THR for right hip now really close (Feb. 11th)
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I’ve just read my own post and given myself a good talking to. I’m doing okay not as good as some but probably better than others and it’s time to make sure that I know that 😂
Wound healed, Sleeping well, managing all those short walks, getting in and out of the shower and hair wash, plus managing my blood thinner injections with no issues (only 13 more to go). So really shouldn’t complain if anyone is thinking of doing this then don’t hesitate. The future looks brighter just by looking back at how far I’ve come in just 15 days.
Pat x
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Hi @Wobblylegs
Please don't feel disheartened. You are most likely getting fed up and it's difficult to be positive about things when you feel like that. That is brilliant that you were able to shower and wash your hair. One step at a time and I'm sure you will start to feel better and better.
All the best, Claudia x
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Day 16: I've got my mojo back today. Still slow progress but I'm happy as long as it's progress. It's funny how you go to do something automatically and then think, hey I couldn't do that a few days ago. Today was lovely sunshine but cold so I wrapped up I walked around our garden until I couldn't, which probably meant I'd overdone it lol. Tonight my ankle is swollen more than last night, so definitely overdue it.
As I'm only on paracetamol still it's amazing what I can manage in comparison with the knee replacement all that time ago. If your thinking of having this done, don't hesitate it's going to be worth it. I can't believe how far I've come in 16 days
Pat x
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Well done @Wobblylegs you really are doing well although I understand your frustration. I do remember the ups and downs of the first few weeks and a physio telling me that everyone gets fed up with lack of progress and thinking everyone I doing better than them. I think it is very important to be very careful and a slip or trip now wouldn't be good so please take it slowly, frustrating as it is.
It's always good to start doing previously normal things and a shower/hair wash is a big step forward.
So sorry to hear you've still the knee pain and swelling, it can seem to go on forever. It's so difficult to know whether we are resting enough/too much and whether we are exercising enough/too much. We're all so different and go at our own pace and somehow we mainly reach the same goal. I think icing and elevating is the best thing you can do along with making sure you don't over-exercise, but then sometimes we need to over-exercise to find our own level.
I was in the 5.00am club for some weeks and I got to enjoy that quiet time propped up in a chair with coffee whilst the world slept. But the hours of trying to sleep that preceded getting up was absolutely awful. So uncomfortable so I do sympathise.
Wow - your scar news is good news. I think it was around six weeks before mine was finally healed. It seemed to go on and on, but now that's healed I am sure you will soon be more comfortable and once you can sleep on your side and feel comfortable you may well find you make quicker progress. I think the lack of sleep hinders progress, but it's all part and parcel of our journey to a better life.
Hoping you start to feel you're making more progress soon. Take care.
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@Wobblylegs you are doing really well considering you have other things to deal with.
I found 6 weeks, three months and six months were good markers to see progress. Don't forget that it takes about 12 weeks for a hip replacement to heal from the outside in.
Keep elevating your legs as often as you can for 20 minutes at a time and make sure you are well hydrated .You will get there.
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Wow!!! You are doing incredibly well @Wobblylegs you really are I'm glad you gave yourself a good talking to. Remember you are dealing with MS too not everyone else is and we are all different.
I took 12 months to feel recovered after my back operation to tally agree with @alwayssewing there.
Keep up the good work Pat, but remember not to overdo it😉
Toni x
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Day 19: Just a little update.
So having learnt a few lessons along the way now, I’ve realised that walking until I can't walk anymore is just not the right approach. The last few days I’ve walked half a dozen times around the house at least once an hour, so little and often. I’ve done my ROM exercises twice a day instead of three times a day and I’ve elevated and iced more often. That has meant that my leg has been less swollen and I’ve been in less pain. So definitely the way to go. The frustrating bit for me now is not being able to sit for very long in any chair and having to do any resting sitting up on the bed. Now that is exactly like my TKR but the TKR was lot more painful but also less cumbersome and I felt more nimble as sitting in a chair with my leg up was not a problem.
I’ve been thinking about silly things like, I need to schedule an eye test and a dental check up, do I need to make sure that’s beyond 12 weeks because of their chairs? How can I go to a local cafe and know the chairs are the right height before the 12 weeks?
Okay so all good things come to those who wait, here’s to a better future. Pat x1 -
Hi Pat
You are doing brilliantly! If you need to go for an eye test, tell them you are 19 days post THR and they should make sure that you don't have a huge flight of stairs to cope with and a seat you can sit on. Dentists may take a couple of weeks longer :)
We went out for lunch to a local pub the week after my stitches were removed. Tell them when you book you need a 'normal' chair and not one you need a lift to get up to (I'm just under 5' and struggle on the high seats at the best of times!). Also ask if you can have a table with plenty of space for you to get around. Otherwise eating out will be a good treat for you, as it was for me. Disabled toilets will be on the ground floor so make sure you can get in them. There were two men using the one at the pub we went to (separately lol) and I did mention that they didn't appear to have any disabilities as I stood waiting with my walking sticks! They did appear very sheepish at that.
Cafe's should be fine too - just see if you can find a table with lots of space - take your sticks and they'll accommodate you easily!
The thing to remember about walking is you have to walk back! Don't walk further than you can walk back. My go to is to walk lamp posts in the early days/weeks. Walk to one, turn round and walk back. Next day walk to the next and so on and so forth.
I didn't sleep on my side until my surgeon said I could and discharged me at 6 weeks. It was difficult to start with but I just keep tossing and turnig until I can get comfy, even now.
Keep up the good work
Trish
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OMG I can only dream of doing that much. Thank you for all the tips though.
I wasn't thinking about chairs being too high it was them being to low that bothered me! I'm only 5'6" but so many chairs are too low to keep the 90 degree or more rule, they also don't have armrests in to get back up.
I've been told to stay on crutches until 6 weeks as my MS makes me prone to trips and falls. That makes it harder to get around too.
Maybe I'm just overthinking it but I just can't imagine doing all that whilst I'm still healing and my leg still swells every day. Plus I have to use a raised toilet! Am I being too cautious?
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Hi Pat
It was my husbands idea to take me out just after I had the stitches out - his idea and it was a nice little reward for doing so well after all the pain and suffering.
I tend to work on the basis that you never know until you try. Find a nice little pub that is close by and just go and sit and see how you get on. You don't need arms on a chair to get up, I put my forearms on the table with my hands together (ish) and use the power of my arms to get me up. If you can't get up, ask your husband to help you.
Pubs will have disabled facilities with raised seats so that's not a problem.
If after a bottle of pop and a bag of crisps you find you're enjoying your trip out then have a sandwich!
You just need a bit of confidence in yourself.
Trish xx
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Thank you Trish, I know your right x
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@Wobblylegs you are doing well, it's good to be cautious and think ahead, far better than getting into a pickle unnecessarily. But the little and often walking is working well for you. I remember I did similar at one stage when I want further down the road than you and was aiming to walk for an hour. I definitely couldn't do it but I could walk for 10 minutes 6 times a day.
Definitely good that you'll have your stick with you when you go out. People definitely were more helpful and understanding to me with sticks. Once I stopped using them I realised people barged past me and I admit if I was anywhere I knew would be crowded I took my sticks just to make sure I was safe rather than because I needed them.
Well done for getting to this stage and working out what works for you.
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thanks @Janlyn your support has been invaluable throughout this process. I don’t think I’ll ever be striding out for an hour at a time as my other issues prevent that, much to my disappointment but we have to live with what we have. I’m just glad there will be less pain. Even my consultant said when you’ve had your THR’s we’ll see what pain you are left with!
thank you for the encouragement. Pat x0 -
@Wobblylegs Hi Pat, having less pain helps in so many ways - I find I have more patience now and that is a bonus in itself. I hadn't realised quite how down I had become and I hope similar happens to you. You're so right we do have to live with what we have, and I do hope for you that means much less pain, x
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Thank you @Janlyn I hope for that too, what's stopping me at the moment is the pain in the knee still. The referred pain is so much worse than what I feel in the hip. I tried to go for a short walk with my H yesterday and suffered the rest of the day for it.
I think it's such a shame that we don't get access to a physio anymore who could reassure and help you move forward. But I'm sure I'll get there in time.
I read an article yesterday that at 70 years old you can expect to feel better in 8-10 weeks at 75 it will 9-11 and so on. That helped me feel better immediately as I stopped piling pressure on myself. We just don't heal as fast as we get older and that's also something to bear in mind. I was not very fit before this as the referred pain to knee prevented it, so why should recovery be any different. I'm just glad this site allows for the great stories and the slower amongst us. It's just 3 weeks today since my op and I'm just not very patient.
Pat xx
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Hi Pat, @Wobblylegs you are really doing well for three weeks and maybe it's good to be impatient as that keeps you moving forwards. But it's a long and winding road, and it is easy to feel there's little progress. I agree physios can help so much. We can try but it's so difficult to know how much exercise is enough and not too much when we do it ourselves. A good thing I found is that every time I felt I was fully recovered I then made further progress, and am delighted. I hope in several months you find that too, x
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I have to say that I was a bit nervous about going out to a cafe/restaurant after having my hip replacement . I was worried about the height of the chairs and also toilet facilities. My solution to the chairs was that I took a cushion with me which helped to elevate me and made it more comfortable to sit. Most places have disabled toilet facilities and as well as having a raised toilet seat they usually have a hand rail to help you get up. As I am still using a walking stick ( my other hip is deteriorating more now ) I continue to use the disabled facilities which does ease my mind. I hope this helps for when you enjoy your first outing of many to come!🙂
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@Fran54 thank you for that it's a really good idea. I did wonder about taking a cushion so it's nice to know it worked for you. I always carry a stick because of my MS anyway so no problem using disabled facilities. Thank you for stopping by to reassure.
I must say I can't wait just to get out of here for a short time now. I'll keep you posted.
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Day 24: update - so I had a quieter day today than yesterday as I felt a little sore around the hip last night but I’m definitely making progress, just slow. Yesterday hubbie took me out in the car and collected a take away BLT and salad and a coffee from our favourite cafe. We sat in the local park to eat and then I had a little walk there. It was only about 0.4 of a mile but I really knew about it last night, the sun was lovely and it was so good to be out and about.
I enjoyed the ride out but it is uncomfortable sitting in the car, the seat belt cuts across the scar and the seat has to be at a silly angle to not break the 90 degrees rule.
I still need 2 crutches everywhere but I’m not worried about it as the leg feels really solid it just doesn’t like me to put lots of weight on it for too long just yet. So today has been concentrating on regular exercises and short walks in the garden again. Still find it frustrating that although we have a chair the right height for me I still can’t sit in it for very long and prefer to sit on the bed with legs up. Good job we live in a bungalow.
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so glad that you enjoyed your day out yesterday and hope the weather has been as glorious for you as it has been where I live. It helps to make you feel more normal when you can do these things again which we probably took for granted before all our health problems. Regarding your seat belt, I still get that slight pinching feeling when it cuts across the scar and all I can do is slightly slacken the seat belt. I find that elevating my legs even now helps when I feel that I have overdone things a bit ( especially after exercising ) so even though it is now 8 months on for me I know that I still have some healing to do. Patience and onwards and upwards is my motto!
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Thank you @Fran54 for stopping by to give encouragement. Pat x
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@Wobblylegs I think you are doing really well and look forward to hearing your further updates.
I think it's a strange time when we start to do 'normal' things and try to get out and about. We have to be so cautious but then it does start to speed up and we make progress, all at our own pace.
Take care and enjoy the Spring weather.
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@Janlyn thank you for the encouragement. I’m sure you’re right, getting out and about is the key to further progress as it help with the cautiousness.
It’s 4 weeks today since my THR and each time I turn a corner I look back and realise I’ve turned an even bigger one.
It’s the little things that you appreciate so much. I still have some pain in my knee but I think I could describe it more as ‘miserable discomfort’ than pain. Very little pain around my hip except when I do physio exercises which I expect. So I’m very pleased the worst is behind me until the next one.0 -
Day 37: okay my recovery is slower than some bit quicker than others it really doesn’t do to compare.
. I’m also finding that fear can play a big part. As I’m very prone to trips and falls because of the MS it makes me very wary of trying to do too much until I’m sure of my footing.
My osteopath did a home visit for me Tuesday and pointed some of this out to me but also did some work on the muscles/tendons/facia on my operated leg. as I’ve been suffering with knee pain since the op I thought this might be interesting for anyone else having the same issue.The knee pain I’ve been suffering is not nerve related or referred pain (my real fear) it’s the tightness of the muscles etc. The worst of the pain was at the top of the thigh where the IT band goes into hip and by the side of the knee where there is a junction with the tibia. Probably brought about by several things: the tightness of hip flexors going into op because of arthritis, the change in gait, the fact that the spinal can upset things (mine had to be in L3- L4 as no space in the usual place and this can affect the femoral nerve) and the ridiculous movements the surgeon has to do to my leg during the operation.
This is really good news as it means that pain can be worked on with massage and exercises, she did some work on my muscles etc and that helped quite a lot yippee. So I rested after that session but celebrated by enjoying a walk at the local park yesterday.and my leg was much less painful and things are definitely moving on.Plus one crutch all the time now.
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You're doing really well @Wobblylegs . Remember if and when we are having bad days it is good sometimes to reflect on our hip journeys when we are not having a good day and remember what life was like before shiny new hip day, how we felt when we came out of hospital and our journey to where we are now. Well done with your progress
Trish xx
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