THR Burning pain

Elizabeth41172

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I’m 47 and had THR on dec 16 for the left and had my right done this passed Monday . The second one is harder and I don’t know why. I’m really struggling with pain meds, make me so sick and make my emotions all over the place. My pain is real bad and I can’t manage it. I feel like I’m at the end of my rope. I wish I never did the second one so soon but there was an inch leg difference and it was doing a number on my back . I haven’t done anything but lay in this bed and ice the area but it’s not cutting it . Feeling so defeated
 
@Elizabeth41172 Welcome to the other side and the double hippie club. So sorry hip #2 is giving you grief. If they adjusted your leg length it is a bit more painful in the first few days. This will ease with time.

What pain medication are you taking and how often? Are you icing and elevating your op leg?

I'll leave you our recovery guidelines. They might help you get this pain managed and your recovery on track.
Hip Recovery: The Guidelines
1. Don’t worry: Your body will heal all by itself. Relax, let it, don't try and hurry it, don’t worry about any symptoms now, they are almost certainly temporary
2. Control discomfort:
rest
ice
take your pain meds by prescription schedule (not when pain starts!)​
3. Do what you want to do BUT
a. If it hurts, don't do it and don't allow anyone - especially a physical therapist - to do it to you​
b. If your leg swells more or gets stiffer in the 24 hours after doing it, don't do it again.​
4. PT or exercise can be useful BUT take note of this BoneSmart philosophy for sensible post op therapy
5. Here is a week-by-week guide for Activity progression for THRs
6. Access these pages on the website

Pain management and the pain chart
Healing: how long does it take?
Chart representation of THR recovery

Dislocation risk and 90 degree rule
Energy drain for THRs
Pain and swelling control: elevation is the key
Post op blues is a reality - be prepared for it
Myth busting: on getting addicted to pain meds
Sleep deprivation is pretty much inevitable - but what causes it?

BIG TIP: Hips actually don't need any exercise to get better. They do a pretty good job of it all on their own if given half a chance. Trouble is, people don't give them a chance and end up with all sorts of aches and pains and sore spots. All they need is the best therapy which is walking and even then not to excess.

We try to keep the forum a positive and safe place for our members to talk about their questions or concerns and to report successes with their joint replacement surgery.

While members may create as many threads as they like in a majority of BoneSmart's forums, we ask that each member have only one recovery thread. This policy makes it easier to go back and review history before providing advice.
 
My first hip was made longer by 1 inch , so I was lop sided until I had this one done . They gave me OxyContin 10 mg slow release, made me sick. Then I had Percocet 5mg I took one pill at 6 last night and one at 10 last night. Didn’t really take pain away and I woke up this morning so sick. Can’t eat anything. And have a awful headache . I’m on Celebrex 100 mg twice a day and one aspirin twice a day that’s it. Been icing as much as I can , I’m just a mess.
 
Sounds like you need to call your family doctor to get your medication adjusted. You are under medicated and it's making you miserable.

Does your family doctor have an on call number on the weekends? If not, please call the hospital and ask to speak to someone on the ward where you had your surgery. They should have a patient liaison person for post surgery after care.
 
Sorry to hear you're having trouble. Recently there was someone that posted the aspirin was causing stomach problems and they had a solution from their Dr. 2 months is pretty close together but there have been others that have done it that way.
 
I am so sorry you are in this much pain.

I hope you have been successful in reaching someone who can help you.

I have had good luck with Dilaudid to control pain. I have used up to 4 large, iced gel packs to help control the pain, and then switched off with another four.
 
Definitely contact your Doc about getting your pain meds right @Elizabeth41172. They can also give you anti nausea meds to help with the sickness as the pain meds don't agree with your system.
 
:hi: @Elizabeth41172
I'm really sorry you are having such a rough start but I agree you need to get the nausea sorted so you can take pain meds.
I had No appetite for the first weeks and found my pain meds did make me feel nauseous although thankfully not to the extent you describe. I can't take codeine based meds as they make me extremely nauseated so I was prescribed Dilaudid which did well as long as I made sure I had food on my stomach before taking.
I hope today is a better day.
 
So I am 4 weeks post op anterior right hip replacement ( had my left done in dec) I’m having like burning pain in my lower leg and foot, what can this be from ???
 
@Elizabeth41172
You'll notice that I have merged your newest thread with your original recovery thread. For several reasons, we prefer that you only have one recovery thread:
  • That way, we have all your information in one place. This makes it easier to go back and review your history before providing advice.
  • If you keep starting new threads, you miss the posts and advice others have left for you in the old threads, and some information may be unnecessarily repeated
  • Having only one thread will act as a diary of your progress that you can look back on.
So please post any updates, questions or concerns about your recovery here. If you prefer a different thread title, just post what you want and we'll get it changed for you.
If you need an urgent response to a question, just tag a member of staff.

Many members bookmark their thread in their computer browser, so they can find it when they log on.
 
Hi @Elizabeth41172
You've had quite the last three months on the hip recovery road...I'm sorry this pain has you worried.
Referred pain is not an uncommon complaint with hips...and I can only guess there's some disturbed/aggravated nerves to blame.
I do hope you are still icing faithfully to help allay inflammation which can compress nerves and cause pain.
I hope you have a follow up with your OS or have contacted them regarding this as they may be able to prescribe some nerve medication if necessary.
There is an article in our library about Meralgia Paresthetica

Most often, it resolves with time and perhaps you could ask your OS about it.

Hope all temporary and eases soon....:console2:
 
Thank you . I’m in so much pain right now my entire leg hurts. It’s like I took two steps back. Sunday I was in the car for like 3 hours and ever since then I’ve been in pain and last night was the worst. I’ve had to cancel PT Monday and will have to cancel again today, I feel like if I don’t go it will take longer for me to heal but I’m in too much pain to go.
 
@Elizabeth41172
In reviewing your symptoms, I am not sure the above article is relevant to your issues....
3 hour car ride...maybe you have something pinched in your back causing sciatic pain?
You could try ice on your back...even alternating with heat to see if this helps?

Do let your OS office know about your pain...
 
I will call today. I may have to take a pain pill although I hate doing that
 
It seems like we all have different pains and feelings from THR and many that are similar. Are you still icing? I used ice constantly in the first months. I also couldn't stand much of a car trip without stops to get out and move my leg or I would have pain all of the way down my leg. Driving was difficult for me too in the fist months for the same reasons. If something caused pain it usually meant I would have continued pain if I didn't ice as soon as possible. For me PT wasn't more than walking and some ankle pumps and muscle clenches. Most anything else caused pain in the first months.
 
Definitely keep elevating and icing.

Given your pain, I would avoid travel and cars, and such.

If you think it might sciatica, you might consider icing your lower back - I had on and off issues with back pain over the years and found laying flat on the floor on a bag of crushed ice or frozen silicon pack under the small of my back for an hour worked wonders - I put it pretty much to bare skin. BUT, when you remove the ice, let your back warm back up before you move around too much.
 
So sorry to hear of the pain ... which is so frightening and overwhelming early on in recovery.

I would recommend you get on the phone to your surgeon ... and say you just had surgery a month ago and that you're in excruciating pain and need help. You'll probably be referred to a nurse of a PA who works with the surgeon and that's fine. Tell them exactly what you're going through. And don't hide how distraught you are.

Ask for an adjustment in your pain meds and in your overall recovery regimen. Basically you can dump your symptoms on them ... and let them help you sort through what's going on. Also, you can get emotional if you want. They need to know that you're in serious pain and that you are feeling dejected. So, please don't feel like you can't cry and can't get "emotional."

Sometimes composing ourselves ends up misleading our practitioners, giving them a wrong understanding of how much pain we're suffering through. I say mention the physical and emotional pain.

So sorry to hear this.
 
I don't think you should worry too much about taking pain medication for this. Staying on top of the pain is so critical, for most of the pain we have, not just a hip replacement.

I know that particularly early in my recovery, all of the sitting I was doing resulted in some leg pain, as I wasn't accustomed to sitting so much. I do have some preexisting back issues, and it seemed all the early recovery sitting aggravated it. Standing and taking a few steps frequently helped a lot, as did tons of icing.

I'd always hated icing.....I far preferred heat when I had pain. But for my hip recovery, and for pains I've had since then, I've realized how critical ice is for inflammation, particularly in the early stages.

And if you have doubts, always feel free to contact your doctor---they work for you, and most are really happy to give you advice with things like this. Take good care.
 
Sunday I was in the car for like 3 hours and ever since then I’ve been in pain and last night was the worst.

There is no way I could handle this at only one month post op. It was several months before I could comfortably handle 30 minutes or more in the car. It’s too confining making it difficult to shift position comfortably, if at all. I can imagine why you’re in pain and I hope it’s easing some by now.

I used gel ice packs in the car over my incision because the buckle of the seat belt landed near my incision and it seemed to help. Not sure if it was just a distraction, or actually helped...it didn’t matter as long as I felt relief. Something for you to consider until you’re further down recovery road.

In addition, if you’re still in pain, it won’t hurt to back off PT for a few weeks until your discomfort is completely gone. Wishing you speedy relief.

Happy Thursday!
 
Happy Three Month Anniversary, Lefty!
I hope you’re doing well. Wondering if you’ve recovered from the three hour car ride yet?
I certainly hope so. Let us know how you’re doing if you have time. We’re here for you and would love to support you as you continue healing.
Have a great week!
@Elizabeth41172
 

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