Knees & Hips

PS My worst problem is having to sleep on my back as I never do normally. I fall asleep ok but then wake up with backache. I'm also having trouble remembering not to cross my legs although the pillow between the legs helps..

Great news! Well done you - onwards and upwards.

Mishap I do think you have to do something! You cannot go on in that sort of pain. Monday?

amarmai that's dreadful to hear, you'll feel very bruised, battered and shaken up for a while. I do hope you feel better soon

NotTooOld I'm very pleased to hear you're home and bionic. Good luck with crutches!

to you both x

thank you loopylou.I am improving slowly.

Mishap The pain radiating down your leg and making your foot numb could be coming from your lower spine. I still think that you should see an orthopod soon because your symptoms are not normal after this length of time following a THR. You are being fobbed off.

The infection, if any, could be deep seated and may not necessarily show up on an xray. Have you had blood tests? It does sound as though there is a trapped nerve somewhere, either hip or back. Sorry I am not the bearer of good news but you must be seen asap, please!

NotTooOld pleased to hear that you are home again and appear to be coping. Lying on your back to sleep for 6 weeks is a pain but would it make it easier if you had maybe 3 pillows behind you so that you were partially sitting up but not so that you were putting pressure on your rear end? It is mega difficult when you cannot turn around in bed and sort it out yourself!

Glad all went well NotTooOld and hope your recovery is quick.

Mishap Sorry you are still having problems. I also think you should insist on seeing someone sooner.

NSO, glad all went well (knew it would . It's amazing how soon you can get up and about after such invasive surgery. Keep at the exercises, some may seem impossible, but they will come (I never thought I would lift my leg off the bed ever again). My biggest problem (my wife was still working) was making a cup of tea, had to put it into a bottle to carry it to my chair with crutches. You will get used to sleeping on your back.

Re your itchy bum, get your DH to rub some oil into your bum - it won't help, but it will cheer him up

I plan to go to GP and ask for blood test to see if there is any infection floating about. Had one about 6 weeks ago and it was OK. Talked to physio friend of my DD's who said that some people get over THR in a few weeks and others can take up to a year - no-one said this before I did it!! - not that I could have let things continue as they were. But I had certainly hoped that I would be better quicker - and that the problems with my heart and the depression had not been triggered by the surgery - definitely did not plan for that! Been feeling very low the last few days and life is a bit of a struggle - but I am ploughing on.

It's a bummer isn't it Mishap, I wish that things were better for you.
(((Hugs))) x

Charleygirl - thanks for the tip. I have put an extra pillow on the bed now and am hoping for better sleep tonight. Last night was a nightmare.

I am doing well on the crutches and managed to get down our gravel drive and a little way along the road this morning (Day 4 post op) so felt quite pleased with myself. I also keep doing the exercises.

Mishap - so sorry to hear you are not recovering as quickly as you expected. I was actually told it can take a year to get back to maximum health but that doesn't mean you won't get operational much sooner than that, so don't be downhearted.

Well done NTO - I have a blow-up rubber ring (well actually it is square) which I have in the bed under my bum. It makes thing more comfortable, and makes it possible to lie on my operated side for short periods during the night.

Mishap I am not surprised you are struggling. Constant pain and having to wait so long to recover are bound to be draining. I hope you will be able to find reserves of strength to keep you going.

I was interested in your comment about your surgery having triggered off heart problems and depression. I am wondering if my recent diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis is connected to my THR three months' ago. A sort of delayed reaction to the physical trauma.

Pompa! You are a very naughty man! Now where's that oil.......?

Mishap - thanks for the tip. Do hope you are feeling better soon. I always think weekends are the worst when you are not well or are on your own (or both). I heard today that DD and family are off to Guernsey for Easter and DS and co are going to Germany and Vienna. I'm pleased for them all but was also a bit weepy as we won't be going anywhere just yet.

DH had to go out and buy me a new chair today. The sofa that the kind man from Medicare (or somewhere) came and raised for me is far too soft (knew it would be). The new chair is 20" off the ground, has arms and an upright back. DH got it from our local cut price furniture store. It was only a sample and they wanted to keep it but he gave them a big sob story and they let him have it.

I ache all over today. I don't know whether I've overdone the exercises or whether it is because I am reliably informed that 'they throw you around like a piece of meat once they get you on the operating table'.

I did not react well to the trauma of surgery. I was shivering for ages after I came round and they eventually had to wrap me in a sort of blanket through which they blew hot air to try and get my temperature up. I do not know whether it was drug-induced or whether the theatre was cold, but it was very unpleasant. I could not stop shaking. My sister had the same problem after surgery and had to be wrapped in a hypothermia blanket.

I did find the whole experience very traumatic; but I have friends who have bounced back as if they had just had a tooth out!

NTO - if you get a rubber ring (I bought mine online) it only needs a tiny bit of air in it. Don't be weepy about Easter - you will be back in action soon and able to go wherever you wish. Glad that you have a suitable chair now - it makes such a difference to your comfort.

patallus - I am sorry to hear about your RA - is it being kept under control? - I do hope so.

NTO, there certainly is a lot of pushing and shoving involved in getting the new hip in place, (I had a fair amount of bruising), that plus working weakened muscles is bound to give you some aches and pains. It will all be worth the effort, 6 months from now you will be enjoying the summer getting out and about.

Thanks mishap.

I've only just been diagnosed. So far I've had a steroid injection to keep me going whilst the correct dose of Methotrexate is established.

I'll just have to wait and see how it progresses.

This is Day 5 Post-Op and I had a much better night's sleep thanks to the 3-pillow tip from Charleygirl. You won't believe this but we have viewers for our house coming at 1130 this morning, so poor DH is running around like a blue * fly. I am sitting here in my new chair like Queen NotTooOld. We did actually tell the estate agent 'no viewers for the foreseeable' when we knew I had to have the HR op but she (lovely girl) thinks these may be THE ONES so we have given in. I'll have to make sure they don't trip over my crutches.

This is Day 5 Post-Op and I had a much better night's sleep thanks to the 3-pillow tip from Charleygirl. You won't believe this but we have viewers for our house coming at 1130 this morning, so poor DH is running around like a blue * fly. I am sitting here in my new chair like Queen NotTooOld. We did actually tell the estate agent 'no viewers for the foreseeable' when we knew I had to have the HR op but she (lovely girl) thinks these may be THE ONES so we have given in. I'll have to make sure they don't trip over my crutches.

Good luck with the viewing - you could probably do without this today!

Viewers have been and gone. No idea if they liked it as DH reported they said hardly a word.

Managed, with a lot of help from DH, to have a shower just now. Lovely feeling! After that I did the exercises and gave myself a fright. One of the standing exercises requires a lift of the leg to the side but I must have overdone it because I suddenly got quite a pain at the operation site. I sat down quickly in a bit of a panic but it seems ok now. Phew. Anyone had a similar experience?

I did one of the exercises at the beginning and it involved holding onto the back of a chair and going up on your toes - as I did so there was a ghastly wrenching in one of my knees! So that set things back a bit!

I think the exercises need to be done with some care and stopped if the pain starts. One problem with exercises is that they put bits of you under stress in ways that they are not normally under stress - and not just the joint that has been operated on. Everyone is different and you need to proceed at your pace.

The fact that it has now settled down is very good.

You do have to be very gentle with the abduction exercises, NTO! They have cut into and shifted the muscles over the joint, then put them back so they are quite weak. My physio warned me that I must not work the hip as hard as I had worked the knee. Amazing, though, what you will be able to do after six weeks, I promise you.

Sympathies with the sleeping! I had, with both TKR and THR, at least a week of needing to wee every two hours, which was a nightmare. I can now sleep on the non operated side, but am cautious with the other one. But sleeping like a baby. Apart from the usual 3.30 wee, that is.

I struggled to get my leg to move sideways for a while, abductor muscle had forgotten it's purpose.

Thanks for your sympathy everyone. I've certainly learned my lesson with the exercises and will be taking it much easier in the future. 'Don't try and run before you can walk' must be my motto!

I have an orthotic in the shoe of my broken foot; I have not been using the one that goes on the other shoe as my leg is longer on that side after my hip op. I am seeing the podiatrist tomorrow as there is a problem in my other foot (metatarsalgia). I am hoping that they will find a way of making that more comfortable so I can walk more. I do walk every day - down the steep hill to the flat path to the church which I march up and down 10 times - then back up the hill. I am hoping that the walking action will be the best exercise. It hurts, but I do realise that it is necessary.