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:hi:Glad to hear you are navigating this recovery journey well.
Hope you're weekend is restful, uneventful, and Sweet.:SUNsmile:
 
Stopping by to say :hi: @Lea61
Wondering how you're doing over the past couple days?
Hope all is going well for you.
Wishing you a great weekend!
 
Good morning, @Lea61. I am waking up to a windy, rainy day but maybe things are a bit brighter in your neck of the woods. It's Friday but for most of us recovering from hip replacement surgery, it's just another day since for recovery patients, we're not really marking weekends versus weekdays. It's all the same as we trudge along. Hope you are feeling good this morning, and not too wiped out from PT. I am eager to get back into PT at some point, but my OS will assess the situation at my 6 week check-up, but nothing allowed before then. Happy news for me today is that I am DONE with compression stockings! I had switched out, with grudging approval at my 2 week check up, from those annoying thigh high stockings to knee highs, but not having to wear them at all as I've finished my 4th week now, and post op instructions said only 4 weeks. May try to hit the gym again with my husband if he heads out mid-morning as a day spent languishing around the house sounds very unappealing. But we'll see--another day in recovery, keep on marching ahead. Hope your day is good.
 
Hi @Barbaraj .... Thank you for checking in. I didn't realize that you still had the compression stockings all this time. You must feel so free without them ! Were you also on a blood thinner or aspirin ?
I had a leg pump machine. It was fabric leg cuffs that went around legs below the knee and attached with Velcro and then hooked to a portable machine. It pumped and released air into the cuffs. I needed to keep it on 20 hours a day, for 14 days, and it wasn't uncomfortable at all. Actually, I just finished the 14 days and now have to mail the machine back; they arranged for fed-x to pick it up.
Our day here is cloudy and cold but we are expecting a nor'easter late tonite and all day tomorrow. At least it won't be snow !! Making sure we have flashlights, etc in case we should lose power.
Have a good Friday .....
 
Hi, @Lea61. Yup, I was in compression thigh high stockings for two weeks and didn't really mind them initially when I was pretty much hanging out in bed. Once I was up more and walking about, they really bothered me as the elastic around the thigh didn't hold and they'd bunch up underneath pants. Thigh highs worked great, although they weren't enthusiastic at my 2 week check up. I nodded and smiled, and kept up with the thigh highs through my 4th week, which is all I was required to do. I only took, and am still taking, a baby aspirin in the morning and before bed.

I remember those air cuffs from the hospital and didn't mind them while I was there, they were sort of soothing in a way. Did you have to wear them 24/7, however? I remember they were always having to detach them in the hospital when I had to use the restroom.

Hope you don't lose power tonight--that would be the pits, particularly if you've got electric heat!
 
@Barbaraj ... No electric heat, so we'll be good with that, although our furnace is still not working properly on our 2nd floor (and it had been "fixed" earlier in the week but went out again, waiting for another part) ! Now it works only when it wants to (lol).
I was required to wear the air cuffs at least 20 hours a day. They didn't need to be taken off; it was portable, and held a charge. A lot of times I would just disconnect the tubes going into the cuff. It really wasn't bad at all, and I also take the baby aspirin 2x daily for 28 days.
When you go for your follow-ups, do they take x-rays? A lot of ppl go for out-patient PT after 6 weeks post, it doesn't seem that you would need it, but is that recommended by your OS too.
Have a good nite :yawn:
 
Hey @Lea61 You are probably :sleep: now, but I just wanted to pop by and see how you are doing....

Hoping you don't get hit too hard by the nor'easter, and the power stays ON!
 
Thank you @Alitm .... I hope you are doing well. I had checked in on your thread earlier in the week and saw that you have a lot of things going on, including possible surgery for your husband (?). I hope things are working out for you. I will go on over to your thread too.
Thanks for reaching out... I'm hoping this nor'easter isn't as bad as they are predicting and we keep our power
Have a good night.
 
:hi: I am glad to hear you are doing well.
Stay warm and have a great weekend.
Slow and steady wins this race.
Good for you!:yes:
 
Hi there :wave:
Stay warm in the nor'easter.
Ugh! I'm not ready for Winter and all it's drama :gaah:Can't we just skip this year? @Lea61
That's my wish :heehee:
Stay safe and cozy indoors and enjoy the day!
 
I have read enough here to expect the emotional ups and downs of the recovery process, but when it hits, it is still difficult to see your way out of it. Besides the emotional highs and lows (and occasional bouts of crying that happen for no specific reason), I feel that I am going backward in this whole process, which is giving me added cause to feel down on myself.
Up until now, I had only experienced minimal swelling at the incision area. Now, 18 days post, I have significant swelling on my butt and upper and lower thigh, which is causing pain (The incision looks ok otherwise, no redness). I am icing and had actually never stopped. Just when I was able to cut down on the Tramadol, I need to take it again. I also feel that I am not walking as well as I had been and even the PT noticed that I am limping. Walking feels less smooth than it had been (if that makes sense).
I know that sometimes our expectations are unrealistic and that it is not helpful to compare ourselves to others, but I didn't expect to be so dependent on the walker at this point. I am able to use the crutches, but it is with extreme caution and unsteadiness. I know that I would be unable to use just a cane or one crutch.
Is this just a phase in the process? My follow up appointment with the OS is nov 5, and so I would like to just set a goal to have major improvement by then (hopefully not another unrealistic expectation)!
 
Good morning, @Lea61. That is really annoying about the furnace STILL not working properly upstairs but I hope the missing part comes in quickly and comforting warmth is restored as soon as possible. I know you expected bad weather shortly, and it would be nice to have everything working properly beforehand.

I will have X-rays taken at my 6 week appointment as the scheduling notice says I'll first report to X-rays before talking to my surgeon. In terms of PT, I was told they'd do an assessment and presumably I'll be told when I can resume doing more exercise and possibly PT. I really liked PT before surgery, I think the exercises they gave me to strengthen my core/glutes/quads were really helpful in preparing me for surgery. I became somewhat fanatical this past summer and did them almost every day. Sure, as time when on certain of the exercises became harder and a few I simply dropped because my range of motion on my right hip continued to be more limited. But I think being in fairly good shape ahead of surgery really helped to make my recovery good. I'd love to go back to PT to work on my range of motion, strength and flexibility. So, I'll see in a couple of weeks what my surgeon says.

Have a great Saturday!
 
@Lea61, been thinking of you and reading your posts on your recovery journey. I don't have much to add because I am not there, yet but, I just wanted to drop in and wish you a speedy and smooth recovery.

Hope your spirits are up and you are doing well.
 
Hi @Layla .. @Mojo333 ... Would you mind reading my post #192 and tell me what you think ?
As of now, things are pretty much the same as when I posted that. I spoke with my OS on Saturday night and he seemed a bit concerned that I was not moving forward. He wanted me to be in touch with him Monday (today) and if I didn't start to improve again, he would have me come to the office sooner than my scheduled appt of nov 5.
At this point, I don't know what to think and I'm just hoping that my lack of moving forward is just due to the onset of the swelling ( which is now moving down to my lower thigh and top of knee and the knee). I'm trying to stay positive, but I feel that I'm at a standstill ready to slip back instead of forward.
 
This recovery business certainly can be a "what now?" game.
My first thought would be us there a particular exercise or activity that you are doing now that your hip is saying it isn't quite ready for and is causing the uptick in swelling.
I assume you are still icing and backing off of anything that isn't helpful rather than soldiering through it?
I tried very hard to further my recovery and as you say, our expectations can cause teal frustrations as it has its own timeline for healing.
Honestly, if you think there is a serious issue and the OS is willing to see you this week...why not?
I hate to hear that you might feel that still needing meds is a sign of going backwards.
As I got more mobile, I saw that they were not only necessary to be mobile...they were necessary for rest.
These ARE early days still and prime time for these post op blues.
I certainly remember how emotional I was (as does poor hubby:unsure:) and it certainly can be overwhelming.
If there are any exercises that PT is requiring other than walking...I would take a week off and see if things improve!
Keep the faith friend...this is a delicate dance at this point between enough and too much.
Let us know what you decide!
Hugs for you:friends:
 
Oh, @Lea61, I am sure you are feeling anxious and a bit frustrated right now, and I agree that if you can get in to see your doctor sooner rather than later that would be great. I hope he'll be able to provide you with needed reassurance that this is just a temporary setback and have some ideas to help you move forward. It's never a straight-forward trajectory in recovery, as you're discovering, which can be frustrating but happens to everyone. Take deep breath, and know that despite this blip on the screen, you ARE recovering and you ARE going to finish healing. I hope today is a better day.
 
Thanks @Mojo333 ... I have been icing and elevating, which I had been doing throughout the day from the beginning. I am not doing much as far as exercising. I still have (in home) PT which ends tomorrow. The PT basically consists of (on some days) walking outside, stair climbing, and walking with crutches. As far as exercises, he has me try the heel slide (which I have trouble with, so I don't force them; I attempt 3-5 of them), stand with walker and lift leg ( marches) which I can do with limited height ( only 5), bring leg out to the side (which I have trouble). I don't think that these exercises would be considered over doing it and I basically "try" them once a day, if it hurts, I stop (I'm not into forcing anything that causes pain). I have been concentrating more on alternating days of doing the stairs and walking outside, together with getting up more frequently to walk with walker or crutches.
I still have a lot of swelling today. How long does swelling usually last? Is it possible that the swelling is causing the set back in
 
Thank you @Barbaraj .... Thanks for your words of encouragement. Is is very frustrating to know that so many others are able to walk unaided at 3 weeks and I still can't do a simple heel slide or walk without a walker. It's hard not to start getting myself a little depressed over it. It's even difficult to keep the tears :cry:away just writing this post. Hopefully, :beg: this is just a "blip on the screen" like you said.
PT is coming today, so I'll see what he thinks. He has seen me since I got home, so he has a good frame of comparison whether or not I am regressing or just at a standstill.
Thanks again for checking in. I needed some reassuring words.
 
Hi @Lea61. If I recall, you could not do heal slides prior to surgery so I would not worry about that and let it get you down at all. I have noticed that I have some significant weakness so this seems all normal. I think that there are possibly several causes for this, however focusing on the causes is not likely relevant as these things will clear themselves up over time. My point is, for a completely healthy person that had not had surgery, it would take some time to gain strength to do something they could not do before, likely a few weeks ( depending on the task and deficiency of strength ). However, having had surgery, with the accompanying issues, it would be expected ( at least to me ) that the timeline for such a feat would be extended.

I hope you have a better day today and as a friend of mine once said, “B positive! It’s not just a blood type.”
 
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