It's a non-event. Just a bit of tugging with a staple remover. Feels so much better when they are gone!
THR copsham's recovery thread
- Thread starter copsham
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copsham
post-grad
Hi all, I finally have conquered the sleeping!. It was getting me down, trying to sleep on my back and being awake from 2-3am onwards. Found a comfortable way to sleep on my sofa bed much more propped up, with big cushions supporting my op side. Slept from 11.30pm - 5am last night, the longest since my op day - 10 days ago. Feel as though I am getting through the worst!
Hoppy Nanny
big-cheese
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copsham
post-grad
Yesterday I was looking at a presentation on line about the necessity or not to keep to all of the "hip precautions". It was done by Guy's and St Thomas's Hospital entitled "One year on without hip precautions" (google)
Following their own research it was decided that hip precautions were not necessary or helpful except in specific cases., that the rate of dislocation was minimal regardless of the precautions, taken or not. I want to look at this in more detail but I think just reading it takes away some of the anxiety e.g. Shock horror I just crossed my legs for 10 seconds and this equals dislocation.
Anyone have any other info on this
Following their own research it was decided that hip precautions were not necessary or helpful except in specific cases., that the rate of dislocation was minimal regardless of the precautions, taken or not. I want to look at this in more detail but I think just reading it takes away some of the anxiety e.g. Shock horror I just crossed my legs for 10 seconds and this equals dislocation.
Anyone have any other info on this
OP
OP
copsham
post-grad
Any advice re pain meds? I reacted with severe sickness giddiness to morphine and codeine so my prescription is
2 x 500mg four times a day. This works really well. Yesterday on day 10 post op I reduced my day time doses to 1 x 500mg. This made me very uncomfortable/restless but not exactly painful. So I will go back to 2 x 500mg four times a day. So how/when is the best time to reduce? Crazy really that I thought 10 days after major was long enough!!
I have been having to go to the loo much more frequently, can retain less since the catheter. Is this normal? Does it correct itself?
Doesn't time go quickly - one minute it is giddy after surgery, then constipation now that is history.
Josephine I love your approach, so clear, factual and easy to understand. And to all other BS forum people thank you! Without the forum I would feel isolated in my hip progress. X
2 x 500mg four times a day. This works really well. Yesterday on day 10 post op I reduced my day time doses to 1 x 500mg. This made me very uncomfortable/restless but not exactly painful. So I will go back to 2 x 500mg four times a day. So how/when is the best time to reduce? Crazy really that I thought 10 days after major was long enough!!
I have been having to go to the loo much more frequently, can retain less since the catheter. Is this normal? Does it correct itself?
Doesn't time go quickly - one minute it is giddy after surgery, then constipation now that is history.
Josephine I love your approach, so clear, factual and easy to understand. And to all other BS forum people thank you! Without the forum I would feel isolated in my hip progress. X
@copsham every surgeon has a different approach to restrictions. I had the 90 degrees restriction post LTHR plus no bending or twisting. Post RTHR my doc said "if it hurts don't do it". For now I would follow your surgeon's recommendation as every THR is different.
10 days out from surgery is WAY too early to even think about reducing your meds. You need your pain managed so that you can gain mobility. Stay ahead of the pain by taking your meds as prescribed and on time. When you start forgetting doses it's a sign you don't need as much medication.
Very common post op. They pump you full of fluids pre and post op. This will ease in a short time.
Legin
big-cheese
Each.hip.is as differnt as we are. I did so many things thru natural reaction to a situation and.thought ooooooooops. But guess as my.muscles were so tight pre opp the same thing applied post opp. Before I get other hip done I will do megga stretching as the difficulty they had dislocating hip showed later in.bruising pain and.nerve damage. Oooooooops gone off n.tangent. Best to stay mindful of potential ooooopsie
Legin THR Sep 14
Legin THR Sep 14
OP
OP
copsham
post-grad
Thank you everyone. All very useful information. Just had 40 mins in hydrotherapy and i feel relaxed and exhausted so will have a little doze. Its mid day in UK and I am quite ready to drift off. Aaah lovely!!
Speak later X
Speak later X
craftdee
graduate
Hi @copsham , just catching up with your thread. I had 12 weeks of restrictions so I "feel your pain" 
It is hard to sleep on your back, but it does get easier, thankfully 
I agree with @Jaycey you should follow your OS advice... they're the ones that are "answerable" if things go pear shaped, so it's only fair that we accord them the respect of following their advice; trust me, I was NOT a happy camper following those stupid restrictions for so long - but my OS also didn't "believe" in the benefits of TED stockings or Warfarin injections 
so I felt obliged to follow all his advice, not just pick out the "good bits" 
He did assure me, when I told him how STRESSED I was about them that they are designed to reduce the already SMALL risk of dislocation, and that I shouldn't let them rule (or ruin!) my life... just try to adhere to them as much as possible. He also said that he wasn't a policeman, he wouldn't be in bed with me so he wouldn't know if I'd "slipped" on to my side in the night... but that if I did, just make sure I had a pillow between my legs to stop "crossing the midline" - some nights I slipped, some nights I didn't
My advice would also be to not reduce your meds too soon, you're only taking paracetemol, which is a really safe drug. The time will come when you just don't need it, and that's when you realise you've missed a dose. In the meantime I'd just stick with regular meds and increase your level of activity instead... you still need to be careful not to overdo it, like I said in my recovery thread at just about the EXACT time you're at; you don't know you've hit the wall until you hear the SPLAT
Don't worry about the staples coming out.. they really weren't bad at all, and I WAS nervous. My friend, who's a nurse, gave me a handy hint that I think is worth passing on; she suggested I loosen the adhesive dressing (by stretching it out across the skin, rather than away from the skin, if you know what I mean) prior to having the staples out, that way there's less drama in getting the dressing off if it's a bit "sticky"... you lose less skin seriously, it's not bad
The "fuzziness" you're experiencing is pretty common. I went off Oxycodone really early because I disliked that feeling... it improved, but certainly didn't go away! I had great plans to restructure my hard drive during my recuperation, and in the end managed to send a few emails and do a lot of browsing. I work from home so I saved my more lucid moments for "important" computer work, the rest of the time was pretty aimless - concentration was an issue for weeks... but you DO learn to go with the flow, not sure the patience came in - but you learn to tolerate it all. It doesn't last forever, and does improve gradually so it won't be THIS bad for much longer.
Hang in there
:cool:
It is hard to sleep on your back, but it does get easier, thankfully I agree with @Jaycey you should follow your OS advice... they're the ones that are "answerable" if things go pear shaped, so it's only fair that we accord them the respect of following their advice; trust me, I was NOT a happy camper following those stupid restrictions for so long - but my OS also didn't "believe" in the benefits of TED stockings or Warfarin injections so I felt obliged to follow all his advice, not just pick out the "good bits" He did assure me, when I told him how STRESSED I was about them that they are designed to reduce the already SMALL risk of dislocation, and that I shouldn't let them rule (or ruin!) my life... just try to adhere to them as much as possible. He also said that he wasn't a policeman, he wouldn't be in bed with me so he wouldn't know if I'd "slipped" on to my side in the night... but that if I did, just make sure I had a pillow between my legs to stop "crossing the midline" - some nights I slipped, some nights I didn't My advice would also be to not reduce your meds too soon, you're only taking paracetemol, which is a really safe drug. The time will come when you just don't need it, and that's when you realise you've missed a dose. In the meantime I'd just stick with regular meds and increase your level of activity instead... you still need to be careful not to overdo it, like I said in my recovery thread at just about the EXACT time you're at; you don't know you've hit the wall until you hear the SPLAT
Don't worry about the staples coming out.. they really weren't bad at all, and I WAS nervous. My friend, who's a nurse, gave me a handy hint that I think is worth passing on; she suggested I loosen the adhesive dressing (by stretching it out across the skin, rather than away from the skin, if you know what I mean) prior to having the staples out, that way there's less drama in getting the dressing off if it's a bit "sticky"... you lose less skin
seriously, it's not badThe "fuzziness" you're experiencing is pretty common. I went off Oxycodone really early because I disliked that feeling... it improved, but certainly didn't go away! I had great plans to restructure my hard drive during my recuperation, and in the end managed to send a few emails and do a lot of browsing. I work from home so I saved my more lucid moments for "important" computer work, the rest of the time was pretty aimless - concentration was an issue for weeks... but you DO learn to go with the flow, not sure the patience came in - but you learn to tolerate it all. It doesn't last forever, and does improve gradually so it won't be THIS bad for much longer.
Hang in there
:cool:
OP
OP
copsham
post-grad
Hello CraftDee, Thanks for your very informative post. I was so nervous before hand pre op that I did not do a huge amount of learning. The only way I could cope with it was to concentrate on keeping calm! Now 11 days post op I feel a bit more relaxed about the restrictions. Initially I was thinking "Oow I have crossed my legs I am going to dislocate" "Oow I have moved more that 90 degrees what is going to happen" Now I can see that it is not totally critical but guidance really. Everything is a steep learning curve!
You are right about the pain meds. I am going to stick with my paracetamol for some time to come. I did forget a dose without realising and it was this that decided me to try reducing but it did not work.
I am in UK and I can see you are in Western Australia. Our plan is to visit friends in Australia when I am fully, fully recovered. So yesterday I was browsing and felt I had visited every national park in Western Australia and travelled on the Indian Pacific train! What a productive day!
Thanks again Craftdee!
You are right about the pain meds. I am going to stick with my paracetamol for some time to come. I did forget a dose without realising and it was this that decided me to try reducing but it did not work.
I am in UK and I can see you are in Western Australia. Our plan is to visit friends in Australia when I am fully, fully recovered. So yesterday I was browsing and felt I had visited every national park in Western Australia and travelled on the Indian Pacific train! What a productive day!
Thanks again Craftdee!
craftdee
graduate
Ah @Legin Why restrict yourself to Capel Vale... there are so many FABULOUS wineries in our South West, I could probably give you a run down on 90% of them Only because we've been going down for so long... (since the very first winery opened actually) OF COURSE
@copsham Glad you enjoyed your virtual tour of WA... it would have been the coolest way of doing it yesterday, for sure; we're in the middle of a heatwave - it was over 37C (100F) for the third day in a row yesterday, it was 40C (104F), and we have several days more forecast "up there". It only dropped to 26C or 80F overnight... thank goodness for air conditioning!! At least I'm getting a lot of use out of the pool, and it is still the place I am most comfortable with my hip; no discomfort AT ALL in there, doing my exercises and all!
You were probably wise not doing too much research before hand in a way. I watched a YouTube video of posterior approach with sound
and all I can say is ignorance WAS bliss, shoulda left it
I see you're from Bucks, we lived in Bedfordshire from when I was two until I was six, then we moved to Wales (Dad's Welsh, Mum's a Scot) before emigrating here in 1972 when I was nearly 13... actually we arrived on Australia Day which was the day before yesterday
Anyway, happy healing, see you when you get here
:cool:
Only because we've been going down for so long... (since the very first winery opened actually) OF COURSE@copsham Glad you enjoyed your virtual tour of WA... it would have been the coolest way of doing it yesterday, for sure; we're in the middle of a heatwave - it was over 37C (100F) for the third day in a row yesterday, it was 40C (104F), and we have several days more forecast "up there". It only dropped to 26C or 80F overnight... thank goodness for air conditioning!! At least I'm getting a lot of use out of the pool, and it is still the place I am most comfortable with my hip; no discomfort AT ALL in there, doing my exercises and all!
You were probably wise not doing too much research before hand in a way. I watched a YouTube video of posterior approach with sound
and all I can say is ignorance WAS bliss, shoulda left itI see you're from Bucks, we lived in Bedfordshire from when I was two until I was six, then we moved to Wales (Dad's Welsh, Mum's a Scot) before emigrating here in 1972 when I was nearly 13... actually we arrived on Australia Day which was the day before yesterday
Anyway, happy healing, see you when you get here
:cool:
Legin
big-cheese
Kinnaird Shiraz is the answer. A wonderful ful.spicy red that insights the imagination.from first aroma. Oh also.as.Rob.Bowen.the.wine maker then.was with us at.Kinnaird house and.decided to name the wine after it. We were the main stockist in.scotland for Capel Vale. As for the Reisling ohhhhhhjj mamma. Ooooops sorry Copsham sort of went of thread. Honest occifer hvnt had a.drop. your trip sound brilliant errrr how big is your suitcase. I can.fit into small places.
Have a.grand day
Legin THR Sep 14
Have a.grand day
Legin THR Sep 14
OP
OP
copsham
post-grad
And on a more serious note ... I get in a muddle with what to do or not do so easily. The hospital told me to go to GP practice for change of dressing between day 10 - 12. I made an appt for today, day 12, and took the specific dressing given to me by the hospital; Medpore film and pad. The nurse in the GP practice took out the 22 staples. She proceeded to say we do not use those dressings here as they do not breathe. I did not know one way or the other. She then covered the wound with little steristrips. I was initially happy with this but with in a few hours the seam on my baggy trousers had rubbed on the wound and it just felt too "unsupported". so soon. I have now put on the Medpore film and pad dressing over the steristrips. Have I done right or wrong??? I am going to hydrotherapy on Friday and the Medpore dressing were brilliant with this.
OP
OP
copsham
post-grad
??? The hospital told me to go to GP practice for change of dressing between day 10 - 12. I made an appt for yesterday, day 12, and took the specific dressing given to me by the hospital; Medpore film and pad. The nurse in the GP practice took out the 22 staples. She proceeded to say we do not use those dressings here as they do not breathe. I did not know one way or the other. She then covered the wound with little steristrips. I was initially happy with this but with in a few hours the seam on my baggy trousers had rubbed on the wound and it just felt too "unsupported". so soon. I have now put on the Medpore film and pad dressing over the steristrips. Have I done right or wrong???
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