THR I’m so overwhelmed HELP

@Nchiodo , you stated that you will need something stronger than Tylenol. Are you taking prescription pain medication on a schedule. You are only 1wk out from surgery and the pain does not have to be in your hip directly to need pain medication. I stayed on a schedule of pain meds and set my alarm even at night so I would take it and not get behind and then try to chase the pain. I was actually on prescription pain meds and Tylenol and Celebrex this early in recovery as per my surgeon.

Recovery can be difficult with the shock to the system of a major surgery so keeping pain away is important so we can make progress. If you do not have adequate pain medication please contact your surgeon or GP for assistance with this.

I hope you are able to catch some naps today to help with the tiredness of no sleep.
 
@Nchiodo, of course you need something stronger than Tylenol! They've done way more to you than Tylenol can take care of alone. My doctor said to not even consider stopping the Tramadol until two weeks were under my belt. Plus, I have something stronger (Dilaudid) for breakthrough pain that I've had to use twice.

Being in pain will wear you down, make you discouraged and feel hopeless and emotional. The day I was in the most pain I found myself feeling depressed and impatient with my husband. Luckily I realized I'd cut back on my meds a little and my pain level was up. By addressing my pain I returned to a more reasonable state.

There's no reason to put up with pain if it can be managed. I'm uncomfortable which is to be expected, but generally its tolerable. I even treat 'uncomfortable.' Why should I put up with pain if I don't have to.

Treat yourself to a couple of naps. They are well deserved.
 
Hi GimpyGal
Today things made much more sense. After yesterday’s meltdown I sent an email off to my surgeon telling him I was hot then cold, felt drained, exhausted, depressed, hated having this surgery, just plan butt meltdown. He emailed me back stating that it’s not surprising how I was doing because during surgery there was a significant loss of blood. Now why he didn’t share that with me sooner I not know. So I’m guessing since I gave Thyroid issues that’s out of whack now and hormones are out of whack and my whole chemistry is comprised until I build it back up again. So that really explains a lot of what I’ve been feeling. I’m not CRAZY. I’ve decided also to give up sleeping in my bed until I have my follow up with the doc on Oct 1. The recliner is actually more comfortable and secure for me right now. And I’m gonna start taking the pain pills so I can get some rest and allow my blood to build back up. It’s gonna take a while for my stamina to catch up again. Are you going to take PT?
 
Also are you doing the leg pumps and other leg exercises they gave you or is it to soon?
Hope your doing well
Nancy
 
No, you are most certainly NOT CRAZY, @Nchiodo! Kudos to you for reaching out to your surgeon and being very specific about what you were feeling, both physically and emotionally. Some patients don't admit the emotional part of it and your surgeon needs that information.

I'm hoping that now you are taking whatever Rx meds he prescribed, as prescribed. They should help. tremendously. What did he give you? If the recliner is the most comfortable, so be it, but you may revaluate as you heal. Your bed may look really good to you in another week.

In answer to your question today is my first day of PT. First of all I'll make sure she agrees with my philosophy of 'less is more.' I've talked to her on the phone several times and am a little wary. She sounded frustrated that I had that emergency trip to my surgeons and wanted to come as soon as I got home. I was insisted my surgeon said no PT for 24 hours and she still persisted. We'll see if we are a good fit - I have some doubts!
 
Good morning GimpyGal

My surgeon recommended that I didn’t require PT that I could follow the exercises given to me in the hospital. But I feel that I might need professional PT so I asked the doc to write me a prescription for PT. The recliner worked pretty well last night. I hope you find the right PT to build a relationship with. Today is 10 days out. Woo hoo. Hasn’t been easy.
 
It's your call but my OS warned me against any outside PT, his words were they will hurt you. I did the movements on the handout sheet and at my own pace. I had plenty of blood loss and like most low blood pressure post op for a while. I paid close attention to my diet knowing that my job was to feed my body what it needed to rebuild soft tissue and build back my blood.
 
I slept in the recliner for the first two weeks. It was my bed, movie chair, dinner chair, and napping chair. I set up a small table beside the chair. It was there that I kept my water, icing machine, snacks, dog treats, coffee, tv remote control, Kleenex, meds, iphone, iPad.....I think that’s about it. Lol
 
So that really explains a lot of what I’ve been feeling. I’m not CRAZY.

Right! You’re certainly not crazy. :)
It‘s good to hear you communicated with your surgeon, Nancy, and that he offered you an explanation to why you‘re feeling the way you are. Hopefully that offered some reassurance. Your mood comes across lighter, if that’s any consolation. It’s good to read the recliner worked well last evening. I slept comfortably in mine for the first three weeks.
Wishing you a peaceful evening and relaxing weekend! Glad you’re doing better.
 
I, too, think you sound less stressed, @Nchiodo. Are the pain meds doing their job? No awards are being given out to those who try to make it through without them, so hopefully life is more tolerable right now.

As far as needing or not needing PT, you are probably the best judge of that, but I think it's smart to have the Rx for it. I'm doing just very minimal PT at home (even with the PT it's still the exercises I came home from the hospital with) but I'am pretty sure I'd benefit from additional PT later. For one thing, I have poor body mechanics from living with bad knees and hips for over a decade and my PT (I get to choose) will straighten that out. He's also a well known golfer locally and can advise me on resuming the game in a safe manner.
 
Hi GimpyGal
Yes things are getting a little better each day. I’ve slowed down and not rushing the process. I do my walks up and down the hallways and listening to my body. I’m going to take it slow until I see the doc on my post op Oct 1. I found out something last night I took a Hydrocodone for the discomfort however it kept me up all night. Couldn’t sleep at all. So enough of those. Back to Tylenol.
 
So, @Nchiodo, let's think this through. Hydrocodone was prescribed and you couldn't sleep after taking it. So . . . it's not the only Rx pain killer out there. There are dozens. For my knee surgery we went through 6-8 of them before I could find one I could tolerate. But you might be served well by whatever you doctor prescribes next.

You sound as if you are getting the hang of walking and prefer the recliner and are taking it nice and slow. That's good! But remember, there is no need to tough out the pain in the early days - you deserve relief and life is a lot brighter with pain that is manageable.

Take care - we're approaching the two week mark and honestly every day is a bit better, right?
 
I had my hip replaced on 9/1/2020. And just today starting to get a slight pain in my right rear along with my groin. Last night was the very first night I was able to sleep in my bed. Hopefully it will continue. Every slight pain, every muscle ache makes me very nervous. I also think oh :censored: what did I do. My mind loves to play games with me right now. Sometimes I think I’m not doing enough and I should be moving more. 15 days out and still very scared of my new friend.
 
I’m 15 days out from surgery and been wearing compression socks everyday all day since surgery on 9/1/20. Also on blood thinners since surgery. Today I noticed my ankles a little swollen. Not sure what’s going on. I elevate everyday. Do I need to be concerned about blood clot?
 

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@Nchiodo you will notice that I have merged your two threads together as we prefer that members in recovery only have one thread.

This is for three reasons:
1. if you keep starting new threads, you miss the posts others have left you in the old threads
2. it often ends up that information is unnecessarily repeated
3. it's best if we can keep all your recovery story in one place so it's easily accessed if we need to advise you.

Please keep all your questions and updates on this thread. If you would like a new thread title just give a shout.

It your ankle/leg painful? It's pretty normal to have swelling in many areas this early out of surgery. Are you icing your ankle? Ice and elevation should ease this.
 
Thank you Jaycey got responded about the ankle. Actually last night I did what you recommended but I also slept without the compression sock and this morning it looks much better along with good color. I do not meet with my surgeon till 10/1 for my first post op appt. how long do most wear their compression socks often surgery. If I need to wear do you think I can wear just one on the surgical leg. What’s your thoughts. Thank you.
 
how long do most wear their compression socks after surgery.
It varies by the surgeon. I would call your surgeon's office and let them know the sock is causing swelling. It could just be too tight.
 
Yikes question 16 days out and I was elevating my leg this afternoon, napped but woke up after an hour or so with this bruise like on my knee. It’s not hot or hurt it’s just a big black and blue mark.
 

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Sorry to see you're bruising though it can be normal and can move around. Keep an eye on it and if you aren't icing you might want to start. At least 45-60 minutes about four times a day. Some of us iced pretty much anytime we weren't up moving around.
 
@Nchiodo bruising and knee pain post THR are very common. They grab your knee and man handle it a bit when they are dislocating your hip. Post RTHR my knee pain was worse than any pain from my new hip!

Ice your knee if you have discomfort. All part of this recovery.
 

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