second is I will be honest with myself. By acknowledging that bad knees have resulted in a decline in the quality of life and deciding to seek help, the patient has already begun following the Guiding Hand principle. Identifying the problem and seeking a solution is, by design or default, committing to a process. That commitment extends throughout the immediate recovery period and beyond, as I am still learning now.
Surgery, from the patient’s perspective, is the only passive aspect of the TKR experience.
Surgery is done TO you. Everything else is done BY you.
Both prehab and rehab are active experiences. Since no one but the patient can assess their feelings or needs, they must become their own Guiding Hand and accept responsibility for learning what to do and ensuring that it gets done. Daily exercise is imperative even when recovery includes moments—often extended moments – of pain and depression. As your Guiding Hand, you are not being good to yourself if you compromise your future to avoid pain or boredom in the present. Nor are you being honest with yourself if you skip these necessary exercises and expect your body to recover as if you had been doing them all along. Recovery begins with self-awareness and the recognition that you are in charge of your body and your future.
