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THR Replacement hip confusion

Ah thank you so much for your response. I’m sorry to hear you are having back pain, it’s horrendous isn’t it. I had physio yesterday, and to be honest I didn’t get much from it, other than he said I need to strengthen my muscles which I think we already know.
He did however do 1 exercise which was breaking the 90 deg rule which I wasn’t happy about.
Anyway I’m using ice today as very sore and just trying to get on with things ☹️ He told me not to use my walking aids but I still feel a bit unsteady so will use when I need them.
Wishing you well with you’re recovery and thank you for your message xx
 
@Holiday read post number 16 in this thread again. You are not strength training at this point - you are recovering from major surgery!

And physio should not be specifying when you should stop using any walking aid. When you can walk without a limp and feel strong enough, that's the time to transition.
 
Thank you Jaycey for your response. Sorry I. Not sure I’m always replying to the correct feed lol.
Yes I agree with your comments. I’m using my walking stick until I feel steady.
Gill.
 
Holiday said:
He did however do 1 exercise which was breaking the 90 deg rule which I wasn’t happy about.
Anyway I’m using ice today as very sore and just trying to get on with things ☹️ He told me not to use my walking aids but I still feel a bit unsteady so will use when I need them.
Click to expand...
You are allowed to say "No."
"No." is a complete sentence.
 
@Holiday Reading your updates and comments on your gait reminds me that it's very important to get fitted to a new pair of walking shoes. Your older shoes are now worn in the direction of how you limped and struggled before your surgery.
It can make a big difference, I followed this advice, then at about 2 months or so I slipped my feet into an older pair and oh my gosh, I could literally feel my foot, leg and body slip into a very uncomfortable position when walking.
I hope your back discomfort eases shortly, if not maybe consider a nice soothing massage to help.
 
Holiday said:
He did however do 1 exercise which was breaking the 90 deg rule which I wasn’t happy about.
Anyway I’m using ice today as very sore and just trying to get on with things ☹️ He told me not to use my walking aids but I still feel a bit unsteady so will use when I need them.
Click to expand...
I would question all of this and I wouldn't be happy.
 
Hello Holiday, I am concerned about breaking the 90-degree rule while you are in recovery. You might want to seek clarification on your recommended post-surgery exercises.
 
@Holiday congrats on the new hip and welcome to the normal road that so many of us have taken! I wish you could have seen my computer screen when I first signed up here-- I could not figure out how to navigate this site, which was "somewhat" smaller in 2013, so I had about a dozen tabs open on my browser all the time just so I wouldn't lose any information! You are not alone!

I had, and sometimes still have, piriformis syndrome on the right side, before surgery, during recovery, and right now 10 years later not so often but it still thrashes around in its sleep every so often. I cannot find a stretch position that addresses it, arrgh!

Ice: I had to ask for ice continually in the hospital (overnight) after both hips. Once that nerve block wore off the ice worked to make the codeine/Tylenol narcotic more helpful. For the first hip I wore ice 24/7 for nearly a month (not recommended here but I'm not sure it was part of the canon in 2013...), and then whenever I wanted it. And I do mean "wore"! I'd wrap the gel pack in a tea towel and stick it in my front pocket if the pocket was deep (anterior approach), or tuck it into my undies, or sometimes wrap it on with an Ace bandage! These tricks worked for the other hip too, but I didn't need it for quite so long.

I did some mild PT for a few weeks after the first hip, and walked. After #2 I refused immediate PT, saying I wanted to save it until I was healed up, and my OS's PA said, "Good For You!!! Walking is all you need now anyway!" That was 5 years ago, when the medical community was beginning to catch up with the knowledge here on Bonesmart.

Definitely use your walking aid until YOU want to ditch it. Some find themselves halfway down the hallway before they realize the walker is still in the kitchen! I was able to lose the walker quickly compared to some, for which I credit my overly high sense of confidence and a house with surfaces to grab onto always within arm's reach. I carried my cane well past the time I needed it for support, specifically to whack small humans running down the aisle of the store or in the airport boarding lounge (not really but oh my the opportunity was there many times!). It's a good signal to adults that you have some unsteadiness, even if you feel "old" using it haha.

All the best to you and your baby hip-- you will gracefully recover on your body's timetable, and get to the "forgotten hip" stage after that!

Edit for format.
Second edit for typos...
 
Hello Zauberflote.
Thank you for your response. I am useless with tech, but hopefully I am replying to you lol.
There is so much conflicting advice with hip recovery I find. You sound like you’ve been through the mill but done so very well. I was stupid the other day letting the physiotherapist push this hip. I’m desperate to get out of pain, so went with it, but it’s worse now.
I had decided to only walk, and not do any exercises until this back settles. It’s absolute agony, and every time I do any physio it’s worse.
Baby hip lol. Yes I just need to accept that this isn’t a walk in the park, and my body will tell me what it needs.
Well done to you, and yes I will still be walking with aids until I feel steady.
 
Dear all,
Following on from my original post regarding my excruciating back pain,
Just to re cap. I’m 7 weeks in to a total right hip replacement and was doing brilliantly up until week 5 when i started to get really bad back pain and right bottom cheek pain. I did also state that the physiotherapist had me complete an exercise that broke the 90 deg rule.
I had some lovely replies from you lovely people that put my mind at rest and that some of you had experienced the same.
Well, today it was so bad I had to attend a & e. It’s absolutely horrific, and I was looking for some answers. Thankfully the x Ray showed everything is where is should be, which is a relief after that stupid exercise, but all the doctor said was he thought I had overworked something. He told me to stop doing exercises for 2/3 days and he’s sure it would ease up!!!
I’m really confused, but have no choice but to take his advice and go with it. Hoping and praying it works. I’ll keep you posted. ❤️
 
Rest and ice and tylenol for a few days. I ice my back quite a bit when I get low back pain.
Happy X-Rays showed no damage.
I overdid it this week and paying for it today so guess what, took a shower, had a sandwich and that's my day, relaxing!!!
All my best.
 
Holiday said:
the doctor said was he thought I had overworked something. He told me to stop doing exercises for 2/3 days and he’s sure it would ease up!!!
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Overdoing exercise is often the reason for pain at this stage of recovery. That's why BoneSmart recommends a more gentle approach. As a reminder, check out this article:
https://bonesmart.org/forum/threads/post-operative-exercise-–-the-bonesmart-view.25463/

Hips actually don't need any exercise to get better! They do a pretty good job of it all on their own if given half a chance. Trouble is, people don't give them a chance and end up with all sorts of aches and pains and sore spots. My hip surgeon recommended against PT and said the best therapy is walking -- and even then not to excess.
 
Holiday said:
He told me to stop doing exercises for 2/3 days and he’s sure it would ease up!!!
I’m really confused, but have no choice but to take his advice and go with it. Hoping and praying it works. I’ll keep you posted. ❤️
Click to expand...
No confusion, THR recovery is mostly rest and healing. We can't build any strength or flexibility with damaged muscles they have to heal first. 6 weeks is early on still in the healing and the more you do early on the more it seems to lengthen the recovery.
 
Yes that makes sense what you say actually, but begs the question why physiotherapists have you doing so much in the first few weeks.
And it seems different physiotherapists have vastly different opinions.
Anyway, I’m hoping for some pain free days soon
 
:shrug: I think often they initiate PT too soon and we progress exercises too rapidly and without respect of pain without first developing the neuromuscular control and progression truly needed to reach the next phase. This is not helpful.

There is a huge degree of variability in patients and the conditions that result in hip pain or progress to arthroscopic procedures and I struggle with the idea that all can wake from the anaesthetic and embark on the same clinical pathway.
Hope things ease and you can decide what and how much is helpful.
 
Yes absolutely agree with your comments. When I think back to week 3 of my recovery the physiotherapist had me walking very quickly without aids, and I know now this was not good for me as I had a terrible waddle.
I have an appointment on Wednesday this week to see the Consultant, who I have not seen at all from the start to finish of my hip replacement.
I need some reassurance that all is well with my hip and the excruciating back pain will go at some point.
Thank you.
 
Many of us question the logic of the PT's which is pretty much what this forum is all about. There has been a PT or 2 that have come on the forum when they are having a THR but few ever relate their recovery. I bet they become much better PT's after the experience.
 
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