THR Phoebie's recovery THR- left side. Uncemented, minimally invasive posterior.

[Phoebie]

Thanks, you are ahead of me on the recovery. I mentioned to the nurse that I was on one crutch at home but used two when outside. (This was the advice I was given). The nurse said that some PTs prefer two walking aids or none. The reason being that with one you tend to lean your body, when you should be re-centering after surgery. I thought this an interesting point.

 

[Sparks22]

I hear you, my pt watched me walking up and down last week. I used 1 stick and no stick. He agreed I was OK with no stick indoors as long as I wasn't tired or feeling achy and 1 or 2 sticks outside. I know I limp due to the way I was walking pre-op and I am very focused on being up right and hyper aware of when my new hip dips the wrong way due to 'old' walking technique. It's a slow process but we will get there

 

[Phoebie]

Yes! It is like we have to learn to walk again and drop the old bad habits. Definitely a work in progress. I was quite hunched as my left leg no longer straightened when I was standing up. Now I can stand upright I feel a foot taller.

 

[myglasshalffull]

I didn't suffer from any hip issues prior to my replacement cause I slid on ice & fractured my hip necessitating the replacement.
What I will advise is not to be in a hurry to rid yourself of the crutches, walkers, walking sticks too soon. It's better to walk well using assistive devices than limp w/o.
Even after I was walking freely I kept my cane by my bed for evening bathroom trips.

 

[Phoebie]

Wise words. Thanks

 

[Morgan Le Fay]

Hi there

It's amazing how surgeons do things differently as I am to wear my compression stockings for 2 weeks and am also on blood thinners for 6 weeks.

No physio, just walking is required.

Morgan

 

[Layla]

No physio, just walking is required.

We often remind members -
It is not necessary to exercise your injured hip to promote healing. The controlled trauma sustained through THR will heal on its own. Often though, we're impatient and want to move the process along. In doing so we run the risk of struggling with pain and setbacks stalling the healing process. The best therapy for recovery is walking, but not to excess. Start slowly increasing time and distance incrementally in an effort not to overdo it.

 

[Phoebie]

Day 17 of recovery and I am definitely making better progress during the day. Pain is well managed. I am off the hard drugs given to me by the hospital and just using some over the counter meds. Stiffness has gone which means movement is better. I am trying to walk more each day and continue with the five minute, three times a day physio. I can do most chores now.

The continuing nags:

Swelling is such a pain to manage. I seem to spend a lot of time with my legs in the air icing. It goes down and up again. Very annoying.

I limp without walking aids so I am using them so I don't get into bad habits.

Sleeping is still a mission. I wake every couple of hours trying to find a new comfortable position. It never lasts long. I know I don't have to get up for work in the morning but I would love a long sleep without my hip demanding attention. It is like having a newborn to care for.

 

[myglasshalffull]

You will get there & one day in near future you will do something you couldn't do just a few days ago & surprise yourself!
Baby steps & patience is the key for many of us, trust me, if I could have been back to "normal" quicker no one would have been happier than me.
You are listening to your "newborn" hip & yes, it needs pampering.
I wish you the best!

 

[Sparks22]

Swelling is such a pain to manage. I seem to spend a lot of time with my legs in the air icing. It goes down and up again. Very annoying.

The swelling is horrible! I didn't have any laying down time yesterday and boy did I regret it. My leg and foot were as swollen as they were when I was 8 months pregnant in the height of summer
I've spent the day mainly elevated today

 

[Phoebie]

Honestly, of all the things I read about and fretted, I did not pay much attention to the swelling. Managing it dominates the day. I guess as a positive it makes me rest.

Elephant leg is no joke. You take care.

 

[Layla]

I am trying to walk more each day and continue with the five minute, three times a day physio

It is a possibility that whatever exercises you're engaging in three times a day are aggravating healing soft tissue, resulting in the swelling. You may want to consider stepping away from the exercises for a time, but continue walking and engaging in the activities of daily living and see if you notice a difference in the swelling. The best therapy for recovery is walking.

Good that you're still using an assistive device as long as you're limping.
Here’s a tip -
Try heel-toe walking when you're limping.
This involves striking the ground with your heel first, then rolling through your heel to your toe, and pushing out of the step with your toe.
It takes a concentrated effort, but I believe you'll notice a difference. Give it a try.

 

[Phoebie]

Thanks, Layla. I am having a resting day from the exercises and have found a way to sit with my legs up in a comfortable position during the day time. This helps reduce the swelling. I am going to take a couple of short walks and move around doing small chores. I shall try the heel to toe walking too.

Of all the things I wish I had invested in pre-op, it is a recliner. (Or I could have hired one). I know I wouldn't use it long term so didn't bother but I think it would have been a wonderful way to sit and nap during the daytime. Especially in the first two weeks.

 

[msart]

@Phoebie-checking in to see how you’re doing. I think you are one of the few that has had posterior like myself. I over did it yesterday & have paid for it today, so rested & iced. Feeling better tonight. Hope your healing is going well. ‍

 

[Phoebie]

@msart I followed Layla's advice and really rested yesterday. Just some walking and a few chores. No exercises. It seemed to help the swelling a lot. Sleeping is still a trial. The most I sleep is 2 hours before I wake needing to move. I have found a couple of positions that the hip seems to tolerate for a while. Pre-surgery I slept on the operated side and whilst my instructions are that I can sleep on that side if I want to, I am too chicken. Maybe a few weeks aways.

Did you have the minimally invasive posterior with spinal?

 

[Layla]

whilst my instructions are that I can sleep on that side if I want to, I am too chicken.

SO WAS I CHICKEN
The best way, when you feel ready (brave ) is to ease into it, almost like practice sessions, to show yourself you can do it! I know I waited longer than many I was recovering with on the forum. I was afraid I'd hurt something, or I'd feel the implant inside of me.

What I found useful, still do to this day, is an inexpensive Body Pillow that you can purchase through Amazon or likely any store that sells bedding. Its long enough to place between legs while side sleeping and keeps your hips level. After about five years mine was flattened to the point I wanted to replace it, so I did. As mentioned earlier it's inexpensive. Mine was only about $10...well worth it!
Have a great Sunday and week, Phoebie!

 

[msart]

@Phoebie-i know I had THR left side un-cemented posterior, I am unsure about minimally invasive-mine seems pretty invasive to me. As for spinal-I did not, they did do a nerve block but it was in my leg-no clue why but I watched that.

Sleep comes & goes for me also. My body seems to get tired of laying there & I have to get up & move. I am going to see about getting that body pillow, that Layla talked about. Some nights I sleep well (maybe 5 hrs undisturbed others 2. I’m hoping that will work itself out in weeks to come. I am too chicken to lay on surgery side, I have attempted but I get scared. I do sleep with pillows everywhere-I have one right beside my leg incision and that HAS to be there, just right. It has become sort of a safety thing with me during this. I can not go to sleep unless it is safely pushed against my leg. So weird. I don’t even remember how I used to sleep-but I doubt it was like this. As far as exercising, I have backed off. I do my stretches everyday, but exercising I do 5x a week maybe, instead of my over achiever 7 days. I have learned more is not better during this recovery.

 

[Phoebie]

Minimally invasive just means a smaller incision -mine is 5 1/2 inches - and no muscles, tendons or ligaments are cut. They push them apart and use special equipment to do the hip replacement. It is supposed to mean a faster recovery, fewer restrictions and less chance of dislocation. It can be anterior or posterior. The specialist hospital I used prefer the posterior as it is easier to deal with any problems during surgery.

Sleep is elusive and, like you, my hip seems to want me to reposition every couple of hours. I guess it knows what it wants!!

 

[Sparks22]

I fall asleep on my non-operated side now, pillow between my ankles and small knee pillow between my thighs like I had pre-surgery. I wake up on my back after a couple of hours though, bathroom break, fall asleep on side - rinse and repeat 3 or 4 times. I too want to try my operated side but it's far too tender yet. Just grateful I can sleep on the otherside for a bit. Always very achy through the night though and feel like I need to really stretch out, but I am too scared to as that's what I used to do to get my hip past the impingement I had - the pop always felt realy good....popping would be bad now though

 

[Phoebie]

Three weeks since my surgery. I was thinking how nervous I was at this point three weeks ago. So was my surgeon! But we got through it together.

I think I have the swelling mostly under control for now. I reigned back the exercises that I found very easy to do and replaced them with walking more. Though I suspect I am not walking enough as I limp badly without walking aids. I just do a few steps unassisted in the kitchen when I am cooking. I find standing unaided fine. I have been doing the heel to toe walking with walking aids. I have no actually pain when walking just, maybe, a feeling of weakness holding me back. I am hoping you will all tell me this is normal at three weeks.

Of course the winter weather has arrived with a flurry of cold and wet. This curtails my planned walks outside so I am wearing out a path indoors, marching up and down.

Sleeping is better but still frustrating. My demanding newborn hip still wants me to move regularly. Getting in and out of bed, or sitting and standing are all easy and pain free. A friend came over to colour and blow-dry my hair so I look almost human again! Tomorrow I am going to get back into trousers and ditch the floaty dresses.

I am really enjoying the support here and reading about other people's recoveries. I have recommended this site to a friend facing a knee replacement next year. What a treasure of help this is. Thank you.