How Long 'til Normal?

[Janet]

I'm busy prepping mind, body and home for right hip replacement in November. I've received all kinds of info from my doc, but nothing about the long-term effects like: how long until you can bend at more than a 90 degree angle? How long until you can sit comfortably in a chair at work? How long until you can be intimate again? How long might it take until you can be off pain meds? I've been told that you're encouragedto sleep on the 'replaced' side to prevent abduction... how long until you can sleep on the opposite side - even with a pillow between your legs? How long does the average person use a walker/crutches/cane? (I've been using a cane for 2 years already).
When I get home from the hospital should I be able to get up the stairs to the bedroom or should I make temporary arrangements to sleep on the first floor?
So many questions... I'm 52 and overweight, but lost 100 lbs in the past year. I'm continuing to lose, but hoping that the ability to WALK will greatly help me in these efforts!
Janet

 

[Josephine]

Well, congratulations to you for loosing so much weight. That is a great achievement!

As for all your other questions, I could go through them one at a time but I really do recommend that you sit down and read through all the other threads on here., You'll find a wealth of experiential information in them from people who've been "there, done that"!! It will be much more informative and reassuring than all my spoutings, I'm sure.

So if, when you've done that, you still have some unanswered questions, just post again and I'll be very happy to do what I can. And in the meantime, I'm sure some other members will add their two penn'orth here as well.

 

[pt109]

Your questions are all good ones and I'll tell you my experience. I was able to do limited, one step at a time stair climbing using my good leg to lift me up each stair from the very beginning. That said, if you can, it would probably be a good idea to stay on one floor until you feel strong enough and stable enough to climb stairs every day. Stair climbing is part of your recovery exercise program and it is great for building strength. I was able to bend beyond 90 degrees at 8 weeks post-op, but this is something you really need to discuss with your doc. I was sitting comfortably at work after a month or so. You'll need a good chair with arms so that you can help yourself get up. I also put my operated leg on a stool to keep it stretched out in front of me and I got up frequently to walk around and keep that blood flowing. I was on a waler for about 5 days, a cane for another week or so and then off everything. I would take walks down the street and measure my progress in mailboxes passed each day. I made sure I added at least one or two mailboxes each day! That's a great way to mark progress. (By the way, I'm up to three miles a day now with my walking and I am still not even three month out of surgery.) I did not sleep on the operated side for the first 6 weeks. I was able to sleep on the other side after about three weeks. Most of the first 6 weeks were spent on my back in bed with pillows between my legs. You'll get use to it; don't worry. I did use the recliner chair almost all the time during the day. It was comfortable and I could keep my feet up to reduce swelling. I would walk around for exercise and then go right to the chair to get my legs up. Each day I did a little more walking and a little less sitting. I was on pain meds for about 5-6 days after I got home. I did not find this operation terribly painful. I think you will be surprised at how quickly you will recover. I felt myself after two weeks of recovery and at 8 weeks post-op I was pretty much back to regular activity including lawn mowing. You will feel one million times better after the surgery! Look forward to that.

 

[Janet]

Thanks so much pt109. Everything you've told me both here and my other posting has been just what I needed to hear. I'm looking forward to walking again with no pain/limp/waddles. I never in my life thought that I'd take such a normal,simple function like putting one foot in front of the other and feel jealous of people walking around me. Of course those people have no idea how I feel or how lucky they are. It's all so relative.
I'm excited and can hardly wait until 11/20 for my surgery. I have a healthy fear, I think, of the unknown, but just having the opportunity to DO something about this misery is absolutely fantastic. At the 'young' age of only 52 I'm feeling like there's nothing I can't do if I put my mind to it. I WILL walk normally again. This forum has been fantastic! Again, thanks so much for all of your support. -And thanks to everyone else who's posting on here and not afraid to share their experiences and wisdom!

 

[Josephine]

Atta girl! That's the attitude!

 

[tallman3]

first post 64 years old ,start having pain after walking a few hundred yards,
I had a pin put in my hip when I was sixteen for a slipping epithises {sp] they took it out about a year later and I have got along fairly well till the last six months when I started having pain. I knew I would have trouble with it someday , I had a mri done on it last week and they said it was impacted set me up with ortho. surgeon 9/18 I am still working {drive semi} I dont use a cane or any thing but just cant go as far as I would like without pain or bad limp. I live alone and am worried about the recovery though I would have no stairs too climb and am very active and healthy for my age.

 

[Josephine]

Hello, tallman. Welcome to the forum!

Your history sounds pretty familiar. Your slipped epiphysis is not an uncommon event yet most often occurs earlier than 16. But the long term is, almost inevitable, early arthritis. So now you're faced with the replacement and whilst I would say, don't have it done till you have to though the prostheses these days are so much more dependable than they used to be. So no need to worry on that score.

However, "impacted" means that either you've had a fall and broken it or the slippage has come unstuck and is acting like a fracture. Either way, that needs to be attended to sooner rather than later. Being on your own means the rehab will be problematic and you'll need to work out something with some relatives, friends and/or neighbours to see you through.

Keep us posted how you get on, yes?

 

[tallman3]

thanks for the reply , feeling less pain since I started on the vitamins and fish oil it may have something too do with the lubrication, I walked about a mile today and it was staring too hurt some. Do you think I should walk on it much ? or just what I feel like? Do you have an opinion as too diet or vitamins, thanks much for your input , I know you have a lot of experience,

 

[[email protected]]

Tallman,
I had my left hip pinned when I was nine, and unpinned when I was 10. My hip has bothered me off an on over the past 10 years, but have been able to live with it.
I am now 7 weeks after a total hip replacement, 51 years old, and have no pain. I was foolish to wait so long as you give up so many things due to the pain. Your recovery really depends on your frame of mind. The more optimistic you are the faster it will be. I was driving after the 2ND week following surgery and grocery shopping that same week.

I will say I am still not back to work as I received a gram negative infection in the incision, which almost caused me to have the new hip removed. I'm still on infused antibiotics, so i still have a few more weeks to go.

As far as excerise goes, it would be to your benefit to do the excercises that are recomended after surgery before you go in. I think this helped me alot to get back on my feet.

Anyways good luck what ever you decide.

 

[Josephine]

thanks for the reply , feeling less pain since I started on the vitamins and fish oil it may have something too do with the lubrication,

Not lubrication as such, just that the intake of the fish oil help your joint tissues to regenerate (apparently - I'm not a nutrionalist) and therefore start doing their job. Glucosamine does much the same.

I walked about a mile today and it was staring too hurt some. Do you think I should walk on it much ? or just what I feel like?

Definitely what you feel like and then a bit more. Never push yourself too much but don't stop while you think you can manage another ¼ mile either. As agmgr1397 said, most of it is pretty much up to you and your ability to cope with the consequences if one day you overdo it bit.

Do you have an opinion as too diet or vitamins, thanks much for your input , I know you have a lot of experience,

As I said, I'm not a nutrionalist so I really can't speak to these issues. I do know that glucosamine is highly spoken of though sadly, it didn't suit me at all. Certainly you need to have a healthy diet and keep yourself fit but that would be good regardless of the hip problems!

 

[Hillstcrew]

Thursday I will be 6 months post op.I am 42 and had AVN.I just can't put into words how good i feal.I was truelly blessed to have a wonderful surgeon and a quick recovery.there is nothing I can't do now that I did before.My advise to anyone is get up and get moving.My surgeon said "The more you sit,The more you sit".Good luck to all of you who are facing this surgery.It truely gave me my life back.A couple prayers to the good Lord can't hurt either.

 

[Aussiehippy]

what normal is?

Here I am nine months after my first hip replacement and four and a half months after my second. We travelled by car 3500 thousand kms I am working full time as a nurse and as we are on a working holiday doing all the things you do on holidays. I do not have any restrictions at work, however as I love my new life without pain I am careful when rock climbing. I find myself unconciously doing all the things that I wasn't able to do for a long time. My exercise regime has been stretching and walking. In an environment where we look after people with hip replacements nobody believes me I had both done until I show the scars.
My recovery especially with my first one wasn't that easy and I too reading the literature was very scared about being an invalid after surgery but it couldn't be any further from the truth. I have let my body tell me what it can do and what it can't do, before surgery I was loopsided now I am straight and walk without a limp and I feel my legs getting stronger as time goes by. If I had known how good it was going to be I would had done it a lot sooner and saved me the years of agonizing pain.
So think all the things you want to do and slowly build them up into your routine post op, you will know what is safe and what is not. If at first you have any aprehensions don't do when you feel more confident try again. It is working for me and am sure it will work for you.

Good luck there is light at the end of the tunnel even if the tunnel is very dark at times.

 

[Josephine]

ROCK climbing? Woweee! Now THAT'S what I call a result! Good on yer, mate! You're a credit to the cause.

 

[tallman3]

went to ortho surgeon for the first time after xray s and mri , he wanted to know if I was in much pain? told him after walking a lot, he said my hip was worn out , when the pain was too bad or I got tired of it he would fix it, gave me a prescripition for voltaren 2 times a day , I take it once in the evening seem to be enough. he gave me another appointment in two months , may have it worked on after xmas if there is not much change, lay around in the winter months
later tallman

 

[[email protected]]

Tallman,

I basically with meds was able to put off surgery for almost 2 years, but even with the meds you are still not the same. My wife told me after surgery how cranky and irritable I was even with the meds. You see for me the pain never really went away, it was tolerable. I did have surgery on 7/11/07. I thought this was a lucky date, but ended up 2 weeks later with a bad infection. Had to have a second surgery to clean out the site and be on an antibiotic for 6 weeks to clear it up.
I will tell you thou I had no painafter the first surgery. My hip felt fine. I am 10 weeks out and went to our county fair on Saturday. Must have walked for 5 miles, other than being tired, very tired, I was fine.
The only problem that I see for me today is my stamina is not good, I do tire easily. I feel the reason for this is that while I was on the meds before surgery, I was doing less and less, so even then I was out of shape. I think that the sooner you do it the better for you and your family.

Steve from California

 

[Josephine]

Only last July? That's still awfully early days, Steve. Barely three months.

If you had the infection after, that really gives your system punishment and that alone can take many months to recover from. It may even a full year before you wake up one morning and realise it's been a while since it was on your mind or that you were aware of that awful drained feeling. But be patient, it will happen.