Hellppp!

[Bean88]

Hey there

My name is Sarah, and im from Liverpool in the Uk and im 20. I've had Juvenile Chronic Arthritis since i was 5. Its attacked all my joints, i was able to walk of sorts up untill last year but my hips have severly deteriated.

Im having a double hip replacement on june 1st, and they plan to do both hips at the same time. This is really my last shot at getting my independence and freedom back, which as you can imagine is a very daunting thing!!

Im terrified of the op its self and what to expect, so any advice is greatly appreciated!!!

Thanks

 

[Josephine]

Hello, Sarah, and welcome to BoneSmart. Have you read around the older threads in here? And in the recovery forum? We could run through a lot of stuff but it would be so much better for you to read the experiences of people who have been there before you.

Having both hips done at once is great! Apart from meaning only one anaesthetic and recovery, you get right into being painfree straight away. Isn't that great?

Have they explained you will have a spinal anaesthetic? Don't let that worry you. It's nothing really, just a little prick in the back and then you go all numb from just above the waist down. And you wake up with no pain afterwards! They'll also give you a morphine pump with a little remote control thingy. When the spinal begins to wear off, you just press the button to get some morphine as and when you want it.

They usually get you up the next day to sit out in a chair for an hour or so and the next day, the physios will get you on a walker just for a few steps. You will be truly amazed that you are so totally free from the pain you had before the op though you will, of course, have a different kind of pain which is readily controlled by medication.

Hope this does for starters.

Remember this, though - for you this is a once-in-a-lifetime major event but for the staff looking after you and the surgeon doing your ops, it's just another day at work. So they know what they are doing. They know any hiccups to watch out for and they'll take remedial action promptly. You have nothing to worry about at all.

And in a few weeks time, you'll have you life back and be dancing and smiling again. If there's any specific points I haven't covered - and there must be - please post them. I know you'll be just fine. Liverpool has a good rep for joint replacements.

But read around the old posts in the recovery forum. Wealth of info there!

 

[aussie]

Welcome Sarah,

Great to hear you will be getting your independence and life back very, very soon.

Wishing you all the very best.

 

[Judles]

0welcome, Bean!!!! You're on your way! Good luck!

 

[mdakota]

hi bean, i wish you the very best. your young and deserve the chance to be young. take advantage of it. i know its scary because its a big decision, but i'm sure your going to do great.you've lived with pain now you have the chance for pleasure. i'm having mine staged 6 weeks apart june 8th is the right then the left and i really would rather do what your doing. i begged but, no dice. you have some of the best support you can find anywhere here and so much experience.
monique

 

[hurtingbuthopeful]

Hi Sarah and welcome!

Well you have found the right place for support! We ALL understand your fears, but just know we all have been through this surgery and you will be fine. You are young and that is a big PLUS on your end! It is awful that you have to deal with this at your age but it is what it is... Good luck! We are here for you!

 

[PRGal]

Hi Sarah & Welcome!
Everything you're feeling--especially at such a tender age--is very normal and understandable. Absolutely do take Jo's words to heart--they should calm you a bit and motivate you to explore this forum where you'll find a wealth of experience & information, including posts from many young people. Most of all, trust not just your surgeon, but yourself--you're making the right decision and the many decades of life ahead of you will be amazingly better for it!

 

[Jamie]

Welcome, Bean. So glad you found the forum to provide you with some support as you go through this very important step to a new and better life. All of us were scared before the surgery....it's VERY normal. You sound like a very "together" and wise young woman. You've been through a lot and that tells me that you are strong and will deal with recovery very well. There are others on the forum who are in your general age bracket, so you'll have company as you go through the surgery and recovery. Don't hesitate to post any time to ask questions or just to say hello. We have a caring group (who sometimes is a little crazy - which you'll see as you read some of the old posts). Jo was right, though....spend some time reading and you will feel much more confident that you can get through this. Here's a (((HUG)))) for you to start you on your way.

 

[Bean88]

Thanks everyone for your kind words it's so reassuring to know there are other people out there who completely understand how scarey it all is!!

I had my education session today, it was really helpfull, its just funny being the youngest person there! I was given a zimmer frame to start practicing on so i know what to get used to!

For the surgery im having an epidural and a light anasthetic - because i was really scared about hearing all the hammering and banging! my concern is that i would feel the epidural going in, im terrible when it comes to needles! The aneathatist also told me that because of my neck being fused they will need to put a small tube down my nose/throat why im still awake, and im really scared about that! just hoping ill be sedated when they do it!!

Nice to hear from you all

 

[prairienut]

Hi Sarah, I am almost 5 weeks post THR. All your worries are completely understandable, but the worry is almost always worse than the reality. I had an epidural and sedation. I also hate needles. They gave me a "cocktail" via IV just prior to surgery. I don't even remember the epidural being administered. The last thing I remember is a view of the surgery room as I was being wheeled in. The next memory is waking up in the recovery room feeling no pain at all. You will find that the staff are very experienced with handling patients with hip replacements -- there are a LOT of these surgeries being done now. Each week after surgery is just better and easier than the one before. You will be there soon!
Gail

 

[TBONE]

Hi Sarah--I am 51 y.o. male and had BTHR, anterior approach, on 4/01/09. I just had my 1 month post op appt and I was told everything is great...do whatever you want to do. So, obviously, I am thrilled.
I, too, was very anxious about the surgery. Fortunately, however, the anxiety was the worst part. Once I got to the hospital, everything went smoothly. The surgeons were very nice and competent and bilateral hip surgery is not, I repeat, not, twice as hard as single hip replacement surgery. Basically, it seems that one hip takes over and it becomes your good hip and the one to which you compare your weaker side. It is only slightly more difficult than single hip replacement in my opinion and you save all of the time, etc. of a second surgery.
I'm not sure what to tell you about the epidural. I was scheduled for a spinal with some other drugs, but the spinal did not take so they gave me a general. However, I never felt the spinal at all, though I was told before the operation that I might have some pain.
I know you are very young to have this surgery, but youth has its advantages too. In hindsight, I waited too long for my surgery. I had a condition known as slipped capital femoral epiphysis, which developed at 10-12 y.o. but was never diagnosed. From that, I developed arthritis, which I ignored for about 15-20 years. My point is, that I wish I had done it earlier as I would have had a swifter recovery.
I hope that your recovery is swift and that, as I did, you feel better the moment you wake up from surgery.
Tom
BTHR, 4/01/09
Jo is correct in that after the operation, they will get you on a walker and sit you in a chair. Later, they will have you walk down the hall and still later you will be doing stair climbing and more walking.

 

[Jamie]

Sarah, as the others have said, you will be given something to relax you so that any procedures that must be done while you are "still awake" will be easier for you. It's a neat thing they can do....you are awake and know what's going on, but you really just don't care and nothing hurts.....the wonder of good drugs!! You will be VERY relaxed.

And, if you find yourself getting overly anxious and nervous as you are in the preparation process (which can take quite a while), be sure to speak up and tell one of the nurses. They can give you some of those relaxing drugs at any point that you need them. This will be a lot easier than you are imagining....HONEST!!

 

[Bean88]

Hi Tom

Its really good to know that bilateral hip surgery isnt as bad as just having one done! I had my pre op education session today and it was all geared towards what to do after one hip! Im sure the epidural will be just fine, they said they would give me medication so i wouldnt remember it, which is a bonus!

Yeah the surgeon said that youth is on my side, and i've come at the right time as i've stopped growing etc.

How long where you in hospital for the BTHP? ive heard a lot of versions from 2 weeks to a month!

Sarah.

 

[TBONE]

Sarah-- 2 days! I was admitted on Wednesday morning and discharged on Friday morning. That's the good ol' USA and insurance companies for you. In truth, with staph infections, etc. I was better off at home. Once I could walk a a set of stairs, I was released. Teh drive home was easy and recuperation is always better at home.
Tom

 

[Steph]

Hi Sarah, my surgeon has told me 5 - 7 nights and that they will get me up the next day to walk a few steps on a walker, then the following day I will have hydrotherapy. I assume it is all onwards and upwards thereafter.

You are so young to have gone through so much and I am sure that this will really be a wonderful thing for you. The thought of any operation, or event that is outside our control is always a scary one. Just think of the future and all the great things you will be able to do.

Steph x

 

[Bean88]

Jamie - Yeah i'll be sure to be speaking up to them , i've asked if my brother can come down with me to the theatre why they get me ready just so i've got some one familiar and reassuring to me. I've had entonox before for joint injections and and it was great stuff!!

TBone - woah that is quick!! i think the NHS over here like to keep a close eye on us before we're let loose

Steph- Thanks its so great to hear such positive words! i have a lot of worry about what if it doesnt work ect, but hey its worth a try!! i love hydrotherapy i hope my hospital has that facility!!

Sarah x

 

[mdakota]

bean, can i ask, how are your knees at this point? with all you've been thru when you take those first pain free steps after surgery i want to do some cartwheels. well i'll have the kids do them for me. but believe me when i say i'm looking just as forward to your surgery as my own. God bless.

 

[Steph]

I have been worried too Sarah about what could go wrong but we have to be positive. The choice for me is I either carry on as I am using a walking stick and in constant pain or I give surgery a go and hopefully will soon be back walking my dogs again and will be able to push my new grandchild out in its pram after it is born.

Just the thought of all the things I will be able to do easily again, like bending down to get things out of my kitchen cupboards, walking upstairs, getting in the bath for a long soak (bliss), getting up off a chair without huffing and puffing (!!), being able to walk round Tesco's in one go, to be able to try clothes on without wondering whether I shall be able to get dressed again or get stuck in the changing cubicle, lol. Lastly, and I am sure there are many, many more - the thought that I will be able to sleep a whole night without waking up in pain everytime I try to turn over.

I reckon the list of positives far outweigh the negatives and the very real concerns we all have over surgery. A few months down the line and we will have forgotten all about the operation.

 

[mdakota]

steph you hit it. to be able to get dressed for work without wondering if i have to wake the kids up to put my socks and shoes on. to be able to walk thru the book store and just look. to stand and listen to someone without thinking the whole time about where i can sit. to be able to think about the day without counting the steps it will take to get thru it. to walk next to my kids without getting mad when one of them steps in front of me because it throws me off balance or hits my leg and sends shooting pains thru my whole body. to make promises to my kids and know i can keep them, i dont have to turn around and break them because i just cant move. to get up from a chair in under 5 minutes. lol. i plan to break speed records.

 

[Bean88]

Mdakota - i'll challenge you on the speed records haha! Totally agree with both your self and Steph - just to be able to do all the things that everyone else takes for granted is fantastic! Im at uni, and i'e never seen the campus from anything but wheelchair level, and i also have set my self the goal that next july I will walk across the stage to recieve my graduation certificate!!

Mdakota - my knees aren't in the best of health, quite swollen and out of shape, as my hips have deteriated its forced my knee's inwards and now i cant move them apart, so hopefully the surgery will improve that too :D