Today marks 14 days Post Op with Dr. Brooks. I woke up in the OR as they were finishing the glue and putting on the bandage. As they wheeled me into Recovery, Dr. Brooks came over and handed me my X-Ray and simply said, "Perfect." I love it when a Dr. says that. He was obviously proud of the surgery and placement and knew what I wanted my activity level to be Post Op.
Just had my ultrasound and everything is fine so far, no blood clots. I was in Euclid hospital for 2 nights and went home. Took about 1/8 of the pain meds I was prescribed and haven't had any for 4 days. Have been back in the office for a week and have been walking about 1 mi. 3 times per week. Was on a stationary bike for 30 min on Sat. I am following the 75% weight bearing rule very closely and doing my exercises less than 3 times/day simply due to my activity level. My wife has not had to help me get dressed and I have been able to put my own socks on and tie my shoes since day 6 Post Op. A large part of my quick recovery has to do with being a Triathlete. I was biking, swimming and running up until 1 day before surgery just to keep my muscle tone. It paid off! The PT staff said that they had not seen anyone to date have as much ROM as I did before discharge. I have been sleeping on my side since day 5 and today I get to send those "stupid" inflatable socks back! LOL
I don't want to make a super long post first time, but so far, I could not be happier, except not being able to drive for 6 weeks! That is the worst part of all. (except the side effects of the pain meds - constipation, really bad) I think we're past that though and I am now looking forward to the passing of 4 more weeks so I can have my follow up and get rid of the crutches, get back in the pool and also start driving again!
Glad to hear of your good recovery, Dr. Brooks is a great surgeon, his results speak for themselves for sure.
Chuck
How did you get out in 2 days? Did you ask or did they recommend because you were doing so well? Dr. Brooks is doing my hip next week and I would like to get out before the weekend. Glad to hear you are doing so well.
Bill
Tying your shoes after six days post op? Wow..... That's pretty unbelievable. You should have made your forum handle "Wolvering" (X-men reference there....)
Congrats to you! Keep us posted.
@fenceman: Your stay in the hospital depends on the surgeon. If Manofword was out in 2 days, you will also likely be out in 2 days. For most Dr. Gross patients, you're out in 24 hours.
Man;
Congrats on your new shiny BHR, great to hear from another Brooks patient. I was out after 2 nights each time as well, despite the great care, I was ready to go for sure. I hated those noisy compression stocking devices-- for me the worst part.
I would really caution you to try and be as patient as humanly possible, I know how hard that can be, but it will really pay off. You being a triathelete I'm guessing the no running for a year is going to be tough for you, but it is a "marathon" versus a sprint and with care and feeding this hip should last a very long time. I'm doing incredibly well after 14 months on #1 and approaching 10 months on the second.
Also, don't skip the exercises, they are critically important to do as long as they recommend, even though you are far ahead of many, try to keep them going.
Thanks for sharing and best regards going forward.
Dan
Thanks for the encouraging words, everyone! As to only spending 2 nights in the hospital, it was simply because of my progress. I asked if I could go home on Friday and they said it depended on how well I did in PT and what they thought. Our worship pastor had the exact same surgery and surgeon (I told him about Dr. Brooks) and was there 3 nights. I honestly didn't try hard in PT it was just that I was able to exceed their expectations 2 days post op. I'm still about 6" from getting my knee to my shoulder though and I can almost get my heel to my butt. I'm working on those nice and easy.
Patience in running will be the chore, but I have determined to wait the entire year as Dr. Brooks advises. I will be walking (without crutches) and doing elliptical as soon as allowed.
This site really helped me in my decision and I am glad I found it. I had originally thought my running days were over as I thought a THR was my only option. It pays to do research.
I also had a hernia repaired a couple of years ago and found a surgeon (Dr. Grischkan) in Cleveland whose procedure allows you to be released to do ANYTHING after 3 days post op. Lift any amount of weight etc. I was doing inverted sit-ups 3 days later.
What kind of shins Manw. Sports hernia or inguinal hernia?
Ross
Amazingly fast progress....tying your own shoes day 6 is unreal, but glad you could do it. (Nice signature block btw, Phil. 4:13 is great.)
Ross: I had an umbilical and an inguinal hernia. Both fixed by same Dr. & same procedure. Never had a problem since. He does a non-tension repair which is why the recovery is only 3 days.
Great to hear about your progress - as others have mentioned taking your time is key. I had both hips done by Dr Brooks and just completed a 11 race cyclocross series here in Cleveland - so you will be able to get back to where you want.
Cheers - Phill
Thanks, Phill! Appreciate the affirmation that I will return to better than pre-op performance! Congrats on the cyclocross!
Yes - this season I have been much fast on/off the bike - saving considerable time. Running with bike - I am now much faster for the short runs we have to do - sometimes uphill carrying the bike - picture is from last Sunday
Awesome picture! I love the look on the kid in the background watching you.
Awesome, Phill! Cyclocross brought to you by.....BHR! Love it
Why can't you drive for six weeks?
I can drive as soon as I am off narcotics. One man at the hospital at the same time as me drove himself home to Virginia from South Carolina.
I guess every doc is different.
Your ROM is unbelievable. How can you tie without breaking 90 degrees?
Dee
I assumed it was to do with a sudden use of teh brake peddal. But then when I had the other hip done it was the same - I am not sure why "no driving for 6 weeks"
As far as tying my shoes, I don't have a 90 degree rule. I was encouraged to work on getting my knee to my should right away. I have not been doing that aggressively, but have been stretching nonetheless. I probably will be able to drive before 6 wks, but that was just Dr's orders across the board for all of his patients. I am 17 days post op today and for the first time, I feel like I don't need the crutches. I am using them anyway. I can already lift my operated leg parallel to the ground and don't need to assist my leg in getting in and out of the car. No more sweat pants and the glue is just about off my incision. Recovery is amazing so far. Thank the Lord!
Good stuff so far. I think you're wise to keep using support until your gait is good - don't want to have to unlearn bad habits.
Well, Hernanu,
At least my pre-op, arthritic, pain limp is gone! The rest of this is a piece of cake comparatively.
I aqree. I also had no 90 degree rule (antero-lateral guy here), so was able to do the same kind of exercises as you. Didn't quite progress as quickly, but more power to you for doing so.
Hernanu,
I had the same approach - antero-lateral. No muscles cut that I'm aware of. Hence, a speedy recovery. I also started to drive today. Nothing heavy, just around town. Makes it much easier on my lovely wife rather than dropping me off at Starbucks (Daycare) early and then coming to take me to the office etc. I have a Jeep Wrangler which sits kind of high so I lift my operated leg with my hand then into the vehicle. Since it is my right leg, all I have to do is rest it on the floor and hit the gas and brake while I use my left for the clutch. Being very careful, but it sure makes things easier.
Still amazed at recovery and post op flexibility!
Same here, got back to driving at two weeks each hip. I live alone, so I really stocked up on things beforehand and was going out of my nut by two weeks.
My surgeon's guidance was that if I could get in the car and out without major problems, and was able to move my foot correctly between the brake and accelerator seamlessly, then I could drive. I also wanted to make sure I wasn't a menace on the road, so tested it parked several times before going on the road.
Being back driving was bizarre for the first ten minutes or so. Afterwards, though it was as usual and I had a stoopid grin on since there was no OA ache on the hip, just the receding surgical discomfort. Ice and short drives eventually took care of that.
The only caveat is that at four months after getting my right done I was rear ended at a stop light at full speed by an octogenarian. I stomped on the brake to prevent going into the car in front of me; the impact lifted the rear of my car off the ground. You can read my post if you go a year and a half back, but long and short of it, the hip withstood that with flying colors at four months.
There is need to be careful, which I was, but who can predict an oldster in a big car pulling an illegal u turn and plowing into the rear of your car. I didn't even pay attention to my hips after pulling over, just wanted to scream at the driver, until I saw that he was an older gentleman who was distraught. After the police, everything, twenty minutes later as I was getting back into my car, I thought... my hip! I walked around, tested it, called my surgeon, they looked at it and said... fine..!?!!
That has been my only concern driving as well. Not so much concerned about me as someone plowing into me. But I guess whether that is me driving or someone else, the end result would probably be the same as one would normally hit the floorboards with both feet putting stress on that BHR.
Just started to use a cane instead of crutches since a PT nurse I know, who works with BHR patients said it was fine. Still use the crutches for long distance walking though. Wound is completely healed and sleeping is easy and comfortable now.
You're right about being a passenger or a driver, but as I found out, given the luck of not having an accident early on, it's hopefully not a problem.
I was actually pretty confident after the crash; finding out that it could withstand the impact that early on kind of cleared the decks for me mentally.
4 wks post op this week! Can't believe how I can tell the progress is moving forward daily. Muscles are gaining strength. Still have a little limp that is simply due to stiffness being worked out. Stretches are going well and I'm still not pushing it. Well, maybe pushing it a little. I did use the snow blower to clean the drive today...with no problems. Just took it nice and slow and let the self-propelled snow blower do the work. Looking forward to my follow-up visit on Jan. 8th when I can toss the crutches er, I mean cane! Should I go in with a cane or use crutches and make them think I used them the entire time? LOL
Be ever so careful, the first 6 months you are apt to break your femoral neck if you take a bad fall.
Please, let someone else do the snow blowing.
Chuck
I'll back up Chuck on this. This is a marathon, not a sprint (even if you want to get back to sprinting, right Arrojo?).
Patience now will give you a huge payoff; conversely, there's plenty of stories of reversals if you push too much. Your bone is just barely growing into the device right now, you want to support that.
There'll be plenty of winters where you can take care of business, this one you might want to hire a kid to do it.
Man, 4 yrs ago I switched to 1 crutch after 4 weeks because I felt I could easily keep the 75% rule and it was much easier to get around. I walked into Dr Brooks office with 1 and he told me it was time to get rid of the crutch.
Chuck and Hernanu are right. You will feel like you can do so much more but you must invest in patience.
Bill
Gald to hear you are doing so well.
Watch out for ice, if you do more snow removal, would suggest the risks of falling at only 4 weeks into the healing process may not be worth it. Just my .02 cents.
Continued wishes for a great recovery.
Dan
OK, guys, I get the message! Thanks for all the input. I truly am being careful even though I am ambulating quite well.
Had my 6wk post-op follow-up with Phil Gollnick at Dr. Brooks' office today. X-rays looked perfect he said. Everything is still in position just like Dr. Brooks left it and no problem with bone/femoral neck.
I didn't even try to pretend I was still using crutches so I went in with my cane, which I stopped using 5 days ago. I still have a tiny limp which will be fixed with a little exercise. I can return to swimming laps (limited at first) and I can also start riding my bike as long as I limit it to about 15 miles. 15 miles is a warm up! This weekend is supposed to be warm so I will probably get on my brand new Blue Triad EX. Will ride on flat ground with minimal effort. I can also get back in the gym and now finally the whirlpool, all without pain!
He said to take it easy, which I will. I will try to listen to my body except when it craves a full workout! LOL. He wasn't worried about my activity but stated that maybe 5% of all BHR patients who have problems have them in the first 6 months and admitted that their office, compared to others who do BHR, is VERY conservative. Even Dr. McMinn has folks off crutches after 3 weeks so I guess I'm in good company. Once again, couldn't be more pleased with my procedure and outcome!
Be careful on that bike (using my best nagging tone) a fall could cost you your resurfacing.
Chuck
If you are Cleveland - have you riden the new Cleveland Velodrome?
Manofword
The need to be very conservative is designed to prevent you from having a revision to a THR-- think being opened up again, the top of your femur sawed off, a 6 inch spike being driven down through your femur, months more of healing, and lifetime restrictions you don't have now. Worse yet, think of the THR being revised, lather, rinse, repeat, except an 8 inch spike the second time.
I totally get the cabin fever, champing at the bit, need to do what you love etc, and need to feel normal, but exceeding the conservative approach that has lead to so many successful patients of Dr Brooks is very, very short sighted versus the rest of your life.
Your outcome is unknown until 1 year out, and one fall from your bike and you're in trouble. Giiven you are smaller boned with smaller impants you are also more at risk versus others. It is truly a marathon, not a spint.
Dan
Thanks for the "picture" of misery & agony, Dan! LOL I want no part of it and don't think I don't think about that when walking on snow or ice or stairs or anything potentially dangerous.
You're right, and I don't intend on doing anything I haven't been cleared to do. I've been cleared to do anything but run as long as I build up to distances and keep resistance to a minimum. I swam & was in the pool today for the 1st time. Went extremely well and since I'm a triathlete, I don't rely on legs much for swimming but they were working very well w/o the feeling of any stress being put on my new hip. For biking, I will find nice flat routes with little traffic when the weather is nice and then on my trainer when it is not. Also, interesting that when I asked if the size of my implant was on the small side, Phil stated that it was in the mid-range and he didn't think it was considered small. I was surprised at that since I'm only 5'-5.5".
Thanks for all the encouragement everyone and advice! It is greatly appreciated!
Manoword
Thought you might be interested in this thread, in case you had not seen it yet.
Check out Spencer's xrays from his fall off his bike and trocanter fracture following HR, http://surfacehippy.info/hiptalk/gallery/?sa=view;pic=15
Good news he is doing great and had all that hw removed http://surfacehippy.info/hiptalk/recovery-issues/update-metal-plate-out-after-intertrochantric-fracture/msg42655/#msg42655.
Be careful out there.
Dan
Wow Dan! I feel for Spencer! Sounds like his crash and injury had nothing to do with the BHR but sure messed his leg up for sure. I've never had a crash, fortunately. When I race, I'm an age grouper who believes that the extra speed I'll get from throwing caution to the wind on a downhill s not worth the risk of injury. I'm competitive and can deal with training and racing pain, but I don't want to have deal with crash & burn pain OR the time it will take to recover. Reading his story gives me the chills. May God help, heal and bless Spencer!
I'm now 12 weeks post op and almost all tenderness is gone. No more limp. No more uncomfortable sleeping positions at all. I have my full walking stride back. Am back in the gym but only doing leg presses with an empty sled mostly for ROM exercise. Still resisting the temptation to jog and am swimming 1 mile workouts 3 times a week. No noise from the BHR, no catches, no weird feeling. Have been massaging the incision to break up any scar tissue and it is working well. And taking ZERO meds!
Overall, still 100% satisfied with everything!
Quote from: Manofword on February 18, 2013, 09:14:35 PM
I'm now 12 weeks post op and almost all tenderness is gone. No more limp. No more uncomfortable sleeping positions at all. I have my full walking stride back. Am back in the gym but only doing leg presses with an empty sled mostly for ROM exercise. Still resisting the temptation to jog and am swimming 1 mile workouts 3 times a week. No noise from the BHR, no catches, no weird feeling. Have been massaging the incision to break up any scar tissue and it is working well. And taking ZERO meds!
Overall, still 100% satisfied with everything!
That's awesome. Keep up the patience and the good work, your payoff is coming soon.
Manof word;
Did Phil OK the leg presses with no weights? Reason I ask is Brooks has had one femoral neck fracture out of more than 1500 done, and that was caused by a patient doing leg presses.
If no, you are asking for trouble. If yes, cool, enjoy.
Just curious.
Dan
The leg presses I am referring to would amount to maybe just a little more than if I did deep knee bends. I am very aware of the potential for problems which is why I am careful to use no more weight than the sled itself. I am merely using it for ROM as it gets my knees to my chest. I have read Dr. Brooks mention the only problem he had was with the guy at I think 3 months going into the gym and doing leg presses. I'm sure the guy wasn't doing presses with an empty sled.
Being a Triathlete, I have two things going for good and bad #1 (Good) I know my body and limits very well and was in excellent physical condition going into surgery. #2 (Bad) I am used to pushing the limits of my body.
So, whenever I exercise, I really think about the type of exercise it is and where my body gets loaded and what gets worked. So far, that has brought me to the point I am now. Even in the pool, I was conscious of what was getting worked and when I got a little sore, I rested for a few days. So, I am following the "stress & rest" regimen, but not too much stress.
Be careful, the homegoing instructions specifically prohibit leg presses with any resistance at all for a year, and with the high octane athletic approach you have, you are at higher risk generally.
Patience is the one thing helping protect you from a revision, and the most difficult part of the recovery, my 2 cents is the recovery is a marathon, not a sprint.
Thanks Dan! I've been cautioned, re-cautioned and then cautioned again. I've taken it all under advisement and so far I'm a happy hippy! I intend to stay that way. ;D
15 1/2 week update:
Everything still going very well so far. Still had a minor limp after sitting for a while. Have been walking aggressively and even adding some extremely light jogging in the mix for very short periods of time. Believe it or not, that regimen has just about removed the limp as it has strengthened the muscles which needed it. I am not recommending that anyone go my route, I am only chronicling my journey. I full well know that most take a far more conservative route than I, and I know the risks. No one wants to go in for a revision less than me, so I monitor my activity very closely. I have read most of the home going protocols BHR Docs give, and they do vary, so I know I'm not way out of bounds for the majority. As soon as the weather breaks, I am looking forward to spending more time on the bike!
Good work, and it's excellent that you're being careful with the rehab.
The startup pain is something we've all had - it lasted until about 7 months with me.
The aggressive walking is great, I couldn't do light running until about 9 months along. Each one of us is different. Keep in mind that your bone strength on the neck is still not back up to full (returns at 6-12 months), so work that into your efforts.
A good dedicated rehab is great though, keeping in mind that muscle strength is not the same as bone strength and both need to be promoted let you return to full blooded competition.
Hern, you missed your calling as a diplomat ;). Great advice as always.
NEW milestone: Today marks weeks 19 post op! I ran, if you can call it that at 10min/mi, for almost 10 mi last week. 5 miles one day and broke up the other 5 in 2 different runs. Nothing aggressive, front strike strides just working on endurance. Been biking some when the weather is nice as well 20-30 mi. It feels great but I'm resisting the temptation to go faster.....so far!
First triathlon of the season in May, (Rev3 Knoxville) which will be just about my 6 month mark. It will primarily be a training day since I'll be the last place finisher on purpose to help those who may be struggling to finish.
Quote from: Manofword on April 11, 2013, 08:08:22 AM
NEW milestone: Today marks weeks 19 post op! I ran, if you can call it that at 10min/mi, for almost 10 mi last week. 5 miles one day and broke up the other 5 in 2 different runs. Nothing aggressive, front strike strides just working on endurance. Been biking some when the weather is nice as well 20-30 mi. It feels great but I'm resisting the temptation to go faster.....so far!
First triathlon of the season in May, (Rev3 Knoxville) which will be just about my 6 month mark. It will primarily be a training day since I'll be the last place finisher on purpose to help those who may be struggling to finish.
Congrats on the 19 weeks!
Temptation is hard to resist, but made easier when you look at your long term goals. I know that several hippies have gone back to triathlons at about six months with mixed resuts.
You might want to check with them about their training, results and how they did the actual competition. I think David also put together a training protocol for getting back to running.
Good luck, and keep it in first or second gear, the time for full throttle will come.
Running at 19 weeks when you were told not to run until 52 weeks. Hmmm, by my math, 52 - 19 = Nuts.
Hi,
I have to agree with Dan. Seems silly to take a chance at this point of your recovery.
Whats the rush???
We all want to be able to do more, I would rather have the second half of
my life be filled active sports than have to endure a depressing revision.
Patty
I'll jump in here and say I would definitely be less agressive and competitive at 19 weeks post op.
I hate to have others encouraged to over do their running by your activity until at least 6 months and anything agressive until after 1 year. But that is your personal choice and I would be cautious since revisions are not much fun.
Take it easy.
Pat
Manofword
I sense you have a strong yearning to get back to your triathlete strength and you are willing and motivated to do the work to get there. God knows the desires of your heart to return to the joys of strenouos physical activity. I pray you take the strong counsel of very wise and knowledgable people here and back off the risk taking activities. You have accomplished a lot of amazing feats of recovery, but wisdom from those around you including your doctors protocol as well as you friends here are telling you to be patient and make better choices.
I feel like the advice of this board is like the wisdom of
Proverbs 1:4-6 ( the message)
To teach the inexperienced the ropes
and give our young people a grasp on reality.
There's something here also for seasoned men and women,
still a thing or two for the experienced to learnâ€"â€"
Fresh wisdom to probe and penetrate,
the rhymes and reasons of wise men and women.
Please pray about continuing to run.
Dee
Manofword -
From your December 13 post: "Patience in running will be the chore, but I have determined to wait the entire year as Dr. Brooks advises."
Hey everyone...I sincerely appreciate all the remarks and concern for my recovery. I know when one wins, we all win. And when one loses, we all feel the loss. I know my body and what it is capable of. I think about it all the time I am active. Trust me, I am holding WAY back on what I am doing. I know I originally intended to wait the entire year...easier said than done. This entire process is about managing risk. I've done that my entire life and lived on the edge. Not nearly as far on the edge as others, but that is what makes me who I am. I am not risk averse. I am also not stupid although that may be debatable. On another note, my wife, Diane, was just diagnosed with breast cancer 5 weeks ago. She had surgery to remove the tumor/lump w/no lymph node removal and has elected to not have chemo or radiation. She is electing to do alternative diet related treatment (lots of juicing etc) and that is far more risky than what I'm doing. It's about managing the risk and no one else can make those decisions other than the individual.
I am not trying to encourage anyone to do anything different from what their protocol calls for. McMinn releases his patients at 24 weeks so I'm not really that far off. I fully understand the protocols. But an extremely conservative blanket protocol covers everyone from the person highest at risk to the one who will recover more quickly. To do something other than that would open up the Surgeon's to a myriad of law suits for missing the mark on individual recovery plans. I've really only intended to chronicle my recovery here. Maybe I shouldn't do that and just jump back on after 1yr. That way no one will know what I've done and then they can all pat me on the back for a good recovery. LOL
Regarding triathlons: I'm not competing in a triathlon. As I mentioned, I will be a last place finisher on purpose to help the people who are struggling and may not finish otherwise. That means I probably will be walking on the run and right now am planning on helping two young boys (10) on the bike portion. That's probably not even 50% effort.
Not only that, but there is picture of an athlete here on this site, in the athlete section, Larry Schmidt, who did an Ironman triathlon 5 months post op and it looks like he had zero problems. I'm not even remotely close to that. ;D
Saying a prayer for your wife's recovery.
Quote from: fenceman on April 15, 2013, 12:52:05 PM
Saying a prayer for your wife's recovery.
Thanks! Greatly appreciated!
I am sorry to hear about your wife's cancer. I will keep her in my thoughts and prayers, too.
Pat
Manofword:
Sorry to hear about your wife's breast cancer. I hope her course of treatment is successful.
After reading your description of your Triathlon training, it does indeed sound like you are holding back, and participating as a chance to assist others rather than see how hard you can push your body.
Good luck with your training and let us know how it goes.
Thanks everyone for your prayers! The same God who led me to hip resurfacing and granted me such a great recovery will keep Diane in the hollow of His hand! He is the Source for all we need.