Having THR on March 24

[Acacia16]

Not sure how open you are to visualization but after I schedualed my TH replacement I watch it on utube a few times then I would visualize the doctor/nurses every part of the surgery going well and myself doing well in recovery. The days before my replacement I have never been so sure and calm. I've had my fair share of surgeries this was my most serious but I was very sure and calm. I did have some fears about having a "fake" body part but what people say about your pain being gone is true. My new hip is 9 days old now and incredible. I was scared when I took my first step but to my surprise it worked as well as my good hip. Try not to be to nervous you will love your new hip!

 

[chalcedonian1]

@craftdee @MissMoo and @Acacia16 Thank you for your thoughtful answers, I will look into harem pants along with loose fitting cotton pajama bottoms with a drawstring. I am calmer today and have decided I am whipping myself into more of a panic by doing endless research and then talking with my very understanding hubby - I keep finding the same articles, videos etc and realize I have done enough research to do a thesis paper. I just have to get used to having an artificial body part! @Acacia16 I like your visualization idea a lot, I am definitely open to it, why didn't I think of that? Thank you for your very encouraging words and I hope you are feeling better day by day!

 

[Brog13]

And can I add my thanks to everyone?
'bone on bone pain gone from Day 1' sounds fantastic to me.
And all the advice as to what to wear afterwards.
Really apologise for all my posts this morning - just noticed all the Brog13's there are. It's just that I am sitting here in my dressing gown being reassured by you all. Need to get dressed! It's gone 11am!

 

[chalcedonian1]

I would be grateful if any of you could let me know what you wore in the hospital? I am not a fan of those johnnies! I hope I am in the hospital only for 2 days, then home. Also, when you are home from surgery, other than walking in your bare feet, what did you wear on your feet? When I wear anything other than my trainers (sneakers), including flat slip-ins or slippers, my hip starts to hurt terribly as I guess there is no support. I am also worried about a car ride 2 months after surgery -I will be traveling from Boston to NYC for my son's graduation from college and that is not a short ride. I have read that some people have triggers in their muscles etc. after riding in a car for more than an hour or two. Other than stopping every hour or so, anyone have any suggestions? Also, will I be able to walk around in a museum for a few hours without a cane etc. after 7 1/2 weeks??

I am having RTHR, anterior. Thank you so much! for responding!

 

[HollyB]

I've never been a fan of the hospital gowns, either, but I figured everyone taking care of me would need access to the incision at the very least. I didn't have a drain nor did I have a catheder. I just went with the hospital gown since it was only two days for me. I didn't have a problem with it. I did take a short bathrobe so that when I got up to walk with PT I had some semblance of modesty! I was told that I might want to bring pj pants or sweatpants when I went to the PT gym as the instructions were sometimes group instructions. I took pj pants but didn't use them -- the short bathrobe over the hospital gown worked fine for me.

Check out Merrell Jungle Mocs. I've found them very supportive/comfortable. I did get some elastic shoe laces for my tennis shoes but the laces haven't worked that well for me. The tongue on the tennis shoe keeps curling under and I have to get my husband to make an adjustment. Could just be me, though.

I'm just over five weeks PostOp so can't offer my own experience re long car rides. But, from what I read here on BoneSmart, everyone seems to have there own personal healing time schedule so you'll probably know what is right for you in a couple of months. But, just a thought, would the train be an option? Don't know about handicapped accessibility but I do know that you would have lots of leg room and a comfortable seat.

Again, I'm just a little over five weeks PostOp and am only now starting to transition from a walker to a cane so nothing to add about museum walking except to say that museums always seem to have lots of stratigically located seating. Anyway, good luck and have fun at that graduation!

 

[chalcedonian1]

Thank you @HollyB, I will bring a short robe, that is a good idea. I had my pre op today and was advised the car ride should not be an issue so long as we stop every 1.5 hours or so and stretch and walk around a bit. I will look into Merrells, I wore my last pair out a few years ago, so I am glad you reminded me of them. Hope you are feeling better every day. After the pre-op I am feeling more calm, grateful for the great surgeons in my area of the world and looking forward to getting my hip taken care of! Thanks again.

 

[chalcedonian1]

I have been laying low over the past couple of months primarily because I had a bad flu and then a cold, followed by intense amounts of snow and ice. I have opted to not go to my gym to work out or to malls to walk around, and the inactivity has actually calmed the pain in my hip a bit. Today I had my pre-op appointment; I was tested for MRSA and other bacteria, was given a surgical scrub to use for a few days pre op, and was told to keep my pets off my clean bed linen for a few days pre-op. I also was told they would not operate if I had scratches, rashes or cuts, or was sick with a cold, fever or flu etc... I think these are all very good ideas of course. The last few days I have been fighting with myself to get back into the gym with my trainer, but am now a bit leery thinking about germs on all the gym equipment (I also hesitated for awhile because of the icy parking lot). I want to get this surgery over and done with, and I am notorious for catching colds etc pretty easily so want to be healthy on the day of the op. Any opinions on balancing out the benefits of training vs staying away from all "germ factories" pre surgery? Also, opinions on the benefits of calming the inflammation with rest vs working the leg muscles etc to strengthen them before surgery? Thank you all.

 

[craftdee]

Hi @chalcedonian1 in hospital I had to wear the hospital gown the first night (they didn't allow me change my clothes - and you're not in a position to just jump up and just do it yourself - even when they came in at midnight and turned me to give me a back rub with moisturizer (which was nice, and I could see why they needed ready access -though I did feel "exposed" at that point!) I had my catheter out and a shower the next morning then wore underwear and a long T shirt style nightie... I found that excellent; it was long enough to offer some dignity while doing my 'laps' on my crutches and still provided easy access to the wound site.

I usually wear bare feet around the house, we were going into our warmest weather when I had my surgery so slip on shoes were easy and appropriate... I bought some for the purpose as the way I wore out my shoes pre surgery had rendered most of my shoes worthless once the limp was gone! The only thing is I always wear something of a heel (I'm short, I compensate) so I did have some issues with shin splint type pain from the change of footwear style, but I wasn't going walking THAT far so it wasn't too bad. You'll find that your hip will feel completely different - it doesn't offer you support now, but post op I kept saying to people who asked if it 'felt odd' that it was only odd was that it didn't feel "odd" it felt somehow 'sturdy' from literally the first step; my joint had started to collapse, so perhaps it was because it IS sturdier than the original had become!

Regarding walking around a museum at 7 or 8 weeks. I was walking quite easily without a cane by then, but I didn't walk continuously for hours.... maybe you could have it available if you need it, or factor in "proper" breaks... as in breaks of fifteen minutes or more, five minute breaks aren't going to help that much!

If you are prone to catching "bugs" I'd be avoiding the risk. It is a balancing act; going to the gym to be as fit as you can vs putting yourself at risk of illness... how I'd look at it is that if you don't go to the gym and improve your fitness you may not be in as good a starting place in your recovery by a tiny amount, if you get a bug you won't be able to have the surgery, for sure! I wouldn't be risking it - you can always do some exercise at home... strong abs are a boon in recovery, you can do sit ups or mini sit ups (ab crunches) for instance, you can do upper body stuff using cans of food as hand weights... there's loads of things you can do to improve/increase/maintain your general fitness that doesn't involve the risks of going out in the weather or to "germ factories"

I still wouldn't do too much... any inflammation you take into surgery is inflammation your body has to deal with post op, when it has plenty else it needs to do; like repairing itself! I feel, and have been told by several 'professionals' that the amount of benefit I would gain by exercising (particularly exercises involving the hip) pre op was minimal... why not wait until the hip was "fixed" when exercise would not 'do damage'.... that said, I was advised to 'keep my weight under control' and to strengthen my core 'as much as possible'. I found that quite easy, and good abs (like I said) were a boon especially in the early days when you are using your core and upper body to 'lug' your lower body around to some extent (on crutches for instance) You can of course use ice pre op too to help with any inflammation you may get - you don't have to wait until after