Bilateral THR 2 shiny new hips for me

[Clarice]

So, 14th sept i had bilateral THR. Spent a couple of days on HDU as a precaution. Couldn't even stand up for 4 days. Oxygen levels were pretty erratic so blood clot on the lung was suspected....luckily a CT scan showed it was a lung infection instead. I was in hospital for 8 nights in total. I could have gone home a day earlier but I wasn't quite confident enough. I then had an allergic reaction to the wound dressing which broke my skin. Thankfully that's now sorted and my wounds are healing nicely
3.5 weeks on and I'm driving myself around the bend. I can't get comfy, I have zero appetite and I just generally feel bleurgh! I'm not in pain as such just a bit stiff and achy. I'm trying to walk little and often with my crutches to build my strength up. I seem to have lost every bit of fitness I had preop (I was fairly fit and active) everything is just such blooming hard work. I think I'm feeling a little bit down in the dumps and frustrated. I just want to feel some sort of normality again. I'm an equestrian and have worked with horses most of my life which probably didn't help my hips! My horses are getting fat hairy and feral out in the field!! On the plus side I managed to shower on my own today so thats a little win!

 

[djklaugh]

@Clarice Congratulations on your 2 new hips! Wow you had a rough start. I am not surprised you are still feeling low energy - healing from 2 MAJOR surgeries AND healing from a lung infection - that will certainly take a lot out of you! I understand about having no appetite but you do need to eat to promote healing and get your energy back. Try focusing on comfort food - things you really like and that say "I am being taken care of". For me that is chicken soup, milk shakes, and cinnamon toast. But anything that is tasty, and nutritious will do.

Also since you had to spend extra days in the hospital - and probably spent most of the extra time in bed - your muscles have had time to get a bit "lazy" and unused to motion. So take it slow - increase your walking bit by bit. And do do any exercises that were given to you even if it's a bit of a struggle.

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.

 

[cold_brew]

Sounds like a rough start to your membership in Club Bilateral - but welcome to the exclusive club! Sorry to hear about the lung infection, that sounds awful. I hope things start looking up from here for you!

 

[Jaycey]

@Clarice You will get back on your horses! Just give yourself time to heal! Set very reachable goals and rejoice when they are accomplished.

Post op blues are real! But the good news is they will soon ease. I found my animals were a comfort during my recovery. Are your horses somewhere where you can see them? Or do you have any other pets you can focus on?

 

[Clarice]

@cold_brew thankyou for the welcome into the club bilateral!
@Jaycey yes I'm very lucky that I can see the girls from my window and they are close enough for me to walk to the field gate to say hi. I have dogs too and they have been very clingy since I came home from hospital. They seem to know I'm not too well. My old labrador follows me everywhere like she is keeping an eye on me. Even my 3 mad spaniels are less crazy around me. I was worried they'd trip me up but they seem to be quite calm around me. My other half is pretty good at holding the fort while I'm recovering so thats a worry less

I have a friend coming to visit today which im looking forward to. She is bringing lasagne so I'm hoping I can raise enough appetite for that.

I think I'm going to write a list of achievable jobs to do, like easy admin stuff, so i feel like I'm achieving something rather than feeling like I'm being lazy. Maybe use this time to do things that I wouldn't normally have time for.

I have a sick note for 3 months off work and my employers are very supportive if I need extra time or phased return etc... I'm very lucky in that respect.

So basically I have a great deal to be thankful for and need to stop being so miserable and count my blessings!

 

[Jaycey]

Once you are confident on your feet you can begin to venture out and visit your girls. Just be sure you are feeling OK on uneven surfaces. This sometimes takes awhile.

Good idea about making a list. But remember, you are not being lazy. You are recovering from 2 major surgeries!

Enjoy your friend's visit!

 

[JohnWilky]

Don’t be taking Lasagne for a walk, you have enough to do with your own .
Good luck.

 

[Shenick]

Welcome @Clarice and congratulations on joining the bilaterals!

The early days after surgery are tough and I think you need patience (still finding that hard at times!).
Best wishes for a good recovery and hope that you get back to the horses as soon as possible.

 

[Clarice]

Feeling a bit more positive today. Had a lovely visit from my friend although she did fetch her twin sister and her mum so I was a bit all peopled out when theyd gone. Lasagne was delicious and I ate more than I have since my op so thats good. My other half has gone away with work for a couple of nights so my mum is staying to help out. I live in the middle of nowhere so I suppose although Im normally perfectly ok on my own (in fact I quite enjoy it!) I feel a bit vulnerable just yet.

Mobility wise Im feeling fairly good. Im still using my crutches most of the time as I can feel the weight on my hips a bit more if I dont use them. I laid on my side for a short while last night. Was sort of comfy to start with then it wasnt so back onto my back again.

Patience has never been my strongest virtue and boy is this testing it! Just less than 4 weeks in and Im climbing the walls.

 

[Layla]

Patience has never been my strongest virtue and boy is this testing it!

Patience Is bitter, but it's fruit is sweet!

You can do this, month by month you'll grow stronger and steadier on your feet.
Enjoy the week!
@Clarice

 

[Clarice]

After a few days where I know I have done far too much Im definitely feeling it today. I went to a gig wednesday evening. We saw The Proclaimers! It was a lovely evening and no bouncing in a moshpit or anything.... Was nice to get out in civilisation for a bit. Id got the tickets for my other half for Christmas last year and we were umming and arring whether we should go or not but Im so glad we did. Then yesterday I had to attend a court hearing as a witness. That was pretty tiring both mentally and physically. So Im going to have a pretty lazy day although Ive been soaking some dried fruit in brandy for a few days so might just get on with making a Christmas cake.
I think , although Im feeling tired, Ive turned a corner with my recovery. Ive been and seen my horses. One was a bit sulky with me (how dare I ignore her for weeks!!) and the other seemed pleased to see me....although that may have been the mints I had in my pocket!!
Still not much appetite but Im trying to eat plenty of fruit and drinking plenty of water and milk.

 

[Mojo333]

Hi @Clarice
Good to see a new double hippy pal on the forum
During my recovery, I remember that it was so good to start doing some normal things even if it wore me out... and smart for you to balance it out with some chill days.
This really is the best way to let your body continue to heal and readjust to Good Hips!

Hope your weekend is sweet

 

[Layla]

Happy One Month Anniversary, Clarice!
Good to read you feel as though you've turned a corner in your recovery. May it only get better.
Have a wonderful weekend!
@Clarice

 

[Clarice]

Is it a common thing to have really dry skin post op? my legs (especially my shins) and my face are so so dry even though Im trying to moisturise as much as possible.

 

[Mojo333]

We sure have heard the complaint from members here.
As far as the legs go, it might be explained because dry skin accompanies most surgical procedures as a result of the temporary tissue swelling that takes place with any operation. This temporary stretch causes the skin to produce/have more of the outer skin than it needs and once the swelling resolves, this skin sloughs off.

Extra fluid intake (I never drink enough water) and lots of moisturizer were my go-to's.
I also tried Aloe waters for awhile... I think it helped but they are expensive and can be hard to find.

 

[Clarice]

That actually makes perfect sense! I will try up my water intake too

 

[Jad26]

Is it a common thing to have really dry skin post op? my legs (especially my shins) and my face are so so dry even though Im trying to moisturise as much as possible.

I was the same. My legs and forehead was very dry i used coconut oil for my legs which helped and for my face just face moisturiser its much better now. My incision area is very dry still but i don't want to put anything on it at the moment as its only just over 6 weeks. After my first shower which was over a week or 2 after surgery it made my skin very dry probably from not showering often my skin had a build up of natural oils then the hot water stripped it away.

 

[Woodstockhip]

I’m so glad someone asked this question. My shins in particular are desert dry! I will have to try to slather some lotion on there without breaking the 90 degree rule!

 

[HollyNY]

The antibacterial soap and cloths (hibicleanse) definitely dried out my skin.

I told Rob that I felt like I was reverting to a feral, ungroomed state.

 

[Woodstockhip]

There’s something about being unable to shave one’s legs for weeks that brings out the feral in a girl. Another reason not to have hip replacement in the middle of summer! I didn’t have to worry about it last time because of the DTH (Dreaded TED Hose) but this time they weren’t ordered. That, in itself, was a blessing.