June 11, 2009 I am six days post surgery and feeling better. I had a rough 18 hours due to H and H blood levels and allergies to pain meds. They were trying to get me up out of bed, but I was so lightheaded that I could not go anywhere. I ended up passing out in the restroom about 22 hours after my surgery, but luckily I knew it was coming and they were able to lower me to the floor in a decent position and they do not think it did anything to the new hip since I have had little pain. As a result of my blood issues, I had to have a transfusion. I was not thrilled and did not really want to do it, but my blood levels were not coming up on their own.

Within twelve hours of finishing the transfusion, I was up out of bed walking around with the walker and feeling much better. I live in an upstairs condo, so I had to be able to do stairs in the hospital before they would release me. I could do as many stairs as I wanted to by 72 hours after surgery, so I got to go home. YEAH!

My issues now are two: 1. I am taking very little pain medication due to allergies and nausea, but I also don’t have much pain. My PT says most people would still be taking more at least for the discomfort. I have trouble sitting comfortably for long and I have trouble laying down for long without discomfort in my lower back and incision area. Any suggestions?? 2. I am experiencing some “clunking” when I do heal slides or try to raise my leg off of the ground in a marching motion. Even when I lean over my crutches and relax to look in the refrigerator it clunks some. Dr. Ball said that some people do experience clunking but most seem to go away in two to three months. He thinks patients may just get used to it vs. it actually going away. He was very happy with the placement of my Wright device.

June 24, 2009 I am 19 days after surgery and am walking around the house with one crutch or no crutches. I finally gave up on the pain meds completely because of the side effects., Thinking of using Tylenol PM.

After reading about how much some people are doing on here without crutches I am feeling behind. My doctor did want me to be a little more careful about weight bearing since women have a little more incidence of femoral head fracture, so I don’t want to get too carried away.

I had my hip resurfaced and they used steri strips only on the outside incision. My doctor told me I could shower four days after surgery if I tried not to get a lot of water on it. A little running water is fine, but absolutely no submersion. He told me to lightly pat it with a soapy washcloth to clean it and lightly pat it with the towel to dry. I talked to him on day 20 and he told me to go ahead and remove the steri strips since they had not yet fallen off. The incision looks pretty good and I am using Mederma several times each day to help with the healing. He also said I could use adhesive silicone sheets and cut them to size to help hold things together and protect the incision from rubbing on my clothes during the day. He wanted it uncovered at night and for awhile after showering.

July 20, 2009 My doctor said that I can go to 120 degrees as long as my leg is turned out. If I put that foot up on something I can shave it except for the outside of my ankle. If I use the “golfer’s” bend (or so my PT calls it) where I put my operated leg out behind me and bend my good leg while standing on it I can shave much of that leg. I could only start to do this on about day fifteen. Before that I just wore long skirts the first week or two and had my husband shave my legs the first time. He didn’t do a great job, but it got me started.

August 8, 2009 I have done three things about the scar tissue sub-surface. My doctor told me that I could start massaging across the scar myself by hand about a month after surgery to break things up in there. Also, my physical therapist has been working on the really stubborn spots for me at my appointments. I also asked Dr. Ball about acupuncture and massage at my one month follow-up and he said it was OK. Therefore, my accupuncturist has been treating me along the sides of the scar to encourage blood flow and healing in that area along with massage. It all seems to be helping. It feels quite smooth except for one spot in the middle that we are still working on and I had surgery two months ago. I am not exactly sure what Mederma is, but it says it is a scar treatment. I got the one that goes on like a gel and dries so that it does not make a mess all over my clothes. I apply it two or three times every day.

October 6, 2009 For the last month or two I had no pain in my hip at all, just a little stiffness and a bit of an uncomfortable feel when my knee fell inward too fast. Over the last two weeks, that has started to change. Last weekend, I walked around a street fair for hours in “bad shoes” and when my hip hurt the next day I blamed it on the shoes. Then, on Saturday I walked about five miles at a pretty brisk pace at the air show. I have been walking, riding a stationary bike and doing the elliptical at the gym regularly since my surgery. I also went to physical therapy: in house for a month, followed by at the office for another month.

August 27, 2010 I was numb from my groin to several inches below my knee from the inside of my thigh about 6-8 inches across to the top of my thigh after surgery. No one in the hospital had ever seen this reaction to this surgery before and they are still not exactly sure what caused it. Luckily, it has been almost 15 months since my surgery, and the numbness is almost gone. There is still a circle about three or four inches in diameter that is a little numb, but the feeling is still improving.