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Life has destroyed my hips; surgery August 26, 2013.

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Wow I'm really surprised and happy about all you people, friends responding. You folks are very encouraging. I wasn't aware there were so many people in my position. Thanks to you all for your support, it really makes me feel like I'm surrounded by like minded people. Who knew hip issues and hip replacements were so prevalent? Not me.

Work today like every day was absolutely brutal. My god even my medication does nothing. That's another reason I can't wait to have this resolved, I hate having to rely on pain meds just to be able to get out of bed. Because my meds are so ineffective I have to portion them so I'm able to have enough to get me through the work week then on the weekends I deny myself with the rational that they're more important for work.

Then my family suffers because I'm virtually useless and withdrawn because of no medications. Its a self induced roller coaster of hell. I'm embarrassed to be seen with my sons and grandkids cuz I walk like a weirdo even with canes. I'm so ready for this. I feel really good about joining this forum. You people's support is awesome. Thank you.
 
roofmaster you are welcome. We all have been there and look how we all feel now. Yes, there are some roller coasters in recovery but compared to the life you are living now they are very manageable. Not to mention the mental side of the pain. As you said yourself, you are withdrawn and I'm sure your family has no idea what you are going through, even though you are obviously in pain. It gets in your head and turns you into a different person.

Keep your eye on the prize
 
You still have a month to go before surgery and even one day in pain is too much. I do know that there are people on this forum who know a lot more about pain medication than I do. I would like to think that with all you are going through your doctor has thoroughly examined your pain control and is doing the best for you. However when I read that you have to save your pills for the weekdays I wonder. I don't think you can totally eliminate bone on bone pain before a hip replacement and i did read that too many opioids before surgery will decrease their effectiveness after, but have you told your doctor it is far from being under control and what does he/she say? Are you putting on ice?
 
Roofmaster I just can't imagine how you do roofing work with the pain -- I can barely get to the kitchen, and I couldn't climb a ladder to save my soul. I know all about the "withdrawn" thing and about how pain messes with your mind. Some days I do not recognize myself. I, like you, am just looking forward to the day it will be over with. AND, don't be embarrassed to "walk like a weirdo," We've all done it -- I still do it (with two canes), and I can't hardly do it at all, at that. You are probably the only one that thinks you "walk like a weirdo." Everybody else probably realizes you are in pain and are doing the best you can. You should be very proud of yourself that you are hanging in there the best you can to support your family! You have friends and supporters here, and we all understand what you are going through and it is no fun at all, to say the least.

Peace and love to you.
 
Ya cnydutch the pain does get into your head, its in mine24/7. Always approaching every scenario based on how much pain above the constant base pain. Setting up ladders, staging, getting bundles and planks up there. Hell just rolling over in bed. Keeping my eyes on the prize.

The issue with my pain meds is because I still work at heights and ladders. My Doctor prescribes time released morphine sulphate which are not as effective as other medications but I need to have a clear head in his mind so I'm stuck with ineffective pain management in order to work. Like a catch 22. Hopefully soon this will all be over with new hips. Thanks people
 
You are going through a tough time Roofmaster, I worry about you on those ladders...
 
Roofmaster said:
Who knew hip issues and hip replacements were so prevalent?
Click to expand...
Hi there, Roofmaster. You might be interested to know that around ¾ of a million hip replacements are done every year on this planet of ours! That's how prevalent it is! And more knee replacements! It's also the most successful surgery ever devised ever since the beginning of modern surgery.
Roofmaster said:
My god even my medication does nothing
Click to expand...
Well, I have some news for you which actually won't surprise you - there isn't a pain med yet invented that will do more than take the edge of arthritic pain. Nothing works, nothing at all.

And I worry about you climbing ladders when you have this much arthritis in your hips, this much pain and are taking morphine to boot. But I suppose - as the saying goes - needs must when the devil drives! :wink:

You might find these links have some encouraging information
Recovery Aids: A comprehensive list for hospital and home
Stories of amazing hip recoveries
Dancing after THR: 4 months pics THR
Hips that have lasted 41, 40 and 32 years
Longevity of implants and revisions: how long will my new joint last
 
Well tomorrow's August so let the count down begin! Twenty-six days with all of us in your court and then a crowd of happy cheering friends when you come out the other side.:yay:

By the way Roofmaster you may have noticed people's names written in blue in some of the posts. That is a means of tagging someone so that they get a notice in their alerts ( top of page) to read what was written to them. Just go to the box below like usual to type your message and if you want to reply to a "particular" person, hit the space bar once then type an @ sign followed immediately by their name example @johndoe. Continue writing your message. When you post it, you will see that their name is blue.

I have trouble rolling over in bed as well......have to grab the headboard to turn myself.:)
 
Roofmaster I had both hips replaced a few months apart. You are where I was with pain and loss of movement. Now the bone crunching pain is gone. The worst thing about surgery is the waiting for it. It does help to vent on here as we all understand what you are going through. You don't have too long to wait now and you can put all of it behind you.
 
Roofmaster, It is hard to think of you doing the kind of work you do with bad hips. Please stay safe until the surgery. You will not believe the immediate change once you have it. I understand about how pain changes your personality. Your family probably feels helpless watching you suffer and not being able to change things. Remember, they love you, and the way you walk is not something that enters into their feelings about you. My husband says that when he saw me immediately after surgery he almost burst into tears because I was awake, and all the pain was gone, and the woman he feel in love with was back. It was as if all the horror of the past couple of years had just rolled away. And this was IMMEDIATELY after surgery -- not more than an hour or so -- and he could already see the change. I have felt my personality returning in the three and a half weeks since my surgery. The real you is still there, and you will emerge from this horror show once you have the surgery and begin to recover. The recovery period is NOTHING like what you have been going through.

Be strong, and know that there are a lot of people pulling for you. Help is on the way.
 
Hey Roofmaster , I read your story and am more than familiar with the pain. I am 41 and just had BTHR, that is both hips done and once. It's very important you find a hip specialist or joint specialist you are comfortable with. Positive references is key and a doctor that can do your surgery next week is not a good sign, normally. If they are good then they will be booked up, you want your hips done right and do not settle. You should be a candidate for BTHR because of your age, and if you are fit and if you both your hips are destroyed from OA. A good doctor should be able to assess you and offer it if they think you are a good candidate. It also doesn't hurt to find people in this forum that are around your area and get Dr. recommendations from them. You should be able to find something on a Dr. you choose. There are so many patient rating websites out there. Get as many opinions as you like until you are comfortable with.. Read my pre and post op threads.. And ask me any questions you like. I try to post as much as I can so I can give others an idea what to expect but in the end all our bodies are different so we will heal differently.
 
Roofmaster I was a nervous nellie when I first came to Bonesmart and now I am actually looking for ward to my surgery in just 9 days from today! The more you read here, talk with others and learn from them the better you feel. Thats not to say I won't be nervous the night before and the day of but right now I would say it cant come soon enough!
 
Ok 23 days left. I'm just slightly concerned that I chose the right doctor. Through my primary care I was set up an appointment with an Orthopedic surgeons office in Wareham Ma. When I saw him I brought with me my x-ray reports and the x-rays from five years apart on cd rom. While waiting to see him the nurse brought the images up on the computer of my hips. He comes in and I say hi my x-rays are on the screen and he says that's fine but I want to speak with you before I look at them. I describe my horrible existance and he genuinely seems concerned and imitates exactly how I walk and compensate to stand straight by bending my knees and unless my arms are five feet long its impossible to tie my shoes or clip my toenails. He seemed to understand thouroughly what I was going through and said he can fix me up and get my life back.

I don't know but I felt comfortable with him and just accepted he knew what he was doing. How do I know I made the right choice? It's 23 days from being rid of this albatross. Monday morning I go to the hospital for pre surgery testing and stuff. I so don't want to wait anymore but I want to know a snake oil salesman isn't cutting the tops of my legs off.
 
who is the dr. and hospital... What did he say after he looked at your x-rays?
 
After looking at the x-rays he said I have what they call "end of life" hips.There is no space at all between the ball and acetabulum and in fact where they are rubbing there are flat spots on the top of the ball and the corresponding acetabulum. It was quite clear they were contacting each other and grinding away material.

His name is Stephen A Heacox MD out of Wareham Orthopedics Wareham Ma. The hospital where the surgery is being done is Tobey hospital in Wareham Ma.
 
Roofmaster, thank you for sharing your story. You came to the right place for information and support. It made such a difference for my RTHR which I had July 10th. And yes, the bone on bone pain goes away immediately. I noticed in the recovery room and then again when I walked that same evening. I have had an amazing recovery over the last 3 1/2 weeks. I think part of it is because I am relatively young (55) and in good physical shape ('cept for the terrible hip pain I HAD). The other reason was that the process was demystified by the stories I read on this forum...and the support pre and post op.

I went to visit my work earlier this week and so many people told me its great to see me walking standing straight up and not hunched. And I looked good and smiling cause I wasn't in pain. Was good to get that feedback. Heck, I've even lost weight since pre-op. so yes, you will get your body and life back...relatively quickly.

Don't worry that your doc is not on this list. As others said, just make sure they do lots. I live on the North Coast of California and we don't have any surgeons who do these surgeries often. I ended up going down to the San Francisco Bay Area and had my surgery done at Stanford University. Good move and only able to do cause we have excellent insurance. Glad to hear you do have insurance now. Where are you having your surgery done at?

You made a great move by coming to this forum. It will make all the difference in the world.
 
Okay,
A couple things that don't give me the warm and fuzzies and they may be minor.
1. I can't find any actual patient reviews on him and he has been practicing for 25 years. Do you know anybody that has used him for hips or find out if anybody else in this forum has used him. How many hip replacements has he done? Why isn't he doing bilaterals on you so your immune system and body isn't taxed. Get it all done in one surgery. That way you don't have to be concerned with leg length issues.. It seems odd to me to cut you one week and then cut you two weeks later to do the other.. I'm not a doctor but that doesn't sound right to me.
2. How many other hip or joint specialists have you seen?

The doctor I ended up going with was personally recommended to me after I was not happy with any I talked to our found in my search. Once I looked him up I found so many positive reviews on him and he was booked up so at that point that I haven't even seen him yet I felt more comfortable. Even then I still got other friend referrals for sports doctors that referred to the best hip specialists in the area.

Listen to your gut and if this is the only guy you have talked to recently it doesn't hurt to get other opinions . I saw you have 5 years of x-rays so it does sound like you have seen other hip doctors.
 
Goody2Shoes3, those are canned ratings. I don't like or trust those. I want to see what he did on them and what their experience was..
 
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