Surgery in 8 Days

[katekosar]

Welcome, Nekko, to the other side!  Glad everything went well and so good to hear from you.  Take it easy and recover well and fully.

kate

[phillwad]

Nekko

Congrats and I am sure the extra wait will be worth while.  I hope the recovery goes well.

Cheers - Phill

[Lori Cee]

Now 6 hours post surgery and very hippy  !

AWESOME :)
Glad to hear that all is well.
Rest, recuperate and rehab and you will soon be better than ever  ;D

[nekko]

Many thanks to you, dear brothers and sisters in arms. I am posting whith an old mobile ,so it is really tricky. Pain level is acceptale.

[newdog]

Glad to hear the good news, nekko!

[Lopsided]

Nekko, did you get the cemented or uncemented C+?

[lori.36]

NeKKo,
Yeah we made it.  I hope that you are doing well.  Please update with your progress.  I am starting to use one crutch in the house.  I am getting very tired still, have to take a lot of naps.  Hope the weather is nice in France for walking.

[23109VC]

Congrats!  You will feel sooooooooo great!  You improve quickly.  By six weeks I was felingblike really good.  Now at 10 weeks I'm back on a stair stepper with ZERO pain.

You will be so glad you did it and can return to the Fun things in life!

Good luck!

[nekko]

Now back to home !

Kate, Phill, Lori, Newdog, Sean, Mike, Dan, HalfDone, Hernan thanks for your kind words.

@ Lopsided: I got the Wright Conserve+ Cemented version, 52 mm femoral cup diameter

@Phill: French wine is not 100 % compatible with the meds I have to take. So, I have to be patient on this side too....

@Lori36: I have taken some notes after day D:

D+1= drain pipes pulled out from the scar
Wake up, standing and a fem walking on 2 crutches (about 10 feet/ 3 meters distance)

D+2= Infusion needles removed; morphine stopped; walking on 2 crutches (50 feet / 15 meters distance)
PT started (one hour)
xarelto (anti-blood clot), paracetamol 1000 (anti- pain), celebrex 100 (anti-inflammatory)

D+3= walking on 2 crutches (100 feet / 30 meters distance)
PT (one hour)
xarelto (anti-blood clot), paracetamol 1000 (anti- pain), celebrex 100 (anti-inflammatory)

D+4= walking on 2 crutches (200 feet / 60 meters distance)
PT (one hour,center feeling, slow weight transfert left leg/right leg)
xarelto (anti-blood clot), paracetamol 1000 (anti- pain), celebrex 100 (anti-inflammatory)

D+5= PT (one hour,stairs climbing / descending using 2 crutches and One crutch + wall ramp)
xarelto (anti-blood clot), paracetamol 1000 (anti- pain), celebrex 100 (anti-inflammatory)

D+6= PT (one hour, tring to walk with use only one cructh. Painful. Got back using 2 crutches)
xarelto (anti-blood clot), paracetamol 1000 (anti- pain), celebrex 100 (anti-inflammatory)

D+7= Back to home (and this forum too !) after 4 hours ambulance transfer.No  PT today.
xarelto (anti-blood clot), paracetamol 1000 (anti- pain), celebrex 100 (anti-inflammatory)


So, Today I can just just feel a "non centered" distribution of the weight when I am on a natural standing up position, without holding crutches and without pain.
I can clearly feel that most of the weight (lets say 70 %) is on the non-operated leg.
Of course, I can correct this by slightly transfering more weight on the operated leg, some pain occurs and I have to move back into the "no pain position".
Does anybody has experimented this ?


@pat: if you think this section could have been in a new topic called "weight distribution", move it !

To be continued...

[Lopsided]

So, Today I can just just feel a "non centered" distribution of the weight when I am on a natural standing up position, without holding crutches and without pain.
I can clearly feel that most of the weight (lets say 70 %) is on the non-operated leg.
Of course, I can correct this by slightly transfering more weight on the operated leg, some pain occurs and I have to move back into the "no pain position".
Does anybody has experimented this ?

Increasingly, you will be able to bear more weight on your operated leg. In a few months, you might well feel that your operated side can more comfortably take weight than the other side.

[hernanu]

Agree with lopsided, you're still very early in your recovery, seem to be doing really well. your distribution will change as your operated side grows stronger.

[nekko]

Glad to read your answers, Gentlemen.

[katekosar]

Congrats, Nekko.  I am always surprised at how very different our doctors' protocols are.  While the celebrex seems like a natural for me, my surgeon didn't prescribe it.  And an hour PT several days into your recovery?  Wow.  I just got my walker and crutches and worked on walking a little and climing stairs. 

Glad you're home and doing so well. 

kate

[halfdone]

Great work nekko.  Enjoy being home.   :)

[Anniee]

Nekko, so glad you're doing so well!  In regards to weight distribution, I am almost exactly 4 weeks post op, and feel like today, for the first time, I can actually put more weight on the operated side than on the other one.   I can honestly say that the operated side feels better than the non-operated one!  4 weeks ago, I was hobbling a few feet on two crutches.  Today, I walked 1 1/2 miles on my own.  It is amazing how quickly the body heals - it just sometimes seems slower than we would like!

[nekko]

@Kate
In fact, at Day+1 and Day+2 the PT was very light and I was given some base rules about how to get up from bed, to get back in it, going to the chair and sitting down, and the smart "reverence": how to pick a small object lying on the ground. Very useful when doing toilet. Then came crutch use, allowing me to "escape" out of my room through the corridors. I have tried many times to escape from the "village"  ;) without success !!

@Annie
Good to see that after 4 weeks only, the operated side feels stronger than the non operated one !

Be seen you

[lori.36]

Nekko,  wonderful that you are doing good.  I am also healing and amazed everyday with my progress.  Today I crutched down the street with one crutch.  I also did my Pt exercises and rode the stationary bike.  I feel pretty active considering I had major surgery 10 days ago.  Oh and yesterday I took off my bandage.  My incision is glued and very crunchy.  I would say my incision is 8 inches.  So I am off pain pills, just taking Celebrex and the blood thinner.  I am going to call the doc on Monday and ask to get off those two also?
So my next Pt appt is nit until 6-1.
Update with how you are doing.  Oh I wanted to Adler are you male or female?

[nekko]

Lori36 - dear sister in arms - ,

Good to see that you have reached the one crutch barrier.
I am still on 2 crutches, tried yesterday with only one but still painful. However, I feel really good compared to the situation before surgery. No doubt on this. I did not see my incision yet but I guess it is about 12 inches. (got the postero-lateral approach). I should have my bandage/dressing (not sure for the right words !) changed on Monday. Then I will check it. I am still under blood thinner (Xarelto) for 35 days post op and take Paracetamol 1000 if needed.
Do you really intend to stop your blood thinner 12 days post op ? I am not medically trained but it seems to me a little bit early. BTW, I am 51, male gender, and happy owner of a cemented Conserve+.

[Lori Cee]

Glad to hear that all is going well for you Nekko!  Even though you are on two crutches still, you are on your way and it is awesome that you feel better than pre-op - that is a great feeling!  I think that the first time you see the incisions it's pretty amazing (it was for me as they were quite well healed when I saw them and the whole thing was a little surreal). 

Do you really intend to stop your blood thinner 12 days post op ?

I know this was addressed to the other Lori but this interests me as I have read a number of different opinions on this subject and it really depends on the surgeons determination of risk of clotting.  Some say it depends on your activity level, whereas others will go with other research in relation to the effectiveness of the medication at different durations.

My rehab doctor was in charge of these meds after the first week and prescribed me clexane (aka lovenox) injections for six weeks post-op.  I have also been wearing TEDS (for bed) and Venosan compression stockings for day for the same period.  My GP suggests continuing to wear these until my activity increases closer to normal and just assess it on a regular basis.  The socks aren't fun, but I'm still wearing them (my six weeks was Friday just gone), though I do admit I am having 'time off' during the day for a few hours for good behaviour!

I have also read that some surgeons suggest taking asprin two days before and two days after flying for the first twelve months. (think this might have been Phill's surgeon that recommends this).  I'll probably wear the socks for this period of time for travel - figure that it won't hurt.

I'd be interested to hear if anyone else has different things that have been recommended.

[Anniee]

It is very interesting to hear about the differences between doctors!  I was on blood thinner (Pradaxa) for only 10 days after the surgery, and one baby aspirin (81 mg) per day after that. I also had to take Celebrex twice each day for the first 2 weeks.  No compression stockings or other devices after the first night after surgery, which I spent in the hospital.  I have to do my PT exercises twice each day for the first six weeks, plus walk at least twice per day.   I think some different exercises will be prescribed after my six week appointment on June 2.

I have not been advised to take aspirin before flying, and I think I will call my doctor this week to ask about this, because I am flying to Denver on Thursday for my grandson's graduation.

Also, I had to cancel my appointment to have my teeth cleaned 3 weeks after the surgery, because Dr. Gross does not want you to have any routine dental work done the first 6 weeks.  Cleaning apparently qualifies as routine dental work.  After that, you have to take an antibiotic before dental work.  My dentist told me different surgeons have different opinions on this - some only require the antibiotics for a few years after surgery.  Dr.Gross wants you to take them for the rest of your life.  Oh well - having my operated hip already feeling much better than my other one is worth it!