Friday the 13th

[kwarendorf]

I have done a lot of reading here, but never posted. On Friday the 13th of February I had a left hip resurfacing at the Hopsital for Special Surgery in NYC. My surgeon is Dr. David Mayman. I was up and out of the hospital yesterday, aided only by a cane. Today I am home and pretty much able to take care of myself. Dr. Mayman has been awesome both before and after the surgery! If anyone is looking for a surgeon in NYS he is amazing!

Kyle W

[Pat Walter]

Hi Kyle

Congratulations on the new hip!  You are an official Surface Hippy!

I am glad to hear you are doing so well.  Thanks for sharing your story.  It is always good to hear about surgeons we don't know about.

Happy patients are the best testimonials for surgeons!

Good Luck and I hope your recovery continues to go well.

Stay in Touch.

Pat

[nwugrad]

Kyle,

Congrats!  When I was at the pre hip surgery orientation I met a fellow who was having hip resurfacing performed by Dr. Mayman at HSS.  Its interesting to me how doc's differ in post op instructions.  The fellow I spoke with said that Dr. Mayman wanted him to follow hip restrictions a la hip replacement patients but that he did not have to stay on crutches a la Dr. Su's patients.  I had bi lat resurfacing by Dr. Su 18 days ago.

Great to hear all went well.

[stevel]

Hi Kyle,

Congratulations!  I had my left hip resurfaced by Dr. Su at the Hospital for Special Surgery last September.  Great hospital and surgeon.  My sisters were there and one was so impressed, she wants her husband to go there for a knee replacement.  I reside in Douglas, Alaska (3 miles from Juneau the capital city) and the travel distance was a bit long, but worth it.

[kwarendorf]

Geography was not a barrier for me. Maybe that's because I live 18 blocks up York avenue from HSS  As to the precautions, I do have to live by them but the only one I ever have to think about is the 90º hip angle. I've been walking 10 to 2 since I was born so I'm not at risk of inward rotation! I'm 4 dyas out and me and my cane just went for a 6 block walk 

[kwarendorf]

Today is Day 8 with my new hip and I walked about 3/4 of a mile in about 20 minutes, using my cane more for balance and reassurance than weight bearing. I also changed the litter box, cleaned the bird cage and did my laundry! Life is slowly returning to normal. I do 3 sets of 12 exercises 3X a day. I am also walking every day and my PT comes 3X/week. I figure it's move it or lose it :-) My hip gets a bit stiff/sore but nothing a couple of Tylenol doesn't address. The hardest thing I do is still getting in and out of bed, but the more I do my PT the easier that gets. All in All I'm a very happy camper :-)

[dvander]

Kyle,

Congratulations!!!!  You are way ahead of where I was at 8 days.  Power to Surface Hippys!!

I am now at week 14 and feeling great!  I cannot say I wish I would have done it earlier, because I needed to have the mindset that this was the BEST direction and ONLY recourse - after trying all the home remedies, fish oil pills,Bi-flex, unflavored geletin each day (it really did give some relief), WD 40....

I am a strong believer that arthritis is a curse and rotten and to be avoided.  I am an even greater advocate for HR.  I talk about it all the time.  I question myself why I have to add footnotes to conversations that I did not have a THR, because I realize there is no other choice for some folks and it may be my choice in the years to come.  I am a strong supporter of Pat who created this venue. 

Keep it up, but do NOT overdue your PT and push your recovery.  Let it come to you.  God made our bodies in such a remarkable way to heal themselves over time.

Dwight V

[kwarendorf]

I am trying to find the line between over doing it and not doing enough

[Todd]

Congrats Kyle.  You are on the way to recovery.  I'm about 6 weeks post op, and had a similar beginning. Speed and distance and pushing myself--I was very anxious to get back to normal and got on the treadmill and did the things that I could handle early after surgery.  Got rid of the cane at 12 days.  There came a point where I kept trying to improve my speed and distance on the treadmill, but I ended up overdoing things and it's taken almost a week to feel better.  Since then, I have stayed off the treadmill, but instead have been stretching, and riding the stationary bike along with improving on some ROM exercises with my PT.  Keep in mind that you may have to let up a little and let your body recover at it's own pace.  I've seen some recent posts about soft tissue healing and it seems to make sense.  I'm feeling soreness and pain where I felt none early on in recovery due to using some new muscles and rediscovering others.  Remember that it's a marathon not a sprint.  You will be feeling better each day and will have newfound pain-free movment too--celebrate the small improvements each day and keep on.

[kwarendorf]

Todd, your 12 day cane jettison gave me something to aim for. I have not ventured outside without it but today i walked 1.5 miles carrying my can, rather than using it. I haven't been cleared for the treadmill or stationary bike, but my PT is going to speak with my surgeon this week. I am very encouraged by my progress!

[nwugrad]

Kware,

I wasn't cleared for the treadmill until 25 days post op but Dr. SU approved of the stationary bike at low resistance just 8 days post op b/c it isn't weight bearing.  The bike definitely helps with stamina and ROM.  It doesn't help as much with lateral stabilizing muscles.  At early stages when risk of fracture is higher its a worthwhile trade off.

I went from crutches to no assistance, i.e., skipped the cane.  He did recommend I take crutches or a cane with me on long walks.  So far it has not been an issue.  I am working on stretching and strengthening those stabilizing muscles now and will begin exercising in the pool.

[Todd]

Kyle,
I've mentioned in earlier posts that the last thing to come around for me was the lateral stability.  A person can only do so much to strengthen these muscles, and it seems the real healing factor is time.  Even in the past 48 hours I've become better able to move and support myself on uneven surfaces, although I still have pain and difficulty standing on my new hip while raising my other to put on my pants.  So, it is improving, but not there yet.  Give yourself some time and it will come around. 

Sounds like you're getting around pretty well without the cane.  Be willing to utilize it as the day wears on and your leg gets fatigued.  Those are the times when you slip, trip, or get bumped and you will be glad to have that extra support. 
I'm spending my PT days (M,W,F) stretching, strengthening, and conditioning, and on my off days I'm trying to take it easier and stretch while giving my leg time to recover.  The pain I had in the previous week has subsided now, and I attibute it to easing up on (T, Th) my off days.
You'll be off and running before you know it!

[kwarendorf]

Lateral stability is the reason I brought my cane with me this morning :-) I didn't have to use it but I needed to know I could, espcially walking on Manhattan streets. Lateral stability is definately in the needs improvement category and can be extremely important when trying to dodge some of my fellow New Yorkers :-)

[gcloss]

NYC can be a challenge and an adventure. I'm now 6-1/2 weeks post-op, gave up the cane last Friday and just finished my 3rd day on the NYC Subway system without my cane. Talk about a place where you need lateral stability.

[kwarendorf]

Lateral stability and the subway are what keep me honest about an early return to work. And when I do go back on 3/16 I'm bringing my cane, even if it's just to get a seat 

[kwarendorf]

but I ended up overdoing things and it's taken almost a week to feel better. 

I over did it on Thursday. On Tuesday and Wednesday I walked 1.5 miles without my cane and withour a problem. Thursday I decieded to up it to 2 miles. That was a mistake mistake  I my back to using my cane most of the time and doing just the basic set of PT exercises. I just don;t have the trust in weight bearing situations that I did on Thursday before my walk. Oh well, back to baby steps!

[dvander]

Don't get discouraged - healing will come.  A minor setback in your mind, but if you walked that far at 2 weeks, you are way ahead of the curve.  There is something about turning the corner around weeks 4 - 6 for most.  Take it easy for the next few weeks.  I read on one post that some doc recommends much movement for first two weeks and less the next two.  I was put down with the severe tendonitis in my lower op leg at week 3 - 6 or so.  At 15 weeks, I can gladly say it was for my best.  There are becoming times when I forget there even was hip pain or some procedure.  I am tempted to break into a jog and then suddenly remember.  Actually, last Sunday I went for an hour walk and did some slogging (slow jogging - more like an octagenarian shuffle) for 30 yards at a time on grass.

One happy Surface Hippy,

Dwight V

[kwarendorf]

It's hard to believe that this was a year ago! Last Saturday was my 1 year anniversary. I rarely even think about my hip these days. I saw Dr. Mayman on Tuesday and told him that I felt great. He gave me a clean bill of health. My life is soooo much better with my new hip. Thanks to everyone here for providing an amazing peer support network!

Kyle