Now What? - New Pain

[HaggisWhisperer]

Hi everyone - it's been a while since I popped in....

I had been all set to do a really positive one year update and up until about 3 weeks ago that had been the case. Anyway, about 3 weeks ago I started getting some discomfort when I was walking - it would start later in the day, all was fine when I got up in the morning. It would usually start after I had been sitting at my desk working for a while and then got up to do something. It is a sharp pain - I had something similar pre-op for many years and was told it was likely to be bone spurs but that is not likely to be the cause now :th_heehee: The pain is a bit difficult to pinpoint exactly but is around the top of my thigh and round to my buttock - but not very far - I can cover the total area with one hand. No pain radiating down the leg or anything. The strange thing is if I go for a walk, the pain seems to "walk off" after 10 minutes or so walking - with maybe an occassional stab to remind me it's there but nothing like it started. At the start of the walk if I push my fist into the sore place it also goes away - but that makes me look funny when I'm walking and I get strange looks :hysterical: But when i sit down and start working again it will come back again - the hip area is usually a bit sore even when I am sitting down once it has flared up with the walking. It just about went away over Easter when I went to visit my sister for a few days and wasn't sitting at my desk.

I got a new desk chair about 3 months ago and it is supposed to be ergonomic and the seat pad is "shaped" - i wondered if one of the ergonomic lumps in the seat pad had triggered something? My OH is fine with the chair, but then again his hips are normal I've bought a memory foam cushion for the seat to see it that makes a difference, but it has been on for 3 days with no real change - maybe it needs longer...

Any ideas what this sounds like wise people or any more suggestions of what I could try?

 

[Poppet]

Hi HW... Are you ok if I call you that

I also have a new ergonomic chair at work with a raised kidney shape built into the chair, but I have had to use a 4 inch memory foam cushion on top for the past two and half months since I returned to work. It doesn't feel comfortable to sit on the chair without it.

What happens when away from work and you sit in other chairs, do you get the pain?

Sounds office chair related to me, but hard to tell, sorry you are experiencing this :(

 

[HaggisWhisperer]

HW, Haggis, or even Nancy - I'll answer to almost anything. I did mean to add my name at the end of the last post but forgot in my excitement.

I work from home and the chair is the one next to the pooter - I have 2 PCs next to each other, the work one and the home one, so I'm not really away from it much - maybe I would be a bit more at weekends if I could kill my Farmville habit :th_heehee:. I can't really tell if other chairs bother it as by the time I sit on them it is usually sore anyway. I'll be annoyed if I have to buy another chair so soon - I did try to nag OH to take me shopping to a "real" shop before we got this one so I could sit on a few but we could never find the time so I got it mail order instead.

Strange if it is the chair that is the cause but the pain is worse when I'm walking rather than sitting in it.

Nancy

 

[Poppet]

Hi Nancy

Yes that is strange.. Did I read that the pain goes away when you walk for a bit?

 

[HaggisWhisperer]

Not totally, but it is much better than when I start out. If for example I was going to walk a mile to the shops, for the first 1/3 mile it would have the stabbing pain when I put weight on that leg, but by the second half of the walk it would almost be gone.

 

[Josephine]

I bet it's the chair! Everything you've said points to it. Just because it's labelled "ergonomic" doesn't necessarily mean it's suited to you. I had to order about 5 different chairs on line before I got to one that was even reasonably comfortable but that comfort was short lived and I haven't sat in it for any length of time for years! Mostly the cat uses it now! I tried all sorts - cushions, pillows, memory foam, nothing worked and after about 20 mins I'd get a really driving pain in the lower, inner aspect of my buttocks. Yet all the naff chairs at work - never had a moment's problem with them! If I ever get round to buying a new chair I shall go round and round shops sitting in them for several minutes at a time and taking notes!

After all, we wouldn't choose a car in the casual way we choose these chairs - would we?

 

[staffsknot]

Hallo, Nancy,

I remember you from about a year ago. Nice to hear from you again. But not nice to hear that you have hit a bad patch. I agree with Jo about the chair. If we are sitting for long periods in discomfort, something may well complain.

I think there are two other aspects here for you to consider.

As a child I was taken to Nottingham to see the great Tom Finney play football. He was fast and tricky and he didn't play, to my great disappointment. Uncle said he had had a recurrence of his old groan injury. I think he meant groin. Study that, a fine footballer, about 40 years old, noted for being fast, had an injured groin in the past. And here it was again. The lesson for us replacement people is that injured parts are prone to being injured again, because injured parts remain weak. In our hunter gatherer past, the hunting bit depended on swift movements, which tend to be less quick and reliable as we age. Maybe best stick to gathering.

The other aspect is that we tend to squat or sit for far too long between bursts of activity, with the result that we can collect injuries on moving suddenly or exacerbate earlier injuries. Far better to rise gently and carefully, s t r e t c h but not too violently and then ease into motion. I notice you say that the distress backs off the further you walk. This is good news. Now, maybe if you move away from rest more carefully, you may find yourself moving better more quickly.

Chair or no chair.

All the best, Alan

 

[sharonslp]

Hi Nancy. You were just a week behind me last year. Good to see you. I can relate!!

First, the chair. I am doing a lot of sitting, doing schoolwork on the computer, and at my dining room table. Suddenly my comfy chairs weren't comfy anymore. Lot of low back pain, and terrible stiffness when I got up. I went to OfficeMax and looked at desk chairs. I sat in the chairs on sale. This one was too hard. This one was too rounded. This one was too low. Then I sat down in a chair that was NOT on sale. It was just right! I looked around for the three bears. I sat in the chair for 20 minutes. I didn't want to leave. I wanted to take it home with me right then and there. I forced myself to wait a month for it to go on sale, and then I had to order it from the website.

When it came, it wasn't as comfortable as the one in the store. :( And my back gets just as sore as before. I don't know what else to do.

As for the stabbing pain when you are first walking, I too am still having odd pains that come and go, for no discernible reason. I mentioned it to my doctor when I went in for the 1 year checkup. He mumbled something about possible scar tissue, but didn't seem alarmed. I'm not really alarmed either....I just note it. It doesn't stop me from doing anything. I just wonder where these odd pains come from that keep coming and going.

But I also wonder about your shoes. Is it at all possible that different footwear would make a difference? Have you done any experimenting with footwear to see? It makes a huge difference for me; that's why I'm suggesting it.

At any rate, these hips are still often a mystery, aren't they? Hope you can resolve this easily.

Sharon

 

[Jaycey]

Welcome back Nancy! Sorry you are having pain. I have to agree though - sounds like the chair is aggravating something.

I have a very bad back and any new chair bothers everything - hip included.

If you can walk it off it does sounds like a muscle issue. Does heat help. I went through some similar pain about one year out and used heat regularly to settle the muscular pain.

Let us know how you are doing Nancy. Hope this settles soon!

 

[HaggisWhisperer]

Hi Everyone - thanks for the ideas.

Sharron, it's funny you should mention about the shoes, I've been thinking for a while I need to put on my new pair - I just keep seeing if I can get another week out of my current ones. I have a terrible job finding new shoes as I have a really narrow foot and ankle and I'm very prone to blisters etc. I usually buy kids shoes cos they fit better width wise. I do have a new pair of my "usual style" so I'll put them on and give them a try. Maybe if the weather improves I'll be able to put on my purple Keens that someone persuaded me to buy last summer :wink1:.

I think we'll just have to put some time aside to test out some new chairs - between dancing lessons (not mine), swimming and all these children's parties that seem to be on at weekends at the moment, trying to find time to get into Glasgow is pretty tricky. But a pain in the bahookie isn't much fun either.

I haven't tried heat on it, so I'll give that a go. I still have the ice/heat pack thingies that I bought for after my surgery.

I'll also try doing some stretches when I stand up in case that makes a difference as well. I love the "groan" injusry by the way - that could describe so many things :hysterical:

Nancy

 

[Lindawalms]

Sharon hit the nail on the head for me - odd pains that come and go!!! That's what I get - especially in my back - I was at my pain Dr. yesterday and said I had a muscle spazm and she felt it and was like omg, half your back is spazmed!!! but it moves around from place to place....
xoxo,
Linda

 

[haldox]

HI Nancy-long time no see. Sorry you are experiencing pain but Im sure given a little time it will settle.

About shoes-I never had a problem with old shoes with my 1st THR and so I figured I wouldnt with 2nd THR. I was wrong! I put on a pre op pair of shoes and went to the store and it wasnt good at all. I walked very funny and experienced discomfort. Once I got those shoes off all was well.

So out those went and new ones came in and it helped a lot! So I would definitely try a new pair.

 

[sharonslp]

Nancy, I may be the one who talked you into the purple Keens! Keen's are my go-to shoe. At one point I was getting shin splints every time I went for a walk. It was either Jaycey or Jamie who recommended I give up the old Keens for a new pair. So out with the worn-out on the sole old black Keens, and in with a new pair of identical black Keens, and guess what? No. More. Shin. Splints.

Purple ones....I still hunger for purple ones.

It seems like so much of this is trial-and-error as we work through each new issue.

Sharon

 

[Poppet]

Hi Nancy, so sorry about the pain, do hope it settles soon for you

Checked out the Keens shoes, I had not heard of them here in oz, but apparently we can get them here, just haven't seen them.. would love to hear more about their comfort factor.

Must admit we are Croc fans for a great part of the year and then I move into boots for winter. It is so hard getting comfy shoes, I had heaps of problems post surgery with blisters and bruises until I found some new boots which are great..

Hope the pain eases soon

Hugs xx

 

[HaggisWhisperer]

I do love my purple Keens - they are really great for holidays etc as the have an open design and are fully adjustable width wise - great for my narrow foot. They are made of neoprene as well so they don't object if they get wet. They are the only shoes I have ever risked buying mail order as they are not that easy to come by in Scotland either.

It is funny how odd things can trigger pain. I was remembering a pair of jeans I got rid of about 18 months ago. I had initially thought that my left hip was starting to bother me with arthritis or something as every time I swung the leg forward when taking a stride it ached. I then realised it was because the jeans were a bit too big and were riding down on my hip bone causing the ache. ditched the jeans and no more problem.

 

[Jaycey]

:yes 4: Purple Keens! It was lisa (@lisanewmc) who got me to try Keens. They are great and you can even wear them with a shoe lift!

Thought of you yesterday at work Nancy. My back has been really bothering me. I adjusted the lumbar support on my chair just a tiny bit and it made all the difference in the world! Would adding a lumbar roll or wedge cushion to your chair help?

 

[Dee205]

Alright girls, you have tweaked my interest! I'm googling Keens to see if they're available in the U.S.....sounds comfy I lived in crocs last summer after LTHR and was planning on doing the same this summer with RTHR scheduled for May 14, but I'll give them a try. They sound really comfy!
Thanks!
Dee

 

[Anniepops]

Hi Nancy, another one here who had to have a nosey at Keens once I seen them mentioned. They are very nice and come in some lovely colours.

Having to have had to wear a 3/4 inch heel raise for over twenty years I am now an expert in hunting out suitable footwear to accomodate a heel raise. Sandals were always a nightmare as I wanted to wear something girly but they.had to have a back in.

I just wanted to mention Earth Spirit sandals. They do a few with backs in and they are extremely comfortable. I have been wearing mine since my op and they have been great. Anyone looking for suitable sandals might want to google them.

I hope you don't mind me hijacking your thread Nancy.

Hope you can get a comfortable chair sorted. It's not the type of thng you can jut sit in for five mins then decide is it. Good luck.

Take care

Ann

 

[HaggisWhisperer]

Well I curtailed my Farmville habit somewhat over the weekend to stay off my work chair but I can't say my hip feels any better today. I gave the "arthroplasty advice line" a call at the hospital and they have brought my follow up appointment forward to the 7th May (should have been the 12th June). The appointment isn't with the consultant - it's with a trained nurse I think, but I'm pretty sure they do annual x-rays so hopefully if it is anything more serious they can refer me back to the consultant.

 

[dianemarie]

Sorry the pain is continuing. Might as well enjoy Farmville as much as you can! Good luck with the appointment. Hopefully it is something that will resolve with time. Some of these things take a very long time. Hang in there.