THR Made it to the other side!
- Thread starter HandyAndy
- Start date
- Status
Josephine
NURSE DIRECTOR EMERITA
Andy, that fatigue is perfectly normal - look here Energy Drain for THRs
Had my 6 week follow up yesterday. It was a long 3 hour drive just to take images and talk with the OS for 3-4 minutes! He wants to see me again in 3 months. I am hoping he will let me take images here locally, have them sent to his office, and consult with me by phone next time.
He said the implant looks good, that I still look a little pale, to him (from blood loss), but my wife thinks I am looking more normal than ever. Informed me that the stiffness I have from sitting for prolonged periods may stay with me the rest of my life (due to the traumatic fracture injury I endured). He thought that I would be feeling really good and perhaps back-to-normal in about three months time. He did not have anything to offer in terms of dealing with my pririformis pain. He said it should just go away with time as I get stronger and rebuild muscle mass. All in all it was fairly uneventful....but I guess that's what one hopes for after a THR!?
He said the implant looks good, that I still look a little pale, to him (from blood loss), but my wife thinks I am looking more normal than ever. Informed me that the stiffness I have from sitting for prolonged periods may stay with me the rest of my life (due to the traumatic fracture injury I endured). He thought that I would be feeling really good and perhaps back-to-normal in about three months time. He did not have anything to offer in terms of dealing with my pririformis pain. He said it should just go away with time as I get stronger and rebuild muscle mass. All in all it was fairly uneventful....but I guess that's what one hopes for after a THR!?
Poppet
Nutritional Advisor
- Joined
- Sep 5, 2011
- Messages
- 14,649
- Gender
- Female
- Country
Australia
Sitting too long sets me up too Andy, I am happier walking but then I run out of energy... Good to be reminded of Jo's energy drain diagrams..
It takes a long time to build the stamina and muscles, I have a very good article I must post about collagen and cross linkage (when I can find it) it explains a lot about the process of deep healing.
Take care xx
It takes a long time to build the stamina and muscles, I have a very good article I must post about collagen and cross linkage (when I can find it) it explains a lot about the process of deep healing.
Take care xx
Poppet
Nutritional Advisor
- Joined
- Sep 5, 2011
- Messages
- 14,649
- Gender
- Female
- Country
- Australia
Will look for it over the weekend Andy, take care...
I also have a very good interactive 3D application called 'The Muscle System Pro III' by 3D4Medical.com it is awesome for educating oneself about an area that may be causing grief. You can drill down through all the muscles of the body and see the attachments... It is a really cool application. I refer to it quite a lot. It shows me what muscles have been affected with my surgical approach.
My husband has a qualification in sports massage and used to look after the State netball, soccer teams (girls) as well as an 'A' grade Aussie rules football team, and he uses it to show them where their injuries are.
I also have a very good interactive 3D application called 'The Muscle System Pro III' by 3D4Medical.com it is awesome for educating oneself about an area that may be causing grief. You can drill down through all the muscles of the body and see the attachments... It is a really cool application. I refer to it quite a lot. It shows me what muscles have been affected with my surgical approach.
My husband has a qualification in sports massage and used to look after the State netball, soccer teams (girls) as well as an 'A' grade Aussie rules football team, and he uses it to show them where their injuries are.
C Mac
post-grad
- Joined
- Sep 28, 2011
- Messages
- 1,396
- Age
- 63
- Gender
- Female
- Country
- United States
Sounds like a good follow-up visit. Did you get any phase II exercises to do? Have you looked at the information in the BS library about piriformis issues? Maybe there are some stretches in there that you can do now that you've been cleared by your OS -- or does he suggest continued rest for that issue?
Take care,
Cardie
Take care,
Cardie
Cardie, good suggestions, thanks. I was recently wondering (sorry if it sounds stupid to ask) what good it would do to stretch my piriformis muscle since it has been surgically released from my femur? My understanding is that it no longer performs any function. My OS did not recommend anything for this pain other than continued muscle development (I had experienced a lot of atrophy over the last year).
Hi Andy, I had the same experience with the piriformis "waking up" at about 6 weeks. Shooting pain when sitting that sometimes took my breath away!
The good new is this will ease. The muscle was stretched during the procedure. I was not release to do a full piriformis stretch when this first started. But I found ham string stretches both lying down on your back and while sitting helped to ease the spasm. If you are released from your restrictions try pulling your knee into your chest while lying down. This is a good piriformis stretch. Ice or heat on the area works as well.
Jo referred me to this link on Piriformis in the Library. It shows the exercise as well.
Hope you are feeling better soon!
The good new is this will ease. The muscle was stretched during the procedure. I was not release to do a full piriformis stretch when this first started. But I found ham string stretches both lying down on your back and while sitting helped to ease the spasm. If you are released from your restrictions try pulling your knee into your chest while lying down. This is a good piriformis stretch. Ice or heat on the area works as well.
Jo referred me to this link on Piriformis in the Library. It shows the exercise as well.
Hope you are feeling better soon!
Yes, everything with the new hip feels just great. Range of motion feels almost normal. The pririformis continues to hurt on a daily basis. In the weeks proceeding my THR I was experiencing some pretty intense "referred" pain, which radiated along the outer quad (just above the knee) and became a very intense burning along the entire upper section of my knee cap. I attributed this to AVN related pain. But this burning sensation has returned again. I am wondering if it was related to my piriformis the whole time and not from the AVN weakened hip joint. I sure wish I could see into my body and identify what the source of this pain is. I will try the hamstring stretches.
alexthecat
Former BoneSmart staff member
- Joined
- Mar 1, 2010
- Messages
- 9,708
- Gender
- Female
- Country
- United States
You are still somewhat early in recovery from your surgery. It is not unusual to have some aches and pains, especially as you start feeling better and becoming more active. What is your regimen for rest, ice, elevation, and pain meds?
I have been very bad at checking in. But, I am happy to report that I feel really good. The piriformis pain that had haunted me for so long is gone, gone, gone 
I am sleeping great at night, and can even sleep for long periods on my new hip. When I sit for more than 3 minutes, or drive around, my leg is pretty darn stiff (every time) once I stand and start walking. But after a couple of minutes it loosens up really nice and I start walking normal. I'm not the strong young guy I used to be, but after the last year of pain and immobility, I like where I am. I hope you all are doing great. Now time to snoop through everyone's threads to see how things are going. Andy
I am sleeping great at night, and can even sleep for long periods on my new hip. When I sit for more than 3 minutes, or drive around, my leg is pretty darn stiff (every time) once I stand and start walking. But after a couple of minutes it loosens up really nice and I start walking normal. I'm not the strong young guy I used to be, but after the last year of pain and immobility, I like where I am. I hope you all are doing great. Now time to snoop through everyone's threads to see how things are going. Andy
dianemarie
graduate
Andy,
Glad to hear things are going so well for you and good to hear from you. Sounds like you are right on track with your recovery I like your line "I like where I am". Most of us feel the same way, even though we go through a lot with our recoveries it is so much better than the "before" pain we had. Take care.
Glad to hear things are going so well for you and good to hear from you. Sounds like you are right on track with your recovery I like your line "I like where I am". Most of us feel the same way, even though we go through a lot with our recoveries it is so much better than the "before" pain we had. Take care.
DallasSarah
post-grad
- Joined
- Oct 26, 2011
- Messages
- 1,248
- Age
- 60
- Gender
- Female
- Country
- United States
Hi Andy,
Great to hear from you and it's fabulous news you are feeling so good!
Wishing you all the best...stay in touch!
Sarah
Great to hear from you and it's fabulous news you are feeling so good!
Wishing you all the best...stay in touch!
Sarah
Anitawants2tango
senior
Andy, That is great news about the piriformis! It is a recalcitrant little so-and-so and it does feel so good when it releases. The stiffness will also continue to subside.
Anita
Anita
- Status
