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Revision THR An Incredible Journey

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I hate to admit it, but I'm a member of the overdoer's club.

Very frustrated because my little lunch and shopping trip Wed. really left me hurting. The groin pain is the worst, but also have pain all over the dang thing! I sat and had lunch, then looked at furniture which gave me lots of opportunities to sit. And I used my cane. But it was a 3 hour tour.

I called my Dr's nurse to ask if I could swim, since I'm at 5 weeks and he releases for swimming at 6. She said I could, but now I'm worried that almost any activity could send the groin into full blown spasms. It's on the edge. So here I am, resting and icing.

So should I try a little exercise, or just accept I was bad and rest and ice? I'm so tired of lying around the house, but this has been the worst pain I've had in weeks.

Just frustrated, as I thought at 5 weeks I should be able to handle an outing once in awhile.
 
Have you tried gently stretching your groin muscles? Gently!!!

Those muscles are likely shortened from sitting around, so walking is a bit of a stressor. This didn't happen overnight, so be patient with the stretching.

I think that you would benefit from some pool time tomorrow, but it's so easy to overdo. Can you be disciplined about it? Set a timer for ten minutes and get out when your time is up. Then go home and rest.

Aside from overdoing, it sounds like you're doing great! You've already come so far. :)
 
Hi Alex,

Ya'know when I look at my left thigh, I wonder where the muscles went. The weight loss, lack of exercise, and swelling from surgeries have taken a toll on how my left leg looks. It's atrophied and it's going to take work to get some muscle back.

Other than the exercises my PT gave me, which are pretty light, I've only taken short walks - maybe 2-3 blocks once or twice a day. I've been on a cane since day 10. My PT took me off the cane except for walks last week, and the little leg length discrepancy feels like it strains the muscles. But no one is really pushing me with the problem I had of almost no bone integration with the stem last time. I've been afraid to push it too. But I haven't had a overdo episode until now.

I wanted to go to pool today, but the groin feels like it's on the edge of going back into spasm, so I think you're right that I should wait another day. I'll be disciplined, but I know it will feel so good to get back in!

And I don't know how much being a revision plays into recovery. I have a longer stem, and a lot of femur work to correct the malpositioning, but it's not as bad as a fracture. I have to remember too that some people aren't even allowed to weight bear for 6 weeks.

This stage of recovery is very frustrating!

Thanks for your advice, Alex. You've been around for most of my journey, and it has been a great success. Recovering from a joint replacement just takes about 5 times as long as we want :)
 
You were just testing the limits, and you found them. So back off for a couple of days and then ease back into doing a little more. But you know that.
Got cabin fever? If it hadn't been for Netflix and some really good books, I would have gone nuts.
 
HH, I have a long stem too. I also had grafting of my femur to repair damage caused by preexisting hardware. I don't feel that either of those factors had a negative impact on my recovery. I think you are right where you need to be. I can certainly understand that you might be feeling a bit of Spring Fever though. :) When I was at your stage of recovery, I started planning a roadtrip I took at twelve weeks post-op. What are you looking forward to?
 
What am I not looking forward to???? I want to be able to hike 3-5 miles. I want to jump into a kayak and paddle, paddle, paddle. I want to be more active in the local arts community. I want to have less medical bills :) And I mean all the bleeping money I spent on tests, more tests, and repeat tests over the last 4 years. 4 MRIs (at least) 3 CT scans, 4 Bone scans , a gazillion x-rays, 14 cortisone shots, and who knows how many blood tests ... Do you have any idea what I could do if I wasn't spending money on co-pays???

I didn't think about planning a road trip. Perhaps a flight to somewhere. They're predicting that it won't be very warm here for the next 3 months.

Just thinking about what I may like to do improves my mood.

Thanks Alex. :kittykiss:
 
One word: Floriduh.

April and May are particularly lovely months here. Sanibel Island.
 
HappyHippy said:
Very frustrated because my little lunch and shopping trip Wed. really left me hurting. The groin pain is the worst, but also have pain all over the dang thing! I sat and had lunch, then looked at furniture which gave me lots of opportunities to sit. And I used my cane. But it was a 3 hour tour.
Click to expand...

Wow! You are amazing, at 5 weeks out from my regular surgery I had not even been cleared to leave the house...

I'm pretty sure a 3 hour tour would have killed me!!

It's great to read that you are coming along well with this revision and I hope the groin pain has settled down now. Planning for a trip sounds like a nice idea :)

Take care,
Cardie
 
HH, I hope you're feeling better today.

I forgot to ask you about pain meds yesterday. You've been around so long that I know you know the drill without me nagging you about it. The ibuprofen/acetaminophen combo in the Library is good if you're ready to move to OTC meds.
 
sissy46. You know, I think Sanibel Island may be doable. I purchased into a timeshare co. awhile back which wasn't my smartest move, except they have properties worldwide, and I can get great rates on condos at short notice. There's a few in the area. So only airfare and rental car. I've been to Florida before, mostly to jump off to go to the Caribbean (another fav place). I want to start exploring ideas for spots to winter over. I'm not a desert girl, so Palm Springs and Arizona don't hold much appeal. Also thought about doing one of those Spanish Language schools in Mx. But that would be be next year at the earliest.

And thanks C Mac and alexthecat for checking in. I went swimming for a short while (under 20 min.) and it helped. I should have known that a 3 hour shopping trip may turn into a 3 day ordeal.

Alex, I'm on a high dose of painkillers since I had a dependency before surgery. I'm just getting down to pre-surgery dosing, but it's more than enough to do in a opiate naive person. Problem is that my tolerance keeps the strong stuff from doing much, and I'm not going to go any stronger. I really have too much high dose long acting, and not enough lower dose short acting. But I'm sick of meds and like using ice and other non-drug ways anyhow.

Is there really any answer to an overuse strain than ice and time? Then start back with light stretching when it gets better?

I see my PT tomorrow, and hopefully he'll have some ideas. But I've seen a lot of early surgery strains since I've been here - they just haven't been me :)
 
I'm not prepared to say that you have an overuse injury. You are still quite early out from very invasive surgery and you haven't had good pain management. I'm not saying that as a criticism. I was the same way. I'd been on narcotics off and on for nine months before my THR. By that time, the side effects were worse than the benefits. I really think that, if you try to maximize your rest/ice/elevation time in the next few weeks, you'll move past this.
 
HH,
Good luck with your PT tomorrow and hopefully getting some good ideas and answers.
 
Alex, I'm curious how long it took you to get off the narcotics? I feel some pressure from my Dr. to get off now that the surgery's over with. He was comfortable prescribing as long as there was an end in sight. But with a dependency like I have, the small stuff doesn't work, and I hate how all these narcotics are making me feel. So when I take something for pain, I'm making it harder to stick to the reduction schedule. I'm on a lot, and even with dropping 5% a week, it feels like it will take forever.

Today is better thankfully. I took my dog for a short walk, but my shopping buddy is feeling bad I think because I don't want to hurt myself again. So no shopping or outings until I'm back to where I was. I do want to go out and have some fun, but not yet, as at 6 weeks with a Posterior, I think it's still easy to anger my muscles.

Since I had an Anterior last time, I didn't have this prolonged recovery. So I'm in new territory for me. By now I was walking at least a mile. But as we know, it didn't last. As we always say "Slow and steady wins the race!" I just didn't expect it to be this slow. :hairpulling:
 
Glad to hear that today is better!!

Tell your shopping buddy that you just have to do things differently -- maybe being dropped at the door and maybe using one of those motorized scooter machines if you are doing something like a mall. You just need to scale it back to less than 3 hours and not all that up and down of testing furniture!! It'll be a temporary situation, you'll be back up to speed with shopping trips in a few months.

It takes a while to heal, posterior or anterior, it's NOT a race....

I hope that you can find someone that can give you medication guidance on managing the pain and weaning off when the time comes.

Take care,
Cardie
 
HappyHippy, I decided to write you on your own thread instead of on Weezi's. I have no idea what it's like to have a revision, but you had to have been hurting a lot before surgery to do it. It sounds like you're doing a lot. Don't let the fact that you feel that you and your PT are "friends" keep you from speaking up for yourself. Only you know your body, and if you feel like it's too much, speak up! It makes sense that he wants to help you correct your gait and reduce your dependency on the cane, but forcing you to give it up seems excessive. Good luck and hang in there. XO
 
You're right BarbaraR , I should have dusted off my old thread, then I can remember where I came from. And you're right; I need to be more assertive with my PT. I did make him use Ultrasound last time, as I had a swelling right on my bursa. I don't want any more cortisone, which is the medical answer. I've had tons of it and it scares me.

I still need my cane for longer walks, and someone to take a look at the mechanics of my spine and pelvis, like a psiatrist (sp?).

Thanks for replying Barbara.
 
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