THR Deep Breath Reporting for Recovery Duty

[Hipster Girl]

@DeepBreath That is exciting that it has done so much for you - I'm really looking forward to giving it a try! They taught Pilates at the gym I go to awhile back but they were charging extra for the classes and I didn't want to pay any additional on top of my gym membership. My problem area is my midsection. The older I get I find I am having to eat much cleaner if I want to keep extra pounds at bay. I find that being in peri-menipause I can gain weight much easier if I am not careful.

@SweetPea69, wow, another creative person on BoneSmart! That is so cool that you make scarves and shawls. There are some very talented people on BS!

 

[Hip Hip Hooray!]

Hi @DeepBreath, You are so wise to only do three repetitions in the beginning. I wonder if I did less repetitions if i could use the weight machines at the gym. I'm glad to hear that your legs are falling open now. That's what happened to me, too. I don't believe that you have to force ROM after this surgery, like some of the PT people teach. I'm going to look up those Youtube videos. Mari is excellent. Several of my dancer friends taught for her.

You sound great. I've been keeping the windows open, too. I just washed them, so they look much better. Your salads sound delicious and healthy, too. Take care, and keep up the great work! Look how far you have come.

 

[DeepBreath]

@SweetPea69, ooh your shawls and scarves sound lovely! Creative outlets are a wonderful thing.
Yes, I am also hoping for a 15 year mortgage. I am confident my husband and I will come to a compromise when the time comes.

@Hipster Girl, I think you'd really appreciate the great core work that is present in the Pilates exercises and how it helps the midsection. I know when my core is weak my back gets painful. Pilates helps so much with all of that.
I hear you about this phase of life and pounds creeping on. I generally eat a pretty clean diet, but I have to very meticulous or I can weight in a snap.

@Hip Hip Hooray! it's such a guessing game as to how much exercise to do! I find the Pilates exercises to be so gentle that I think it would be easy to overdo. I know from past experience that while that first full workout feels like 'nothing' in the beginning, you definitely feel it the next day. I decided low reps and slow addition of other exercises would be key.
I'll bet it is lovely there with the flowers blooming and the spring breeze coming in the windows.
Enjoy, friend!

 

[DeepBreath]

Music means a lot to me. I, like many people, have what they consider to be the soundtrack to their life.
Prince's music was a huge part of my personal soundtrack. I am very sad that he is gone so soon. My thoughts go out to his loved ones and many fans.
I just needed to get that out. <3

 

[Nana757]

Just popping in to say HI! So happy to hear things are going so well for you these days. Keep on keeping on, my friend!

 

[Hipster Girl]

I love your new avatar @DeepBreath! I love that shade of purple and purple is my absolute favorite color!

I meant to try the Pilates today but the day got away from me. I spent a good chunk of the day tweaking and re-tweaking my resume for a recruiter. I finally got it done and emailed off. I tend to be a bit of a perfectionist and I kept rewording it over and over. I drive myself crazy sometimes

I notice the same thing about a strong core helping with back issues.

I hear ya about Prince - very sad news. I didn't particularly love his music but there is no denying how talented he was. Very sad news indeed, both for the music world as well as his family and friends.

 

[Cynthia777]

@DeepBreath
You can always take out a 30 year mortgage, but make the 15 year payment. This way you have the option of paying a little more or a little less depending on your financial situation at any given time. Just make sure you put "additional amount to be applied to principal" on your payment voucher and at the bottom of your check on any amount you pay above the minimum payment. Many years ago I had a loan with B of A and I would send $500 a month above my minimum payment, but I never specified that the $500 should go to principal and B of A just put it in limbo! The cads! I always advise my clients to take the longest loan offered (especially if the interest rate is the same for the shorter or longer loan), but make a higher payment only if it's comfortable for them.

Wow, did I thoroughly confuse the issue? Yikes!

 

[Hipster Girl]

Good advice @Cynthia777 I paid off a 30 year mortgage in 15 years by taking any bonus, tax refund, and my extra 2 paychecks per year and applying them all towards principal (I got paid bi-weekly so there were 26 paychecks per year and I budgeted with 2 paychecks per month, or 24 annually). This saved me thousands of dollars in interest.

 

[Cynthia777]

That's exactly how to do it! You're not backed into a corner with higher payments, but you still have the option to pay the mortgage off years earlier, thus saving all that interest. Even adding say $100 a month to the principle saves thousands of dollars in interest. I've explained this to hubby and he still doesn't get it...

 

[keepmovin]

Hello there @DeepBreath! I don't think I've ever posted on your thread before but know I've read through it. I think now that I'm past the worst of my saga, I'm going back to read up on everyone's thread. I'm interested in finding out how everyone gets on with their THR's and also how to deal with the many different restrictions we all seem to be given by our surgeons. I spent the day yesterday just googling opinions on what's permissible and what's not and for how long. I never had precautions before because I had resurfaced hips which had no precautions. My left is still resurfaced but know my right is a THR.

I love your description of your pilots routine! Sounds invigorating and this has inspired me to look into trying this down the road! My daughter introduced this to me a while back but wasn't ready to begin a program. I know it's similar to yoga. I read with a TKR we still need to be careful on some of the moves, at least that's what I read.

Even my surgeon's guidelines restricts certain movements such as "you should avoid bringing the knee on the operated side to your shoulder, as this is too sharp an angle". And then I think of cutting your own toes nails....don't we have to do this to accomplish this task? I see you have been able to do this now....well almost...but don't you have to bring your knee up to the chest to do this?

So, here I am with all these questions. You are I think 7 months out and this helps me with my guidance going forward. Has your surgeon lifted all restrictions for you? What about carrying heavy objects? I actually read that one of the sports to be avoided is bowling!! But, obviously you are doing fine in that area! Maybe not scoring big points from from our perspective, this is a big celebration for you!

Also, love your new Avatar!! Is this in tribute to Prince's passing? It's purple so just wondering. So sad!! I think he also suffered with hip issues. He needed a double hip replacement and needed one desperately but hesitated because of his religion - Jehovah Witness which does not allow for blood transfusion.

I'm going to try catching up on others who are a few months out too. You sound great! I love reading how happy others are months down the road!

Enjoy your day!

 

[DeepBreath]

Okay, I am moving past my blue blip...purple blip? That hit me hard. Not sure why except he was so young and his music defined a very special part of my life.

Anyway, @Nana757, thank you, friend. It's always great to see your smiling face in your avatar pop up here on my thread. I hope all is great with you. Our weather has definitely been a roller coaster lately, hasn't it?

@Hipster Girl, yaay about your resume! I have a good feeling about this. Some lucky company is going to snap you up, leaving the others to gnash their teeth. I had to smile at the perfectionist comment. I'm like that myself and I drive myself crazy too. LOL!

@Cynthia777, no you absolutely did not confuse the issue. That is great advice! Thanks to both you and @Hipster Girl for that. That is exactly the kind of information I need tucked into my brain as we begin to 'circle the airport' of retirement. I want to do this right. I don't want to get into some financial muck that's darned near impossible to get out of. We've been so careful about getting our ducks in a row as we get nearer to his retirement. We're on track to be completely debt free by then. I want that good planning to continue, so thank you for the advice!

@keepmovin, hello, hello, hello! Here's a comfy chair and I'll make you a cup of tea. I'm glad you've popped in. I am so happy that you are into this new phase of your very brave journey! Any question I can answer for you, I'll be delighted to.
Let's see, regarding clipping the toenails - I accomplish this by first sitting in a soft chair. That way I'm already a bit closer to my toes than I would be if I sat, say, on the edge of my bathtub or my bed. I then bend down and slightly to my left, (that's my first op side) and can reach my toes to clip the nails. Now, it's not elegant and the clip job is not perfect, but it's progress. For my right side (newest op side) I have to position my right foot behind my left ankle/calf, bend over to the left again and down and can clip the big toenail and the one next to it. I still have to have my husband's help for the remaining toenails as I feel that pulling sensation that is just out of my comfort zone if I attempt any more. I am hoping that as time goes on and I work on my ROM and flexibility I will be able to just bend over and clip the nails. I'll keep you posted on that.
My surgeon has lifted all restrictions for me. As he puts it, "They're your hips. Go slowly and carefully, but you should be able to do all the basic life things you need/want to do". He has cautioned me that things like running will shorten the life of my implants. I'm not a runner anyway, so I don't mind that.
As far as lifting heavy objects, I let my body be my guide. I had posted not too long ago that lifting even a very full laundry hamper would get my muscles to complaining. I find I can tolerate more weight as time goes on though. I can very definitely tell if something is too heavy by the 'pulling' sensation in the muscles at the side of my hip area. It's very distinct. I've learned that if I feel that pulling, then I need to put the object down and ask for help because otherwise I'll be paying for it with stiff hips for a couple of days. I can now tote around overfull laundry hampers, heft cases of bottled water in and out of a shopping cart, etc without any problem. I couldn't do that 6 weeks ago.
About bowling...I'm not sure I'd define what I do as 'bowling' . Anyway, I didn't have any problem with it. Now, I don't have a what I'd term a 'league bowler's approach and release' with any swift movements and I don't slide or end up with one of my feet canted behind the other. I basically take four steps up to the lane, bend slightly, and release the ball...generally to its final destination: the gutter. I bowled three games with my son and felt fine afterwards. Perhaps a tiny bit stiff the next day because it was an activity I hadn't done in years, but nothing that got in my way.
Yes, my avatar is in honor of Prince. I think I'll leave it for today and then go back to my other one. I had also heard that he needed a hip replacement but was reluctant due to his faith. I trust he is happy and whole today and hopefully having an amazing jam session...perhaps with B.B. King.

@Hip Hip Hooray! I received my dry brush today. I'm excited to try it out!

Have a terrific day, fellow hippies.

 

[Hipster Girl]

@DeepBreath gosh am I slow....I didn't even make the connection of your avatar to Prince. I can relate to certain artists defining a particular time in our life. I remember bawling when Stevie Ray Vaughan died in the plane crash. His passing hit me hard.

Okay, this cracked me up:

I basically take four steps up to the lane, bend slightly, and release the ball...generally to its final destination: the gutter.

 

[Nana757]

Hey there @DeepBreath....glad to see you are out there enjoying bowling with your boy. Does not matter how good you are, as long as it's fun. I found when I first went back to bowling (and BTW, @keepmovin, bowling and golfing are two activities OS's say are good activities, following THR), I was sore a little, because I was using different muscles that hadn't been used in quite a while. Now, .... No problem. I don't even think about my hip any more. Have a great day, my friend. Hope your are enjoying this spring shower today. I share your sentiment about Prince. He was always one of my favorite and I just loved his music. So sad and tragic to lose him.

 

[Arlene56]

@DeepBreath
Enjoy reading your threads. When did you have your surgery? I, too, do Windsor Pilates. Although I haven't done it since my surgery 6 wks ago. The last month before my surgery, I did Pilates as walking was too painful.

Thank you for sharing your exercises. Today I found a PT who is also a Pilates instructor. So I am going next week. Sooo excited to have found her.

Have a good wkend.

 

[Hip Hip Hooray!]

Hi @DeepBreath, Yes, it is beautiful with the flowers blooming. I need to take some more photos. I love this time of year. It is sad about Prince. One of my friends danced in one of his videos. He was such an exceptional talent. I didn't know that he needed both hips replaced. Wow. Poor guy...he must have been in a lot of pain. It makes me even more grateful that I've had this surgery.

 

[Readysetgo]

@DeepBreath - Your purple avatar is just beautiful. I loved Prince's music, too, as well as Bowie's. So tragic to lose them (and other great artists lately) at such a young age when in general people are living much longer. Just very sad.

I love that your son asked you to bowl with him! What an honor! Good exercise, fun and I bet with practice you'll be a champ soon!

It's time for me to do other exercise than the PT. I've been dabbling in the Bikram yoga (inspired by Hip Hip!) and want to try the Winsor pilates, too. (Maybe try it next week when my daughter's back at school.) Would like to get on a bike outdoors soon now that the weather's warming up. Hips are doing well and really feel like moving now.

Hope you're having a great weekend!

 

[DeepBreath]

@Hipster Girl, you are not slow. You have a lot of stuff on your plate. How were you to know about my avatar's meaning?
Oh my goodness, Stevie Ray Vaughan's passing was also such a sad time. I love his music. Since my husband has mostly been stationed on the east coast and our families live in Colorado and Nevada, we have logged an enormous amount of car hours going to visit them. Stevie Ray Vaughan's music is an awesome thing to listen to while tooling through, say, Kansas. He was such a great talent.
I'm glad I could make you giggle with my bowling comment.

@Nana757, when I started my bowling game with my son I actually thought, "Nana would be proud of me!" After I was done I wasn't so sure... It was fun though. I've always just bowled for the joy of it. It's relaxing to me for some reason. I'm so glad that you don't even think about your hip any more. That's fantastic!
Wow, yesterday's weather was a bit wild. It had grown overcast in the afternoon. I went to use the restroom and when I stepped back out it had become very dark and the wind was whipping around like crazy. A few minutes later it started thundering pretty impressively and then we had a downpour. It was all over in about 20 minutes, but it was something while it lasted.
I am sad about his passing. He was a magnificent musician. I hate that there is now all this speculation about his death. He seemed intensely private and I can't help but think he would hate all of that.
I hope you're enjoying a lovely weekend, friend.

@Arlene56, I'm glad you enjoy my thread! I am so excited for you getting to work with a PT who is also a Pilates instructor! I think that would be ideal.
I had two surgeries, as I needed both hips replaced and my waiting a long time to have that done, along with having hip dysplasia made for a bit of a complicated situation. I had my first one done on September 25, 2015 and the second on November 24th, 2015.
It is wonderful to be getting back to Pilates. I really enjoy it.
I hope you have a terrific experience with your PT/Pilates.

@Hip Hip Hooray! I have thought the same thing since hearing about Prince's passing; that he must have been in a lot of pain if he needed his hip (or hips) replaced but was reluctant to do so because of his faith. He was an agile guy back in the day. I always thought he could do more in heels than the average person could in flats.
I'm glad you're enjoying this lovely time of year. It is gorgeous!

@Readysetgo, 2016 has not been a good year so far for talented people. So many gone and quite a few at a relatively young age. I agree it is a sad thing.
I am happy my son asked me to bowl with him. He's a great kid and we laugh a lot together.
I'll have to check out the Bikram yoga. I tend to think that it's a thing where one needs to be very agile in order to do it (which I am not yet), but there really are some very gentle exercises that I could probably do.
If you try Pilates let me know what you think of it.
I hear you about the weather being wonderful for getting moving. It's just incredibly lovely lately.

Enjoy your weekends, hippie friends!

 

[Hip Hip Hooray!]

Please please please be careful with Bikram yoga. I never meant to suggest it for anyone. I am very cautious, and I waited over seven months after my surgery to attempt it. @Readysetgo, your dates scare me. I would never have tried to do this type of yoga so soon. I've done yoga for 30 years, and had to stop before the surgery. I just don't want anyone experiencing a dislocation. I had an excellent teacher. (Juliet Prowse.) I think it's dangerous to do too soon. I also had the anterior technique. There are so many variables. It's not safe for everybody.

@DeepBreath, Yes, I keep thinking about the fact that he needed both hips replaced. I really feel for him. It's sad to me, because he would have been such a good candidate for bilateral surgery. I hate to think that he was in so much pain for all of those years. I wish I could have helped him somehow. It's tragic.

 

[PS46]

Agree all, Prince and Bowie passing is just so sad - both amazing talents who have produced some unforgettable music, which will live on
I was listening to "Hunky Dory" for the umpteenth time this morning as it happens and it still sounds great today. I think that Bowie not only changed the face of music, but he was also brave enough to make society question its beliefs and attitudes ... Just love his music

 

[Hipster Girl]

@DeepBreath yes, Stevie Ray Vaughan would be a great listen on a road trip for sure. I love his music - he was such an amazing talent.

@Hip Hip Hooray! That is very sad about Prince needing a double hip replacement. All of us on here can relate how excruciating that pain is. He may not have even needed a blood transfusion and to think he may have suffered needlessly is heart-wrenching.