Top Accessories After Hip Replacement - things I wish I’d known

Below is a bunch of things I’m finding incredibly useful following this month’s hip resurfacing op. Hopefully, this will help save someone a little time and give some piece of mind, knowing you’re home is ready for the big day. If you’d like to read more about my practical and emotional journey from diagnosis to actual op, you can read more by looking at the inserted link. In the coming weeks, I’ll also be detailing my experiences of the week by week rehab journey. 

1. Crutches and Grip Pads for the Handle Crutches are a must after the op. Mine came from the hospital - they recommend the ones you fully insert your arm into and it turns out this is really useful for e.g. being able to turn a light switch on or off without having to constantly put them down. But, after just a couple of days of using crutches, I found my hands getting sore from the pressure. The grip pads were excellent at making it easier to move about while you inevitably place more weight on the crutches.

2. Dressing stick/Shoehorn 35 inch One of the oddest things I’ve ever seen – like a walking stick with a flat end – this comedy shoehorn is great. It’s length stops you having to bend when putting shoes on and the handle allows it to be used as a hook when you find yourself needing to pick up clothes from the floor.

3. Jogging shorts/loose skirt Any loose shorts or skirt are good. Leaving the hospital, it’s pretty tough getting into anything other than very loose clothes. After 10 days, I’m still wearing shorts for simplicity.

4. Knee Pillow This is brilliant. As a habitual side sleeper, I was really worried about inadvertently rolling over in bed or doing something 'not allowed' with my legs in bed (such as crossing them). This small, double concave, memory pillow sits between the knees in bed and it has been great at helping me stay on my back - no problem. You’ll unlikely have any desire to turn onto the operated side as it’s sore/swollen. Using a normal pillow to wedge your other, unoperated side, also helps reduce the chances of the body trying to turn over when sleeping.

5. Toilet Frame and Riser Ah, the wonder that is the toilet frame. I should have bought this sooner. I didn’t think I’d need this but after a week of struggling to Mission Impossible myself onto and off the toilet bought an inexpensive one and it is brilliant. We also have a toilet riser seat (4 inch) that we took home from the hospital - combined with this frame, going to the bathroom is far, far simpler, safer and less awkward.

6. Leg strap/Lifter Another thing I wish I’d bought sooner. Initially, lifting the operated leg is hard. Even just getting it onto a foot stool can be challenging. This gives you extra leverage to help gently move your leg. Some might find it useful for getting into bed at night. For me, it comes into its own for trying to help leg swelling – the leg swells quite a lot after the op and a nurse recommended spending a bit of time each day with the legs elevated above the level of the heart while doing some ankle exercises (I’ll say more about this in the rehab posts). Now, each day after lunch, I lie on the sofa for an hour, legs raised onto a cushion - not sure I’d manage this without the lifter.

7. A Grabber Stick Like me, you might have thought these contraptions were for little more than picking up rubbish but they are vital for dressing yourself without bending. If you watch any video about how to dress after a hip op, these will be highly featured. Also, they pick up rubbish.

Good luck and if you have any questions, very happy to help :)