@eaglemom Sorry in advance for the length of this post. Brace slippage is such a widespread issue that there is an official term for it: "migration." I discovered this after I googled "how do I keep my brace from slipping?" The person who solves this problem for the industry will become rich indeed!
My solution evolved over time. Although I did not realize it and was not educated about it by the people who fitted me with it, my brace is a Donjoy brand that is length adjustable by sliding the side support bars up or down one or more notches. I discovered this one day after dealing with slippage for the umpteenth frustrating time. So, I lengthened the lower part (below the knee) to the point where it reached my ankle, making sure the hinge part remained centered at the knee for proper support. There was then no room for it to slip down. With regard to sensitive pressure points, we got some fake lambs wool/sheepskin from a fabric craft store and cut pieces to put between my skin and the part of the brace that was pressing and hurting. This included the area of my incision, which remained sensitive long after the stitches came out, and my ankle, where the end of the brace came to rest on some of the bony parts. We just encircled the ankle and then buckled up around it.
Before we figured out that adjusting the lower leg length would solve the slip problem, I was trying to rig something that would prop up the bottom of the brace or something that would hold it up. I thought about two leg warmers rolled up on each other to make a sort of tubular cuff encircling the lower leg and acting like a stop for the brace as it tried to migrate downward. Then I thought about a strap with clamps on the end, holding the top of the brace in the clamps while the strap was slung over my shoulder, kind of like a suspender. I don't know how these ideas might have worked since we hit upon our other solution before I tried it.
If your brace is length adjustable but you are not supposed to remove it, you might have to call your doctor's office and ask if you can come in and have them adjust the length to extend to your ankle so it can't slide down. I was never told not to remove mine, only that I was prohibited from bending the knee. So I got fairly creative, as my recovery thread can attest. I don't want to give you any tips that would contradict what your doctor wants. Funny thing, now that I'm four months out and my surgeon says get out of the brace, I miss it and sometimes wear it if I'm feeling uncertain about my strength and balance. I'm in outpatient PT with a good private PT practice and still have a ways to go.
I read about your experience with a pain doc and with home based PT with interest. The pain clinic insistence on your having a hip evaluation bothered me. Don't let yourself be talked into interventions that other medical personnel have not found a need for. Something about that did not seem right. I was referred for home based PT once I was cleared to start rehab and the therapist was very pushy on the phone, calling me on Christmas Day multiple times and telling me he wanted to schedule five days a week. When I pushed back and said I would not commit to such a schedule he then said he would refer me for assignment to someone else. All of this took place on the phone without his ever having seen me. When I talked to the home health office the next day, they all of a sudden found reason to question whether I might qualify for home based services at all, citing Medicare restrictions. By then I'd decided I just did not want those people in my home so I declined their services. If someone had labeled me uncooperative, I would have made sure they got an earful and understood that I did not feel comfortable with strangers coming into my home. But then I've never been too shy about quietly questioning authority, LOL. Sometimes I wonder about waste and fraud in the industry.
I know what it's like to have your hopes for a good result dashed. Feel free to ventilate at any time!
As I say on my own recovery thread, hobble on!
United States
