Meniscus :
Denied Sleep - - Posted by danish (danish), 7 March 2004
I finally went to see a doctor a few days ago after damaging the meniscus in my left knee some nine years ago. I have always been able to shake off the intermitant pain and locking of my knee. That was until last week when I woke up one morning in agony. The doc prescribed inflammatorys and vicodin. The constant raging pain has subsided a bit except for at night. I cant sleep for more than thirty minutes without waking up gritting my teeth. My knee is locked and the pain is extreme until I can walk it off. I had xrays done and an MRI scheduled. I am military and the base hospital cannot get me into an MRI until May 3.
I cant get by with two hours sleep for the next two months until the military can get me into surgury.
Has anyone of you folks had your sleep disturbed on a regular basis because of the pain and if so how did you cope? I have tried every position in bed in order to avoid my meniscus getting caught and jarring me awake every thirty minutes. I am know taking to sleeping upright in the chair so I can at least get more than two hours a night.
Signed,
Exhausted in Las Vegas !!
Posted by ATsoccergirl (ATsoccergirl), 7 March 2004
Is there anyway that they would do surgery without an MRI? Although they can give a good clue to what's going on, it's sometimes not worth waiting for one when the manual exam and signs/symptoms are as profound as yours are. If this is not possible, push to schedule surgery as soon as possible after the MRI, may try to schedule it now. Depending on at what point your knee is locking, you could try sleeping in a knee immobilizer.
Posted by Beauzer (Beauzer), 7 March 2004
Sorry about your MRI delay!
I had a lot of problems sleeping too before my last scope. I had a piece of articular cartilage caught in the joint and had constant agonizing pain. I went about 3 months without sleeping more than a few minutes at a time at night. It really wears you down after awhile. Plus, I have a job where taking narcotics wasn't an option. My bedtime cocktail was ibuprofen, tylenol and two shots of bourbon (I really wouldn't advise this one...) which really didn't help much. I didn't cope very well.
Talk to your doc about how bad it still is and the fact that the MRI is so far off. He/she may be able to give you something to help you sleep (or try to plead for a sooner MRI). If you aren't getting answers, keep pestering them.
I finally got to the point that I was a sleep opportunist. If I had a point during the day that the pain wasn't bad, I would sleep for a short while (not always an option, I realize). If sleeping upright works, do it!
Hope things get better.
Danielle
Posted by danish (danish), 7 March 2004
Thank You all for your input. There is very little info on the net about meniscus and it causing lack of sleep. Misery loves company so it is a small comfort to know I am not the only one who has had the sleep deprivation. I am going to see my PC in the morning and repeat what I have said here. Perhaps she can get me an MRI sooner then May. If not I will start nagging to get a referal to a civilian hospital were I can get an MRI alot sooner. I like to think I have a high pain threshold but getting two hours interupted sleep every night is killing me and doping myself up every night is not the answer.
Thanks folks for letting me blow off some steam!!
Posted by jathib (jathib), 7 March 2004
If your knee is locked up and you're in that much pain then I don't see why they even need to do an MRI. My guess is that no matter what, the outcome will be that surgery is needed. In that case an MRI is just a waste of time and money.
For sleeping, see if your doctor will prescribe something like Ambien. It's by far the best sleeping pill I've ever taken. Knocks me out and no groggyness in the morning. But you need to allow yourself a minimum of 8 hours sleep. You can't take pain killers or anything else along with it but you won't need them. After I had surgery, when it's very difficult to sleep, I would take Ambien insted of pain meds and it worked great.
Posted by danish (danish), 8 March 2004
Thanks jthib. I took someone elses advice and used an ankle support. Went to sleep for an hour and woke up an hour later with a locked knee and a screaming pain. Oh well it was worth a try. When I see the doc in the morning I will mention the Ambien. It must be some powerfull stuff if you can sleep thru a locked knee and the pain. You are correct in saying an MRI is a waste of the militarys money when its obvious there is definatly something happening. I will push the doc about getting the surgury ASAP.
Posted by ATsoccergirl (ATsoccergirl), 8 March 2004
ankle support?
Posted by danish (danish), 8 March 2004
Ooops-knee support. With a total of six hours sleep the last three nights the brain becomes a bit muddled.
Posted by knpnpop (knpnpop), 12 March 2004
hi. i have had two scpoes in the past year, and i have found that if i iced my knee for an hour before i went to bed i was able to sleep better. i more ice you put on your knee the better. i iced my knee about every 2 or 3 hours per day. if the hospital gave you a ice pack that raps around your knee and has a thermos container, use it. it was my best friend after my scopes.
Posted by knpnpop (knpnpop), 12 March 2004
i forgot to tell you, i found if i slept with pillows under my knee and kept it higher than my heart it helped alot. why don't you try it. i hope it helps!!
Updated Thu Apr 29 2010
