46 year old who had LTHR (posterior) on July 7, so 6 weeks post op exactly today. No more stockings, toilet seat or strict precautions ! I was fairly back to normal about two weeks ago. I had MIS (3.75 inch scar) with a OMNI stem and ceramic ball (36mm) and a Smith and Nephew XLPE liner and cup. I was very well prepared mentally and that really helped with the three day hospital stay and first week at home when I was using a walker and a cane and needing help with basic activities. At two weeks post op, I was able to drive and do short errands. A shopping cart makes a good walker ! I kept up with my hip exercises, minded the 90 degree precaution and and kept my knee rotated outward whenever approaching 90 degrees. After my first post op appointment at 15 days, I was able to begin sliding my operated leg up the other to form a figure 4. Back to work (desk job) without the cane 16 days post op. A few days into the figure 4 exercise, I was able to put on my regular socks and tie up shoes, although I still wear my comfortable Merrell slip ons. Another week and I was actually able to remove and put on the TEDS compression stockings, albeit carefully. At four weeks post op, I had lost the limp (except a bit in the morning) and was mowing the lawn, garderning, swimming and back to normal. I had swam and biked a lot before surgery, so my muscles were in very good shape. I was hard to not work out for a few weeks, but as soon as I could, it felt great to get on an upright stationary bike (adjusted to keep form going past 90 degrees) and feel my muscles and new joint moving.
The walker and cane are stored away and am getting in and out of my car without much thought. I still adhere to the 90 degree rule, somewhat, but with the advice of my surgeon, am able to safely squat with knees rotated outward and pick things up off the floor. Those reacher/grabber devices are great for the precautionary period. Mine was six weeks, due to the capsular noose procedure performed by my surgeon who was trained by one of the best. Great site here;
broken link removed: https://www.minitotalhip.com/webpages/index.htm
I look forward to continuing recovery and hope all out there have as good a recovery as I have. My advice is to get a good surgeon, follow up regularly, get in good physical shape, read a lot about implants and surgical methods and avoid reading the bad stories about hip surgery. It's the most sucessfull orthopedic procedure and will only get better.