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THR Left THR- Yesterday!!

Your home PT seems to have common sense since they encouraged you just to walk and very few exercises. Mine was the same. I did very few exercises but did get up and walk around the room regularly in between reclining and icing. It worked for me.
 
Great pictures of you! Love that Beary.. You sound well taken care of and hopefully no more headaches! I hope you take your time on the PT,, especially in the first early weeks. I was happy to read that the home visit was promising and that they advised to focus on your walking, that's super!


Happy Healing today!
 
:nah:
Well bummer, my internet has been wonky lately and just realized this didn't post yesterday.

:wave: @KisstheskyBrace and welcome to the healing side! Love your bear story and that is an awesome shirt! Found me a couple of hip replacement shirts on Amazon as well, have to keep our sense of humor up! Sorry it took me so long to welcome you but was having some medical stuff of my own. And, because of that I can agree about the headache probably being leftover effects of anesthesia and a bit of dehydration. Keep pushing those fluids!
 
Okay something new today folks. Woke up okay but by afternoon my ankle was starting to swell a bit. Before bed it's I would say, noticably larger. Something to worry about or no? I have iced and elevated all day. Went for a walk around the house or 2, I'm certain I did not overdo it
 
Did they give you the compression kneehighs? I had a problem with those in that they caused my upper leg to swell painfully. I also seem to remember the whole leg swelling up and down randomly.

In your elevation, are your toes above your nose, with no big crease at the op hip? Did you eat a bag of chips or lots of salty other food?

I would call my OS in the morning to set my mind at ease. I hope you can get some decent sleep! And if it bothers you in the night.... call the OS! Someone will be on call who will advise you well.
 
Hello and Happy One Week Anniversary to you!

I think there can be increased swelling with not enough movement, just as there can be with overactivity. You can safely engage in a few 10 minute walks around the house at this point. In regard to the swelling, the only symptoms I’d be concerned about - pain and tenderness, reddish discoloration, warm to the touch. Your best bet is to continue icing and elevation. Please don’t hesitate to call the office of your OS to gain reassurance if you feel the need.

In my time here, I learned from, Sr Admin. Jamie, that it’s our lymph system that rids the body of fluid (swelling). So you want to get the fluid to the lymph nodes in your torso area so your body can more quickly process it. The lymph system works rather slowly on it’s own and much more efficiently with the assistance of gravity. The fluid isn’t draining into the hips, but contained with the lymph system and moving to the torso and lymph nodes located there. A colleague of ours on the hip side, CricketHip is involved in Therapeutic Massage and has often relayed this exercise to assist in manual lymph drainage. You may want to give it a try. I have, myself, and it’s very easy. This gentle, yet effective therapy will help prime your lymphatic system to move fluid and inflammation away from your leg, which in turn will help your range of motion and pain -

While laying supine, take deep breaths...deep, as in breathing in to a count of 5, 4, or 3 seconds, whatever is most comfortable for you. Hold that breath for another count of 5, 4, 3 then blow out completely, still using the count that's comfortable for you. A series of at least 6 reps may help get the excess swelling to move. To ensure you are taking proper deep breaths, place your hand on your naval and watch while taking in your breath, if doing this properly you should see your hand move up. Repeat this whenever you feel up to it during the day or night. Lying flat (supine) is best as the lymph nodes seated in your groin are less restricted, allowing for better lymph flow.

In addition, after the breathing exercise, place your hands lightly on your upper thigh, at the crease in your groin and lightly stroke upwards towards your naval. Be patient because it can take the body time to respond.

Hope you have a good one! :)
@KisstheskyBrace
 
@zauberflöte they did not actually give me compression socks, they said I could wear them but it wasn't required. I had a pair at home I put on today we'll see how that goes.
@Layla thanks for the massage tips I'll definitely try that out too! The swelling went down a little overnight and then came back after waking.

I had both my at home PT and at home nurse come today so I talked to them both about it. They both looked and poked and prodded and said it looks like normal swelling. The nurse especially said my leg looks great and it's normal swelling, keep elevating and icing so that's where we're left again today!

My nurse took my surgical bandage off and replaced it with a dry dressing- I think the incision looks scary but she said it looks great and she would know better than me! :heehee:
I think otherwise, no new developments to add. My Dad keeps asking how I'm doing I tell him nothing new: resting and icing and elevating and walking...rinse and repeat!
 
@KisstheskyBrace there you go then-- I would trust the independent medical opinions you got. Also, now you know what a good incision looks like! :snork:

I was at PT once where my therapist was also working with a TKR person. PT put on some KT tape to move the lymph along as this knee had a massive amount of swelling several weeks post-op. PT was well trained in proper use of the tape, and the result was fairly simple. Maybe your PT has this technique if your swelling persists uncomfortably long.

And I got news for you: icing and elevating is where you'll be left for a good while! :wink:
 
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Hi @KisstheskyBrace
I’m glad you received some reassurance from both the nurse and PT today in regard to the swelling and the appearance of your incision. I‘m sure it made you feel better. Great news!
I hope you have a nice weekend. :)
 
Happy Monday!
How are you doing since we last heard from you?
Hoping all is well and you’re settling into a comfortable routine. May today be a good one for you. :SUNsmile:
@KisstheskyBrace
 
@Layla good morning! I'm doing okay and definitely feeling settled into a routine.

I am still waking up with a headache every day so that's part of the routine I am not enjoying. But it still seems to go away as soon as I get a large glass of water down so it seems to just be dehydration. Ankle swelling has gone down so there's a win!

I've been continuing my broken record of, rest ice elevate walk and repeat. I've been doing some of the PT exercises really only the ankle pumps, quad sets and glute sets, and I've been working on walking up/down the one and only stair in my house. Down is easy, up is much harder!
I feel like I am still putting too much weight on the walker and I'm never going to be able to get off of it but I'm not letting it get me down. I'm trying and I know that's something I'll be able to work on with my PT.

In TMI news, I think I've got hemorrhoids. I tend to be regularly prone to constipation and told my OS before surgery. She gave me a stool softener I'm taking twice a day and I have prune juice at home. I've been eating a lot of fruits and veggies etc. 4 days post op on Tuesday I had my first (painful!!) BM. I think I've had a BM every other day since...none have been easy but they've all felt like, "oh I gotta go!" ...Friday when I wiped there was blood but I didn't see any blood in the stool it seemed to be just on my behind. My angel saint of a girlfriend had to look for me and she said it looks like a hemorrhoid. Yesterday, same thing again. So that's the only new thing going on lol.

And in very good completely unrelated news, we have officially adopted our XL senior kitty who we have been fostering since March!! She had been at the shelter for 5 years, adopted twice and brought back! It was a very meant to be situation with us. She's 12 years old and has a few health problems including, get this- a bad hip!!! What are the odds hehe.
 
@KisstheskyBrace
Hey there - if you're still on the opioids, try adding polyethylene glycol (Miralax or a generic version) to your anti-constipation regimen. For me this is much more helpful than the senna/dulcolax stool softeners.
 
Hey, congratulations first of all! Yes, that is a wonderful story and at age 61, after my first THR, I woke up and called for "mommy"...but then I was embarrassed. I don't think anyone heard me.

Also for your bravery and determination to get up and walk right away - good for you! Yes, the BP thing. I fainted with my first THR, maybe 10 days post op - lucky my husband caught me. Do you have a cuff at home? Check it out periodically. As everyone says, drink lots of water and that helps.

You have a wonderful attitude! What is the activity you are looking forward to doing the most?
 
Good report (well, mostly lol) @KisstheskyBrace !

i love that you adopted your very own Fatso(one name for ours). Our brothers are 16, indoor/outdoor, and the large one had nearly 13 years of feeding at neighborhood soup kitchens. We have JUST moved into a house Where we are able to keep them in only the large, activity-filled back yard. Fatso's digestive issues have improved considerably! Due to his obesity (should be 11/12 lb, was up to 18 at one point!), he developed OA in at least one hip, which got so very bad that I started the kitty meloxicam. Since walking for neighbor food was his only exercise, which he needed to keep his gut moving, I wanted him to be in less pain. He's improved so much since the move that a couple of times he's seriously contemplated jumping up to the kitchen counter!

There is a hilarious story by a 2013 member here about trying to get her cat's kibble bowl to the floor with her grabber. The cat was surprised and delighted with the results of that experiment! I had to feed mine up on a table for my first hip (anterior, painful to bend hip crease enough to reach to the floor) but strengthened hip #1 to the point I could feed them basically one-legged, with op leg as ballast, for #2.

Very sorry about your TMI. Ugh. But maybe it's just cracked skin-- I did have a similar blood spot issue, both times.
 
@Hipster-2 thanks for the tip I'll look into adding that too! My newest addition is benefiber we'll see what this does for my system :fingersx:

@Chrismcd fainting is no fun, yes very lucky that your husband was there to catch you!! A fall that early post-op would be a scary thing. I don't have a cuff at home but it's something we've been talking about. For now my PT and nurse coming to the house are taking my BP regularly so there's that.
The activity I'm looking forward to most is going to Disney!! (When they reopen) I live in Orlando and go to Disney at least once a week..I had been doing the parks in a wheelchair for the last 3-4 months before they closed due to corona. I can't wait to go walk around the park with no limping! Okay okay maybe that's a stretch I know it'll be a while before I'm walking that many miles in a day... truly just looking forward to walking again, I can't wait to just walk to my mail box without limping :heehee:
 
@zauberflöte I love the stories of your Fatso!! Ours was up to 18 lbs at one point too according to her medical records, and they say she should be 8-9!? I call BS but she is down to 15 right now and we have her on a strict diet.

I bet that kitty was happy with whatever happened in the story with the grabber!
:catdance: :rofsign:

Cracked skin sounds better than hemorrhoid so maybe I jump to conclusions... either way I'll be monitoring and being careful and adding more fiber and everything else moving forward.
 
Congratulations on your new family member. Lucky kitty to find a home. It is sort of funny for many people that it is the little things like walking to the mailbox that we look forward to. For me it is being able to get on and off the lawn mower without pain. I like mowing the grass. You will get there. It is still early days for you.
 
@leejaa thank you! It is early days I appreciate the reminder. My mom also enjoys mowing the lawn!! I have always hated it. She bought herself a fancy John Deere riding mower last year because she has about half an acre to do. Sounds like yours is a riding mower too? I bet that would be easier and more fun than a push mower :heehee:
 
Good Morning!
I’ve read online that those post op headaches can last from a couple days, to a couple weeks. I’m sorry you’re still struggling with that morning ritual. With any luck the day will come soon that you wake without one. Wondering if drinking more water during the day may benefit you? Doing so may also help with constipation since constipation is related to dehydration in the colon. :wink: Definitely worth a try...kill two birds with one stone.

Aside from the above it sounds like you’re doing really well. Congrats on adopting the cat!

Walking Disney is an ambitious goal as that can be exhausting, I’m sure you’re aware as a frequent guest. It’s certainly something to daydream about and look forward to. Soon you’ll be back there fulfilling your dream, pain free. Woohoo! :happydance:

I hope today is a good one. :)
@KisstheskyBrace
 
@KisstheskyBrace update on the grabber-borne cat food: the kibbles rained from the sky but thankfully the bowl missed the kitty. My cats would love if I spilled their treats all over :rotfl:

i should introduce you to my Disney fan friend! Several visits a week sounds like an easy way to get your walking in, BUT! not yet of course. This time next year you'll be high-stepping farther than ever, but meanwhile, the mailbox, no limping!:yes::SUNsmile:
 
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