THR Happy to be past the surgery

[mendogal]

Just offering a ((hug))

 

[myglasshalffull]

Happy you enjoyed that dinner out with your husband & so sorry to read about loss of your son. Yes, you have had quite a lot of challenges in a short period of time.
Best of luck with next replacement.
You got this!

 

[Freyagirl]

This surgery is not my first rodeo so when I noticed extra white hair on my grey bathroom floor I know what’s going on. For me, and lots of other folks, stress, surgery and anesthesia can cause a temporary extra hair loss a couple months after the event and lasting a month of so. For me my hair just gets thinner all over. Probably mostly noticeable just to me, but definitely thinner.
Plenty of sleep, good diet and reduced stress can help, but post surgery is a stressful, sleep deprived, nutrient weird time so I do the best I can and know that it will thicken back up in a few months. Hopefully you won’t be visited by this surgical aftermath, but if you are, know that this too will pass. I’m not going out much anyway, just now.

 

[Layla]

Aww, Freyagirl...such a rough year and it's admirable how you continue to weather the storms of life. You're an inspiration. I hope you have a peaceful, happy, healthy Summer 2024!
@Freyagirl

 

[Freyagirl]

My 2nd hip surgery is tomorrow. I had very little anxiety about it until Minnesota had a snowstorm and I worried about whether I would be able to get there tomorrow. but it looks like snow is going to turn to rain and I will make it.
I realized over the last few weeks that all I think about is this next surgery
and not really beyond it. Then I spent time with my family yesterday and they all started talking about what we are all going to do this summer. it’s good for me to be thinking about something beside having bad hips and being in pain and start thinking about doing a few things with my grandchildren: going camping, going fishing, going to the zoo. It’s exciting and a good place for my mind to be today. Summer fun, here I come.

 

[mendogal]

Hang in there! After tomorrow it's onward to full recovery!

 

[myglasshalffull]

Best wishes for tomorrow! Let us know when you are up to it how it all went.

 

[SurreyGirl]

Onwards! Think, it will all be behind you soon.

Best of luck!

 

[Layla]

Will be thinking of you tomorrow, Freyagirl. Wishing you all the best!
Give us a when you're able.
Summer 2024, fair warning...Here She Comes!
@Freyagirl

 

[Lorr]

Wishing you all the best today x

 

[Freyagirl]

My night owl husband slept through his alarm in his downstairs Bed. I was ready upstairs for the long drive to the hospital when I Realized that they were no lights on in our lower level . It’s hard for me to get downstairs so I had my Amazon Alexa app, drop into his bedroom and ask him if he was ready to go. He does not hear well, and sleeps with the CPAP, and it was only after some shouting that he heard me. Fortunately, instead of 6 to 8 inches of snow in Minnesota we got rain So we were able to get out of our driveway. we made it to the hospital a little after my scheduled six 6 AM check in. Needless to say, my blood pressure was a little on the high side, but not enough to stop surgery.
After experiencing a few issues getting my spinal started At my first surgery because of my arthritic spine, I talked to the anesthesiologist and he got this spinal going But not without some effort. The surgery itself went without a hitch.
I am staying overnight at the hospital so I was moved to a room from recovery only to find out after making the painful move from the gurney to the bed, that the bed was broken. Another bed was found, and after a great deal of maneuvering, the two beds were swapped out. I moved once again from one bed to another. I was wiped out and got some good meds, which I really needed after all the jostling around. I ordered a sandwich and some coffee, and now I am feeling very good. It’s great to have the second hip in place or as my grandson says to get my second hardware update. I am in desperate need for a good nap and then some more to eat.

 

[benne68]

Welcome to the Healing Side (again), @Freyagirl.

Even though you've been through this before, I will share our Recovery Guidelines with you as a reminder (and in case you want something to read when you walk up!)

Just remember that no two hips are the same -- even two hips in the same person!

HIP RECOVERY GUIDELINES

1. Don’t worry: Your body will heal all by itself. Relax, let it, don't try and hurry it, don’t worry about any symptoms now, they are almost certainly temporary.

If you want to use something to assist with healing and scar management, BoneSmart recommends hypochlorous solution. Members in the US can purchase ACTIVE Antimicrobial Hydrogel through BoneSmart at a discount. Similar products should be available in the UK and other countries.

2. Control discomfort:
rest
elevate
ice
take your pain meds by prescription schedule (not when pain starts!)

3. Do what you want to do BUT
a. If it hurts, don't do it and don't allow anyone - especially a physical therapist - to do it to you
b. If your leg swells more or gets stiffer in the 24 hours after doing it, don't do it again.

4. PT or exercise can be useful BUT take note of these
BoneSmart philosophy for sensible post op therapy

5. At week 4 and after you should follow this
Activity progression for THRs

The recovery articles
Pain management and the pain chart
Healing: how long does it take?
Chart representation of THR recovery
Dislocation risk and 90 degree rule
Energy drain for THRs
Pain and swelling control: elevation is the key
Post op blues is a reality - be prepared for it
Myth busting: on getting addicted to pain meds
Sleep deprivation is pretty much inevitable - but what causes it?

Good nutrition is very important during recovery:
Dietary Tips for Recovery
Nutrition Basics

BIG TIP: Hips actually don't need any 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.


Wishing you an easy recovery!

 

[Layla]

Yay! You did it, Freyagirl! Welcome to recovery...again. I hope you catch some Z's tonight.
Wishing you lots of comfort and safe travels home tomorrow!
@Freyagirl

 

[Freyagirl]

It wasn’t a great night at the hospital. My new hospital bed had a bunch of built-in electronics. One function was to inflate a mattress topper that prevents bedsores. It didn’t inflate, but worse it kept ding,ding,dinging a warning that it wasn’t inflated. No one knew how to fix it. I finally discovered how to press a button to stop the dinging, but only for an hour and then it started again and would wake me up.
My muscles remember how to get up from a chair and get out of bed with a weak, baby hip. My head forgot how tiring it is and how achy I get. Still, even my husband mentioned that the transition from hospital to home was much easier. He knows how to help me and I know when I should ask for help instead of wearing myself out. Mother Nature blessed us today and provided sun and dry roads which made getting out of the car and into the house easier than the icy trip to the hospital.
Home, in my recliner with my ice machine and new mattress. Ahh.

 

[Freyagirl]

5:30 am Day 2 Hip 2. - I was pretty worn out from my sleepless night at the hospital and spent yesterday afternoon sleeping in my cozy recliner. I thought maybe I wouldn’t get much sleep last night, but was in bed by nine, woke up once for the bathroom and at 5:30 I am back up in my recliner.
My swelling has started up earlier than last hip probably because I can’t take Celebrex this time due to some beginning kidney issues. Once again, the skin on my thigh is tight and sore from the swelling so I am up early and in my favorite place to get really good elevation and get the ice machine going. As I’m getting in and out of bed and in and out of the chair I can feel lots of muscle pain but, oh my gosh, walking is wonderful. With both hips replaced, even on day two, I’m able to comfortably walk around the house with my walker. The vast improvement leaves me in tears. Thank you Dr. Eggenberger, I’m getting my life back!

 

[Mojo333]

Glad to see you on the Healing Side
These are the tough bits... as you know
But you sound positive and grateful so I know you've got this.
Healing hugs

 

[Layla]

The amount of sleep you were able to get is impressive!

The vast improvement leaves me in tears.

Aww, hugs to you, Freyagirl. Glad you're so happy already!

 

[myglasshalffull]

So happy to read your update! Great news, happy healing.

 

[mendogal]

Hip hip hooray!!!!!!

Here's to ice, walks, and more good sleep!

 

[Freyagirl]

My body woke me up last night with a double whammy. I had a very painful, swollen, log leg and I needed to get out of the bed relatively quickly because my stool softener was working very well. It’s hard to rush to get out of bed when you are bolstered in by a half a dozen pillows. The resulting discomfort in my leg was worth it, though, because I am not having to deal with constipation.
By the time I made it back to bed I was very very sore. I got myself settled into my pillow fort after taking my meds and wondered if I would get back to sleep. However, my body thanked me for getting up to use the toilet and provided me with another four hours of good solid sleeping.
I looked back at my journal from my first hip and I am right on track for the super sore log leg, the relief in my bowels, and the exhaustion. I am grateful that the tiredness causes me to sleep up to 10 hours. I know that I have plenty of sleepless nights ahead of me, but wow, I’m feeling well rested this morning. Now I’m back to lots of ice and elevation, in hopes that the swelling will go down as quickly in this hip as it did after my first hip replacement.