THR Tallguy79 recovery<

[Layla]

Yahoo!
See how things just slowly improve...
Getting more sleep will affect you in positive ways since our body does it's best healing
while we're asleep.
@tallguy79

 

[tallguy79]

Now that i'm getting ot the point where I can leave my house for short periods of time do think it would be ok for me to take off my TEDs for an hour to get groceries or for a little longer than that to go to outpatient PT? I can at least take the yellow socks off, right?

 

[Mojo333]

Hooray for restorative sleep. I think you are going to be amazed at how you feel several more weeks down the line.

 

[Layla]

I think you'd be okay, but I'm not your doc.
My OS had a pretty strict protocol. He wanted me to wear them for three weeks.
Twenty hours out of every twenty four.
I longed for those four hours each morning when I could ditch those things.
As time went on the four hrs stretched out. I asked my surgeon's PA after two weeks of wear if I could throw them away. His response was "if you're wearing them half the time, it's good enough". I think when doctors set up these guidelines they take the lowest common denominator into consideration. They probably realize a good share of their patients aren't going to wear them as instructed so set the requirement high to allow for some wiggle room.

I'd say you're safe for those outings but you should check with your OS.
I know many who claim they easily get lost in the laundry and they simply couldn't find them
@tallguy79

 

[Mojo333]

I know many who claim they easily get lost in the laundry and they simply couldn't find them

Hey! That's what happened to me!

Never did find them

 

[Eman85]

I don't know what TEDs are, never had anything like that. I did a lot of ankle pumps and kept the blood flowing. Sounds like it's getting better, glad to hear it.

 

[Layla]

TED's are Compression stockings @Eman85
Be happy you don't know what they are, you weren't missing out on any fun, that's for sure.

Wondering how the outing went today @tallguy79
Hopefully you weren't suffering afterward....

 

[tallguy79]

Got out of the house and went somehere by car for the first time yesterday. Driving was no problem but pain was. I went to the grocery store for just a few items. I thought I could use the grocery cart as a walker bu it didn't work as well as I thought it would. I had to take little baby steps. I got it done but it was challenging. Slept well, by my standards, last night. Hopefully the short outing I have planned for today goes well.

 

[Layla]

Good Morning @tallguy79
That's awesome! Bring one of those ice packs with you for the car ride if you're able to lay it on your incision in any way. It helped me in those early weeks and months. Glad to hear you slept well again. Three nights now? It seems you may have turned the corner with sleep. One thing about these early outings, make sure you gauge yourself, reserving enough energy / time for the trip home. Icing right afterward may be beneficial also.
Have a good one!

 

[Layla]

How's tallguy doing on the eve of the weekend? Ready to party yet?
Kidding aside....wondering if you had another night of good sleep?
Also wondering if you've noticed progress since last Friday at this time? I'll bet you have. If I recall you had another outing yesterday, making it two days in a row. Hope it wasn't too tiring.
Wishing you a nice weekend!
@tallguy79

 

[tallguy79]

@Layla My sleep wasn't quite as good last night as the two nights previous but still reasonable. My leg had more ROM today. I did 5 straight leg lifts after not being able to do any for days, I did heel slides further than before and I did knee raises all the way to 90 degrees for first time. Have to use cane to do knee raise on non-sugical leg as I can't put all my weight on just surgical leg without a lot of pain. Getting there. Was expecting to get a call today to set up outpatient PT but nothing yet. I'm not going to reach out to them as I believe a little more healing would be good before doing more intense exercises. I am walking to the end of the block and back(with cane) and doing basic exercises everyday, I think that is good for now. I went to the local department store to pick up a sale item and all went well until after I got back to the car. I had an empty cart and i'm not the type to just leave the cart next to my car where it could roll into someone elses car later so I had to bring it somewhere. The nearest cart corral was down a hill at least 5 car lengths which I would then have to walk back up. I decided it would be better to bring it back into the store. By the time I got back to the car I was exhausted. Energy drain is definitely a thing.

 

[Mojo333]

Energy drain IS definitely a thing.

I'm not going to reach out to them as I believe a little more healing would be good before doing more intense exercises. I am walking to the end of the block and back(with cane) and doing basic exercises everyday, I think that is good for now.

I think you are right on point @tallguy79
You are going to do very well following your instincts.
Just wait...you WILL be glad you had this done.
Healing mojo coming at you!

 

[Layla]

Hi....
I'll echo, Mojo....energy drain is real! I remember it, barely exerting much but feeling depleted.
I have a little explanation I use often.....here goes -
Our bodies energy supply isn't limitless. So when we are in healing mode after major surgery, our energy will be used for healing first, not leaving a great reserve for all the other activity of daily life. It is completely normal to feel tired for quite some time. How long.....mostly relates to your body's rate of healing. Making our best effort to get adequate rest and sleep is beneficial. Our body does it's best healing while we're sleeping.

Sorry to hear about the shopping cart biz. Sometimes being super responsible and conscientious isn't convenient, just like today. Bless you! Thankfully you made it through. Hopefully you make a habit of resting, icing and elevating after those outings in these early weeks. Hope your sleep tonight is sweet!
@tallguy79

 

[Eman85]

A hippie trick, park next to the furthest cart corral that has carts. This way you get one to walk in with and have the corral next to the car for when you're done with it.
I used the walker more for PT than I ever used it for walking. I would stand in the walker for knee raises,rear leg curls and shallow squats. With the knee raises when they get easier it's good to close your eyes and practice balance, the walker gives you security against falling.

 

[honeybeast]

Hi @tallguy79 I think I took off my TEDS on day 10 because I felt confident I was moving enough. That felt so good!

I haven' yet made it to a store but hubs and I have gone out for a quick bite a couple times. Just wondering if you can put your cane in the shopping cart in case you have to walk without it again?

As far as PT goes... my insurance paid for 10 home visits. My OS told me I don't really need it but I can go if I want to. He just wants me to walk. I still limp a lot without some sort of aid so PT told me to use it till I can walk normally without it. I don't see that happening any time soon.

 

[tallguy79]

@honeybeast I did have the cane in the cart and used the cane to get back to my car. Still tiring. I can walk a few steps in the house without any assistive device but it gets painful fast. I wouldn't consider it outside of home or outpatient PT. Not yet.

 

[honeybeast]

Same here. And I limp badly without the cane so PT doesn't want me doing it.

I tried to walk 20 minutes today but could only make it 15 before the hip pain just became too much.

 

[tallguy79]

The walk to the end of my block and back is 15 minutes and I think that is just right for now. The first half is pretty easy but by the time I get a third of the way back on the second half I am slowing way down and getting sore. So it's challenging but reasonable. Do you use a single point cane? I'm using a 4 point cane but I think I should force myself to graduate to a single point cane if I can find one free or cheap.

 

[Eman85]

Walking down my road I used a walking stick, basically an old broken rake handle. I had a friend that had been thru a THR and he warned me about only walking as far away as you could walk to get back. I would go to a certain house down the road and back, even if I did it twice to that point so it wasn't far to get back.
I bought all of my necessary stuff at the local repurpose store. Plenty of canes and all of the other stuff for sale there at pennies on the dollar.

 

[tallguy79]

@Eman85 I have to take my height into consideration for almost everything I buy. At 6'6" I can't use standard crutches. I can't use a standard walker. I can't use a cane that doesn't adjust or even some that do. Nothing is made for someone my height. I usually have to shop around and usually have to pay a premium.