THR - Total Hip Replacement

 

Hints and Tips

 

 

General information

 

Firstly, some of this information is from my own recovery from hip replacement and some is gleaned from several forum posts by my fellow hip replacement patients on Patient.Info, so I do not claim any originality for all of the ideas below. My thanks to them for selflessly providing the information.

 

Try not to worry about what will happen before, during and after the operation, although this is much easier said than done.

 

You should be given help and instruction from the hospital on what to do in the home. You will need toilet risers, chair risers, long reach grabbers, long handled shoehorn, instructions on the height of bed.

 

Think about what levels things in the house are kept and move those things you use a lot up to a higher level so you don't have to bend to get at them.

 

Make some easy meals to put into the freezer for when you come out of hospital. If you do not have someone else at home, is there anyone else who could come in or that you can call on, a friend, neighbour or relative?

 

 

Some More Hippy Tips -

 

Getting your favourite supermarket to deliver your shopping for a few weeks helps a lot, some run a promotion for free deliveries, take advantage of them, and then cancel it before the end of the 'contract' time when you no longer need it.

 

A couple of weeks after the operation, going to the supermarket for shopping is good for you, the floor is flat and even, just hang onto the trolley and use it as a walking aid.

 

Remember, recovery will take time, sometimes longer than you think it should, so don't compare your progress too closely with everyone else; we all heal at different rates. Also people react differently to different medicines, painkillers usually give you constipation, and anti-inflammatories can often have the opposite effect!

 

You will get aches and pains - just ask an internet forum such as "Total Hip Replacement Forum"

 

Aches and pains which regularly pop up in the forum are pain in the front of the thigh (Quads), and a 'sitting on a golf ball' feeling. These are very common, you probably need to work on strengthening your muscles, but they will mostly pass after a few weeks.

 

You probably won't sleep very well for a while. It doesn't seem to be pain that keeps you awake but the enforced sleeping on your back for the first few weeks. A need for naps in the afternoon are normal, your body needs to rest regularly.

 

Most of us seem to need to urinate a lot at first - once per hour in the night is not uncommon. There are various devices available for both men and ladies to use in bed to save you having to trek to the toilet, but practice using them well BEFORE the operation.

 

Everyone has different levels of post-operative pain but it is totally different to what you experienced before the operation. Mobility is also different for everyone.

 

Car journeys over a couple of miles will be uncomfortable for a few weeks as the supportive seats may rub your scar area. You may be allowed to drive after six weeks, but don't bank on it. Your surgeon will advise you when you are safe to return to driving.

 

Expect tears and 'down' days but also expect small triumphs and a whole new way of looking at the world without pain. Keep a log of your triumphs, you will feel encouraged when you look back at it a week later and can see your progress. Also keep a log of your medication or get a 'medication planner' or 'pill box' to make sure you do not over or under medicate.

 

Just remember, try to be a patient patient. To your body this operation is massive, if you had broken your leg you would be in plaster for 6 - 8 weeks. You are having a new joint and this doesn't involve the fairies popping a new one in, so chill out and let your body heal naturally. It takes about 4 -6 weeks just for the joint to become stable so you need to support your walking and weight bearing with a walker, crutches or sticks.

 

Comparing yourself to others is not good for you. It may take longer than the 'manual' says before you are walking, running, biking, driving or back to work. We are all different, at different fitness levels and at different stages of our lives.

 

It is not all roses. It is hard work and a struggle sometimes but the end result is amazing

 

You will need a sense of humour to get you through this experience, and having an understanding partner certainly helps, but is not essential.

 

People will talk about anterior, lateral and posterior operations; these are the direction used by the surgeon to access the joint. Anterior is frontal, Lateral from the side and Posterior from the rear of the leg/buttock.

 

 

Hippy Humour

 

What your doctor didn't tell you, or a light hearted look at post op issues:

 

You will pee for (insert your country here) for at least a week. Be prepared because you just won't be able to control yourself. If you don't have a toilet near your bedroom, invest in a bucket and pretend you're glamping.

 

You will only have the attention span of a goldfish. If you had planned on catching up on reading and/or all those box sets, forget it. As soon as you start concentrating on that book or the first episode of the box set, you will be asleep.

 

Be prepared to fall asleep at any point during the day. At night you won't be able to get to sleep at all.

 

Get used to the fact that you'll have to (not) sleep on your back. I know very few people who actually sleep on their back by choice. It is a really uncomfortable position and will result in getting backache after a few hours.

 

Make sure you have short toenails, especially on the big toes as the pressure from any bedclothes will hurt toes and your heels.

 

Compression socks - so sexy and comfortable - not. They are an essential fashion accessory for the first 6 weeks for all hippies. Surely they must be classified as a form of torture!

 

Your operated leg will feel like it weighs a ton for the first week. It also feels like it doesn't belong to you. It will get better.

 

Don't tell your spouse/family/friends about your operation in detail, they really aren't that interested. It would be nice if family/friends visited more than once. Best to just post on to the Facebook forum.

 

Don't believe the adverts - pre-prepared meals are terrible. The actual contents have only a passing resemblance to the packet photo. The ingredients used are usually the cheapest the manufacture can get away with. To add insult to injury the portion size is for a child.

 

Any chocolates/sweets/puddings eaten during your recovery period are deemed to be non-fattening - and don't listen to anyone who tells you otherwise. Any chocolates/sweets/puddings consumed between 5am & midnight have zero calories as they're made from fresh air!

 

Do not sneeze or cough. It will hurt. Your friends and family will think you're being completely pathetic for complaining, only other hippies will understand the pain.

 

Those in a relationship with someone will endure a period of celibacy for some 6 to 12 weeks before you can perform anything like normally again.

 

Look like a nerd as you wear one slipper to even out the height discrepancy you feel resulting from surgery. Kids will keep offering to get your other slipper.

 

You will suffer constipation that will have you feeling like you are giving birth.

 

Bio-oil is the future for itchy scar.

 

Be prepared for a swollen ankle or foot.

 

People always saying "Ohhh you're too young for a hip replacement what did you do that for???" The answer should be "I'm (insert your age) and was in agony prior to my replacement. I had a horrendous limp and was in constant pain but now I feel like a new man/woman."

 

You will be sweating buckets every night and feeling like a wrung out rag in the morning. You will have to change your sleep attire up to 3 times a night.

 

Be prepared for hurting in your other leg and both arms as they have to work harder to move your body around during the initial weakness in your surgical leg. In fact, be prepared to hurt all over and never be comfortable for about 6 months.

 

This surgery is literally a pain in the derrière. Your backside will be sore from just sitting, even with a big soft cushion. Gel ice packs will be your friends for aches and pains.

 

You will take one step forward in your recovery one day, then take two steps backward the very next day.

 

Be prepared to think that "something went terribly wrong" at 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 weeks out ... if not for the Facebook Hip Forum, many of us would have called our surgeons daily!

 

People, as much as they care get bored VERY quickly, be prepared to be the star of the show for a few days, and once they know you have survived the experience their interest will wane incredibly quickly, and if you are really super lucky it might stretch into a few weeks! The rest of the six months or so it takes you get to grips with real life outside your hippie bubble will be with everyone on the Facebook Hip Forum!

 

There are only so many times you can pee your pants by leaving too late for your hellish shuffling 'journey' to the far away toilet before you start to wish you have bought some incontinence pads and given up !! You feel like a hundred years old even if you are young - trust me it passes!

 

[ Chloeparrot, sue82264 , rose0000, Fernlady, Msky, Leslie4077, Noplaybarbie, vicki289186, gwen81475, renee01952, AnnieK, linda38528, lors23 ]

 

 

 

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The content on this Website is provided for general information only.

It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely. In particular, any information is not a substitute for professional medical care by a qualified doctor or other healthcare professional.

If you are not a healthcare professional then you should ALWAYS check with your doctor if you have any concerns about your condition or treatment and before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on this Website.

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Contact: Webmaster (at) thr. org. uk

Page last updated: 8 August 2016 - 17:35