Knee Club keeps patients tough during lonely months of rehab

Every month about a dozen Winnipeggers meet up a rehabilitation centre to catch up over coffee and talk about a subject that has dominated their lives in recent months their knees.

Joint replacement isone of the most common surgeries in Canadaand will only increase as our population ages. But for new knees to be successfulpatients have to override an instinct to rest and push themselvesthrough months, sometimes years, of rehab.

Patients can feel "crippled, pained and discouraged" during the process,saysLaura Reimer, founder of the "Knee Club."

The 57-year-old had her left kneereplaced in May with the hope she might be able to run again with the new joint.

In2003 she smashed her knee into a curb in a cycling accident. Arthritis formedeventually caused constant, excruciating pain.

Reimerwent into the surgery knowing she was signing onto 18 to 24 months of recovery. But it's one thing to know something, another to live it.

"Somewhere at about 12 weeks you finally realize when the surgeon told you it's going to take two years to recover, you actually believe him."

Three months after her surgery, she stillcouldn't sit in a movie theatre. Taking a plane was out of the question. Just getting in and out of the car or using a public toilet was an ordeal. It's a time when supports fall away.

"Your family is sick of it. You're sick of it. If you don't have some kind of health care you're starting to have to pay for rehabilitation which is expensive. It's very discouraging," saidReimer.

In the summer, she started meeting with other knee patients on a regular basis to share information and commiserate. Out of those meetings the Knee Club was born.

Now the 15-member club meet monthly at theTotal Rehabilitation and Sports Injuries Clinic on Provencher Boulevard. They wear blackKnee Club t-shirts when workingout together, keep in touch over textand have a Facebook page.

"We kind of shifted from being lonelywarriors to being a group of inspired people,"Reimersaid. "We kind of fed off of eachother."

For Reimerthe progress of regaining movement was so painfully slow shetracked each degree of movement she got back. It took from August to December to bend her knee five more degrees one degree every four weeks.

More than1,500peoplereceiveknee replacementin Winnipeg every year. Most, 86per cent, say they are satisfied with their new knees, according to the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority. Between 90 and 95 percent of newknees last 15 years and most patients report years of pain-free movement.

DebbieVoyerhas had both of her kneesreplacedin recent years. She has met up with the Knee Club on and off since it started.

"Just to know there's other people and you're not alone in this. You go through all kinds of different emotions," Voyer said.

Many people, even partners, don't understand what a person recovering from knee surgery is going through, she said.

Marta Breul, an athletic therapist,works with Reimer and other members of the Knee Club.Good rehabilitation is essential for patients in their recovery, she said.

"It makes all the difference. It takes you from not being able to climb stairs or even want to get out of bed to having your life back."

In nearly every total knee replacement,Breulsayspatients see their normal supportskids, partners, friends drop off after about three months. A community like the Knee Club gives patients nearly 24/7 access to others sympathetic to what they're going through.

"You need a big support system," she said. "Just have something to look forward to whether it's every two weeks, once a month and book it on your social calendar and have it boost your mood a little bit."

Last year an outpatient knee recovery program was cut by the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority to save money. The health authority encourages patients to seek outprivate rehabilitation clinics and do exercises at home. Previously,hospitals across Winnipeg offered free physiotherapy classes to groups of between five and 10 people, twice a week after their surgeries.

Breulsaid that'sdriven moreknee patients to seek outher help, she said.

Winnipeg Regional Health Authority spokespersonBronwyn Penner Holigroski said in an emailwhile the Knee Club is not affiliated with Concordia Hospital or employees within the health region, the WRHA will "work with Ms. Reimer as she continues to make connections within the region to grow her support network."

Knee replacement surgery and recovery

7 years ago

Duration 2:10

Every month about a dozen Winnipeggers meet up a rehabilitation centre to catch up over coffee and talk about a subject that has dominated their lives in recent months their knees.