THR I have a brand spanking new hip!

[keepmovin]

@Kitsmom Just caught up with your thread here but you sound right on track! You are doing great with little recovery issues. I have to say your hospital stay looked divine! It must have been so hard to leave with views like that. I had a view too and found it very soothing and healing at the same time. And your kitties!! Oh, how I wish I had my kitties back! I miss having cats around me. I am sure once you become anxious during your recovery time, your kitties are right there to melt those moments away!

Swelling is normal and I see you received great advice on that. It does get worse before it gets better and then you will get those occasional flare ups when you do too much. I don't think there's much you can do about it - patience, time, ice, elevate, rest. Boring but necessary. Take it from someone who has been there numerous times....slower is better to quicken the recovery.

Hope today is a better day!

 

[gullimac]

Listening to your body sounds like a skill that is tough to master. No matter how many we hear that advice from others it seems like something you have to gain from experience.

 

[Readysetgo]

@Kitsmom - Hope that swelling is better today. It does get worse when you over do things in the early stages. With time that swelling business should lessen as everything heals.

Loved the cozy pic of you and your kitties! I have 3 and they were so happy to have a sleepy mommy to cuddle with after my surgeries!

Hope your weekend is nice and relaxing!

 

[Jaycey]

@Kitsmom hope things are settling for you. Please do not overdo! It's so easy to get into the habit of trying to "return to normal" immediately. Give your body time to heal. Ice and elevate as much as you can. This too shall pass.

 

[shirleyH]

@Kitsmom i hope you are feeling better soon, I have big house and it's long walk to any toilet so I am having a bit of trouble holding on too and when I get there it seems to go anywhere but straight down! I did far too much on coming home going straight on to one stick, big mistake and now regretting it. Keep resting and just do some of the basic pt to keep moving your new hip. Take care

 

[Zelda]

I went to the toilet every time I stood up for the first few days just because everything took so long that waiting until I needed to go would have been too late - sort of like when you're at a big event and you know the queue for the Ladies is going to huge!

Listening to your body sounds like a skill that is tough to master. No matter how many we hear that advice from others it seems like something you have to gain from experience.

I think you have to learn it over and over again - the temptation to get back to normal is so high!

 

[Miss Muffet]

Ah @Kitsmom - we all have our moments don't we. Just feel sorry you felt so low. It is ever so easy to overlook what our minds and bodies have been through so don't underestimate the power of rest because that's when the healing happens. I grab a nap when it overcomes me. Wedge pillow under feet on the sofa. Iced like it was going out of fashion for days and cannot overemphasise what a boon it is to ease up that swelling, bring out the necessary bruising and make movement much freer. Take good care of yourself

 

[SweetPea69]

@Kitsmom
Great advice you have received here! As far as not making it to the potty goes, know that after surgery & a catheter it is not uncommon to have little or no control over the bladder. I had that problem & when I asked about it, found out others here did too. It too goes away.
Your kitten is beautiful. Enjoy naps with it & take care of yourself. Remember we expect others to be human but too often expect ourselves to be super-human & quickly return to our daily lives. One of the greatest gifts of the BS family is to remind us that healing takes time & we need to be kind to ourselves.
Rest & take it easy.
SweetPea69

 

[Kitsmom]

Thanks for all the positive comments!
Day 12 here. Things have been improving daily. I think after my last post (Friday) my Mom left...what a trooper, she was here for 9 days helping out with our kids and then with me after I was home from the hospital. My Dad came in on Saturday, took our daughter out to a soccer game (Vancouver has a MLS team, The Whitecaps), he stayed the night, made us omelettes for brunch on Sunday and went home later in the afternoon. I really took it easy over the weekend and I've been feeling really good. No pain, maybe a little discomfort at the incision site and sore muscles. I'm going to see my family doctor tomorrow for a post-surgery check up and he will remove my staples. We took a peek under the dressing last night and it looks pretty good, my youngest counted the staples...24, total, the incision is about 7 inches or 18 cm long, never had any bruising, yay!
Feeling really tired tonight, I had a friend visit today which was nice but just feel more tuckered out than usual. I've also been working on slowly reducing my Oxy to start weaning myself off...I think the pain is diminishing and the drugs are making me sleepy, I'll talk to my Dr. about that tomorrow as well.
--Robin


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

 

[Arlene56]

@Kitsmom
Glad to hear that for the most part you are doing well. There were a few times I just made it to the restroom. This is all normal. Even the tears. As you know, your body will tell you when you have done too much. Continue to listen and things will run smoothly.

 

[Miss Muffet]

@Kitsmom - hi Robin it sounds like you've bounced back (ouch) really well. The understanding and support of family of family is such a comfort isn't it. You'll be happy to be destapled - all these steps are milestones. Suspect you're going to benefit from sleep - I'm only a day ahead of you and have found that I'm sleeping heaps better and when I feel jaded I nap. I always wake feeling like I've done myself a favour.
Keep going, you're doing so well!

 

[Kitsmom]

Slept for 15 hours after my last post...listening to my body I love sleep and always have! Went to the doctor today and had all staples removed...the incision line is very even and fully closed, yay! The nurse who did it thought it looked great, so that made me feel good. I had no bruising at all from the surgery, no bleeding after being stitched and stapled, the dressing that she removed was pretty clean and dry looking. My doctor wrote out a schedule for me to reduce my narcotics. I really don't have any pain, just muscle soreness and the staples had been kind of bugging me. I need to reduce somewhat slowly though so I don't get any withdrawal symptoms.
It was great to get out of the house. The car ride was good...we have a large SUV and it was super easy getting in and out of and sitting without breaking my restrictions. When we came home, friends came over and brought dinner which was so nice. All in all, I'm feeling really positive for less than two weeks after surgery.
--Robin


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

 

[Jaycey]

My doctor wrote out a schedule for me to reduce my narcotics.

You will probably do this naturally anyway. What usually happens is you start forgetting doses. Typically you forget your midday dose. Do ease off these gradually. You may still need some pain management as you are only 2 weeks out.

 

[Kitsmom]

Well, it figures, after a good day yesterday, I had a rotten day today. It was constipation :( I had a four hour period of time that seemed like the worst thing to happen to me in my life! I never want to be in that situation again. Please give me your tips on diet, laxatives, etc.. I will be really happy to be off the medication that causes this!



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

 

[Arlene56]

Prunes and prune juice are what helped me. Lots of water as well. I did find that drinking the prune juice at room temperature helped me more.
Hope that helps. I think I saw someplace on here about recipes for bran muffins and prune butter. I will look and post the link

 

[Arlene56]

Ok. So constipation is under Reference and Library section. I don't know how to attach the site. Sorry about that. Maybe some other hippy can help.

 

[Kitsmom]

Thanks @Arlene56


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

 

[Miss Muffet]

@Kitsmom - hi. It's a nuisance isn't it. I eat prunes every morning and if things get stubborn I have a glass of warmed in the microwave prune juice before bed. Hubby includes loads of vegetables and salads in my diet, but despite this things can get slow. Guess it's the meds. Trying to keep hydration levels up and have stand-by over the counter bulking agents which are mixed with water. I suppose our decreased activity levels don't help either. Hope some of this helps

 

[Jaycey]

@Kitsmom please, please, please do not go off your pain meds. The constipation can be managed. Here's a link to the thread from our Library Constipation and stool softeners Don't use laxatives as they will cause cramping and you don't need that! Arlene's suggestion of warm prune juice seems to do the trick for many. Lots of fluids.

I can't find the link to the original thread but this is a recipe from one of our members that many have used. Not sure if you are up to baking yet but perhaps someone can help you out with gathering the ingredients and moving things in and out of the oven.

GET UP AND GO COOKIE RECIPE (makes 36 cookies)
½ cup margarine or butter
1 cup brown sugar
½ cup prune puree
1 egg
1 cup applesauce – any flavour
2 cups all bran cereal (I used All Bran Flakes)
1 ½ cups flour
½ tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon or spice you like
Directions: In a large bowl, cream margarine with sugar. Add egg, then prune puree, then applesauce and mix well. Add dry ingredients. Mix well. Drop by spoonsful onto 3 cookie sheets – 12 cookies per sheet. Bake in a 350o oven for about 15 minutes. Cool on pans for a few minutes and then remove. Freeze cookies and start with eating 2 cookies a day.

Prune puree: a 375 gram bag = about 50 prunes. Put in a small pot with 1 cup of water. Heat on stove top until hot. Cool and mash. Store unused puree in fridge. You can add grated lemon rind while cooking for added flavour. Or mash pitted prunes from can with some of the juice. Or use baby food prune puree.

@Cynthia777 swears by magnesium. Don't take more than 400mg per day as you will be "running" (if you know what I mean).

This too shall pass! Just a little bump in the recovery road.

 

[keepmovin]

@Kitsmom Constipation and a good night's sleep - two components of this recovery journey that I, too, still battle with. I keep plenty of prune juice and prunes in my pantry these days - never had this problem before surgery. As @Miss Muffet indicated, think it has a lot to do with little activity and no exercising. I am usually on the move all the time. All this seating really slows things down!

I will also add a little Miralax to my warm prune juice on bad days and then follow with lots of water. I will only use 1/2 of the recommended dose not the standard dose. I started taking probiotics, too, to help with the digestive system.

A nurse once commented that drinking warm prune juice serves no benefit once it goes through the stomach and then digestive system - laughed at the thought the body would recognize warm prune juice from cold. I beg to differ but didn't say anything. It's comes down to personal preference.

The Get Up And Go Cookie recipe looks yummy and will give this a try! Thanks Jacey!