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THR I have a brand spanking new hip!

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Hi @dandy_candi thank you!!!
The windows are actually pretty soundproof, so not too loud. There have been three helicopters (that I've noticed) come and go since I've been here and I've taken quite a few pictures and video. I love people watching too! I'm going home this morning :) and happy that we're having record breaking heat for April here in Vancouver...maybe I'll get the family to set me up in the garden this afternoon for a good dose of vitamin D!!! --Robin


RTHR, MIS (minimally invasive surgery), posterolateral approach, Feb. 15, 2016-cancelled :( waiting for a new date
 
Heading home...good for you @Kitsmom! I bet you're more than ready to get home to your family. I found a sense of security in the hospital, but by day three I was more than ready to head home. Congrats! :-)
 
Hi @ScarlettB thank you! Yes, I named my sweet kitty after Huckle in the Richard Scarry books...I loved those books as a kid, read them to my kids and still love them! We adopted two kittens from the same litter last September, brothers, the other is named Dandy. It's been awesome for me having them while I've been all cooped up, very therapeutic! I hope they're not scared of me, but thanks for the heads up, you're right, I'm sure they'll notice the hospital smell and I wouldn't be surprised if they're somewhat wary. Hope you're doing well, I'm going to catch up on reading threads when I'm all settled at home :) --Robin


RTHR, MIS (minimally invasive surgery), posterolateral approach, Feb. 15, 2016-cancelled :( waiting for a new date
 
Day 5, first day home sweet home.

I'm just about to take some medication and head off to bed for the night and I wanted to let you all know that I'm so happy to be home. I think that good restful sleep will really help with the whole healing process and getting sleep at all, let alone quality sleep is near impossible at the hospital! We bought a 4" memory foam mattress topper for my recovery bed and it is so comfy...I highly recommend it. Especially for side sleepers (me!), as it really helps support the good leg/hip facing down, I then use a pillow between my knees/legs to prevent crossing or twisting my legs, so that I am complying with my restrictions. The memory foam is also super cozy for sleeping on your back. I hope it will be sweet dreams for me :)
[Bonesmart.org] I have a brand spanking new hip!

I had a nap in the bed after arriving home this afternoon with Huckle and Dandy (I think they missed me!).


RTHR, MIS (minimally invasive surgery), posterolateral approach, Feb. 15, 2016-cancelled :( waiting for a new date
 
Glad your home @Kitsmom and glad the kitties welcomed you with cuddles! Hope my kitty does the same (she's not too cuddly normally but has days of more affectionate behaviour).

Hope you have a good sleep.


Candice, 29 yo. Rheumatoid Arthritis. Australia. Sequential unilateral THR June 1st 2016 and July 13th 2016 :)
 
Such a precious photo with your dear furries! May you get much restorative sleep at home, and a good start on your healing.
 
Welcome home, make sure you are pampered. Great view. I have trees out of the window and tree pictures on the wall, apparently trees promote good recovery.wonder who made that one up! I am so looking forward to seeing my lovely lab retriever who usually spends his time by my side or lying on my feet. I am going home tomorrow, bit scary, but boys have a football match I have to watch (just kidding). Take care of yourself :yes!:
 
Welcome Home @Kitsmom , meow meow. The kitty motor can be so tranquilizing. I love that they snuggle. With my most recent left THR I've moved to a spare bedroom and put up a pet gate to keep the critters out. I have four dogs and two cats and all but the two big dogs sleep on the bed. With the first hip it wasn't too crowded but we've acquired a new little adoptee in the past two months who is two years old and has to sleep on my feet along with our other little dog, so I can't get comfortable anymore. I have to sleep without them on me for a while. I hope they don't try to trip you. My cats get around my feet and demand canned food every day. I have to remind them to move. Sweet dreams and Quick Recovery! --julie
 
Day 6.
I had a good sleep last night, only waking up for medication and to pee, then falling right back to sleep. Had coffee in bed, while reading and doing stuff on the computer until almost noon when I had something to eat. I had a glorious shower to wash off 6 days of hospital, triple shampooed my hair and felt like a million bucks. In the afternoon I went out on the patio...it was so warm in Vancouver, like a summer day. My neighbour's wisteria is blooming and the air smelled amazing! I thought I'd try and venture a little further to our back garden and spent about an hour in the sunshine and fresh air...I even got the kids to drag the hose to me and watered along the border. Pretty tuckered out after that, so went back inside and watched a movie with my sons until dinner.
I've noticed how much bigger my right (operated) leg looks and decided to measure both legs. I chose 4 locations, knee, just above knee, mid-thigh and biggest point of thigh near groin. I did it yesterday also. Today's #s were 1"-2" bigger on right than left side, up from .5"-1.5" yesterday. I could also really feel the extra swelling tonight when I bent my knee...it felt so tight! So, question for those further along...how long did the swelling last? Days? Weeks? Longer? Any tips to reduce it other than icing and elevating or maybe details on your methods and how long?


RTHR, MIS (minimally invasive surgery), posterolateral approach, Feb. 15, 2016-cancelled :( waiting for a new date
 
Just ice and elevate! My knee and ankles would swell after activity so I used to try to preempt it by lying down with the ice as soon as I had finished what I was doing.

It's so nice to be able to get out into the sun - your garden sounds lovely!
 
@Kitsmom
Welcome home!! Love the picture of you and your cats. Very precious. It is a relief to be back at home and start recovering.
It was around 5 or 6 days when my knee and leg started to swell up. My leg looked like a tree stump. It seemed that it appeared so suddenly. It took while maybe 5 wks or so for the swelling to be completely gone. Just elevated and iced. it isn't too bothersome. My knee is still a bit stiff. But it gets better everyday.
Good luck on your recovery.
 
Hi @Kitsmom. I tend to agree with @Arlene56 - we both had ops on the same day. I reckon most of my swelling had gone by three weeks, with the rest gradually disappearing over the next week or so. There's maybe a tiny bit around my operated knee (with a minute amount of bruising) but apart from that, no swelling or bruising now

I iced mine, but probably not as much as Arlene. Initially I sat in a chair, but soon found that sitting on the bed was much easier (it is high sided) plus my leg is elevated

Although I am a lot more active now, it is not unknown for me to sit on the bed now

I have also found the bum clenching and sensible hamstring stretching helpful too

Hope that helps
Peter
 
Yes @Kitsmom with the swelling. Mine swelled with the first THR off and on for about 4-6 weeks depending on how much standing/walking I did. I'm 10 days out now with the left THR and I've got swelling most of the time. I don't notice it after I ice and elevate for a while but as soon as it gets "warm" or I'm up moving about without my walker it swells again. The right leg that is now about 14 weeks out was swollen on Tuesday night but my PT explained that I'm not using the walker enough and that the right leg is having to bear the weight when I get up and down or stand so I need to STOP getting about so much. Allow time for healing and ice both legs when possible. I walked our entire back yard on Tuesday afternoon without the aid of a cane or a walker (8 days post op) because my husband was gone and I "felt" I needed to take the pooper scooper and pick up after the dogs. My husband hates doing that chore and it is getting quite warm in Tennessee now and I don't want the dog poo left on the yard to attract flies. So, I became OCD and walked back and forth with my scoop and shovel and picked up all the poo and disposed of it. I went up and down a flight of about 16 steps at least 3X during the course of the day. I felt okay and felt that I could do this and it was, as you say, a beautiful day with warm sun and breezes and I felt the fresh air and vitamin D was worth it. I've been told to limit activity to about 10-15 min standing/walking per hour for the first two weeks then slowly add to that. So, when we speak about swelling and discomfort we know the reason. I anticipate some swelling anytime I overuse that joint or I stand or walk too much or the weather is quite warm. Even before my surgery, I could spend a day walking and standing and find my ankles swollen enough that I could see the marks on my legs from my socks. I think of swelling as my body protecting the damaged area so when I see it I know I need to get off my feet more and ice and elevate more. (I had a wonderful old physician when my children were little and he would always correct me when I said, they have a "bad" fever. He would say "Fever is your Friend". I like to think that in some cases, swelling is my friend as it reminds me of what my body is trying to do). I remember when the right hip had swelling at about 3 weeks out and I went to PT and asked why I was experiencing a still swollen joint and the therapist said, Because you are beginning to feel good and now you are starting to do too much. Reminder to Self, Rest even when you don't feel you need to. Ahhhhh, next time I feel the urge to relax outdoors scoop'n the poop'n I will snap my fingers for husband servant and take to the hammock for a siesta. You should also. Hugs, --julie :chillpill:
 
Thanks for all the advice on swelling, I was feeling good and think I did too much, which continued on to the next day...Day 7..." the best (a.m.) turned to worst (p.m.) day since the surgery and first time that I cried post surgery. Long story short, I was in considerable pain after being on my feet too long and peed my pants on the way to the toilet because I could barely walk!! That morphed into Day 8, the day I basically slept all day, which is why I am still awake at 4:24 am!!. Nodding off though, so thought I'd sneak in a quick update. Hoping things balance out a little tomorrow. --Robin


RTHR, MIS (minimally invasive surgery), posterolateral approach, Feb. 15, 2016-cancelled :( waiting for a new date
 
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