Advice please! How do you get out of bed?

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Con

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Hi everyone! My 81 year old father had his right hip replaced 7 days ago. He came home 2 days ago and I think is doing really well. The big problem is getting out of bed. In hospital he had a hanging handle above the bed to pull himself up on. His bed is an adjustable one but he can't have it too far up or it'll go over 90 degrees and he can't twist so , even with a plastic bag under his bottom, he's struggling to go from lying reclined to sitting on the edge of the bed. He can get up from chairs by pushing down on the arms and is walking well with crutches but this problem with the bed has meant I've resorted to buying a urine bottle today as moving out of bed can take 20 minutes and is leaving him flustered. Any ideas?
 
Hire a triangle hanging thing to put up at the end of the bed. When I had an issue after the birth of Nic i needed one of those triangle things and my husband hired one through the occupational therapist of the local rehab facility......medical hire places supply all sorts of weird things! Its actually important that he gets up and moves and if he can't get up the risk of deep vein thrombosis would be higher, i would think.
 
Oh my gosh! So sorry to hear about yourDad's trials getting out of bed! Call your medical supply store and ask them if there is some contraption you can rent/buy to help!
Best of good luck to Dad! Hope he has a nice recovery!! (:)0)
 
I had home physical therapy after my hip replacement. Does your dad? I would think they would address this problem. Call his surgeon's office too.
judy
 
Hi Con,

I bought a bed rail from Allegro Medical Supply. It slips between the mattresses and I think it works pretty well. I don't have my surgery until October but I've been testing everything out.

I'd highly recommend one of these for your dad.

This is the one I bought:

http://www.allegromedical.com/daily-living-aids-c519/bed-rail-advantage-traveler-p555552.html

The things I like about this is not only does it stay in place, but it is portable so you can easily fold it and take it with you and also it has pockets on it for stuff like medicines, remote controls, etc.

Heather
 
Someone mentioned they scooted off the end of the bed! Would he be able to manage that?
 
Hey there Im sorry Im a knee but others have given great advise.........I hope everything works out ok.......I wish him the best............) I wish him a speedy recovery as well......)
 
I agree with Josephine, I am 38 and I never bothered trying to get out of the side of the bed after my op. Scooting down to the end is just so much easier - I never learned the side dismount!
 
Hi,

Initially it is difficult to get out of bed but as time progresses he will feel the ease of getting of from bed. basically he shud be able to sit on the bed with legs down on the floor.
With respect to my experience, One person use to hold my both legs(with some distance b/w two legs) and then i use to turn with the help of my hands gradually, and the person who use to hold my legs will also turn with me. so finally the patient will be in a sitting position on the bed.
 
All good suggestions, Con. Let us know how this works out for your dad.

And welcome to BoneSmart!!! Don't hesitate to post anytime with questions or concerns....or just to let us know how things are going with your father. We'll be here for whatever support you need.
 
For the first few days after my operation I would use my good leg, with the knee bent, to push the operated leg over the side of the bed while sitting up. It's important to make sure the opeated leg doesn't cross the mid line. He might find it easier if he moves his bottom towards the other side of the bed slightly before moving his legs off the side of the bed, then shuffling forward towards the edge. If your dad keeps trying it will get easier I'm sure, although it's very frustrating to start with. Good luck.
 
My husband scooted on and off the bed from the base of the bed. Of course you can't have a foot board on there and it does take a great deal of upper body strength to do it. I think that is truly one of the biggest challenges of this surgery early on and even in to some weeks after. Also getting in and out of the car is hard. My husband is a strong guy so I can only imagine how difficult it is on an older person. I sure hope things get easier fast for your father!
 
Thanks everyone! Great suggestions and I think that link to the Aids catalogue will be very useful. He will be having physio...should start this week...so I will update you on his progress!
 
I found it so much easier and far less painful to scoot off the end of the bed. I had no footboard, and satiny jamas which made the sliding process easier, but the plastic you are now using will do just as well. Use the unoperated leg to help with the scooting, as well as arm power. I would dig my good heel into the bed and grasp the mattress with my hands and pull myself while bending the knee of my good leg, and repeating the process till I reached the end of the bed. To get back in bed, just reverse the process by pushing with your good leg and arms.
I used this process after both surgeries.
Good luck with the physio and recupe.

Glenys
LHR 5/28/09
RHR 7/23/09
 
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