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THR 4 days post op, pain in groin, butt...yeah I know...

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Texas Girl, from the looks of it I had the antero-lateral, as the incision is along the side of the hip. I think I got the "hybrid surgery". I have the long incision (about 8"), but not the major cutting it seems that goes along with the "traditional" approach. I say that because I've had the minimal pain, I move well, healed very quickly etc. I guess it's true that one the most important elements of all this is the skill of the surgeon, and my guy is excellent (very cutting edge, as is the hospital), with an excellent reputation (it's why he's so busy!) Today it's a bit more temperate here....around upper 20s (lol!) and we get a couple 50 degree days next week. I'm going to try a beginner yoga class today and see how I do. It's a 30 days of yoga for $30 and you can't beat that, even if you only go 5 or 6 times. I know a lot right now is strength in the muscles, as well as tightness, so I have to be careful, lest I pull a muscle or something. I'm hoping next week to try the arthritis aquacize class. A bit nervous about the first drive as I drive a stick, but at least the yoga studio is only a couple miles away.
 
Smiling from ear to ear. Driving for the first time since surgery actually was ok, even with a stick and some snow. And my beginning yoga class was good too. Flexibility on the adductor is ok; outer thigh around the hip is still naturally tight, but that will take time and I will not push it. Both legs were quivering a bit near the end due to lack of strength and lots of standing, but I felt good, no pain. Mentally it was such a rush, a high, that I couldn't help but smiling near the end of class. So now I rest, enjoy some coffee with the sun on my face; it has been so cold lately, the sun feels good. When I go home it will b a nice warm shower, then doing vision boards of what I want to do now that I am pain free. Oh yes, and def some icing of the hamstrings.
 
cp, I am so happy to hear that you've tried yoga. I too had antero-lateral and basically feel great, except I get REALLY tired, especially after going back to work two weeks ago, which is HARD. I went to a yoga meeting last week, but didn't do yoga because I was afraid. So, you give me some courage! My gait isn't good either, so I'm on the cane. Other than the gait and fatigue, I'm good. Not much pain at all. So, glad to hear you are doing well.
 
Debowma, I practiced yoga before all this (been away for almost 18 months), and I knew it was one of the best things to go back to. The big emphasis is on listening to one's body. If it doesn't feel good to do it, don't, or back off, find a modification (just ask the instructor) or just go to child's pose. Most instructors are keen on folks practicing who have injuries, or surgery. if you get a class where they try to push you, put your body in danger find another one. Yoga is by nature non-threatening, non-competitive. Today I just went up to the instructor beforehand, explained my situation, and she just said again, listen to your body. The instructor may know more poses than u do, but u know your body best. Be prepared for some soreness (about to ice the hamstrings now), and tiredness. Even the easy poses like warrior, seated chair, after you've done them at your pace for an hour, will be somewhat challenging because your leg (or both for me) is tired. It's been awhile, if ever that it's been put through that. It is called a practice for a reason :) I will see how I feel tomorrow before deciding how soon I want to go again. Yoga is, as well, for me, mental and emotional. I'm a go go go kind of girl. I know zero, I know 100. 45, I have trouble getting to. One thing the gal mentioned today was about backing off poses a bit, if your body says so, and it clicked with me. It's being okay with 45, or even 50. It very much applies to our recovery, and I will do that. Being okay with being at 45.

Hope that helps.
 
Glad you enjoyed your Yoga class today. I think you will really enjoy your aqucize class too. I am doing PT in the pool and really love it. My first session it felt so good to exercise again!! I missed it so much. I used to take water aroebic classes at the YMCA but I had to quit them a year ago because my hip was bone on bone and they became too painful. Since the water is non weight bearing, it makes it so easy to workout now. I was really sore the next day, but it was a good sore. It is so wonderful to be getting back my life again. Went back to work 3 days this week for about 4 hours each day I was just mostly sitting at a desk but am tired. Took it easy today. Glad you will be getting some warmer weather! Let me know how you like the pool!
 
CP, you are doing so well in listening to and understanding what your body wants right now.. your recovery is progressing very well.. great that you enjoyed your yoga :)
 
Finding once again, that yoga is very much a reflection of one's life, whereever you may be in your journey. It will be six weeks Friday, and there have been good days, lousy days and in between days. Days where one or two things went great and another thing stunk. Tonight was my third yoga class in a week with days off in between. Strength is going to be the last to come I'm guessing, as standing/balancing on my left leg is not so bad, but the right is going to take more time. Tonight was frustrating in that regard, but bringing a smile to my face was turning out my right knee and crossing my right leg over the left knee (like a numeral 4). The first two classes, not even close to happening, hip was way too tight. But tonight, even while I was stretching before class started, it seemed more flexible. Then near the end when we were stretching, it really did okay crossing over. A good stretch w/o any "bad" kind of pain. Reminding myself about being patience with myself, extending myself and my body grace in this journey of recovery, of starting my practice again. That as good as I feel, the right hip/quad muscles are still very weak, as my hip and leg flop to the outside; it's near to impossible to keep my legs together. But then, I remind myself, I am six weeks out, and my muscles were EXTREMELY weak right before surgery and it will be awhile, especially since I'm not allowed to do any weights til the three month mark.

But it will come. It will all come, and at the end of it life will be even better than I could imagine. It helps, as I'm sure it helps many of you, to look at all the milestones along the way. All the things we can do now, that we couldn't do at one week, at 2, at 3, etc. I'm smiling as I type this, knowing there is a "pot of gold" at the end of this, and it will be overflowing. :flwrysmile:
 
Great, good for you but don't be tempted to push it.. you just had major surgery! I hope to do adaptive yoga with loads and loads of blocks. That's the only kind I could ever do, I feel less self-conscious than trying to keep up in a regular class. You yoga types are inspirational.
 
Def not tempted to push it. The studio i go to is big on props - straps blocks bolsters, and slowing down, taking a break when u need to. I felt it tonight a bit and just went to child's pose. Yoga is also about listening to the body and if there is one this that has sunk in deep during this recovery is listen to one's body, which is why i will be icing my hamstrings tonight, and taking a day off tomorrow, even though it will be in the mid 50s. Plenty of other safe PT I can do.
 
Tried the arthritis aquacize class today. It seemed a little, how shall I say it, slow and not really challenging for me, but maybe I need that, lest I be tempted to push myself? I did like how they used the foam noodle things for support so you could bike pedal in the water. Not sure if I'll go back to that one or the general aquacize class, see if it's a bit more challenging; it's at least in the water so less weight on the joints. May even skip that and go straight to the exercise bike. Yup, haven't even gotten to that, been so busy with walking and yoga.
 
Just when I thought I was in the clear, everything's smooth sailing, this happens.

Getting ready for bed, hip feels tight, and I'm thinking, oh, it's just because i didn't ice it after the class, etc. Well, I take off my sweats and look at the incision and at the lower end, toward the knee, it's all red, and I see this dot and there's drainage. I'm six weeks out for God's sake! Driving, walking w/o crutches, etc. What is going on? I was in for my follow up a week ago yesterday and he said everything on the incision looked good! It's only sub-q drainage, very minimal, but someone (i.e. the resident or the fellow who closed) messed up. This shouldn't be happening six weeks out! I really don't know what to do, ice it, whether to go the emergency room or wait til morning and see how it looks. it's red right at the end of the incision and sort of red around the area, but I was lying on that side watching a movie tonight, so I don't know if that's part of it.

I wanna cry...

HELP!!! :tantrum: :sos:
 
Oh CatPrincess... don't cry honey...

Have you taken your temperature?

Is it hot as well as red around the lower part of the incision? And the area?

How much subcutaneous drainage? is it colored?

It could well be that you have over done it a little..

I read your previous post and noted that you had been in a pool.. Not to alarm you, but I acquired a UTI at Xmas after going to our public pool.

Can you give the ER a call and explain your concern. I don't know what your system is in the US, but we can ring the Triage Nurse at our major hospitals..

It is probably ok, but we don't want you worrying all night :)
 
Thanks Poppet.
No, I haven't taken my temp, but I don't "feel" warm.

It's like a really light pinkish color, only a tiny dot or so, not even enough to cover a q-tip; now there's nothing, seems to have started "clotting over" .

I think it was the pool, because there was nothing there this morning, and it was fine yesterday when I showered. But why at that end and nowhere else on the incision? Seems strange to me.

Given that it's no warmer than anywhere else around my leg, I'm going to give it til morning; if it feels or looks different, then I call the ER. Until then pray and leave it in His hands. He knows what it is and I'll be okay.
 
Sounds like a plan :) and I am sure that it is the extra exercise and also the laying on it. :)

I love pool work, but it is so easy to overdo it because of the lack of gravity... I have many, many times :)

Sleep well, don't worry.. Do you have any lavender oil? If so pop some on a cotton ball and tuck it in your pillow case.. :)
 
So this morning it looks better, more pink than anything, and the pink area is smaller than the red area was last night. Still a small amount of drainage, but only if I push around it, and it's clear.

I'm suspecting something from the pool got into an open spot on the incision, yet at the same time wondering how. It's been six weeks; isn't "everything" closed up at this point? The skin around the area is normal body temp, so I will go to yoga today, be careful, and STAY AWAY from that pool. Bummer, because I really like doing pool therapy.

Has anyone else doing pool therapy run into this before? A little disconcerting to say the least! Maybe the chlorine level needs to be brought up.
 
I was in the pool after 3 weeks last time, and am really looking forward to it! I didn't think you could get infection after the incision closed. Not to spook you, but my friend who's caring for me has a daughter who developed an infection soon after she healed. I don't think the daughter got into the Dr. as quickly as I would if I had any signs of infection, but you can get a late infection. If it continues, I'd have it looked at.

Good luck,

T.H.
 
Still pink, but not warm at all at the end of the incision, I don't have any kind of temp, and wound has closed up. Not really sure what to do. I just switched banks, and have no money to pay a co-pay for an emergency room until I get the debit card early next week (online bank). I probably shouldn't have done this, but took an alcohol wipe and sterilized a pin and gently lanced the end of incision in order to get some drainage, then put hydrogen peroxide on it. I now have ice on it and will look at it in the morning.

The only symptom at this point is the pink at the end of incision so really not sure. Maybe just try an urgent care on Monday, as I really don't want to go all the way into Boston to my OS's office for something that an urgent care can take care of. Thoughts anyone?
:shrug: :what:
 
Really really frustrated and now am wishing I had waited to have my surgery if have it at all. I didn't have short term disability before I had my surgery so now I have been living on savings and sick time which will run out before i get my next full paycheck on 22 March. SO I figured, get the disability for the future in case some thing else happens so I am not stuck the way I am now. Well, got the decision in the mail and of course I was declined because of my surgery in December. So I could have something completely unrelated happen and I am totally hosed, back in the same position I was a year ago, living with pain, not able to have surgery or be out of work with no money or living off savings and having no savings to cover something else that might happen. It feels as if i'm never going to get ahead. It's as if why do I have insurance when everything is coming out of my pocket anyway.

It's like when I try to get ahead, I get kicked down again. Between the rollercoaster of the post op blues (still hanging around after 6+ weeks) the stupid infection from the pool (when I'm trying to diversify my PT) and money stuff, I am really hating life. Why did I even bother having the surgery...I had learned to live with pain. Learning to live without money is not possible, nor an option. If I could take it back, I really would. 47 years of perfect excellent health, one bad year and I have to live for the next five without disability insurance because I am now "high risk". And no, there are no other insurance companies who will take airline crewmembers as clients because my job, in and of itself makes me high-risk.

I really really dislike my life right now.
 
CatPrincess, they have to give you a reason why you are being denied. If it is because of the hip, you can appeal and ask them to use that as an exclusion (in other words, if you have a disability to some other body part that classifies you as disabled). Short term disability is to be in place prior to the "unforseen" disability and it only kicks in once you've exhausted your sick/vacation time. It is to tide you over until long-term disability kicks in (usually at 60 days). I know when I signed up for my short-term last March, they asked me if I had any pending surgery. At the time, I did not. So if I had needed to use it, I again would have to exhaust the sick leave and vacation before I could qualify to use it. I actually had another two weeks of sick and vacation accumulated while I was out, which would have brought me to my 60 days, so the short term never would have kicked in for me. That's the general way it works, but all insurance companies work differently. Does the airline offer you a long-term disability policy that they or you have contributed to? Might be time to contact your benefits person to see exactly what you may have available.

Don't regret the decision to get the surgery made based on this. You were in pain, you needed the surgery done. You yourself have said it is better than what it was pre-surgery. You will see even more improvements as the remaining weeks go on. At 12 weeks for me, it is much better than it was at 6. I only suspect that it will continue to get better. We all have bumps in the road along the way, and we want you to continue sharing with us. Do not let this build up inside - we're hear to listen and offer any suggestions we can to make things better. We Care! :console2:

Things have a way of working themselves out. Make sure you touch base with your church connections as they will help where they can and you will get through this...

:flwrysmile:
 
Just got the post-op report my surgeon does, along with all the FMLA paperwork for my records. Read the transcription of what actually was done in the OR while I was sleeping. Stryker Trident hemispherical shell with Biomet ceramic head. Turns out I got posterior method..I think, not antero-lateral. Wow....all of that done in a little over an hour...with minimal cutting of muscle if any. I know it's their "day job" and they do it several times a week. Still... No wonder my surgeon gets paid the big bucks! Amazing!
 
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