I need some recovery reassurance

[bosoxgordon]

Hey guys,

I'm sorry I haven't been out here lately. Ever since the surgery I've been busy with work, chasing our three year old son, and trying to lose some of the weight I've put on since having to slow down from the OA and surgery.

The main thing I wanted to get from you more experienced hippys out here is some realistic recovery expectations. I am just about 5 months post op now and feeling a bit frustrated with the lingering pain I still have in the hip. I recently tried to step up my exercise routine (while still adhering to all my restrictions) however I'm finding that the hip is still a long way form feeling normal. I still have some of the "clunking" feelings in the hip when I stretch and move certain ways. I also still have quite a bit of soreness after sitting for long periods of time or working out too long.

I understand that there is going to be a long recovery. However, I find that even if I take a week off of working out I still have soreness and pain in the hip when I first get moving. It is all soft tissue pain. Sometimes it is in the groin and sometimes it is more on the outside of the hip.

On really bad days I get very discouraged and wonder if I will ever be pain free and normal again. So maybe my expectations are not realistic. I would love to hear from some of you to help me set some realistic expectations for my recovery. Am I expecting too much too early from my hip? How long did it take to feel "normal" again? Is there anything you did to aid your recovery process?

Any and all suggestions or feedback would be appreciated. Thanks for the help.

[Miguelito]

Hi Scott,

I don't remember having much in the way of pain at five months, other than the occasional sharp pain in the groin. I am sure you are doing more than I did, as I did not work out at all until six months.

While I did not have much pain at five months, in my experience, five months is still really in the mid-ranges of recovery. I think you might be expecting too much. I could not do more than hobble jog a short distance at that point. Moreover, I did not feel any athleticism return until about 1 year. I remember trying to skate at 8 or 9 months and having difficulty, but a year later, after not skating at all in the interim, I could skate very well again (relatively speaking, that is).

In my years on this board I think there is a general consensus that you return to most of your abilities by about one year, but continue to improve after that, certainly out to two years. Now that being said, I don't believe my hip will ever be "normal" if by normal I mean like it was pre-surgery. My hip at two years still tends to drift when I corner in the other direction. And I can still "feel" my hip; I could not "feel" my hip pre-surgery.

From my experience, and from what I've read, you should be pain free again, however. I just can't opine too much on muscular pain at the five month stage since I did little that could aggravate my hip (aside from the occasional round of golf, and that didn't aggravate it). It sounds like you might be having more pain than I typically hear about at that stage, but I do hear of others who did more than I who have muscular issues, etc.

Hope this helps.

Mike

[Jason0411]

If I overdo it I still can get some flexor discomfort and a bruised feeling on the outside of my hip. But most of the time I don't notice it. My Bro who is 14 years out reckons if he sits too long in the same position he still gets what he calls start up stiffness. Which is soon walked off. So I would give it time and dont forget what you have is not a normal hip. They are good but not as good as something which had millions of years in the development stages.

[chuckm]

Bosoxgordon - I'm just over a year post op. I had that tightness and soreness too all along even up until now.
What resolved it EVERY TIME was getting myself on the foam roller. It became so obvious because the further along I was, I began to forget about it. And when my leg would become cranky sometimes I would forget about the roller until I questioned my recovery and then I got back on the roller and it fixed it every time. It set my mind at ease like a weight lifted off of me.

Even last week my leg was sore. I probably broke through yet a little more scar tissue or gained a little more ROM. After a few days of soreness I wondered if I'm having a setback. I jumped on the roller and it solved everything.

Chuckm

[bosoxgordon]

Thanks for the responses and suggestions. I haven't tried the foam roller thing yet. I will try it. I've noticed that most of the pain is in the groin area. It is sometimes after sitting for a long time or having my legs in a certain position. I almost always have "start up" pain after sitting for long periods.

Overall I would say that the pain and stiffness has been improving over the last few months. I'm just getting frustrated that I still have pain at least once every day. I just wanted to be sure my recovery is somewhat on track with what others have experinced. Also, I'm interested if there is anything else I can be doing to speed up my recovery. As many of you know, Dr. Gross doesn't prescribe PT and pretty much leaves you on your own once your done with the surgery.

[hernanu]

Thanks for the responses and suggestions. I haven't tried the foam roller thing yet. I will try it. I've noticed that most of the pain is in the groin area. It is sometimes after sitting for a long time or having my legs in a certain position. I almost always have "start up" pain after sitting for long periods.

Overall I would say that the pain and stiffness has been improving over the last few months. I'm just getting frustrated that I still have pain at least once every day. I just wanted to be sure my recovery is somewhat on track with what others have experienced. Also, I'm interested if there is anything else I can be doing to speed up my recovery. As many of you know, Dr. Gross doesn't prescribe PT and pretty much leaves you on your own once your done with the surgery.

I'd highly recommend the roller. Doing your IT band area (lower back, outside of thigh, groin) is all related. I had great results from it. It's an inexpensive therapy for the entire area.

For the groin itself, a tennis ball rolled there addresses the muscles.

I had some sort of tweaks for a while, really fully went away at about a year.

I also liked PT. You're at a time when you can start exercising the joint (when you have full clearance, of course), so maybe get a referral to a PT that has worked with THRs or hopefully HRs before.

[whyme]

Hi, I don't think you are far from the average. I'm 7 months post surgery, still there is clunking and the hip could get sore or itchy after sitting for long hours. I don't have groin pain, but sometimes it feels sore. A couple of times it seemed related to exercise (hours after a swim session, or a spin on the bike), but others it's unclear. Definitely is the weaker area.
I do not have 'start up' pain.
I only started stretching and using the foam roller after 6 months (after the cycling sessions outdoors), as the muscles get a bit stiff after cycling and also because the ITB (Iliotibial Band) is a bit sore (from the hip down to the knee). I don't perceive this has helped a lot yet.
Whatever new thing you try (call it foam roller for example), do it gradually and keep a close eye on how it feels the hours/days after.

[lgbran]

Hi there
Also at 5 months.Progress slow thanks to DVT at 9 weeks.
I've only returned to work in the past 2 weeks and then only for a couple of days a week.
Can cycle, swim o.k. but pull up sore after long walks.
I'm also trying the foam roller and stretching at least 3 times a week.My leg rolls in like a beauty when going upstairs.Guess we have to be patient and I am sure once our 12 month and 2 year anniversary come around you will be in a far better position.i am still getting a weird sensation from my operated side and still occasionally take Panadol osteo.I think our body is just telling us we are overdoing it. It's major surgery and every day I'm working on the rationale that the hip is getting stronger,
Keep your chin up
Regards Len
RBHR 11/11/13  Melbourne Australia