My hip is done

alwayssewing

Thank you, all of you for your kind words.

I don't really think of it as brave. I had got to the stage where there didn't seem any point in living anymore because there was so much pain , it was relentless, that was just existence. Having little sleep for such a very long time made me miserable. Because I know what to expect this time I am actually excited, looking forward to it.

@Nurina I am limping at times so I do grab both crutches when that happens because I don't want to cause problems for the new hip. I wish everyone could be seen and treated quickly because it makes such a difference. Hopefully yours won't be too long now.

Janlyn

@alwayssewing I understand what you say. It's the constant pain and lack of sleep that so hard to live with but now you know what is ahead of you I can see how you want to get on with it. But you are definitely brave too😊

alwayssewing

I'm a little bit stunned.

I had a letter and info from the hospital this morning and they had brought the operation forward to 13th of may.

Just before 2pm I had a phone call to say they had a cancellation and was 13th April ok?. I said yes so I will be getting my bag sorted again this coming week. I don't have to have a pre assessment because its only a few weeks since the last one.

Nurina

Omg @alwayssewing That sounds great. It'll save you a month of stress. You'll be fine before summer! That's amazing. X

swimmer60

@alwayssewing

Fantastic news!

Janlyn

@alwayssewing Wow - wonderful news!

frogmorton

Wow wow wow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am so pleased for you😊

Yes get that bag packed so exciting @alwayssewing

Can't wait n your behalf.

Toni x

JPT

@alwayssewing , that's brilliant news. It's so good to get a cancellation appointment through. Just get everything ready at home so you don't have to worry when you come out of hospital for a good week or too. I had just less than 3 weeks notice and I have never washed, ironed, cleaned, gardened, food shopped, moved things to higher levels etc so much it was exhausting but it really helped take that domestic worry away. The only thing I got wrong was convincing hubby I really did need the bed and chairs raised and raised loo seats.

Good luck. Julie x

alwayssewing

Thank you everyone. It is really good news.

I will be doing a few things to get the house ready. I have been keeping up with the washing . Most of my clothes don't need ironing but those that do get ironed before I wear them. I just put them all away dry. My husband and son do their own :).

I sat and planted a load of seeds in one of the greenhouses this week and will plant more tomorrow. I can sit down to prick the plants out when they grow enough and then my husband can plant them outside when the time comes.

Hopefully if I feel as good as with the left one I will be doing some things within days but I will make sure I look after myself because it is two major surgeries within a short time.

alwayssewing

Yesterday I stopped the Naproxen in preparation for surgery. The pain isn't terrible because I am still able to take codeine and I've switched to paracetamol as well until after the ten days of injections are up.

I certainly know it when I do too much now. We did a big shop today to start getting ready and by the third shop I was struggling with pain so was glad when we got home. I just need to get a few more things tomorrow as some parts of shelves were empty, we will go local for that.

Zimmer

Three days to go, I bet you can't wait 🥳

I wish you an uneventful surgery and speedy recovery hon.

Chat soon xx

alwayssewing

@zimmer no I got the date wrong it is Monday the 15th but thanks anyway.

JPT

@alwayssewing I found stocking up on energy drinks, energy snacks etc and having them to hand helped me when I woke up in the night or early morning as I always felt hungry or just in need of a pick me up at strange times x

alwayssewing

JPT Fortunately I slept better than I had done in years after the op. I used to wake up to 5 times in the night and once awake needed a wee. Now it is usually once or twice twice depending on how late my last drink was, . I did take protein bars to the hospital in case I was hungry at any time but only had one as I came out the next day. I had one early in the mornings at home with my first cuppa and medication. I can't say I have been particularly hungry except near mealtimes even now.

Nurina

@alwayssewing The first two weeks I was constantly hungry, too much. I had the same feeling when I was pregnant. I think my body was diverting all the resources where they were needed. Baby or wound, they are both high priority. Our body only knows we have a big wound maybe inflicted by a predator attack or a fall from a cliff so it has to heal as soon as possible to survive.

I can tell you what I considered essential to have next to me the first two weeks which are the hardest because the lack of mobility. Ignore them if they aren't helpful. I had everything in a totebag I could bring with me upstairs and downstairs all the time: A power bank to charge my phone, a strap to drag my leg in and out of bed (I used a karate belt) a bottle of water, protein and fruit bars for the middle of the night hungry attacks, lip balm, face lotion (my lips and skin felt like cardboard), lavender oil essence for my pillow and all the medicines.

Things I learned for next leg:

When I couldn't sleep I listened rainforest with birds or sea waves sounds. I had a grabber on the bed upstairs and another one next to my seat downstairs. The anaesthetic takes some days to wear off so if you are far from the toilet, try to go as soon as you have the first "call" and don't wait longer. Maybe it will not happen to you but I have a hyperactive bladder and I wetted myself a few times. It was hilarious because I couldn't control it.

And in few days, all these things will be history.

I'd love to hear from others, what they had in their survival kits.

Take care x

JPT

Everything you say @Nurina was the same for me. You helped me prepare well ☺️

Janlyn

… all those memories, yes, all true, but very soon forgotten as progress made, take care, x

alwayssewing

@Nurina I have a wheeled three tier trolley that I got from Amazon and the first two tiers have all my needs for night time etc. I had a bag but I also have a willing volunteer to carry stuff for me :).

Downstairs I had duplicates of everything I needed for daytime. I have grab sticks in every room upstairs and down. The bed ladder was a great buy for the first four weeks or so as it help me to safely sit up before trying to get out of bed.

I didn't use a leg lifter for the bed but did use it to lift my leg into the bath as it has a high side. I used the commode in the bedroom for the first two weeks at night until I felt confident enough to go to the bathroom while groggy and in semi darkness.

I have lavender oil all over the house too as I've been using it for years to help with the pain as well as helping me to sleep.

I made some meals and froze them before I went in which took a bit of pressure of us. Just chicken pie , shepherds pie, chilli, and I can't remember what else. we also had other oven cook foods such as coated chicken breast ,fish, chips etc. It meant a more relaxed first two weeks. After that I felt able to do some cooking albeit sitting on my perching chair.

I learned a lot from all of you on here too , so I was quite confident when I went into hospital.

frogmorton

Well tomorrow is the day then?

Just popping by to wish you the very best of luck for tomorrow. I will be thinking of you ((()))

Take very good care

Toni x

alwayssewing

@frogmorton no I got the date wrong due to it being changed more than once.

I woke this morning with a raging sore throat and painful nose and sinuses so called the hospital and they have rescheduled to 16th of May as I'm too poorly to go on Monday.

Christinemum12345

Hello I'm new here and just been diagnosed with osteoarthritis.

JPT

https://community.versusarthritis.org/discussion/comment/721043#Comment_721043

Sorry to hear this @alwayssewinga I did wear a mask for two weeks before surgery to try to avoid germs. Hope you feel better soon x

alwayssewing

@Christinemum12345 Hello and welcome. You will find lots of helpful information on the community pages.

Zimmer

Oh noooo, sorry to hear that hon, yeah both my partner and I still wear masks in the cold and flu seasons as he also cares for his mother and tbh I really enjoyed being lergy free during covid, so don’t care if people tut and stare when we wear one you know.

And yeah, a hearty welcome to @christinemum1234, hope you find all the information you need xx

Ellen

Sorry for the hijack @alwayssewing

I just wanted to welcome @Christinemum12345 to the online Community. Christine you have found an incredibly supportive group of people on these hip replacement threads. You will gain so much information from everyone here.

I am just going to add a quick link about osteoarthritis (OA) which you might find of interest being recently diagnosed:

https://versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/conditions/osteoarthritis/

Please do just join in on any thread or if you wish to start your own just go ahead.

Best wishes

Ellen.