Post-Surgery Care for Knee Cartilage Repair: Essential Tips and Advice - Orthopedics

Cartilage repair surgery

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Hello, Doctor: I have a post-operative question.
I underwent surgery for cartilage wear in both knees on October 19.
Due to the pandemic, I wanted to be discharged quickly, so on the day of the surgery, aside from receiving pain relief immediately after the procedure, I used ice packs continuously to alleviate my pain.
The next day, I got out of bed to practice walking, and by the early morning of the third day, I was discharged and went home.
I was quite diligent about doing leg raises that week, managing to do 500 repetitions daily.
Since I stayed at home, my pain was manageable.
During my follow-up appointment a week after discharge, the doctor said I was recovering well.
However, because I experienced a severe allergic reaction to pain medication during my hospital stay, I was unable to take any medication after discharge.
During this period, I continued to ice my knees three times a day for pain relief.
After my follow-up, since the doctor said I was doing well, I became a bit lax and didn’t consistently do my leg raises.
Additionally, with the recent cold weather, I stopped using ice packs.
As I was walking more comfortably, I began to go out frequently, and although my knees sometimes hurt, the pain would subside after a night's sleep.
Recently, I noticed that not just my knees, but the muscles above and below my knees were very painful.
At night, I would unconsciously bend my knees while sleeping, which would wake me up in pain.
Three days before my follow-up, I accidentally forgot about my knee injury while riding a scooter and stepped down, causing excruciating pain.
Since then, both knees have been extremely painful.
When I returned for my follow-up three days later, I hadn’t mentioned the scooter incident to the doctor; I only mentioned the nighttime knee bending and frequent walking.
I was scolded by the doctor and reminded that I needed to do 500 leg raises daily, and that it had been less than a month since my surgery, yet my knees were swollen and the fascia seemed inflamed.
He asked if I had been icing daily, and I didn’t dare to say anything.
Given my allergy issues, the doctor only prescribed a topical ointment and asked me to return in a week.

So my questions are:
1.
Do I still need to ice my knees every day? If so, how many times a day?
2.
Is it better to walk frequently for faster recovery, or should I keep my legs straight while lying down for better health? What does "moderate walking" mean? It's hard to define since everyone's lifestyle is different; can you provide a clearer description?
3.
Now that it has been three weeks since my surgery, what should I do or avoid while recuperating at home? I hope you can provide professional advice.
Since the surgery was minimally invasive with no visible wounds, I find it difficult to judge my internal condition and what I should be doing.
The doctor mentioned a three-month recovery period, but I don’t understand what I should be doing during these three months to aid my recovery.
4.
Given my current pain and inability to take medication, what should I do? Did I injure my knees by exerting myself? Is it acceptable that I didn’t inform the doctor about my situation? Should I get checked again? I’m a bit scared and unsure if my foolish actions have led to this pain, and I can’t see what’s happening inside, which adds to my anxiety.
5.
The doctor mentioned that cartilage will regenerate, but that the new cartilage will be different from the original.
What does that mean? My doctor is very nice; I just hesitate to ask him these questions.

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Anyta, 40~49 year old female. Ask Date: 2021/11/12