THR Life and freedom on the recovery side

[Mamarey]

ByGosh, my nerve pain is when the groin pain is really bad and I feel the nerve pain running down the front of my femur. Your intentions were good as were mine. Progress not perfection

 

[Mamarey]

Josephine, where is that wonderful chart? When and where?

 

[Josephine]

In post #142 of this thread. Honestly - you don't even read your own thread! What are we going to do with you!

 

[Mamarey]

But I do. Several times a day. Usually nothing to read. Spend all my time reading other posts.

 

[Josephine]

Well, you obviously never read my post1 And all that work I put into it as well!

 

[zauberflöte]

Mamarey what are you reading your BS on? maybe there is some glitch with a mobile platform? Josephine points you at her post #142, and is echoing what I said some posts previous to that, Post#142. So go back post by post (this one is going to be #166) and track it down.
I am suspicious of all mobile devices... LOL probably no reason for it tho
Take care, girl, we're here for you!

 

[zauberflöte]

Mamarey I saw your PT update over on someone else's thread, and wondered if you would also put it here so we can all find it easily? It looked great! It sounds like your PT is a good one, and I hope there's good chemistry between the two of you.
How are you feeling after the spin on the exercise bike?

 

[Mamarey]

...updates for the week...long frustrating week, tested my patience again and again, for so many reasons.
Had my first PT today. Wednesday, was just my intake day and ROM measuring. Had some stretching Pt, and then had 15 minutes of ice and electro at the end. Felt really good. She said I have no worries with strength, already have plenty there. My whole focus in improving my ROM. Discussed my constant groin pain. She said if I do not see improvement after a week of PT, then I should schedule an appointment with my OS...could have tendonitis. I also inquired about a thread I read about NOT placing a pillow between legs while lying on side sleeping, because it would tighten the IB...she said no...the pillow is fine, and would not tighten. In fact she had a pillow between my legs while she worked with a roller up and down the outside of my leg. She then used what looked like a seat-belt strap and had it around her and then hooked to my foot. She rocked like she was rocking a baby, all while moving my leg outward. Felt so good. Yesterday, I had the 24 hour flu, so really felt punky all day. Still under the weather, tired and weak, and not sleeping really does not help.
Have had many home issues to deal with, with has caused major frustration, time, annoyance...
I am now only taking Celebrex in the morning and occasionally Tylenol. I have up my Lortab, which I was taking morning and evening. Really did not feel any difference, and was ready to be off narcotics. Continue to ice and elevate as much as possible. Added the bike at the gym, which my PT recommended. Felt ok, but hard on the bum... Trying to alternate the elliptical with the bike and stay away from the treadmill until my groin issues improve. Today my gait and walk has been better, simply because I was sick, and NOT doing as much.
Every day is truly a new day, whether it be a good one or a bad one...........

 

[zauberflöte]

Mamarey Oh what a great PT!!!!! When you described the "rocking the baby" move, my leg relaxed just reading it. I hope I shall be so lucky. {My wet cat, who has been out in Post-tropical Storm Andrea, says hello and would you like some fur? }
I wonder if the punky feeling was withdrawal if you just ran out of Lortab and stopped. I hope whatever it is, it will quit soon
I can imagine the bike being just a tad uncomfortable. I have the same problem with my bike-- a touring bike from about 1974. I bought a gel seat maybe 25 years ago, but it didn't help much.
I hope you do NOT have tendinitis!
Have you ever studied any form of relaxation technique or meditation? perhaps that could help you to relax enough to sleep. I sense you are a "tightly wound" person-- one of my sons is like that, and sleep is not his friend. He will need something one of these days. Exercise, as you customarily use, for example LOL.
Gait is all-important, isn't it? We'll all get there one way or another, one day or another Keep us posted, and enjoy that PT for me!!!!

 

[BarbaraR]

Mamarey, I stopped tramodol abruptly and had 3 days of withdrawal where I felt like I had the flu, and couldn't sleep because it felt like someone was sitting on my chest. It got better after that. I hope you get some rest and start feeling better soon. XO

 

[Mamarey]

I really think that it was a 24 hour flu thing, because I was only taking two pills a day. Who knows? I had vomiting and terrible stomach cramps and diarrhea. What is others experience with celebrex? I still have tramadol, but have not taken it. Tylenol has never worked well for pain for me. My main issue at this time, is addressing inflammation. My groin hurts, but my pain is tolerable.
zauberflöte...I am terribly allergic to sweet kitty cats...so will have to pass on the wet fur...I ended up developing asthma after having a wonder cat named Jepetto...loved him..he was my ex husbands cat, and when I was pregnant with my daughter, I ended up in the hospital for a week and was on way too many meds for a year and a half...been on the bike at the gym, so a little more comfortable than the spinning bike I have in my basement...need a nice lil pillow for my sore bum

 

[C Mac]

Have another question to put out there. I have began using Vitamin E cream on my incision, but am curious as to how long the upper leg remains hard and swollen and the ends of my incision are very raised and bumpy. The PA did not seem concerned, but am wondering how long before it doesn't look so angry and raised. I do scare easily, so hoping the vitamin E cream helps, I also have Arnica ointment.

It sounds like you may have some adhesions around your incision, or possibly just some muscle inflammation. Your PT should be able to assess this and do some myofascial release work if it's adhesions. The Vitamin E cream is really only a topical kind of ointment, it's not going to change what's going on under the incision. It does take a while for the incision to heal up.

Maybe you can ask your PT about doing foam roller exercises for your groin issue. It's simply rolling back and forth on the adductor muscles and tendon that is further up in the crease of the groin. I didn't do this at 4 weeks post-op, but I also wasn't in outpatient PT yet either. Just check in with your therapist to see if it's a feasible option first.

Take care,
Cardie

 

[BarbaraR]

Mamarey, I have a removable gel seat cover that I brought with me to PT for when I rode their stationery bike. I think I got it at a bike shop-- I've had it forever. It made the seat much less uncomfortable.

 

[LeeApril26]

Mamarey It sounds like you have a great PT. Terrific update. Hope the one week prediction is on target.

 

[Poppet]

Yes, sensible PT... I once had the 'rockin the baby' action by a PT Pre surgery and it felt great...

Hope you feel better soon

 

[Josephine]

I also inquired about a thread I read about NOT placing a pillow between legs while lying on side sleeping, because it would tighten the IB

You read that on here?

 

[zauberflöte]

What is others experience with celebrex?

I'm taking it once a day till day 21. The PA explained that they use it to "help patients get off the hard stuff". I am finding that ibuprofen would be working better for me-- at least one place that I never knew was arthritic has popped up through the percocet (!) b/c of not taking the ibu! I will be glad to get off it, because of the cardiac risk it seems to carry. I was truly hoping to get off everything, but my other hip is louder than it was pre-op while on plenty of anti-inflammatories and tylenol and 1 tramadol.
Is your flu junk gone yet?
I found alexthecat 's post about the IT band on Sharon's Anniversary Waltz, post #170 but Alex says DO use a pillow. I knew I'd also read about IT band recently and was lucky in my search

 

[alexthecat]

I found that for me it was more comfortable to sleep without a leg pillow by four or five months post-op. That is not something that I have ever or would ever recommend to someone in the early weeks of recovery.

 

[ByGosh]

Hello Mamarey I'm glad that you found your PT to be helpful and sensible. Please still try to be careful with the groin pain, as it can linger if it keeps getting aggravated. There's plenty of time for you to get to where you want to be, and the healing can't be rushed anyhow.
Glad your 24 hr. bug is gone and you're feeling better now. Icing and elevating is a great idea to help with the inflammation.
So sorry that you had to deal with stressful issues on the home front during this recovery. It can add a lot of worry for you because you're trying to get better and do what's best for yourself and your family. Good luck with that and take time out for yourself, too.
I hope you keep improving and you feel better as the days go by. You're still pretty fresh post-op, so be kind to your body, and if it hurts, baby it a little. Take care, thinking of you and sending lots of good wishes your way.

 

[Mamarey]

I have a foam roller at home, so I will ask my PT tomorrow what safe exercises I can use with it at home. She said that I can lie on my wood floor and use a strap ( I have a yoga strap) and move my leg open and shut, but not to lift my leg off the floor, because that would be too much strain on my leg. I can also use my foam roller to roll up and down my leg. Will have to dust it off, because I have not used it in years. I got it from my chiropractor.
Yesterday, I went to my niece's graduation party. It is not easy walking on uneven grass. I only stayed a couple of hours, but it was a nice little outing. Last evening, my daughter and I took a mini walk with the doggies. Mini walk of about a half SLOW mile. I took my oldest dog who turned 12 yesterday. He has a bad leg and goes slower than slow like me, but still likes to get out and smell new things. He made it almost the whole way before my daughter had to carry him the rest of the way home. I did all of that without my cane. This is such an up and down journey. I had my peak at 11-12 days, where everything seemed and felt great, then had two weeks of depression, pain and one wall after another. Since PT on Friday, I feel like I have made another step forward.
Slow and steady. Each day is a new day...progress not perfection...this too shall pass on the low days.
I continue to do well with the Celebrex. I am not taking anything else for pain and took my last Xarelto this morning. BarbaraR , like the idea of the gel bike seat. There is a bike shop across the street from my gym. Will pop in there this week and see what I can find. I am trying to alternate the elliptical with the bike. Still holding off on the treadmill for another two weeks while I work on my inflammation and ROM issues.
ByGosh , my PT said that if my groin pain does not improve or Increases, I should see my OS to rule out tendonitis. As of today, I am aware of the tightness in my groin and a little pain, but it is better than last week. I really think that PT is going to make a difference as well as beginning to work on stretching exercises at home.