THR Craftdee's Made It Through

[craftdee]

You're both right @Hoppy Nanny and @MajorHeidi, the Physio was really good in that I didn't feel like she was telling me off "you're doing too much, in brackets you naughty girl brackets" more like "it's good that your're so keen to improve, here's how to do that - it includes rest and measured activity". All of which we already know in our hearts as it were, but it was good to get that confirmation or like you said @Hoppy Nanny, validation, that rest and moderation, and medication to suit are not just "allowed" but essential and quite likely for those that are feeling able the hardest part. She wants me to use heat packs first to help the muscles relax before I try to stretch them; it seems counter to the Ice and Elevate message, but she was quite clear... ice at the injury site, heat at the muscles
I can't believe how much better my leg feels today where I had the acupuncture. I've never had it before, thought it was a bit of snake oil to be honest... but I'm a convert. One of the needle sites is exactly where the worst pain was, when it went in I jumped and she asked if it hurt and I said no, it felt like being snapped with an elastic band or a little bubble bursting in my leg - she said I would feel relief as soon as she took the needle out (about two minutes later after she finished putting the others in) ... it didn't even take that long; it felt kind of numb, she took the needle out and it's felt fine since - a bit like when a local anesthetic has worn off, not that horrible numb then tingly feeling, but the good feeling immediately after it's back to normal.
I took a whole Targin (Oxycodone HCL slow release) last night, a valium and some Panadol Osteo (650mg Paracetemol) to keep that pain at bay... and I slept six hours straight, woke up without any pain; Rocky the wonder dog was having a sleep over at his Nanna's (my Mum's) house because we spent the evening at our son and DILs babysitting and we don't like Rocky to be on his own, especially once it's dark, I know he's spoilt! so he didn't disturb me with his what we call earflap... he gets up (ostensibly to turn around in his bed, in reality to try and get into ours) sometimes in the night and shakes his head, flapping his ears; I'm a light sleeper at the best of times, so his absence may have contributed to the extra hour or so. Whatever the reason six hours is the best I've done since the op, I'll take it with both hands!
I've got a little discomfort this morning, (obviously acupuncture's not a miracle cure, but it's really helped) I've taken my Panadol Osteo and if it gets any worse I'll take a Tramadol... if not I'll stick with the Panadol regularly through the day
I'm not spending too much time on my feet today, I'll give the stretches the Physio gave me a go but they're so simple that should fill about ten minutes of my day. Luckily I have company today as hubby is home; when he turned 60 in April --- the day I had my last kidney stone, ouch, meaning a CT scan which found the gallstones that gave me grief since last year with another attack in May that lead to the gallbladder removal in June, necessary (OS wanted no site of infection/inflammation) for the THR in October, good year/bad year, lol --- we decided we would not schedule work for Fridays, meaning if he got held up on a job in the week he had time to catch up without stressing about when he'd get time and without working the weekends (of which he's done PLENTY) and if the week went smoothly he'd get the day off. Hasn't been much in the "off" department, lol. Some work has overflowed, so at least the "scheme" works, I scheduled my op for a Friday and all my appointments for Fridays wherever possible, and today he (we, I HAVE to supervise, lol) are doing some more work to our pool area - I fell in the pool at construction in February hurting my hip which led to the MRI that found the AVN, the OA has been weaving its magic for ten years or so, so the bone on bone thing wasn't the surprise but the big dark holes of AVN on the MRI were..... and that boys and girls is how you end up with fall related bone marrow edema, a kidney stone, gallbladder attack, gallbladder removal and a THR in ten months - so to say the least the progress on the pool area has been sporadic; it's looking good, just the trimmings left, like today we're (he's) finishing facing the pump house with stone - oh and now hubby wants to replace the lawn as it's been hammered during the construction phase of all the stone walls etc, sigh, will it never end? It's getting warm enough to swim now, so it feels worth it at least
Hope you have a good day
Donna

 

[MajorHeidi]

@craftdee The accupuncture sounds great. I am too scared to try that.
Is that covered in your insurance?

I had to laugh at your dog flapping their ears. My Heidi does it every morning to try to get our
attention to get up and feed her NOW!
I am certain she feels she is manipulating us perfectly without seeming to.

Interesting back story on your pool.
Hope you get to enjoy it soon!!!

 

[craftdee]

I'm back here because I'm having a rest, good girl Donna Right, @MajorHeidi... another ear-flapper huh? Gotta love 'em
Really don't be scared of the acupuncture.. it was nothing. Like I said I felt a couple of them going in, but they didn't feel like needles at all, it was like being tapped or flicked with your fingernail.. you know, not sharp at all, and then just a vague tingly feeling, the rest I didn't feel at all! The physio didn't call it acupuncture, she called it 'dry needling', I don't know if that is to 'medicalise' it. Physio is covered by private health insurance, I had my operation (this one at least) using the Public Health system - it cost us $0 to this point (including the provision of crutches, toilet seat raiser etc) so we were happy to pay for Home Physio... we have a contingency fund for it... and I've since found out that Medicare (our Public Health system) covers just over half the cost for five appointments a year for treatment for Chronic conditions (such as OA) provided we get a referral from a GP (General Practitioner, I don't know the US equivalent... regular doctor or primary physician) so technically yes, it's covered
We pay 1% of our income to Medicare annually and if you are on a higher wage (not THAT high, we made it no probs, lol) you pay an extra 1.5% of your income (so 2.5% total) as a levy. If you have ANY, even the most basic, Private Hospital cover you avoid the extra levy.
We were in the private system for a long time, had a few issues with what's known as "the gap", the amount between what your insurance will cover and what Private Health providers charge (the OS I go to does work in both systems, as do most Doctors, and he charges different rates depending on which system you're using, some Doctors charge the same rate regardless of who's paying, Medicare covers 85% of what is known as the Schedule Fee and you pay the difference... if like mine, your Doctor is care-oriented he charges only the 85% amount leaving the net cost to you as $0. If he's like my rheumatologist, who wants a bigger yacht, you charge $200 over the Schedule Fee and your patient tips in $200+ ... there is always a choice to NOT see these Doctors if you have financial issues, but sometimes you might wait to see a "Bulk Billing" Doctor (the 85% of the Schedule Fee one) Phew, there endeth the lesson - hope you weren't bored!!
I have not had a single issue with using the public system I go to see the same OS in the same rooms that I went to when we had Private cover. For this op I had a lovely room, the hospital is only a few years old, well staffed - the only difference I could see was that the bunch of flowers in the foyer was smaller than the one in the Private Hospital (which is on the same campus as the Public One... in fact the ward I was on, 14 rooms, 12 x single 2 x double, was in the wing of the hospital that was Private until a new Private one was built on the other side earlier this year) The same for my Gallbladder op and when hospitalised with the fall in Feb... same for my hysterectomy 7 years ago following the last op I had (for cervical pre-cancer, hence the hysto!) in the PRIVATE system which left us out of pocket by $2000!! and that was in a tiny hospital not equipped for emergencies... you get taken to a Public Hospital for those anyway, with a Doctor I detested and nearly reported to the Medical Board for inappropriate conduct... rather unsurprisingly Mr Singh didn't work in the Public System, he liked to choose his victims and had a certain lifestyle to maintain
We are more than happy to contribute more to the Public system to keep it viable as it has really worked for us. Not all Aussies agree, of course.
Now back to the point.... get the acupuncture, dry needling, whateva:cool: I cannot believe the relief - still feeling great 24 hours later, I thought it might "wear off" but so far yeehar
We've (hubby) just decided to go out for lunch, to a nice little tavern near home, then a bit of shopping, oh and it's massage day.... guess the two hours we've done in the pool area are the "work" for the day
Sorry I've waffled, let a girl near a laptop........
enjoy your day

 

[xtina16405]

I love your threads @craftdee. They make me smile.

I am happy to hear that your pain was because you were overdoing it. I am not happy you were overdoing But glad you got the answer.

I love acupuncture. I had the beginning of carpal tunnel last year. I didn't want surgery. A friend suggested acupuncture. Awesome. It completely took the pain away. I used it when I had the bone on bone pain. I was really hoping it would cure the hip. Yeah right. OA is not curable. I hoped though.

The acupuncture did take some pain away. And now that you had it. I may go visit Dr. Ha and see if he can help relax me.

Love your news and how great you feel. Rest up my friend.

 

[craftdee]

Thanks @xtina16405 I'm sort of kind of happy my pain was due to overdoing it... glad that it wasn't anything more serious but a bit huffy that I have to sit around even more, I'm such a restless bunny! I think we've all tried crazy things to "fix" OA. I ate flax seed with EVERYTHING... certainly fixes constipaiton , but no not OA, I just about overdosed on Glucosamine, last resort I went to Thai Aroma Massage in place of my regular massage; the massage was great, the aroma was lovely and then.... "I fix your leg, re-lax re-lax, I press your leg out now, re-lax (insert sound of Donna sobbing) your leg very stubborn, you come back next week" Well call me thick, back I go, long story short, it just HURT, didn't fix a thing, but now I shiver when I smell Peach Blossom and Water Lily
I am now at least open to the concept of acupuncture as a relevant pain treatment.
My Mum had her neck broken at work (yeah, we're a lucky bunch!) 34 years ago; she worked with people with intellectual disabilities, one picked her up, bit her then threw her across the room where she hit her neck/back of the head on a basin. It was no contest she weighed then (and still does) 42kg which is about 92lbs. She had a spinal fusion done on her neck, but still didn't have any feeling in one of her hands... tried neurologists, all sorts, finally her GP (originally from Vietnam) asked if she had ever had electro acupuncture, she tried and the very first needle showed that a nerve in her forearm was not functioning - nothing to do with her neck, but where the "client" had bitten her on her elbow! A relatively minor operation (compared with the fusion) and she got full function back in her hand, relating this story I think I probably should have been a convert sooner
I say go for it, whatever helps you relax is a big plus in this recovery game. I love craft and thought I'd be using this time as an opportunity to craft my, hohum, off... but I can't sit comfortably in my craft spot so I've become some sort of Laptop Tapping Loony Toonbut it is relaxing
See ya

 

[Carriemay60]

@craftdee This forum is such a wealth of sharing and information, it just blows my mind! My knee break and resulting scar tissue/pain is a bigger issue for me now than my hip replacement. After reading your recent posts, I will be looking into acupuncture today! Anything to get me through the physio and their attempts to break down this scar tissue.

I had acupuncture once about 25 years ago trying to quit smoking with my sister. In those days it was a bit of a fad the Ad said "quaranteed......" We had all the needles and went outside - she noticed a little pub across the way, suggested we go for a beer to get over the trauma of the needles and promptly each lit a cigarette! If I do decide to try it again now, I certainly hope it works better for me!

If you can think of a small craft to do (or your Christmas cards) maybe you could do them on your lap. I use a large cutting board on my lap like a kitchen counter.

 

[LaxMom]

@craftdee , your stories are amazing! What a trial you have had. Glad to see the acupuncture worked and you are doing well. I am very jealous of that pool. It will be a while before I can swim, and then it will be indoors, as we soon go into the dark deep freeze in this end of the world! Enjoy the swimming and nice weather.

 

[craftdee]

Well it hasn't been a great year @LaxMom it did get amusing when I rocked up at the hospital for my gallbladder surgery and the admitting nurse remembered me from the ED visit with the kidney stone... then told me she was moving to Orthopedics and I said see you there, the look on her face (I didn't see her incidentally) For a few weeks in May/June I had an appointment every single day for a scan, test, hospital or Doctor appointment... glad that lot's behind me! I don't think it compares with ruining your ankle by falling some ridiculous height though... you win We'll definitely be in the pool this weekend... we're forecast 36 Celcius or 97F on Sunday, I'll still be thinking of your lovely autumn weather - I love autumn!
It's funny @Carriemay60 I rang my sister earlier to tell her about my acupuncture success (she's on the road to a THR so she follows my progress or otherwise with vested interest) and she told me she had it years ago to stop biting her nails... she bites them to stumps to this day, gotta laugh. It did really work for me with this thigh pain though, I'm still feeling "freed up", just hope it lasts as I feel so much better overall without that pain. I've just done some colouring (for my cardmaking) sitting in the high back sloped seat with the over chair table that we hired for my recuperation (I use it for meals etc)... when I got up I was walking like I did pre-op; methinks you should not sit at that chair for that long. All recovered now, just off to throw a card together for one of the Design Team's I'm on, I like to fulfill my commitments even though they're "social" and everyone's been very understanding about my desire to contribute not necessarily being able to be met by my ability to contribute. I'll probably just stand up for that, I need to take the crick out of my back/knees/shoulders I just put there by sitting in my "sensible" chair
Hope you get some acupuncture @Carriemay60 , and that it's more successful than your previous effort!
G'night all,

 

[Carriemay60]

@craftdee I know what you mean about sitting too long once you get going on a craft! The only thing that seems to bring me back to reality once I get busy is the sudden realization that I am about to pee my pants! I just have a few more supplies to gather and will be starting a project next week of building/decorating two miniature doll houses out of oversized popsicle sticks. You wouldn't be able to play "indoors" on these like a normal dollhouse but I think they will be fun props for table play. (They will be the size of a little wooden bird house) I got my two little granddaughter's some little dolls that max out at 4". All fun, super bright colours so I am super excited to paint and decorate them! I am going to have to be careful (maybe by setting an alarm) to get up and walk some house laps every hour or so

 

[Josephine]

Well,your PT has just saved me a bunch of typing! She sounds like my kind of gal!

About exercises, hips actually don't need much 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.

3) I am taking paracetamol 625mg, I was taking that only twice a day last week and it was adequate; now I am taking it every four to six hours, I have been waking in the night with pain, so I'm now taking it around the clock and it's only really taking the edge off (quite well for the first hour or so)

You're short changing yourself with that dosage. You'd be much better off taking 1,000mg 4 times a day. That's the best working dose.

I have Oxynorm (Oxycodene 5mg dose "2x 4 times a day as required" and Tramadol 50mg dose "as required" (as well as Targin slow release dose "one twice a day") in the cupboard. I am loathe to take the Oxynorm, don't like the side effects and really didn't need it from about day 10, I have a limited quantity of Tramadol which I tolerate well and a few Targin left. I was trying to dispense with the Targin so I will be able to drive next week and want to be well clear of the oxycodone. I am, at this point open to your thoughts on reintroducing the Targin and/or Tramadol - if you think the Oxynorm is the answer, so be it... but if it's just masking the problem and I have to to keep taking them I'm really not keen on starting them up again. I have added a Valium (Diazapam 5mg 1x at night) to the mix, it is helping me get off to sleep I think, I've only done this for the last two nights - so far so good

Since you're only 5 weeks out, I suggest you try the 1,000mg paracetamol 4 times a day first and see if that helps since most hippies seem to manage well on that. If you need something extra, I suggest just Tramadol with the night time dose instead of diazepam (Valium) and maybe another during the day if necessary.

 

[craftdee]

Thanks for getting back to me @Josephine, Roger Wilco and all that Seriously, getting "with the program" as we speak.
I read in your signature that you had a menisectomy, I'm needing one and wondering how it compares with the THR for discomfort and recovery... if you get a chance can you let me know (without hijacking the Hip Replacement Forum of course)

 

[Josephine]

You can only hijack threads, not forums! Besides which, it's your thread so you can't really hijack it!

The menisectomy was very okay. Leg felt a bit sore and strange but nothing a couple of paracetamol didn't fix. I believe I used a crutch or a walking stick for about 2-3 days and after that I was back to normal. Which was odd because when I had the first scoping, it was just a diagnostic and a washout yet I was in a lot of pain afterwards. But I popped in to see the physio lunch time (I worked there!) she quickly told me I was walking all wrong! So a two minute instructional and I walked out like Lazarus resurrected!

 

[craftdee]

Thanks for the info @Josephine, when I'm back to "normal"... or as close as I get... from this op I'll get onto it; I've had a few issues/surgeries this year and just couldn't face another one with weeks of recuperation, so it's reassuring that it's unlikely to be as trying as some of this year's efforts
I feel about the Physio visit I had yesterday about the same as you felt after your "instructional", it's been like flipping a coin on the whole recovery - with the muscles released regular paracetemol is plenty, and I don't feel (quite so) decrepit

 

[Josephine]

 

[MajorHeidi]

@craftdee Your posts crack me up!!!
Your aroma massage post was ....

I am glad your accupuncture worked wonders for you. I will keep an open mind on that.

My big problem right now is my left foot with bone on bone in the first metatarsal (big toe joint).
I guess that is my next up surgery for a bone fusion. Not interested in an implant that will last ten years max.
I can still walk my usual 3.5 miles daily, but it does bother me significantly.
I have the bone on bone in both feet, but left is worse.

Well , goodness.. enough about me.
I hope your are in your pool today, and enjoying it immensely!!

 

[craftdee]

Yeah @MajorHeidi we're quite informed on "big toes" in our house. I think I've posted previously about our eldest son who lost his Great Toe and second toe in a work accident last year (he's self employed, so no it wasn't for the insurance!) it was a crush injury so it took four weeks to decide to be completely necrotic and for the amputation to be deemed the only solution (to save the rest of his foot) He lost the webbing between the toes too, which isn't great, but kept the first joint of the great toe... which is actually the ball bit under your foot (all the toes except the big one have three joints, which has only two.... I know, you're looking now aren't you? lol your fingers/thumb are much the same) and it's very important for balance etc so we're grateful he kept that. Seventeen weeks off work was a bit hard... and the twins were only ten weeks old when it happened so for his poor wife it was like having newborn triplets
We looked into prosthetics and they're VERY expensive ($10000+) to which his health insurance were unwilling to contribute, and only last a few years so he's decided to live with a rounded off foot. The OS in his case was quite funny, he said the Great Toe does all the work, when we asked him what the others did he said "they fill your shoes" we thought he was just been amusing but now Matt may get something to "fill" his shoes as his foot slides forwards now there's no big toe to stop it, and the skin on your lesser toes is not tough as it's not designed to get bumped or rubbed all the time so they get a bit sore. His favourite footwear was what we call thongs (flip flops in the UK, I don't know what in the US) and he can't wear them anymore (well he could wear one) and he was more devastated by that than anything else at first, he's had to go to "old fogey" sandal type summer shoes instead - luckily they're quite fashionable at the moment so he's got a fair choice
I have an absolute doozy of a bunion on my right foot (and a poor imitation on my left ) and asked my OS if I could have the right one removed as it is pretty uncomfortable when the arthritis kicks in and buying shoes that fit is a drag. He said that he could, but the arthritis in my feet was too bad to pin to (or whatever they do) so the only option was to fuse the toe to the foot. I've decided that I would at this stage rather have a bunion that aches sometimes than a foot that's fused all the time - that thought process may change in the future of course
Anyway, going to do some things in the garden... though of course it's the hottest part of the day, so that could end fairly soon (with a nice long drink, or beer in hubby's case - he's so boring, lol) and a swim - our first for the season At least I know I won't be overdoing it, and as I've been feeling better each day for the last three or four days I'm happy to leave some of the work I would usually class as "essential" and let my hip dictate.
Enjoy your day, or evening or whatever-time-of-the-day-your'e at

 

[Hoppy Nanny]

Loving your very amusing posts @craftdee

Gosh it helps to hear that I'm not alone with all my 'other' aches & pains. Don't like the sound of the foot pains that you and @MajorHeidi are getting.....ouch!!

So glad the last few days have seen some improvement for you....way to go!! Xxx


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[MajorHeidi]

Hope the pool was nice today @craftdee ! I usually smile reading your posts. You are a gifted writer!
@Hoppy Nanny How's your knee?

 

[Hoppy Nanny]

@MajorHeidi thanks for asking...my knee is awful!! I'm back to the cane for longer walks because it's not holding up too well...and the weight loss! Not good at the mo...must get motivated...should be motivated....!! Hope your foot feels better! Xxx


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[craftdee]

Well I had my swim, and it was lovely thanks @MajorHeidi I have pulled up a little sore this morning, I don't think I did too much... I have been much more aware of that since the Quad/IB incident but I do think swimming uses a different bunch of muscles, or the same ones in a slightly different way and it's the first time they've been called to action for a while. I'm still taking the paracetemol, I'll probably dispense with my stretching/exercises today to give the muscles a break... or maybe they NEED the stretching, gawd it's hard to know isn't it?
I like to dive in, hate getting in slowly - obviously I am not allowed to dive so I had to have a hand getting in and out, which was a bit annoying but I didn't feel safe anyway - especially on that last step from water to paving... we have terrazzo edging and this is the first summer we've had it so I don't even know if it gets slippery; just decided to err on the side of caution and cling like a limpet to my son Chris - or son Matt - or hubby, or heck one of the (18 mth old) twins... whoever was available when decamping! Once in it was great to move my leg more freely, without the resistance you can get more range. I did find the frog kick associated with breast stroke a bit uncomfortable so just Freestyle-d (used to be called the Australian Crawl!) which was easy. I'll have to ask the OS or Physio (got appointments with both) on Friday if it's a good idea to do that frog kick.
Our grandtwins have been eyeing off the pool since they have been mobile, Nathan in particular has wanted "in".... very glad we invested in good pool fencing (we got glass so it doesn't spoil the look of the area, and the gates are really sensitive so we're able to relax a bit while they use the rest of the back yard... so when he went IN yesterday it was kinda sad to see his eyes go like saucers and him say 'scold 'scold... and wanting OUT. Emily on the other hand, who has been ambivalent to the pool, dismissing it as "water" with a shrug of the shoulders, had a BALL! She was wearing her sun-safe suit which acts like a bit of a wetsuit whereas Nathan was in board shorts so she may not have felt the cold. It was really nice once you'd been in a few minutes, it felt cool at first because it was hot out of the pool.... Nathan wasn't prepared to risk it though. Be interesting if he wants to go in next time. We put the fish pond inside the pool area so that's fenced off from the rest of the garden too, I took him up there to feed the fish and he was trying to climb in to that so I think he's probably NOT been put off for life by his 'scold water experience
So sorry to hear your knee is giving you that much trouble @Hoppy Nanny. Using the cane is such a good idea, I still take it if I'm walking any distance, even just that tiny touch to the ground with it makes you feel more balanced and it definitely takes the strain off the knees. Hope it gets better for you soon, all I can send is hugs
Enjoy your day/evening etc
xx