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THR sportbrown's Hip Recovery

Sounds like you are coming right along.
Even after I was off the cane I kept it by my bed for evening bathroom runs.
Kept in car as well "just in case."
 
Today is 7 weeks post-op for me. Thanks for the advice on heel-to-toe walking. It is helping me get off the cane. I still need the cane for security (psychological after being so disabled for so long before the surgery) when I go out and about, but am gaining confidence. Just as an update for others who are not as far out from surgery, this is what I am feeling/experiencing at the 7 week mark:

- Balance is not what it was, but doing better over time.
- left/operated side is weak and painful when I lift leg from lying or sitting position.
- Hip is painful and stiff after sitting for too long in a chair, so I try to get up often.
- Increasing my walking distance and have taken it outdoors onto my driveway (10 driveway laps 2X/day).
- Am able to stand and put on pants, but putting on socks still needs assistance.
- Getting into bed needs the leg lifter in order not to hurt. Getting out of bed is easier.
- In order not to limp, I concentrate on the heel-to-toe walking and hope it will eventually become natural.
- Still using raised toilet seat and grab bars in bathroom for showers.
- Operated hip is still stiff compared to good hip, but I am not doing any stretching, but maybe I should be? I find that stretching is painful, so I avoid it.

Okay, I think those are the main points for anyone who wants to compare and gauge themselves on the progress of others who have been through this. Will report again next week!
 
sportbrown said:
I find that stretching is painful, so I avoid it.
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Don't stretch to the point of pain, basically don't force a stretch. Back off from the point of pain and hold the stretch for 30 seconds or so. Don't stretch in ways to cause dislocation.
 
Good update!
Re walking and stretching: it sounds like you're really paying attention to your body signaling what it needs at any given time on your recovery journey. That's the best approach!!!

At some point after you're better able to lift your leg you might find that your new hip really wants a little stretching, so that will be your cue. Meanwhile slowly increasing your activities of daily living will help foster safe healing and increased limberness and mobility.
 
sportbrown said:
Thanks for the advice on heel-to-toe walking. It is helping me get off the cane. I still need the cane for security
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Glad that the heel-toe walking is helping! But don't be in too much of a hurry to get rid of the cane -- I found it was really helpful in getting other folks to not bump into me! Especially useful in a crowd.

I agree that you are doing very well for 7 weeks out. Just keep moving and give it time. You will continue to improve.
 
You are doing fine! Are you icing and elevating after any excersise? I overdid it after my first hip operation re PT and took it a lot easier on my second. My progress has been slow but effective.

Please concentrate on walking, Ice and take Tynelol if needed.

Your body has been through major trauma and was probably in a bad state before the op.

I don’t think anyone has mentioned this yet but get yourself a new pair of trainers as the old one might be molded into previous bad patterns. It does make a difference!
 
You're certainly doing well, sportbrown.
Happy Two Month Anniversary! I hope you have a wonderful weekend! :flwrysmile:
@sportbrown
 
Thank you! Yes....it's my 2-month anniversary today. I haven't needed to use the cane for several days now, and I'm getting brave about going places and doing things again. I even wood- stained and polyurethaned my front steps (3 small steps to the front porch). I've got a list a mile long of other DIY projects I haven't been able to do in over 2 years, so little by little I will be getting to them as I become more able-bodied over time. I will report back at my 3-month mark!
 
Happy 2 month anniversary & having small projects lined up is a good way to get through recovery.
 
@sportbrown Congrats on your 2 month anniversary! Isn't it great to be doing "normal" things again? I think one of my next milestones was going about my life and forgot, at least for a while, about my hip and that I had had a THR. Blessings for continued good healing.
 
I look forward to that day....forgetting about the whole "hip thing".....maybe in another 2 months!
 
That day will come. Folks I haven't seen in awhile that know I had hip replacement will ask about the hip when I run into them. Other than coming to bonesmart in AM to read everyone's journey I seldom feel like I had a hip replacement. My days are quite normal.
 
Today I am 12 weeks post-op. I think it's easier to list the things that are still not as I wish they were than trying to say all the things I can do, so here goes:

- I cannot put a sock on my left foot
- If I have been siting in a chair for more than about 30 minutes, it is painful to stand up and start walking, so I wait until I've been standing for about a minute before I walk, and the first several steps are always painful.
- My left hip (operated hip) is still very stiff, and if I try to stretch it even just a bit, the next day is very painful for me, so I am just living with the stiffness
- Also, if I stretch my left leg too much the knee begins to hurt (and I've never had a knee issue before).
- I still feel a little like my left leg is longer than my right leg
- My left hip is painful if I bend too far to pick something up off the floor
- I only can walk about 2 blocks before things feel painful

Other than that, I'm okay....just okay....not the miracle surgery I had hoped for so far, but it's still 12 weeks out, so I ask myself where I might be in 6 months or a year from now. I had 6 weeks of physical therapy which was so-so (the occupational stuff was helpful, but the stretching and exercises not so much). That's it for now.
 
sportbrown said:
it's still 12 weeks out, so I ask myself where I might be in 6 months or a year from now.
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It can be frustrating waiting for that moment when you can just forget about the hip.

For me, things began to really improve around 4 months post-op and by 6 months I was feeling glad I'd had the surgery.

Keep moving and you will continue to improve. :console2:
 
Chair yoga sounds interesting. Will definitely look into it! Thanks!

Today is my 3-month anniversary! Overall I'm doing pretty well. Just for others whose surgeries are more recent, here are some of my experiences/observations at 3 months:

- Other body parts will hurt because you are relying on them more (shoulders, elbows, back, knees, ankles, feet). It kind of jumps around from week to week as to which other body part is giving you problems.

- At 3 months I can finally say that the feeling of the operated (left) leg being longer than the other is fading away.

- Putting on left sock and tying left shoe is still not doable at 3 months out.

- There is still hip pain upon standing from sitting or lying down at 3 months. After a few steps it subsides.

- I am still very stiff.

- I can still not walk very far or very swiftly.

- The original hip pain is gone, though, so that is huge, and I'm glad I had the surgery. I am about 75% better than I was before the surgery!

Thanks to everyone for reading my posts and for all the support!
 
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