shrinkette
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Milli, what's the time difference between Albuquerque and US east coast. It is now 12:15 am.
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Butterfly
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@shrinkette When it is 12:15 there, it is 10:15 here. We are on Mountain Time.
shrinkette
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Gotcha... Thanks.
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@Josephine Sorry to be a pest and a worry wort, but I can't seem to help it. I don't want to go searching around on the net for answers because I always find stuff that scares me to death and probably isn't accurate anyway.
How much force would it take to loosen the hip implant? Would you know right away? My little bed tumble was wee hours on the 23rd, and this pain didn't start until Sunday the 29th after a whole lot of walking Friday and Saturday. The fall was more like a flop out than a real fall, and I didn't feel pain in my hips when I fell. I don't think it is dislocated -- it still moves freely and painlessly without weight bearing, but I'm worried if I loosened the cup part. Walking is painful on that side, but it is mostly painful in the back just at the beginnng of my butt and near my spine and outward on that side as I go through the "roll through" part of a step, and now it feels like muscles stiffening up, too (the more I write this, the more I realize how familiar is, and that it's probably the SI joint). It also hurts when I sit. The pain is different than the pre-op hip pain was, but has gotten no better. If I hadn't had the hip surgeries I'd be certain it was that SI joint and/or L4-L5 because that's where the problem has been for so long, but since I've had the surgeries I worry that every little twinge (well, every big twinge) means I've screwed up my hips.
How can a person tell if they had messed up their hip? Could too much walking do it, or strain muscles, etc. in that area that are now being used differently to square up the pelvic tilt, or something? I can't even call tlhe OS, because he is off in Bora Bora or somewhere for the holidays.
I guess I'm just trying to get reassurance that this is probably OK. I'm such a nervous nellie anyway and I can't do any of the moves to try to straighten out the SI joint because they violate my restrictions.
Two more questions:
1. Is a hard seated chair better for the hips, or a soft seated one? I'm thinking my office chair may be too soft because it kinda goes down in the middle when I sit, so the seat has a curve to it when I sit in it.
2. I am still sleeping on my back, and with that elevating pillow thing that elevates my legs when I sleep. Is that OK to be doing?
Than you for your time and compassion and help, and once again I am sorry to be a pest.
Love,
Milli
How much force would it take to loosen the hip implant? Would you know right away? My little bed tumble was wee hours on the 23rd, and this pain didn't start until Sunday the 29th after a whole lot of walking Friday and Saturday. The fall was more like a flop out than a real fall, and I didn't feel pain in my hips when I fell. I don't think it is dislocated -- it still moves freely and painlessly without weight bearing, but I'm worried if I loosened the cup part. Walking is painful on that side, but it is mostly painful in the back just at the beginnng of my butt and near my spine and outward on that side as I go through the "roll through" part of a step, and now it feels like muscles stiffening up, too (the more I write this, the more I realize how familiar is, and that it's probably the SI joint). It also hurts when I sit. The pain is different than the pre-op hip pain was, but has gotten no better. If I hadn't had the hip surgeries I'd be certain it was that SI joint and/or L4-L5 because that's where the problem has been for so long, but since I've had the surgeries I worry that every little twinge (well, every big twinge) means I've screwed up my hips.
How can a person tell if they had messed up their hip? Could too much walking do it, or strain muscles, etc. in that area that are now being used differently to square up the pelvic tilt, or something? I can't even call tlhe OS, because he is off in Bora Bora or somewhere for the holidays.
I guess I'm just trying to get reassurance that this is probably OK. I'm such a nervous nellie anyway and I can't do any of the moves to try to straighten out the SI joint because they violate my restrictions.
Two more questions:
1. Is a hard seated chair better for the hips, or a soft seated one? I'm thinking my office chair may be too soft because it kinda goes down in the middle when I sit, so the seat has a curve to it when I sit in it.
2. I am still sleeping on my back, and with that elevating pillow thing that elevates my legs when I sleep. Is that OK to be doing?
Than you for your time and compassion and help, and once again I am sorry to be a pest.
Love,
Milli
Josephine
NURSE DIRECTOR EMERITA
A considerable amount but in fact, cups don't usually loosen with impact, they loosen with shearing forces, meaning impact of running, twisting and such-like. If you'd ever seen, asI have, surgeons struggling to get a cup out when doing a revision, you'd know they pretty resistant!
If it feels comfortable, then it's okay. You're 13+ weeks out now and pretty much healed from that point of view. Though I do understand your need for reassurance. But it will keep until your surgeon gets back, so don't worry. I'm quite sure that your pain is due to bruising rather than anything connected with the new joint.
You're not a pest, you have justifiable concerns and need reassurance. Pester us as much as you like! That's what we're all here for.
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Milli, are you feeling any better? Do you at least feel a bit reassured by Jo? I'd be the same as you -- worrywarts unite!! It's just SO stressful, right? Keep us posted. You have to know how much the folks here care about you.
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@shrinkette @Poppet @Jaycey
Not feeling much better, but then when my SI joint goes nuts I usually don't feel any better until I get to the chiropractor. Joesphine said it is too early to get a regular SI adjustment, but maybe there's something he can do to help a bit. He is back next week so I'll talk to him then. I know it is kind of irrational, but even though I know it is probably that SI joint because of how it feels, I still worry I've screwed up my implant. But the pain is in the wrong place to be my implant (at least I think so). I had to go to the grocery store today for a few things and the SI joint or whatever it is is screaming at me right now. And I can't do any of the things I would normally do to try to fix it because they would all violate my restrictions big time!
Besides that, one of my dogs chewed up a shoe while I was out. Boo Hoo!! Not having a good week.
Not feeling much better, but then when my SI joint goes nuts I usually don't feel any better until I get to the chiropractor. Joesphine said it is too early to get a regular SI adjustment, but maybe there's something he can do to help a bit. He is back next week so I'll talk to him then. I know it is kind of irrational, but even though I know it is probably that SI joint because of how it feels, I still worry I've screwed up my implant. But the pain is in the wrong place to be my implant (at least I think so). I had to go to the grocery store today for a few things and the SI joint or whatever it is is screaming at me right now. And I can't do any of the things I would normally do to try to fix it because they would all violate my restrictions big time!
Besides that, one of my dogs chewed up a shoe while I was out. Boo Hoo!! Not having a good week.
shrinkette
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Oh no!! So sorry to hear you're hurting... Hopefully next week your chiro can come up with something to help you. If it were your implant I really kind of think you'd know it, & I think YOU know that. But of course we're really kind of irrational in that respect... We are SO scared of the what-ifs, that it's near paralyzing! Do baby yourself in whatever way you think will help & look forward to a possible resolution next week.
And BAD DOGGIE!! Chewing mommy's shoe! You really needed that... Jeez. Stay warm & comfy. I prescribe some chocolate. Chin up ... This, too, shall pass.
Love,
Ellen
And BAD DOGGIE!! Chewing mommy's shoe! You really needed that... Jeez. Stay warm & comfy. I prescribe some chocolate. Chin up ... This, too, shall pass.
Love,
Ellen
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Hi @Butterfly, tag..... So sorry you are in pain 
cold comfort for you honey I know.. but I also have L4, L5 & S1 back issues and after shopping till we dropped this morning, my back is screaming - I am sure you can hear me all the way from OZ, and to top it, I moved my RTHR awkwardly whilst laying on the bed and let out an almighty scream with a sharp pain in my hip.
So, here I am laying here with a hot water bottle on my back and an ice pack on my hip... and feeling a bit wary about moving... these hips are strong and logic tells me I inflamed the soft tissue around the hip joint - the back, well that is heat or ice which ever works best for me at the time... back to the mantra..
Rest, elevate, ice (or heat) and pain meds - backs are notoriously difficult to manage when they flare up - I feel for you xx
cold comfort for you honey I know.. but I also have L4, L5 & S1 back issues and after shopping till we dropped this morning, my back is screaming - I am sure you can hear me all the way from OZ, and to top it, I moved my RTHR awkwardly whilst laying on the bed and let out an almighty scream with a sharp pain in my hip. So, here I am laying here with a hot water bottle on my back and an ice pack on my hip... and feeling a bit wary about moving... these hips are strong and logic tells me I inflamed the soft tissue around the hip joint - the back, well that is heat or ice which ever works best for me at the time... back to the mantra..
Rest, elevate, ice (or heat) and pain meds - backs are notoriously difficult to manage when they flare up - I feel for you
xx
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@Poppet Thank you for the encouragement, and I'm sorry you are having trouble with your back, too. Very frustrating, to say the least. I guess I envisioned a rosy pain-free future and forgot about all t he other stuff that might hurt, like my stupid SI joint. And my first thought is always "oh, NO! I've damaged or loosened my implant!" And then I go into the "what-if" spiral from there, like oh, no I"ll have to go through all this again, etc, etc., etc.; I'll never be done with this, etc., etc., etc.
My left hip (fixed first, the most painful, but the least bad on x-ray) feels great. My right one (fixed Oct. 28, worse on x-ray and the cup had to be changed at the last minute during surgery and placed slightly differently) has never felt quite as good as the left one does (of course it is a month newer) and now I have this SI issue (at least I hope that's what it is) on that right side, and I can't really tell what is hip stuff and what is SI stuff and/or soft tissue stuff. It got bad after the flop out of bed early last week, and after last Saturday of walking around stores (with my cane) but feeling quite good. Then WHAM! It feels like a giant steel hand grabbed me just about exactly where that SI joint is, it hurts a lot, and is more painful on weight bearing.
I just feel like crying with frustration -- I was doing SO WELL and now this. I've dealt with the SI joint before, and no doubt will again -- but I'm so scared I twisted wrong or something and screwed up the hip. But that would have to be a very strong twist, no? I had a small twist when going out my front door the other day and my ramp moved a little, but it was not a big deal twist at all. I'm also dealing with my pelvis trying to get used to two legs that are even in length after a lifetime of having the right leg shorter than the other (tho I did wear a lift). The hip seems to be moving smoothly, though I can't really tell where my hip ends and my SI joint begins (if that makes any sense). And I know pain gets referred all over the place, anyway.
Anyway, thanks for listening.
I've resorted to taking some ibuprofen for the inflammation (it always seems to help with that, tho my stomach doesn't exactly like it so I take a pepcid a day, and I'm also taking Zyflamend to try to get that inflammation down).
Do you know about the strength of the force it would take to mess up the implant or the cup? Josephine said it was unlikely that the cup had loosened, and that it would take a twisting or shearing force to mess up the implant. Could that be done just in everyday stuff? I'm short and not overweight (says the doc), if that tells you anything.
I think I will go talk to Harold about all this. He is a very good listener as long as I pet him while I'm talking to him. He doesn't give me much advice, though. I've forgiven him and Emily for chewing up my black Clark's flat shoe -- impossible to look in their soft brown eyes and be mad for more than about 30 seconds. I guess they've forgiven me for screeching at them, too.
Peace, love and thank you. I hope you feel better very soon.
My left hip (fixed first, the most painful, but the least bad on x-ray) feels great. My right one (fixed Oct. 28, worse on x-ray and the cup had to be changed at the last minute during surgery and placed slightly differently) has never felt quite as good as the left one does (of course it is a month newer) and now I have this SI issue (at least I hope that's what it is) on that right side, and I can't really tell what is hip stuff and what is SI stuff and/or soft tissue stuff. It got bad after the flop out of bed early last week, and after last Saturday of walking around stores (with my cane) but feeling quite good. Then WHAM! It feels like a giant steel hand grabbed me just about exactly where that SI joint is, it hurts a lot, and is more painful on weight bearing.
I just feel like crying with frustration -- I was doing SO WELL and now this. I've dealt with the SI joint before, and no doubt will again -- but I'm so scared I twisted wrong or something and screwed up the hip. But that would have to be a very strong twist, no? I had a small twist when going out my front door the other day and my ramp moved a little, but it was not a big deal twist at all. I'm also dealing with my pelvis trying to get used to two legs that are even in length after a lifetime of having the right leg shorter than the other (tho I did wear a lift). The hip seems to be moving smoothly, though I can't really tell where my hip ends and my SI joint begins (if that makes any sense). And I know pain gets referred all over the place, anyway.
Anyway, thanks for listening.
I've resorted to taking some ibuprofen for the inflammation (it always seems to help with that, tho my stomach doesn't exactly like it so I take a pepcid a day, and I'm also taking Zyflamend to try to get that inflammation down).
Do you know about the strength of the force it would take to mess up the implant or the cup? Josephine said it was unlikely that the cup had loosened, and that it would take a twisting or shearing force to mess up the implant. Could that be done just in everyday stuff? I'm short and not overweight (says the doc), if that tells you anything.
I think I will go talk to Harold about all this. He is a very good listener as long as I pet him while I'm talking to him. He doesn't give me much advice, though. I've forgiven him and Emily for chewing up my black Clark's flat shoe -- impossible to look in their soft brown eyes and be mad for more than about 30 seconds. I guess they've forgiven me for screeching at them, too.
Peace, love and thank you. I hope you feel better very soon.
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@shrinkette -- I love your prescription for chocolate. Unfortunately, I don't have any in the house. I don't keep it around lest I have an orgy of chocolate eating. I've even put it in the freezer so I won't eat it all at once, but I still do it. I simply cannot know there is chocolate in the house and not eat the whole thing! I'm a weak creature when it comes to chocolate -- cheesecake has a similar effect on me.
You're right -- I kinda think I'd know it if it were the implant out of whack, but there is always that little grain of fear in me. It was SO hard to get to the point of having it really done and now I'm scared of messing it up. I am such a worrier and I wish so much I could stop doing that to myself. I KNOW that worrying does nothing to affect the future outcome of anything, I KNOW it is unhealthy and counterproductive and only makes me feel worse, but I do it anyway. Getting mad at myself for worrying doesn't help, either! I've done much soul searching to try and figure out why I do it, but the only thing I've come up with is I'm a scaredy cat. That knowledge doesn't help much, either. Oh, well....
You're getting closer to the day you'll be free of pain in your hip. I know it is a scary and very edgy time as it gets closer, but the light at the end of the tunnel is SO bright. Even with this SI pain or whatever it is, I am MILES better than I was before the surgery. And, the surgery isn't so bad at all, yours should be even easier than mine, as I had posterio-lateral and you're having that new whiz-bang procedure with robots and all the bells and whistles. You'll probably be taking tango lessons while I am still whining about my back!
Anyway, peace and love to you. You're always in my thoughts and prayers!
Milli
You're right -- I kinda think I'd know it if it were the implant out of whack, but there is always that little grain of fear in me. It was SO hard to get to the point of having it really done and now I'm scared of messing it up. I am such a worrier and I wish so much I could stop doing that to myself. I KNOW that worrying does nothing to affect the future outcome of anything, I KNOW it is unhealthy and counterproductive and only makes me feel worse, but I do it anyway. Getting mad at myself for worrying doesn't help, either! I've done much soul searching to try and figure out why I do it, but the only thing I've come up with is I'm a scaredy cat. That knowledge doesn't help much, either. Oh, well....
You're getting closer to the day you'll be free of pain in your hip. I know it is a scary and very edgy time as it gets closer, but the light at the end of the tunnel is SO bright. Even with this SI pain or whatever it is, I am MILES better than I was before the surgery. And, the surgery isn't so bad at all, yours should be even easier than mine, as I had posterio-lateral and you're having that new whiz-bang procedure with robots and all the bells and whistles. You'll probably be taking tango lessons while I am still whining about my back!
Anyway, peace and love to you. You're always in my thoughts and prayers!
Milli
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Hi @Butterfly, you would know it if you had a problem with dislocation etc..
Trust Jo's advice, she has 50+ years experience with orthopedics. I do! We all have the same kind of fears, but it gets easier and less as time passes. For me it is only an issue when my back plays up, or I have done lots and lots of housework, laundry, walking, shopping, carrying etc.. I have learnt to have lots of patience and to slow down and not rush activities so much now - I figure I have earned time to smell the roses, not that I have any - I am only into growing food, haha!
I know it is scary, and you are so right that it is hard to tell the source of the pain, back, hip, soft tissue, ligament, muscle.... more likely to be all are factors with referred pain. Get some heat on your back and hopefully that will help hon x
Trust Jo's advice, she has 50+ years experience with orthopedics. I do! We all have the same kind of fears, but it gets easier and less as time passes. For me it is only an issue when my back plays up, or I have done lots and lots of housework, laundry, walking, shopping, carrying etc.. I have learnt to have lots of patience and to slow down and not rush activities so much now - I figure I have earned time to smell the roses, not that I have any - I am only into growing food, haha!
I know it is scary, and you are so right that it is hard to tell the source of the pain, back, hip, soft tissue, ligament, muscle.... more likely to be all are factors with referred pain. Get some heat on your back and hopefully that will help hon x
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@Poppet Thank you for your compassion and attention.
I very much DO trust Josephine's advice -- I have been carefully following it all along (at least I have meant to; I know falling out of bed isn't on the list, though, nor is the couple times I've overdone it) the Bonesmart mantra, etc. I am just goosey and frustrated. And this did start after I stepped up my activity level a bit and was feeling quite accomplished for doing a bit more around the house (nothing heavy). I DO baby my hip and I guess I maybe expected too much too soon since the other one has been so good. I do have to fight my old athlete's tendency to work through the pain, and I have to force myself to remember that I can't expect from a 67 year old (68 in March) body what I got out of a 35 year old body or even a 50 year old body.
I also know I have a loooong history of this SI/low back thing and I can't expect that to go away just because I have new hips. I guess I'm getting a dose of reality (and I don't much like it right now). So I will look around here for my patience and try to see where I misplaced it. HAH! It is probably with those earrings I lost back in 1970!
Love to you,
Milli
I very much DO trust Josephine's advice -- I have been carefully following it all along (at least I have meant to; I know falling out of bed isn't on the list, though, nor is the couple times I've overdone it) the Bonesmart mantra, etc. I am just goosey and frustrated. And this did start after I stepped up my activity level a bit and was feeling quite accomplished for doing a bit more around the house (nothing heavy). I DO baby my hip and I guess I maybe expected too much too soon since the other one has been so good. I do have to fight my old athlete's tendency to work through the pain, and I have to force myself to remember that I can't expect from a 67 year old (68 in March) body what I got out of a 35 year old body or even a 50 year old body.
I also know I have a loooong history of this SI/low back thing and I can't expect that to go away just because I have new hips. I guess I'm getting a dose of reality (and I don't much like it right now). So I will look around here for my patience and try to see where I misplaced it. HAH! It is probably with those earrings I lost back in 1970!
Love to you,
Milli
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Dear @Butterfly,
Never truer words said... I also know I have a loooong history of this SI/low back thing and I can't expect that to go away just because I have new hips. I guess I'm getting a dose of reality (and I don't much like it right now). So I will look around here for my patience and try to see where I misplaced it. HAH! It is probably with those earrings I lost back in 1970!
You could have written this for me... especially.... I guess I'm getting a dose of reality (and I don't much like it right now).. my exact sentiments - two years, three months post I feel the same way honey.. xxxxx
Never truer words said... I also know I have a loooong history of this SI/low back thing and I can't expect that to go away just because I have new hips. I guess I'm getting a dose of reality (and I don't much like it right now). So I will look around here for my patience and try to see where I misplaced it. HAH! It is probably with those earrings I lost back in 1970!
You could have written this for me... especially.... I guess I'm getting a dose of reality (and I don't much like it right now).. my exact sentiments - two years, three months post I feel the same way honey.. xxxxx
Sometimes it just takes a bit of time to get through a tough time. How about calling up a friend for a good chat? Or watching a funny movie that you like? There is something out there that will lift your spirits. Maybe chatting on BoneSmart???
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