THR Charlie's RTHR Recovery Thread

Charlie33

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Hi all,

Great information across the board. Thanks and appreciate everybody’s insights.!

Left total hip replacement on 11/22. 9 days in. Modern posterior or direct superior is what the doc called it (4 inch incision, no muscles or tendons cut). No precautions. Hip was bad for 15 years but really deteriorated fast over past few months. Trip from Evaluation to operating table 5 weeks total. First 5 days pretty rough. Forced myself to walk 10-15 mins per hour as instructed and do PT. Last three days been much better. walking unaided 4000-5000 steps a day but not all at once by any means. My in home PT cleared me for stairs today and driving as off Oxy. Leg itself has some light muscle soreness. Swelled pretty bad too but that has gone away save the blood pooled above my calf.

So recovery ok so far. When I wake up damm sore but shakes off. I ice and elevate religiously. The ice machines with automated pump I feel Essential versus ice packs. Generally try to get off feet every hour or so.

No limp and moving to formal PT next week.

I’m a bit surprised at how much function I have this quickly but attribute to mIS approach used.

Thanks for listening!
 
@Charlie33 Welcome to BoneSmart! It sounds like you are doing very well with your recovery and that is marvelous to hear!

Here are our recovery guidelines:


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
elevate
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 these
BoneSmart philosophy for sensible post op therapy
5. At week 4 and after you should follow this
Activity progression for THRs
6. Access these pages on the website
Oral And Intravenous Pain Medications
Wound Care In Hospital

The Recovery articles:
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.
 
Hi all,

I’m wondering if most folks here have had MIS or traditional THR? I had MIS posterior with no precautions 11 days ago.

It seems there are a wide variety of responses on recovery times, appropriate level of activities etc.. I very much believe in ‘this isn’t a race’ approach as age/health considerations make us all unique.

Just hard to find a baseline a recovery timeline over first month.

Thanks in advance for any comments of color!

Charlie
 
I very much believe in ‘this isn’t a race’ approach as age/health considerations make us all unique.
This is a good attitude! You body will heal fine if we take it slow, be patient, and let it set its own healing pace, :flwrysmile:

By the way, I merged your newest thread with your original recovery thread, as we prefer that members in recovery have only one thread.

This benefits you because all your information is in one place, easy to find, and maintains a nice journal for you.

This also benefits our staff, as your information is all in one place, and we often go back through your thread for previous details, so we know what you‘ve been through which helps us advise you better.

So, please keep all your posts in this thread. If you’d like a new title, let us know what you want, and we’ll change it for you.

Many members bookmark their thread in their computer browser, so they can find it when they log on.
How can I find my threads and posts?

Best wishes on your continuing recovery! :flwrysmile:
 
Hello and welcome to BoneSmart and recovery! Thanks for joining us.
I experienced posterior, but not of the approach you described. I didn't have any restrictions either, other than move slowly, thoughtfully and if anything hurts, stop.
I very much believe in ‘this isn’t a race’ approach as age/health considerations make us all unique.
This is true since we approach THR at different ages, some with pre-existing health conditions, weight issues, some recovering alone without extra help or emotional support. So many variables.
Just hard to find a baseline a recovery timeline over first month.
Check out the Activity progression for THRs which is a rough gauge for safe activity for the first two months. Like you, many excel, others lag behind, no right or wrong.

I wish you all the best as you continue healing. :)
 
It seems there are a wide variety of responses on recovery times, appropriate level of activities etc..
This is very individual. There are so many factors that influence recovery time:
How long you limped around pre-op
How your body reacts to major surgery
The skill of your surgeon
Your health and condition going into surgery
Your attitude about moving forward

The list is endless! But you are right - the slow and steady approach works every time. Pushing is counterproductive. Please don't let PT try and push you into training mode. You are not training - you are healing.
I’m wondering if most folks here have had MIS or traditional THR?
There really is no minimally invasive THR. Yes, there are improved methods that result in smaller incisions and less trauma to surrounding tissues, tendons and muscles. But this is major surgery. Don't fall for the marketing hype.
 
:wave:
You sound as if things are going well!

My bilateral hip replacement was billed as AMIS (Antenor Minimally Invasive Surgery)
Your recovery timeline thus far sounds very much like mine!
And as others have already noted, may or may not have helped with short term recovery...

I found my "traditional surgery " compades' recovery journeys on the forum, who had surgery at the same time, converged with mine for the long haul.
Actually...Some quicker, some slower...depending on many of the factors Jaycey cited above.

This recovery business can be tricky, and the stiffness every morning that oils up with activity would often make me wonder how I was doing.
All Normal and All Temporary!:) :-) (:

Trying to find the line between enough and too much takes some fine tuning and there is no across the board advice for this - save
Listen to your Body.
 
Thanks for everyone’s responses! Couple of observations day 12:

1) Mojo333 - to your comment..when I go to bed, my leg feel tired and heavy. Same when I wake up. Then it gets better with movement. Normal for you too! Interesting and thank you for sharing!
2) Sleep a challenge. for first week woke up every 2 hours like clockwork to use restroom (sorry if TMI!). This week better, not great. my wife said I was snoring last night.
3) doing PT stuff but mostly for ROM. My belief is that normal body weight movements the most helpful in first month to extent comfortable, pain free with high reps. Range and strength will come naturally and over time.
4) Range loss: I had lost a lot of range going for quite some time going into surgery. Oddly no limp. This will be the biggest component of long term rehab over first year.

Thanks and grateful for all responses. :)
 
This recovery business can be tricky, and the stiffness every morning that oils up with activity would often make me wonder how I was doing.
All Normal and All Temporary!:) :-) (:

Mojo, read a lot of you recovery story and loved the humor along the way :).

Question for Mojo/all related to above quote: is it normal to have your quad upper leg kind of tight/when you wake up need to shake it off etc..? Also even after you wake up and move a bit....when i use my massage gun even on light setting, the tissue on operated leg still 'angry' and like pins and needles pain versus not operated leg where it feels like an actual massage. Needless to say not using massage gun on that leg :heehee:

Just wondering when the operated leg quads etc start to calm down (ie overall tightness and discomfort)? Does this come naturally or more with increased ROM/PT? 13 days and thought it would be more normal, although realized the biomechanics and tissues moving for the first time in a long time may contribute as the whole ecosystem adjusting.

Bonesmart team: can we rename my thread to 'Charlies R THR Recovery Thread'? Thank you!

Thanks everyone!
 
Last edited:
Charlie,
(My brother's name), just reading your post.
I'm almost 10 months post op and still get tightness some days. Right now sitting with ice pack.
I start my day very early and by noon hip let's me know it.
Overall I'm back to majority of my daily life I just wish I was 100% but it will come. I was doing so great up until I pushed myself over holiday and days after but small bump in road.
I wish you well.
 
Your 13 days in to recovery don't get to concerned with pains and stiffness. The fact that our legs don't fall off after what they've done to us is remarkable, the pain and stiffness will lessen over time. In the first weeks there isn't really much we can do about it but rest, ice and nourish our bodies so they heal. The muscles undergo a lot of trauma and take some time to heal before any strength can be built back.
 
Mojo, read a lot of you recovery story and loved the humor along the way :).
Yeah, I was on some meds part of the time and euphorically silly alot of the time.:heehee:
I was awfully happy to have that rotten hip pain gone!

is it normal to have your quad upper leg kind of tight/when you wake up need to shake it off etc..? Also even after you wake up and move a bit....
Yes, normal for me for many months postop
Didn't help I jumped back to work sooner than optimal and not good at self editing.

Just wondering when the operated leg quads etc start to calm down (ie overall tightness and discomfort)? Does this come naturally or more with increased ROM/PT? 13 days and thought it would be more normal, although realized the biomechanics and tissues moving for the first time in a long time may contribute as the whole ecosystem adjusting.
You will find things aren't perfect and continually getting better (and some days not so) a real ebb and flow... but increased PT is not necessarily the panacea.
I had aggressive PT at about 3 weeks that stymied progress, but picked up therapy at 2 1/2-3 months out that targeted gait training and deficits likely acquired pre-op.

We are recovering from a major sugery as well as years of bad posture / gait from trashed hip.

Slow and steady, my friend.
It really is the best way and these forever hips are worth it.
 
We are recovering from a major sugery as well as years of bad posture / gait from trashed hip.
Yes indeed we are! my friend who is a doc said ’slow and steady with reasonable pt. Still a lot of healing going on in there’. Don’t want to be in ODIC club this soon.

Reading lots of threads and timelines, 4-8 week timeframe generally things fall in line and settle in varying ways for folks. Anything under a month post op is just sort of ’noisy’…..day to day tactical ….. will take my new bonesmart learnings and view next few weeks and progress / setbacks as par for course…:)
 
If you read my recovery thread, you were sure to notice alot of anxious "Is this Normal" queries...
We all want to know This worked.
You will get there:tada:
 
Hi Charlie :wave:
I am not sure if you've spotted / read this article on the forum anywhere, but its worth taking a look at in an effort to avoid engaging in any PT that could sideline your recovery. Take a look and see what you think.
I hope you have a great day!
BoneSmart philosophy for sensible post op therapy
Also a link to our Library - LIBRARY
@Charlie33
 
Thanks Layla! Appreciate it. Have read some folks get tendinitis during recovery. I have some grumpiness behind outside of left knee and wondering if that’s normal versus just the aches/pains of month 1 in recovery.
 
@Charlie33, I think you'll find that random pop-up pains here and there (even on the non-operative side) are a pretty common occurrence this early in the healing process. I call them the zaps and zings. Generally they don't stick around and respond well to ice.
 
I agree with, Woodtockhip, and especially about ice which I took advantage of often in the early weeks and months. Unless the pain is increasing in frequency or intensity, I'd relate it to the possibility of too much activity or exercising recently and dial it back a bit.
Best Wishes!
@Charlie33
 
I had both hips replaced at the same time. But I only had quad thigh pain and tightness in the right hip. And I only had soft tissue/groin pain in the left hip.

I could definitely feel that right quad tightness, even some pain, for 4 months, then it slowly dissipated. Same with the groin pain.

As far as thinking you’ll be almost normal at 4 to 6 weeks, well for me, things sort of stalled, and even became more painful about that time. I had given up the cane and hiking poles by then, and begun to really increase my daily walks, and increased my stride and speed, so some pain did return temporarily.
I’m now 6 months and mostly totally pain free, except when returning to standing after bending over. I still have some groin pain when returning to standing. (I believe I aggravated something while packing, carrying boxes downstairs, and moving 2 months ago.)
 
As far as thinking you’ll be almost normal at 4 to 6 weeks, well for me, things sort of stalled, and even became more painful about that time
Z - interesting comment and something I’ve seen across recovery stories: either too much in first month or after 2 months going too fast and paying for it: the objective is incremental recovery.

For the past few days have resisted idea to kick in training mode based on all the feedback. But still want to do ‘sensible PT’. We will see :) if I can be sensible.
 

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