Become an Insider

THR A matching pair!

Status
Not open for further replies.
Glad to hear you have your two done! I am right behind you! Hoping we both come through gangbusters.


RTHR 1/15/2016. Posterior approach. Due to AVN. LTHR on May 26, 2016.
 
I'm still fighting a bit of nausea but the new hip is going strong. Off the frame and onto two sticks and I can just about manage stairs. Stiffening up after all that activity tonight but the nurses feel the same way I do about ice so I'm all packed in and comfy.

Just wanted to say hi to all of you and good luck for tomorrow @jomarie58 !
 
Progress, but sorry to hear about the nausea. Assume they've given you anti-nausea meds. And have you got Ginger Ale with you? I found it helpful. Hope it soon passes.
 
Do ask for anti-nausea meds. All the meds they give you just post op can sometimes cause nausea. I always have anti-nausea meds both pre and post op until they get the pain manage cocktail sorted.
 
I am home!

I know some people find the detail useful (hello, @Miss Muffet !) so I'll do a description of the whole thing before giving you all a picture of what happens when you don't follow your BoneSmart advice and remember that no two hips are the same and stay ahead of the pain!

I arrived at the hospital and got "checked in" with the usual questions about allergies, what pain meds I was taking, did I have any questions etc. I saw the surgeon and the anaesthetist who took me through what would happen and then they marked my leg and left me to change into my gown and lovely paper pants. I was given a slow release morphine tablet to take.

I was wheeled through to the pre-op bit where they swapped me onto the table, put a cannula in my hand and made me sit up for the spinal. This was a breeze this time around :happydance:- sprayed with something cold, a tiny prick of the local anaesthetic and the actual spinal just felt like someone pushing a finger quite firmly on my back. I felt a flush of warmth along my legs and they started to deaden immediately. I was helped back into the lying position and, just like last time, I remember them putting the oxygen mask over my face, saying something about a sedative and then nothing...I came to from a weird dream, realised where I was and was wheeled into recovery for about 30 minutes. Last time around I was really shivery and cold but this time I was just a bit dopey.

Back in my room, everything was going fine. I chatted to my husband for about an hour, ate some tea and toast, posted here and then went for a nap. This is where it all started to go a bit wrong! When I woke up I could feel the pain rising so I asked for some extra meds. The nurse said they were just bringing my next dose anyway and could I wait ten minutes or did I want something else. I assumed at this point that the next dose would be the cocodamol I'd had for hip#1 and said I would wait. I took the tablets they gave me and the pain just kept rising so I asked for more and was given oral morphine which helped for a bit but not long and when the pain came back it was even worse. I discovered then that the tablets I thought were cocodamol were just paracetamol which was why the pain ended up getting away from me. In the end, they had to give me more morphine directly through the cannula. The good news was that the pain was gone and I felt pretty good :chillpill:and slept most of the night but the downside was horrible nausea :sick: which just made everything feel awful! The first thing they gave me to try and control it was a patch on my tongue - which promptly made me vomit!

BUT what I really wanted to share was how the pain made me feel about the hip because I think it's why the pain meds are so important. When I felt sore and miserable on that first evening and through Day 1, I was convinced there was something wrong with the hip. I didn't want to co-operate with the physio, I was determined that my leg wouldn't move, that it was the wrong length, that it wouldn't bear my weight. It just felt so wrong to me. A couple of hours later when we got the balance of pain/nausea etc. sorted out I could not believe the difference! :wowspring:Nothing had changed except how I felt, but suddenly I could move the leg, wanted to go for a walk and try the stairs. And I did! The hip stopped feeling like some alien had taken up residence in my leg and instead I had a few moments where I had to remind myself that I couldn't just jump out of bed!

So (surprise, surprise!) everyone here at BoneSmart is absolutely right. What Josephine says about being pain free making you mobile and ready to recover is so true! Getting that bit right transforms the whole experience. I know this is stating the obvious but until I'd been through it, I didn't quite get it. Same with staying ahead of the pain. I thought I knew what was going, was overconfident and didn't ask - I should have remembered no two hips are the same!

All that aside, I'm home, settled into the Lady Lair and feeling very positive for the future. I've got a little bit of swelling but good range of movement. I can do my heel slides etc. no problem and I'm walking (slowly!) with two sticks and what feels like a good even gait and posture.

Anyway, sorry for the huge story. The moral is: Always Listen to BoneSmart!



 
Hi @Zelda - and you're not wrong- loved the detailed update (and sure others will too), thanks.

So curate's egg it had been for you then. I think it's more like a misunderstanding which caused your hiccup rather than mismanagement by the sounds of things? Was it actually an intolerance to morphine which made you sick then? Am so pleased to hear things are under control now and you're home and settled and learning to love your new hip which is now a buddy to the first one and hopefully they will get along just fine.

My only "oh dear" is the ginger ale tale ... guess it was worth a try but know what you mean about being put off things that didn't quite hit the spot.

Keep on keeping on - so glad you're home again
 
Great update @Zelda! I'm so happy you got everything under control and you're all nestled away in your "lady lair"! Yes, the bonesmart mantras are a godsend. Isn't having both hips done a wonderful feeling? Yahoo! :-)
 
@Zelda- hi! Glad to hear you are home. I am convinced that just about anything is more bearable when you are home and not in the hospital. I too had some post op hiccups but am working on navigating this recovery business. Warm wishes and healing thoughts are being sent your way!
 
Miss Muffet said:
I think it's more like a misunderstanding which caused your hiccup rather than mismanagement by the sounds of things?
Click to expand...
Yup - I should have asked. It turns out I only had cocodamol last time because that was what I was taking anyway for the OA and their usual regime is paracetamol/morphine. I think the oral morphine would have been okay but because I let it get away from me and had to have the extra...

Cynthia777 said:
Isn't having both hips done a wonderful feeling? Yahoo! :)
Click to expand...
It is fabulous! I'm so excited about being able to walk again but it's early days yet - got up this morning just to the bathroom and for my various tablets and now I need to nap again. :sleeep:

Sommers16 said:
I am convinced that just about anything is more bearable when you are home and not in the hospital.
Click to expand...
Not being woken up every three hours to have my blood pressure, oxygen and heat rate taken is very nice!
 
That ended up being quite a big nap! I'm pleased to say I've been up again, managed to get myself breakfast and a coffee and sit up by the kitchen counter for an hour. Now back on the sofa bed with my feet up and I may well nod off again.

I feel much more stable on my feet than last time. A lot of the stiffness in my back which I hadn't even realised was there has gone. I couldn't reach behind me to close a door behind me last time around but I can do it today. I also struggled with any obstacle - a pair of shoes left lying in my way terrified me - but I can step over things this time. I'm more confident using the sticks too. I think I've built up extra muscle in my arms and I feel happier letting them take the weight.

I'm also pleased to report that my usual black coffee and familiar surroundings has solved any lingering problems without having to resort to the stool softener!
 
Fantastic! I'm so happy for you. I'm especially impressed that you already went to the bathroom. That can be a challenge after this surgery.

You sound like you are doing really well. It's good that you're getting so much rest. Keep up the great work!
 
Hip Hip Hooray! said:
I'm especially impressed that you already went to the bathroom. That can be a challenge after this surgery.
Click to expand...
This is why I love BoneSmart. Nobody else is impressed by this!
:heehee:

@Cynthia777 My husband says I'm like a new puppy - five minutes of enthusiastic activity followed by demanding food and then a two hour nap.
:doggie::yawn:
 
Last edited by a moderator:
@Zelda Your report of your experience was eagerly read and I'm so excited for you! Glad you've managed the initial bumps in good spirits....and you're improving each day. YAY You! :egypdance:

I will be 3 weeks postOp on Monday and my improvement has been dramatic. If you get bored, take a peek at my thread.

We're all so fortunate to have found our BoneSmart Family :) We are blessed with our new found friendships :)
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Zelda said:
@Cynthia777 My husband says I'm like a new puppy - five minutes of enthusiastic activity followed by demanding food and then a two hour nap.
:doggie::yawn:
Click to expand...

I love this analogy about the puppy! I can see this is how we all are and I am having lots of puppy images in my head!

So glad to see you are home and have your pain managed now! Soon I will be there and can compare notes!! Wishing you a restful day


Candice, 29 yo. Rheumatoid Arthritis. Australia. Sequential unilateral THR June 1st 2016 and July 13th 2016 :)
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Active Antimicrobial Hydrogel

Staff online

Members online

Total: 1,980 (members: 2, guests: 1,978)

Latest posts

Back
Top Bottom