United KingdomHi all,
I just joined after having a right THR 6 days ago on Friday 22nd July privately in the UK, and I was released from hospital on Sunday 24th July. I am trying to take it day by day and feel I am improving daily. After months of worsening pain before the surgery, I am looking forward to pain free days ahead. Below is kind of a brain dump on my THR story, and hopefully somebody will find it useful and/or interesting to read.
A little history:
I have probably had hip osteoarthritis symptoms for 2-3 years now. I had a bad fall on the way home from work at the train station in February 2020, and told everyone that somebody put a bag down in front of me and I tripped and fell. In reality I had no idea what happened, or why I fell. In retrospect my right leg probably gave way causing the fall. When I fell I damaged my shoulder muscle severely, and was seeing a physio when the pandemic hit so had to stop seeing her after about 6 sessions, and it ended up taking a year for full shoulder recovery.
In June 2021 I suffered a right groin strain after slipping on a bathroom stool while drying my leg after a shower. It would get better and then I would strain it again, following a 360 health assessment for work (which included having to lie on my right side that caused 4 days of pain afterwards) I was referred to an orthopedic surgeon in October. He told me that my x-ray showed severe osteoarthritis in my right hip with no cartilage left and my left hip had moderate arthritis.
I wasn't really surprised at the diagnosis, because my mum had a double hip replacement at the age of 70 after suffering since her late 50s (her GP told her she was too young for hip surgery at the time). Over the following years her pain got worse, and she walked with a stick. She was petrified of having the surgery but finally did it after putting it off for years, by which time it was really too late as the damage was done. At age 70 she had first a right THR and then after recovery she had the left hip replaced. Although it did improve things, she ended up having different length legs because too much bone was missing, and she was never able to walk normally again. She ended up using a walker, and her mobility declined even further when she was diagnosed with Parkinson's not too long after her double hip replacement. I remember her saying that her joints clicked, and had noticed that happening to me in the last few years (now I think about it) but it was not frequent enough for me to be overly concerned.
Once I got the diagnosis last October, I had physio for the groin strain which helped and kept in mind what the surgeon told me: "You will know when the time is right, but first you can explore other options". I swore to myself I would not leave it too late for surgery because of what happened to my mum. But to be honest I wasn't sure I would have the time for a THR this year, as we are in the process of emigrating to the USA (begun in July 2021), but it's been slow because of Covid. Once all the work of preparing our house for sale, and actually finding a buyer was over I realised that thankfully I would have time. By then (May this year) my right hip was so bad I had trouble sleeping and my left hip was beginning to hurt too, no doubt through taking the strain. As I have private medical insurance with work, so don't have to rely on the NHS, and get 60 days 100% paid leave I decided to do it. So I saw the surgeon again, and 5 weeks later had the op.
Below is a summary of some of my experiences and feelings in the 6 days since my surgery.
Pain:
I was given 2 crutches by the physio at the hospital, and as I have osteoarthritis in my hands I found that using them was painful. So yesterday I bought some crutch grip gel pads that attach with velcro, and they are wonderful. I can now grip the handles without any pain. I have perfected my crutch walk and can get around quite quickly. I can also use one crutch at times, when I need to carry something.
Update: As of day 9, I can manage well on just one crutch.
Pain points:
If I had had the time I would have got fitter, and tried to lose more weight before the surgery. My mum had her surgery on the NHS so had to follow the BMI guidelines and lost 3 stone beforehand. As I went private my surgeon advised me to lose weight, but that was all. It's not that I haven't been trying, but losing weight has not been easy over the past couple of years due to an underactive thyroid, lack of exercise (before the pandemic I was working in London and doing 10-15K steps per day, in the last 2.5 years I have been working from home and have only been in the office 3 times ). I did lose 7.5 stone in 2018, and reversed my type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure and have managed to keep all those at bay with a low carb diet, and half of the weight off, despite the pandemic, so I'm not a total failure. I bought myself an exercise bike for my birthday last year, and have been doing 15km in 30 minutes most lunch times, that is when hip pain has not prevented me. Despite being overweight I don't think it has hampered my recovery too much. Granted it was difficult at first, but with the right aids (a toilet frame at home especially) I have managed, albeit slowly at first. Now 6 days on, I am able to get up without too much fuss, and am pretty self-sufficient except for putting on those pesky compression stockings.
Future:
I know there will be another hip replacement in my future, as my left hip has moderate osteoarthritis. With that in mind, I am going to get as fit as I can, and get to my goal weight so that I am in the best possible shape for when the time comes. After seeing my latest x-ray post-surgery I asked my surgeon how long he thought I had before the other one needs replacing. He said maybe 2 or 3 years, as it should settle down again once the new right hip is at full strength.
Thanks for reading, if you made it this far.
I just joined after having a right THR 6 days ago on Friday 22nd July privately in the UK, and I was released from hospital on Sunday 24th July. I am trying to take it day by day and feel I am improving daily. After months of worsening pain before the surgery, I am looking forward to pain free days ahead. Below is kind of a brain dump on my THR story, and hopefully somebody will find it useful and/or interesting to read.
A little history:
I have probably had hip osteoarthritis symptoms for 2-3 years now. I had a bad fall on the way home from work at the train station in February 2020, and told everyone that somebody put a bag down in front of me and I tripped and fell. In reality I had no idea what happened, or why I fell. In retrospect my right leg probably gave way causing the fall. When I fell I damaged my shoulder muscle severely, and was seeing a physio when the pandemic hit so had to stop seeing her after about 6 sessions, and it ended up taking a year for full shoulder recovery.
In June 2021 I suffered a right groin strain after slipping on a bathroom stool while drying my leg after a shower. It would get better and then I would strain it again, following a 360 health assessment for work (which included having to lie on my right side that caused 4 days of pain afterwards) I was referred to an orthopedic surgeon in October. He told me that my x-ray showed severe osteoarthritis in my right hip with no cartilage left and my left hip had moderate arthritis.
I wasn't really surprised at the diagnosis, because my mum had a double hip replacement at the age of 70 after suffering since her late 50s (her GP told her she was too young for hip surgery at the time). Over the following years her pain got worse, and she walked with a stick. She was petrified of having the surgery but finally did it after putting it off for years, by which time it was really too late as the damage was done. At age 70 she had first a right THR and then after recovery she had the left hip replaced. Although it did improve things, she ended up having different length legs because too much bone was missing, and she was never able to walk normally again. She ended up using a walker, and her mobility declined even further when she was diagnosed with Parkinson's not too long after her double hip replacement. I remember her saying that her joints clicked, and had noticed that happening to me in the last few years (now I think about it) but it was not frequent enough for me to be overly concerned.
Once I got the diagnosis last October, I had physio for the groin strain which helped and kept in mind what the surgeon told me: "You will know when the time is right, but first you can explore other options". I swore to myself I would not leave it too late for surgery because of what happened to my mum. But to be honest I wasn't sure I would have the time for a THR this year, as we are in the process of emigrating to the USA (begun in July 2021), but it's been slow because of Covid. Once all the work of preparing our house for sale, and actually finding a buyer was over I realised that thankfully I would have time. By then (May this year) my right hip was so bad I had trouble sleeping and my left hip was beginning to hurt too, no doubt through taking the strain. As I have private medical insurance with work, so don't have to rely on the NHS, and get 60 days 100% paid leave I decided to do it. So I saw the surgeon again, and 5 weeks later had the op.
Below is a summary of some of my experiences and feelings in the 6 days since my surgery.
Pain:
- Day 1 - none after surgery thanks to the excellent pain meds for the op by the anesthetist
- Days 2-6 - during the day the pain is minimal if I don't stay in one position for too long. It's worse overnight in bed or following rehab exercises. I have been taking Codeine at night but want to get off it quickly because of the risk of addiction and side-effects. I'm going to do without tonight, having discovered that an ice pack works better than the Codeine, albeit for a couple of hours instead of four. I shall be trying out a new hip ice pack wrap that is attached with velcro, and should provide nearly 2.5 hours of ice cold.
- Day 1 - dizziness & nausea (couldn't keep food down) when moving around or even moving my head from side to side. I have not suffered like this after previous major surgeries, but have never had a spinal before, only general or sedation.
- Day 2 - red cheeks and itchiness that started on my nose and spread across my whole body. Thankfully Chlorphenamine helped with that, but I kept having to ask for more every 4 hours.
- Days 2-6 - reduced appetite, and rarely get hungry. My stomach growls, and I realise it's time for another meal. It is gradually improving, and I did actually feel hungry for breakfast yesterday, but not today. I am eating by the clock.
- Days 3-10 (and counting) - water tastes metallic, so I have switched to fruit-flavoured no added sugar squash. I can only drink water with a meal or if I am extra thirsty gulp a small glass down with a squash chaser. I can't wait for this annoyance to be over, nut if all the side effects it's the one that is still around. As a former Pepsi Max addict, which I gave up prior to my surgery for bone-related reasons, I never thought I would say this but I really miss being able to enjoy a glass of water without it tasting horrible.
I was given 2 crutches by the physio at the hospital, and as I have osteoarthritis in my hands I found that using them was painful. So yesterday I bought some crutch grip gel pads that attach with velcro, and they are wonderful. I can now grip the handles without any pain. I have perfected my crutch walk and can get around quite quickly. I can also use one crutch at times, when I need to carry something.
Update: As of day 9, I can manage well on just one crutch.
Pain points:
- Sleep - I managed to sleep reasonably well in hospital, probably because of the ease of those lovely adjustable hospital beds. At home it took time and a lot of pain on the first night before I realised that my wife was right and I would have to sleep with my head at the foot of our bed because I could not get in bed far enough with my operated leg going first. We can't switch sides, because the right side of the bed requires side-stepping against the wall to reach. I can manage well enough now with a leg lifter (the belt from my robe), and it's getting easier every day. I look forward to having more than a couple of hours of sleep at a time before having to get up for ice packs, but it's early days yet, and my surgeon said that the surgical pain should be gone after 2 weeks.
- Compression stockings - I have to wear them for 6 weeks post-surgery due to a family history of pulmonary embolism. My right calf is twice the size of my left, due to a haematoma that never dispersed over 10 years ago. I ended up wearing an elastic stocking on the right leg for the first 2 days in hospital, as they didn't have the right size. When they finally got them, I found they didn't go beyond XL and were too small, so kept rolling down and causing pain. I manage to get some XXL stockings today online, and am not sure they are any good either as the cuffs feel really tight.
- Showers - my surgeon does not allow patients to shower for 2 weeks following surgery, so as not to get the dressing wet. So it's a stand up wash at the bathroom sink for now, and I never really feel clean like I do after a shower.
If I had had the time I would have got fitter, and tried to lose more weight before the surgery. My mum had her surgery on the NHS so had to follow the BMI guidelines and lost 3 stone beforehand. As I went private my surgeon advised me to lose weight, but that was all. It's not that I haven't been trying, but losing weight has not been easy over the past couple of years due to an underactive thyroid, lack of exercise (before the pandemic I was working in London and doing 10-15K steps per day, in the last 2.5 years I have been working from home and have only been in the office 3 times ). I did lose 7.5 stone in 2018, and reversed my type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure and have managed to keep all those at bay with a low carb diet, and half of the weight off, despite the pandemic, so I'm not a total failure. I bought myself an exercise bike for my birthday last year, and have been doing 15km in 30 minutes most lunch times, that is when hip pain has not prevented me. Despite being overweight I don't think it has hampered my recovery too much. Granted it was difficult at first, but with the right aids (a toilet frame at home especially) I have managed, albeit slowly at first. Now 6 days on, I am able to get up without too much fuss, and am pretty self-sufficient except for putting on those pesky compression stockings.
Future:
I know there will be another hip replacement in my future, as my left hip has moderate osteoarthritis. With that in mind, I am going to get as fit as I can, and get to my goal weight so that I am in the best possible shape for when the time comes. After seeing my latest x-ray post-surgery I asked my surgeon how long he thought I had before the other one needs replacing. He said maybe 2 or 3 years, as it should settle down again once the new right hip is at full strength.
Thanks for reading, if you made it this far.
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to BoneSmart! Your recovery sounds like it is going very well, congratulations!
