Bilateral THR I’m far 2 Hip for these lousy joints

[MrDIY]

...So here I sit the night before. A little jittery.
check in is at 6:00am surgery scheduled for 9.
Did my laundry. Set aside my clothes for tomorrow. 2 Kids are staying at Nanas house tonight. She will take them to school tomorrow. The 17 year old wants to stay home.
Went upstairs to double check my pre-flight checklist I remembered something about no alcohol after a certain time...I’m thinking it was 10:00pm? Get up there and check the sheet. It reads, “no alcohol the night before after 6:00 pm.”
The nurse underlined “after 6:00 pm” I suppose to highlight it’s importance.
I glance at the alarm clock which is just beyond the paper that I’m looking at, in the same plane of my gaze. Like a movie scene where the camera shifts focus from the foreground to the background without moving. The clock drops a hammer, it’s 6:28pm. For a brief moment I’m crestfallen, then a rebellious scream from deep within bubbles to the surface, “ IT! What’s 30 minutes? This is a guideline! Like the expiration date on the milk in the fridge.”

I make haste downstairs and pour myself a brandy, cause I’m out of bourbon. Sit down and take a sip. I realize that I had better rent a movie to divert attention. Wife is picking up dinner. Wake up is at 5:00am for my final bacterial scrub, Down with the Prokaryotes!

I can’t wait to read this after it’s done and roll my eyes at the melodrama hahaha.

 

[Clipper]

Well, hopefully you won't wake up beyond the pearly gates (or worse) and regret that glass of brandy. Good luck - we're pulling for you!

 

[Layla]

STOP, @Clipper !!
Only a man will do that to another man, lol.

Jittery is normal @MrDIY It's not melodrama. You'll do fine.
Once you get to your surgery site the time will fly and you'll wake in recovery in disbelief surgery is behind you.
We'll be here when you're feeling comfy enough to post.
Hope you get some sleep tonight

 

[Layla]

Following you'll find the the Recovery Guidelines -

Hip Recovery: The 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
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​

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?

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.

We try to keep the forum a positive and safe place for our members to talk about their questions or concerns and to report successes with their joint replacement surgery. While members may create as many threads as they like in a majority of BoneSmart's forums, we ask that each, member have only one recovery thread. This policy makes it easier to go back and review history before providing advice.

 

[MrDIY]

Well, hopefully you won't wake up beyond the pearly gates (or worse) and regret that glass of brandy. Good luck - we're pulling for you!

Well at least they would have better stuff than that brandy if I wake up beyond the pearly gates!

 

[JoeKnows]

@MrDIY the first time I took shots with my dad was the night before his open heart surgery - much to my mom's chagrin, because he wasn't supposed to drink. He's totally fine. You're good.

Just don't take my seat as the chair of the stubborn idiot sub committee of the ODIC when you're back at home. I may have resigned the postition, but it doesn't need to be filled, haha.

 

[Alitm]

Good luck @MrDIY Wishing you the best tomorrow morning. We'll all be waiting to hear from you on the healing side! You've got this .

 

[Jaycey]

See you on this side soon - all the best!

 

[Izabel]

Wishing you the best @MrDIY for today. Boa sorte!

Your post did make me chuckle, need that at the moment as I wait for my Revision next week. I check in at 7am but cannot eat or drink after midnight, so I'll be okay with my rum & coke in the evening! They don't mention alcohol here. When the Anaesthetist asked if I drank and I said yes his response was "the red wine is very good here."

Not liking the medicated wipes ... have to shower then wipe the night before in a particular order, change bed linen, then shower and another pack of wipes (8) in the morning.

I'll check in later to see how things went.

 

[Mojo333]

You are on your way to ridding yourself off that horrid hip pain.
All the best...all temporary with massive payoff!

 

[MrDIY]

I’m out of surgery. The surgeon told my wife that it took longer than he expected because the pins were harder to get out than he thought and because I have a lot of muscle that was hard to get around. He told her I was going to be sore because he really had to yank and manipulate the muscles to access the joint .

I woke up at about noon but only briefly. People would to talk me but I would literally fall asleep after a minute. the nurse thinks that because the surgery went long, the anesthesiologis over did it making sure I stayed out. It’s 12:23 am and I am only now able to pick up my phone and read stuff without losing focus and dozing back out.

I was able to walk to the bathroom. But they tagged me as a fall risk because I was so out of it. When I got to the toilet I had to sit down due to dizziness.

 

[MrDIY]

Oh yeah. He was able to remove the pins using only on incision . I’m very happy about that!

 

[Mojo333]

@MrDIYSo glad to hear you are done and actually able to post.
Better than I was.
These first days can be rather jolting...but you are on your way to healing!!
Sending you all the best...new Both At Once !!

 

[Jaycey]

Welcome to the other side! Easy does it until you are feeling more confident on your feet.

 

[Barbaraj]

Wahoo, surgery is over and DONE and now the healing begins. Sounds like a long and difficult surgery but successful, so now all that pre-surgical energy and focus can shift over to the healing side. I agree with all that the first few days will be a bit foggy and perhaps difficult, but I continue to believe your pre-surgical fitness will definitely stand you in good stead. Get those meds sorted as soon as you can to keep on top of pain, and take it easy--it's not a race, and you need to take all the time your body needs to steadily, if slowly, heal. 2019 is going to be fabulous, remember!

 

[MrDIY]

Thank you @JoeKnows , @Jaycey , @Izabel , @Mojo333 , @Barbaraj .

Getting ready to get discharged. Nurse said it should be in about an hour. Today is such an improvement over yesterday. Vomited 2 times yesterday and could not eat or stay awake. Today, using walker, walked to the bathroom 4 times, walked 50 feet with my wife. Then later walked 50 feet with PT and did stairs. She showed me the exercises that they prescribe but didn’t have me do them. I ate all of my breakfast and lunch and no nausea!

 

[Barbaraj]

Great—on your way home, let the recovery begin! Glad the stomach issues got resolved, those sound nasty. Will be interested to hear how things go when you’re home and settled in—best wishes!

 

[MrDIY]

Great—on your way home, let the recovery begin! Glad the stomach issues got resolved, those sound nasty. Will be interested to hear how things go when you’re home and settled in—best wishes!

Yes no more nausea! Made it home and up the stairs! the last 3 steps were tough. Made it to the recliner and got the ice packs on.

 

[dlp]

Welcome to double hip life... don't screw it up!

 

[Mojo333]

Glad that nausea is gone..and you are Home.
Those stairs with two Sore legs...I had a three step journey to the door too.
Now I say that I was super frustrated and kind of hating life for the the first week or so.
All temporary!!
Do only what you must and let all that trauma settle.
You did it!
New double hippy in the house!