Nancy

Age at interview: 81

Brief Outline: Nancy started getting knee pain around 2007. She had partial knee replacement surgery to her left knee, and then to her right knee in 2014. Since then she can go walking, do the shopping and other daily activities that she couldn’t do before.

Background: Nancy is married and has 2 adult children. She is a retired school cook. Ethnic background / nationality: White British.

More about me...

Nancy started having pain in her knees around 2004. At first she had steroid injections to her knee but, once they wore off, the pain was significantly worse. The painkillers she took didn’t alleviate the pain either. A specialist advised her to have knee replacement surgery. She had her left knee operated on around 2007. Nancy was prescribed paracetamol for the pain and was discharged from hospital after three days. 

Nancy had her right knee operated on a few years later in 2014. The surgery went smoothly and Nancy was discharged from hospital three days later. After both operations, she was told to rest for a few weeks but still do the recommended exercises. Nancy was walking with sticks at first, but returned these when she had her follow-up appointment six weeks after surgery. At that point, she had also stopped taking painkillers. Since then, Nancy has had no problems and can now go walking, do the shopping and other daily activities that she couldn’t do before.

Nancy could hardly walk before her first knee operation and the pain was getting unbearable. She’s had both knees done now and said ‘it’s been brilliant’.

It about ten years ago, you know, something terrible. I could hardly walk in the end. And it was so painful. It was almost letting me down, you know. And that’s when I went and had the first knee done. And that was great. And then the other one, a few years, two years later, I’ve had the other one done. Because, you know, and it’s been brilliant ever since. I can walk, go walking and do shopping and all that, that I couldn’t do before.

So when you were having the pain, did you say that was about ten years ago?

Yes, it was. And then I used to go to the doctor’s. I mean it first started off where he used to give me these injections. But then that just lasted for a while. And, you know, then this pain come back again. And so he decided that, you know, to have the, go for the knees.

So over the years the pain was just getting worse and worse?

Yes, that’s right, yes.

And the steroids had no effect?

It was getting unbearable really, you know.