THR Me2 and Recovery

[Me2]

I was saying to my son yesterday (we spent the day together and he could see how restricted my movement was/is again, couldn't go

Yes, I neatly avoided our jingle bell ride --- first, of course, it was (really was) raining buckets for days making the Pittsburgh world quite muddy and then it quickly switched to 12 degrees F -- so it is much to cold but I was relieved to have excuse -- and we've gone in cold weather before

I have been going down for a few days too... I tried stretching and exercising, it gets tighter and sorer, I tried resting - it feels not as bad until I try to do ANYTHING

this is like having climbed a small mountain

two - giant mountains - and now teetering on a cliff -- but occasionally teased with a utterly fantastic view!

I know it makes me hold my upper body in an unnatural way so my shoulders and neck are feeling tense too - hence the headache!

I didn't want to put all this on my thread, it feels somehow "ungrateful", I don't know exactly what I mean by that, perhaps YOU do It makes me feel whiny and immature, but the fact is I DO feel like I "deserve" to be better, realistic or not, that's the fact.

I know EXACTLY what you mean -- you just say it so very well

So now I'VE crashed YOUR pity party Let me know if you come up with any magic solutions, otherwise just know that across the ocean there's a butt that's feeling just like yours... and a person attached to it that's feeling just like you

Misery does love company!

For you . . . We'll be okay. (in leau of whine and cheese)

 

[Me2]

Elizabeth @sfbionicat50 --- welcome to the party! Misery does love company!

It does sound like you're in the same crooked shape! Egads it must be catchy.

The exercises you are doing are different than the ones they gave me but yet seem as though intending to do the same thing. They do help but not for long. I'll have to look up that book.

 

[craftdee]

Hi Sheryl I'll share a with you... as hubby says "cheers ears" :cool: Hope you're feeling a bit better... that'd make one of us

two - giant mountains - and now teetering on a cliff -- but occasionally teased with a utterly fantastic view!

does cover it very well indeed... that taunting view; if only it was clouded in we could just give in to feeling completely sorry for ourselves (not sure how far off that I am, lol) and not bother trying to jump the hurdles on the way up - but I think we must be, at heart, optimists and feel the view worth the effort; or maybe it's just upbringing - my folks were/are very big on "can't can try", and those messages shape us.

I went to the zoo with my darling little grandtwins today, they're 21 months and there were 5 adults (both my sons, DIL, hubby and me) it was a great day,ending with 5 knackered adults and some slightly tired twins - the only thing is I think they may have been moving faster than me most of the day , I kept saying "wait for Emily" or "wait for Nathan" when I was holding a hand... but in fact it was all part of my evil plan... I used them as an excuse, oh what a terrible Nanna; lucky I adore them and they can tell

I'm paying for it a bit now, though interestingly I reached a certain point of soreness/tightness and it didn't get any worse... not sure if that's because it COULDN'T get any worse though but I walked for four hours after I got to the "oh oh" stage where circumstances permitting I'd have sat down. Limited sitting down opportunities may be the best PT available, hey, I may be onto something - nah, just numb!



Here's some and some for you too

Donna xx

 

[sfbionicat50]

Sheryl @Me2 -- I think the Somatics book exercises are working for me (along with time). They are unfreezing my mid to upper back and the forward shoulder tilt I developed from carrying my kids around and mousing on the computer. The looseness in the upper back is releasing the strain and constant tightness and fatigue of the lower back. This is allowing me to get rid of the pelvic tilt (a little bit at least). I'm starting to be able to sit comfortably again. What exercises is your PT having you do?

Elizabeth

 

[Me2]

As I know amidst all our "little" recovery issues, it's the little successes that lift our spirits. Snow in Pittsburgh and just look how straight my footprints are

How does such a small thing give me tears of joy?.


Sheryl from Pittsburgh
LTHR on 4/2/2014
Sent from my iPhone using BoneSmart®

 

[xtina16405]

@Me2 love the photo.

The small things are the best things in our life. Love the straight gait. Way to go.

 

[Me2]

Wee bit of an update as I approach the 3 month (12 weeks, 4 days or 88 days or 2110 hours) after surgery mark . . .

Both hip joints are pain free: no groin pain, no pain when walking, little bit of pinching when lying on sides (just enough to interrupt sleep - will that last forever ), little bit of ache when standing up. Right leg is still much weaker but working on gaining strength - I think its just a matter of time. My feet go straight most of the time, and I can walk relatively smooth. The physical therapists and my osteopath doctor (when doing some adjustment) noted that my legs are slightly different lengths. I think/hope my new slight limp is more from back then hip.

Back (SI joint?) pain has dissipated, still there but different, not as sharp but, oh so achy. I'm not sure but I am hoping/guessing its the cause of me sitting and walking like a crooked old lady. I catch myself walking with shoulders crooked. If I don't catch myself, then I end up with very painful upper back and neck. That said, I'm half way through prescribed month of therapy and not sure where to go with it. Its bad enough to be thinking about most of the time but not bad enough to lead to the I've gotta do something about it. Surgeon said do the therapy for a month then, if still bothering me, we'll start looking at back. Who is this "we" he speaks of? As in I go back to him who I have this impression of being miracle worker and with my distrust of medical world I want him to fix me . But he's not back doctor, and I don't know whether he can "fix" me. Or am I just hoping for perfection when I just gotta accept aches and pains of being old?

Physical therapy is going okay. My first appointments were first thing in morning since I was off over the holidays. This week's appointments were their last of day. What a difference. The early morning appointments were very productive, hands on, informative . . . This week, I feel I'm wasting time traveling back and forth to be rushed through exercises on my own as they close up shop. Two more weeks to do therapy, then I guess what to do next .

We are having deep freeze (10 degrees F) in Pittsburgh so its not helping my mood. Hate to come on here to whine when others are in such a worse place, but I'm not feeling oh so positive. But, staying away, I feel I'm losing touch with my friends here. I miss both commiserating and celebrating.

I'm going to before I have to then may be I'll and get myself to where I find a little .

 

[Legin]

Hey loads of good stuff and yes wee things do give us joy. V cold here but nought like a few winters ago. Its ok to moan best out than in as if no release kaboooooom.

 

[craftdee]

Hi Sheryl @Me2 I started writing a post here last night... d'ya think I can find it????

Now I see you've visited me, ta I honestly think the Physios here have it about right; if it's a problem you get it sorted, if it's not then "she'll be right". I am so WITH you on the time wasting aspect of it all... I really want to DO something when I get in to ANY appointment; I've put myself out to get there, my time has value, just "coo coo and keep it up" doesn't cut it with me... cranky Donna comes out to play I try to make ALL my appointments early, I do think the attention curve is a decidedly downward one with most places - especially one's like Physio where there's a combination of thinking about your individual issues and applying physical solutions; late in the day they're either too tired to think or too worn out to manually position you how they want you/physically show you the exercise they mean.

I'm wondering if I, like you, am expecting too much from a "simple" hip replacement Some of the issues I have are clearly related to the surgery (like the tendonitis) but I'm starting to think that the back ache and some of the other (feels like millions) aches and pains are just the result of living this long and of course stopping the anti inflammatory meds that I took pre op for 'the hip'... thinking now they may have been working after all... just not for the hip! My "good" hip is doing THAT ache more and more, sigh. I just can't do this again yet, I know it's delaying the inevitable, and that it won't make surgery easier by leaving it, BUT I just have to get some relief from this tendonitis before I can "go there" again

I'm glad you're enjoying the swimming, and the gym. It is nice to be able to swim outside in the sunshine, but to be honest this summer has been lovely and mild so we've been able to do so... some summers would be SO hot by now there's no way you go out in the sun between 10 am and 2pm unless you have to, and often it's mid thirties (Celcius) by 9am I do swim really early on those days (like 7am) and we swim in the evenings, which is nice - provided you have the mosquito coils burning... or if you're hubby provided you have ME with you, as they'll bite me ten times and ignore him completely - I must just taste better

I know what you mean about keeping up with this forum too; part of me wants to sort of put a line under it, but (a big) part of me still "needs" to feel the support and empathy that only fellow THR recipients can give. I go onto a lot of "newbies" threads to offer support as a way of paying it forward I suppose.

I've started just saying "fine" when people ask how it's going in my real life, it's what they want or expect to hear and I feel a bit guilty not feeling "fine", like I've let THEM down. When you look at it, so many people that have been part of the process, like your OS and other medical support consider that because their work is done you are "better", and as more of those interested parties move on, you feel that you 'obviously' SHOULD be "better" and feel equally that you are NOT quite better but can't say so - meaning you've got less people in your real life to share it with... coming somewhere like Bonesmart kinda makes sense.

The cold weather won't be helping your mood either, it is a recognized disorder; SAD... Seasonal Affected Disorder... go on Google it! Here's a link at least you know it's not just you

Gotta go, started back at work today after three weeks summer holidays, sigh. This is me doing paperwork, oops.

Talk soon
Donna

 

[Lmflora]

@Me2, @Dieter, @Plumberbutt,@MajorHeidi
Hello, just checking to see how you all are. Wow @Me2, you did the other hip? How is that going? How are you doing?
Hope all of you are doing well. Things seem to be going well, I skiied for the first time last week, everything went well. I too am experiencing some pain in my other hip. Went to OS, not as bad as the first, trying to strengthen everything and live with it. Not enough pathology to warrant a replacement at this point.
This is the first time I have been on this forum for ages, my thread was locked! I guess they lock it when you are gone for awhile. I have been so busy, I finished my degree last summer and graduated, it was brutally time consuming. I am teaching this semester and it looks like,I am going to be brutally busy again.
Anybody else have tight hip flexors, or scar tissue and tight hamstrings? Trying to work and stretch it out but it seems to take forever before I see any difference.

Looking for some good stretches that work.
Cheers and peace
Lm

 

[Me2]

Hey @Lmflora so good to hear from you . . . Yep, I did have the right hip done . . . it was a tough decision, it wasn't near as bad, but bad enough. The signs were there, and I just hoped to be able to get on with life. Surgery went well, recovery was sans the crazies! I again had to go right back to work and ended up working 12 hour days and sleeping the other 12 for the first six or seven weeks. At about 10 days, I even successfully rounded up our three horses when they decided to take a stroll to greener pastures - while my home nurse waited to check to see how I was progressing! The hips are wonderful!

Unfortunately, my back pain (I think sacroiliac joint) is still there -- or rather back again -- it had gone away so wonderfully around the second surgery. I was busily celebrating good health, having just been cleared by the OS, doing victory jig -- I guess that's what did it . . . but I'm working with a month of PT, osteopath adjustments, then if the back is still bothersome back to OS to see what's up.

Funny you should mention skiing -- I was just working on my son going attempting a ski trip with me. I had chaperoned a group of his friends about 3-4 years ago and got stuck on top of a mountain finding I absolutely did not have the range of motion to ski down ... so scary and a looooong trip down. We are having a bit of snow here in Pittsburgh and really tempted to try some cross country. But, so you say, these bionic hips can ski?????? Oh, so, so tempting!

How's the riding? I was only able to get up once after this surgery before we got rain, rain, and more rain. We are finally having a good snowstorm, so the ground is frozen and snow covered now so I'm truly hoping to just maybe sneak out this weekend. With @Meggzie adventures, it makes me think twice and maybe even thrice. But with a foot of snow on the ground, it would probably be a soft landing? . . . the trails should be beautiful for a winter ride!

So good to hear from you @Lmflora --- congrats on graduating -- I finally finished my degree at 53 myself!

 

[MajorHeidi]

Hi @Me2 and @Lmflora and all....
good to hear from you both.
I am doing fine. Have some back pain L4/L5 area referring to groin.
Very disconcerting, but accepted now.
All in all happy with the op.
I hope to hear good things continue with our cohort!
Xo


Sent from my iPad using BoneSmart®

 

[craftdee]

Well ladies, @Me2 , @MajorHeidi and @Lmflora I might just rename the "Whine and Cheese Club" "The Groaning Groiners" Yup, yup and yup... I still have "that" groin pain too (may be back related as the Horrid Hamstring and Miserable Medius are still giving my "jip" as my ol' Mum used to say and the DDD is alive and well), but it's still been treated as a psoas issue - I have stretches for the psoas and hamstrings - but the hamstring stretch is geared towards the top of the hamstring to try and get some stretch into the (glutus) medius, which is hard to reach! I "try to work and stretch it out" too and it "seems to take forever before I see any difference" for me as well. I go back AGAIN to Physio next week, but I may make that the last visit as it just doesn't seem to be making any difference... resting is her advice - just tell me how to rest your bum! My hammys give me trouble after I walk about 20 metres and the psoas... just IS I'll stick with the stretches, the one psoas stretch seems to be working the best; you lay lengthwise on the bed with your backside of the operated side half off, lower your operated leg to the ground (or towards the ground, the "ow" usually prevents touchdown ) while keeping your body level... as in don't twist towards that leg - trust me, it's tempting! Hold it for a few seconds, letting it drop as much as you can, then give up, roll over and go and have a glass of wine, even if it's 7am No, I just mean you only have to do the stretch once, no reps, three times a day is best. I've stopped doing the more hard core exercises as they definitely exacerbated the problem... swimming's still Goooooooood though I'm with you Claire, there's a certain amount I'm learning to live with - almost at the "happy I had the op" stage, not quite yet, but nearly.

Wise thinking re the horse riding Sheryl... I'm sure Jena @Meggzie is glad SHE learned YOUR lesson poor old thing; still she does get the prize for the biggest scar!! Maybe best to wait until there are the risk factors are as low as you can get... or at least lower than a foot of snow!! You could take some of our heat... we're in the middle of a heatwave here, today was 40C and the third day in a row over 37C (100F) with three or four more forecast, with the added bonus of a thunderstorm tomorrow or Thursday

Catch up with you soon,
Donna

 

[Meggzie]

Hehehe he yep @Me2 Sheryl, it is my new role in life to serve as a warning to others! . Seriously though, please don't let my wee mishap scare you off! In hindsight, it was crazy early to have been allowed to ride, and everything was still a bit 'fresh', AND it was just an unlucky thing. For my first hip, my OS recommended 12 weeks before riding. Then, the left hip arthroscopy at exactly 12 weeks after my RTHR, meant it was 6 months before I rode following the first hip. Two months later, I came off, landing on my right hip WAY harder than I did on my left just recently. I had a bruise on my butt....that's it, nothing else. So a replaced hip can survive some punishment...just not at 9 weeks .

Oh and Donna, @craftdee ......enuf with the 'old' already! I'm a spring chicken, I'll have you know!

Have an awesome day filled with whatever makes you happy

 

[Legin]

Ladies only oh

 

[Dieter]

Hey @Lmflora @Me2 @MajorHeidi , good to here from you, I've not been around BS much, an occasional lurking, but that is it. I started a new job in November and it has be a big change for us, a good change, but still much different. I am happy to report the hip is 99.9%...I hike, bike, swim, elliptical (and even throw in a little run from time to time) and best of all sleep! Occasionally there is some Psoas pain, and the scar will itch like crazy, but I'll trade that anyday for the bone on bone pain of the last few years. Our family ski trip is planned for Colorado in March. I've had a great bird season and the dogs are happy that I am back to six to ten mile days, in fact I can cover so much ground that my hunting buddies are again complaining that I walk too fast. but I can take their guff...mostly because I am almost always in a good mood and understand that I am generally the luckiest guy in any room I am in...
a fun fact... I just got receipt in today's mail of my last payment to the hospital for the patient portion of my THR....guess it is all mine now!
wishing you all the best!
Dieter

 

[MajorHeidi]

@craftdee Loved your club name for us: Groaning Groiners. Ha!
and @Legin You can join; not ladies only.
@Meggzie We always have to have examples, don't we? Its good to share our experiences here
with others, so we all learn. I guess we could say, "hold your horses"?
@Dieter Well, you sound amazing. I think you could be the poster boy for easy recovery, and
great enjoyment of life afterwards. Yay!
@Me2 Give us an update. Hope your week has been a good one.

 

[Me2]

Jena @Meggzie -- Who me? Scared? Nope, just forever grateful to you that you took on

new role in life to serve as a warning to others!

and the mud season in Pittsburgh thats keeping me "safe" from myself and my wanting to push the limits on this new hip! I did get a tad more patient in giving the healing a little more time. Now that winter is truly here and lots of fresh powdery snow . . . its tempting so we'll see . . . we'll see just how long I can

"hold my horses"

Update? Unfortunately, not much new. Hip(s) still wonderful, back still hurts like crazzzzzy. That's what I get for priding myself on "high pain tolerance." Last PT tomorrow, then I've scheduled visit to my regular doctor for some "osteopathic manipulative treatment" and see what he thinks then probably a call back to OS unless some miracle cure happens with those two. The OS had said to give the healing another month then "we" would take a look at the back. Patience . . . there is that Patience thing . . . kind of like

"hold my horses"

 

[Me2]

@Dieter Congrats on complete ownership of that wonderful new hip! Let us know how the skiing goes! I so would love to give it a try. I had tried skiing with my son about 3 years ago -- I didn't know I couldn't -- I got to the top of the mountain and hips just didn't go that way anymore --- so, so scary and it was a long, long way down. So tempting . . .

 

[Me2]

@Legin you are most welcome to join us! @Dieter is away having too much fun with his new hip - though it is sweet of him to drop back around now and again! Gentlemen always welcome to share a little whine and cheese with the Groaning Groiners ala Donna @Craftee

Donna - I will let you know when I figure out how to "rest my bum" and I did, I really did try to figure that exercise out -- just before I went to have that glass of wine --- Ah, I know, I'll try again tomorrow morning, just so I can

roll over and go and have another glass of wine, even if it's 7am