THR A New Hip in Vegas

DinVegas

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I am one day out of surgery with a brand new left hip. This surgery is so different from my knee surgeries. There’s less pain. I can move around easier. The most wonderful thing is that when PT took me on two hallway walks last night that horrible grinding pain was gone. I’m just icing now in a chair instead of bed. There some muscle pain but it’s being managed. Since it’s still early and I’m on my phone I’ll post more after I get home.
 
Welcome to the other side @DinVegas ! You know the drill. Get that pain management cocktail just right before you leave the hospital.

I'll leave your recovery list here for you to refer to if needed.

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 this BoneSmart philosophy for sensible post op therapy
5. Here is a week-by-week guide for Activity progression for THRs
6. Access these pages on the website

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.
 
@DinVegas so glad you're on the healing side and feeling pretty good. Will wait until you get home and update us more.
 
The most wonderful thing is that when PT took me on two hallway walks last night that horrible grinding pain was gone.

Amazing, isn't it? :yes:
Congrats on the new hip! Safe travels home. Will look forward to your first post from your recovery nest once you're resting comfortably.
Happy Wednesday!
@DinVegas
 
Oh yay! Glad you are on the healing side and sound so well!
:egypdance:
Hope they send you home soon and you can get more comfy!
Healing hugs...:angel:
 
Whoa. After my last post I was hit with severe nausea. I couldn’t sleep Wednesday night for more than an hour or two at a time. My niece who’s a GP prescribed me anti nausea medicine but it took about 24 hours before I felt better. She and I puzzled over what could be causing it. I haven’t had trouble with pain medication before this, we considered the antibiotics. In the end I think I wasn’t eating enough, I had no appetite and nothing sounded good. I am now on a bland diet and have been able to take all my meds. I also had two long naps today and feel so much better.
I’m not having a lot of pain. I feel lucky in that my swelling and bruising is minimal. I can’t believe the pain relief I already have.
My doctor said I didn’t need PT and recommended no repetitive exercises BUT the hospital had PT classes. They were a waste of time,especially since they had everyone doing repetitive exercises. By the time I was discharged my poor leg was so swollen. I considered telling them my doctor didn’t want me to do what they offered but I didn’t want to get into ant arguments. Plus I think the internal MD didn’t release patients until they attended two classes. I did them just to go home. Outside of the PT classes the rest of the hospital experience was great. I had my knees done at a different hospital and much prefer this one.
I’m so happy to be home. Over the nausea (I hope) and able to do what I want.
 
I definitely had to MAKE myself take my meds with food, as I had no appetite either.
The PT "requirement" can be intimidating.
Nibble on what you can, when you can...
All Temporary!
This is the yucky part.
Keep the faith...it will start getting easier.
Healing hugs coming your way.
 
Glad you are home @DinVegas and it sounds like you're starting your recovery well. It's hard to eat when you have no appetite but you have to keep your strength up. That includes all of the power napping that you want, when you want :sleeep:! It's a wonderful thing not to have that terrible hip pain and the surgery pain gets better every day. Happy to see you on the recovery side!
 
Ugh, I just realized my wound is seeping. I called my doctors office and was told by the PA to change the dressing. My doctor niece is going to stop by to change it and make sure it’s fine. It doesn’t feel warm or swollen but of course I started worrying and now I’m imagining additional pain in my operated leg. Hopefully it’s just my mind playing games with me
 
@DinVegas It's good that you called your doctor's office. From what I've read on the forum, it's not unusual to have some seepage. It's great that your doctor niece (how lucky to have her!) will be able to change it for you. That should give you some peace of mind. Keep us posted when you can.
 
That's great that you called the OS to check and how great your niece is going to change it for you. I'm sure once she checks it out you'll feel much better. Our minds love to take us places we don't need to go. Hang tight until your niece gets there. On the nausea side, I used to keep a little cup or bowl of small crackers, goldfish, whatever, close by to take with meds. Helps full up the stomach a little bit.
 
@DinVegas It's easy to let our imaginations get carried away sometimes......don't worry, we've all been there! Glad to hear all is well and you can rest now. Wishing you a peaceful night. :flwrysmile:
 
This is such a new experience for us and even those who have had replacements before find that each one is slightly (or even greatly) different. There were aches and pains associated with my hip replacement that seems to come out of nowhere. Or the pains would ping pong and bounce all over the place. A little reassurance from the folks here on the forum, or from my surgeon's office went a long way in helping me relax and lean into the whole recovery process. I had a close friend who had been through a replacement, and 4 revisions who was also a wonderful resource to me, although compared to her operations several years before, mine was a pretty easy recovery. Amazing how many advances have been made in the area of hip replacements! Lucky you to have the niece as a resource. My niece is an RN---"My Niece, the Nurse" and I am so grateful to her for her quiet competence and support of me:)
 
Does anyone else feel guilty about taking pain medication? I feel pretty fortunate that I’m not having a lot of pain but it is still there. Over the weekend I thought I could delay taking my oxycodone from four hours to six to seven hours between doses. I paid for that with my thigh feeling tight and swollen. I have a call into my OS for another prescription before the holiday weekend arrives but I feel bad about asking for it because I’m not at a high level of pain. I feel like there’s a stigma with pain meds these days.
 
@DinVegas I get what you mean about the "stigma" but it doesn't apply here and you certainly shouldn't feel any guilt in using/asking for it. You're only 6 days out from surgery and you still need the pain meds. It's better to stick to the prescribed dosage, every 4 hours to stay ahead of the pain. I know it's tempting to go the 6 hours but then it's too late and you'll have pain. And then you have to wait for the meds to kick in. At some point in the next few weeks you'll start to "forget" a dosage.........that's the first sign that maybe you can start decreasing the dosage. Definitely call your OS for a refill and since there's a holiday this week, the sooner the better so you don't run out. :flwrysmile:
 
I took my meds, and I needed them.
These first weeks are certainly jarring, but all temporary and well worth it.
Triple bionic...amazing!
 
This has been a week of ups and downs capping off with my surgical tape getting ripped off my wound when I was changing my dressing. It opened my incision a bit and I had some bleeding. My OS just called me back and said not to worry just put another dressing over it. Still this made me so shaky and panicked
 
@DinVegas, I would be panicked and shaky too! Follow what the OS said and get the new dressing on...plus take many deep breaths, try to calm yourself. It should be fine but if you notice continued bleeding through the dressing, call your OS back. The incision should be good at this point of recovery but I understand the worry! Keep us posted. :flwrysmile:
 
I'm so sorry. I understand your concern. Since you've recently spoken with your OS and received reassuarance all is well try to sit back and relax. It's going to be okay. Looking back a week from now I'm sure it will just be a blip on the screen. Wishing you comfort and a peaceful evening.
Hugs :console2:
@DinVegas
 

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