THR 15 September Right joins Left

[Woodstockhip]

I'm glad to hear you are making progress. I haven't moved to a cane yet but t I have a feeling that's coming soon. My lopsidedness seems to be abating a bit, but my right knee wants to turn inward. I'm told that's a muscle imbalance which should improve with time. All and all, I think I'm pretty much where I was last hip at this time. Still icing a lot and trying to take a stroll around the house every hour. I actually wasn't at Woodstock the first time around -- I was a senior in high school and was actually at work at my summer job. I finally made it, albeit about 40 years too late.

 

[DK63]

Hi @Woodstockhip . How long ago did you have the other hip done? It is really difficult not to compare recoveries but I am trying to be more careful and patient this time round. I was a mere child at the time of Woodstock but strangely can sing or play along with a lot of the songs even though normally I can't remember what I went upstairs to get!

 

[lanstan]

I heard all those stories about how well so and so did after a THR and really pushed myself at the beginning. i am so glad you guys all got this site early. I didnt find it for 7 weeks. I have a good R hip (for now) But will keep this site in my mind for the next time. I wonder if the second one is really harder or is it like childbirth. Even when you are screaming bloody murder during it not too long after you tell people oh it was not so bad!

 

[Suedeboot]

Hi to anyone on line need your support I'm having surgery today THR I'm so very scared

 

[DK63]

Hi @Suedeboot . How you doing now? Scared is normal but you must need it done. What I found most scary was what would happen to me if I didn't have it done. There are many people on this site willing to help and support you through this....surgery is a breeze....then follow the bonesmart way, softly, slowly and patiently gets you there.....Good luck for today.

 

[DK63]

Hi @lanstan When I had Lefty done I was in a real hurry and it did not work so now trying other way....last time I was off crutches early and back on them later.....making the time to heal slowly is really important OR go quickly and healing takes forever with too many visits to the ODIC, physio, docs, pharmacy, surgeons office etc

 

[Woodstockhip]

Hi @Woodstockhip . How long ago did you have the other hip done? It is really difficult not to compare recoveries but I am trying to be more careful and patient this time round.

Lefty was done two years ago — it was a toss-up as to which to do first since they were both fairly horrible. Fortunately, I found Bonesmart before surgery so I was pretty well prepared for what was to come and I took things very slowly.

 

[DK63]

Howdy @Woodstockhip I have to say that showing any wisdom has not been a strong point in my life but I think for the hip op recovery it is time to be wise (plenty of time to revert to my more immature and not so worldly wise character after). When you got to Woodstock 40 years after had 10 years after and Country Joe finished their sets?

 

[Woodstockhip]

I think Richie Havens was still wailing away on “Freedom.”

 

[DK63]

@Woodstockhip ...I didn't know he had finished Here Comes the Sun

 

[Layla]

Here Comes the Sun on your One Month Anniversary!
I hope it shines brightly today. Enjoy the weekend!
@DK63

 

[DK63]

Hi @Layla and many thanks. One month already. Still getting some pings, zings and zangs. Pain comes and goes but trying to manage it properly. Walking is interesting as I can do a little without crutches or sticks, which is the first time in two years. But for outside walks am still using the sticks. Seeing surgeon on 24th and hopefully get the OK for driving (sorry everyone in UK) and would be nice to sleep on a side. Again, thanks to you and everyone for their good wishes. Hey @Woodstockhip have a good weekend.....my favourite from Woodstock were Sha Na Na....

 

[Woodstockhip]

So, @DK63, you've got a month! I'm a couple of weeks behind you so I've been watching your progress with interest. I would really like to ditch the walker but the PT advised me to keep on pushing for a little while longer. i would love to try an outside walk but I live on a dirt road on the side of a mountain so not exactly walker-friendly. It doesn't seem worth it to get someone to drive here, pick me up and take me someplace flat to walk. As for Woodstock, I've actually never seen the movie, just various clips of historic footage here and there. (Historic. Hah!) The actual festival wasn't in Woodstock at all -- it was about 60 miles away. I swear, there are people wandering around town who showed up here looking for it and never left. Oh, fun fact: one of my bandmates was married to Richie Havens' road manager.

 

[Layla]

I swear, there are people wandering around town who showed up here looking for it and never left.

This is funny! Hippies, not of our variety here on BS, but the stoner types I'm guessing.
They're looking for Grace Slick to hear White Rabbit Lol.

 

[DK63]

Hi @Woodstockhip One of your bandmates? Would you like to expand this please? What sort of band? What did you play? Sing? What type of music? I too have played and sung in bands, even got paid once singing a menu, ice cream and sundaes menu although they didn't know I was singing it (singing in English in French Restaurant in South of France). @Layla I have met a lot of people who claimed to have been at Woodstock and the UK equivalent, Isle of Wight festival but when you know how old they are and do the sums, most of them would have been 2 or 3 years old at the most. However, I do tell people that I chat to a lot of hippies every day....

 

[DK63]

@Woodstockhip . Flat ground is important to practice on...I panic if I see a pine cone on the ground in case I twist my foot on it. The one thing I am yet to tackle are the stairs in our house. Built 1830, staircase modelled on the south face of the Eiger....am building up to try it...have established a base camp on stair 5....water, tinned fruits, oxygen just in case

 

[Woodstockhip]

@DK63, Nah, you don't want me clogging up your recovery thread with my musical bio. I'll shoot you a PM at some point when I'm feeling a tad more awake. I have stairs here as well, fairly steep and scary. I think we need the gear that rock climbers use -- belts and tethers and such. Thing is, several months before surgery, I woke up in the middle of the night to pee and got totally disoriented and fell down the stairs. The house was full of visitors from Europe and not a single person heard me! I ignominiously crawled back up the stairs and went back to bed. The next day I awoke with a technicolor butt and was achy all over. It's a miracle I didn't break anything. Suffice to say, the stairs can wait.

 

[DK63]

On a philosophical note @Woodstockhip if nobody heard you, did you actually fall? (Or European conspiracy?) Just normal stairs have been a sore point for me for years as I have not been able to go up and down normally, always having to have both legs on same step, like using them as a child, I guess. This changed however at the end of 2019 one year after Lefty was done and I climbed and descended stairs like a teenager. Unfortunately, Mr Righty then packed up so the stair success lasted about 2 months, small victory though. Hopefully, I will master them again. Crampons and pitons are what I will use for our stairs here. Not been upstairs since 3 weeks before surgery as was too painful, so looking forward to it when I get the courage, the healing and the muscle....so off to Emerald City...

 

[DK63]

I know I shouldn't but I have set myself a couple of goals @Layla and @Mojo333. Like @Woodstockhip I want to walk on a beach so have booked a week in Catalunya Spain followed by a week across the border in French Catalonia. But before that have booked a table at our local restaurant for 26th December ( Boxing Day/St Stephens Day) and hope to be walking there and back with no walking aids like @Tuppence71 , it's only about a mile and a half and walk back, hopefully pain free. These pics are the view from the restaurant taken last evening.

 

[Mojo333]

How beautiful. I think it is definitely an attainable goal if you keep all slow and steady and don't let the stairs be your "down fall"
I still toddler-styled steep stairs for several months...maybe even longer especially on those with no handrails...after my BTHR.
Even when I felt stronger, I had some unexpected moments of weakness and I really did not want to De-Rail my recovery.

Long hikes, beaches, stairs, boats, ATVs...all for me now!