ups and downs

[Jed]

Been 9 weeks now and generally things have been good.  Last Friday I hiked out through the woods to a buddy's cabin, with a light pack (just sleeping bag - he carried the beer!) . Rough ground with many trees down, and 30 minutes each way. Had no problems and felt great the next day. On Monday I felt great too, and walked 4k in the morning,  in the afternoon did 20 minutes on the statioanry bike followed by the usual hip and butt strengthening exercises and also some balancing exercises on the operated leg. In the evening had PT and the physio concentrated on range of motion, bening the knee up to my chest as i lay down. Got up to 95 degrees, felt a little  more uncomfortable than usual. Well the next couple of days have been bad, sore round the hip and some pain down the groin. Bummer. Don't feel like doing much now except sitting in front of the box. The problem, I guess is that some days you feel so good you push things, perhaps too much and then you suffer. Anybody else played this game of snakes and ladders?

[John C]

Your ups and downs sound pretty familiar. I would share one thought from Dr. Gross. One of his biggest concerns is with PTs that push too aggressively for range of motion too early. Your hiking, stationary biking, and balancing exercises sound just right, but some people feel that it is good to take it easy on the range of motion for awhile, especially with someone else pushing it. Some range of motion is important early on, but there is plenty of time later to get into more serious stretching.

[kwarendorf]

I think we all have our good days and bad days. This Friday will be 10 weeks for me, so I think you and I are on about the same time line. Early on I felt great and at about 2 1/2 weeks felt well enough to walk 1.5 miles wihtou my cane. The next day I upped it to 2 miles. It took me 5 days to recover from the 1/2 mile

[the flash]

http://

Hi all,

I agree that it is unwise (dumb) to try to get back to strenuous activity as soon as you are able.  I have read on a few doctors sites tonot put full weight on the leg with the new hip.  It only makes sense as the new hardware has to adapt to the old bone and especially the hip socket where the bone has too grow to secure it in place.  There are no miracles here.  IMO, if you rushed back to long walks, biking, jogging, skiing etc just to prove to yourself that you can recover quickly, I think it is kinda stupid ( no offense intended).  It stands to reson that we MUST heal first before we "test" our new implants.  I was not ready to take the risk of a second surgery just to beat the odds and return to normal quicker than most.  Hope I didn't offend anyone, but this subject has bothered me since I started reading the posts on this board.

[Jed]

Perhaps we never grow up. Some things can only be learned the hard way. One cookie is good, too many rot your teeth and make you fat. Ditto with beer. If walking a mile is good, 2 must be better. I guess not only am I impatient, but I fid my new hip a bit like a tooth whose filling has come out, you just have to prod it. Said good bye to my physio and decided to do things slowly, on my own schedule and try to forget about that hip. But when the sun is shining and you have one of those wonderful days, I guess you just have to bite your lip, slow down, smell the flowers or have a beer (one). For now this is going to be my zen. Let the young charge off into that good day.

[hawaiieric]

I have to comment on this one.  Some people heal faster then others.  I might of been slightly unwise in my judgment of mind in taking on my sports and loves of life by getting back into them, but for me, it was ok for I know my body, I know what the surgery did for me, and I did excel on my Pt and Rom.  I simply felt as if I never missed a beat with the exception of the first 2 months being at handicapped-then after that, my real healing took over.  For some(not all) people, I would feel they will have the same healing, and for them to try to do what they love, even if early its not a sign of showing off to see how fast we recover, its a love/drive of what we do, and we can not live normally when not doing it, so our bodies tell us to go.  I don't want anyone to overdue it.  It is said that it takes 3 months for the bone to recover from the surgery.  It takes your muscles time to recover depending on your personal shape and the amount of activities and exercises you did before and after surgery.  Then and only then you have to take your activities that you like to do, and determine if they are impact or not.  To me, jogging is most impact, so I don't jog.  Walking is encourgaged since its all around helpful, (Rom and strength) and I believe in the WI foot pad games. 

When your healing and you start to take your walks, you are told to not overdue it, I would bet you most all of us overdid it in the beginning, but we learned where our limits were from that. We picked up on the warning signs and thus, conserved it after the consequences of that.  But in general, life is that way.

Happy healing every one,
Eric
hope others can see this view(which is simply my view)

[stevel]

I followed the Doctor's post-op protocol in tandem with the physical therapist's rehabilitation.  The doctor said not to lift over 50 pounds until 6 months and the physical therapist applied strengthening exercises accordingly.  The doctor said no impact sports until 6 months so I complied.  Some doctors say OK for impact sports at 3 months, some say wait 12 months.  If you want to return to impact sports at 3 months, you need to select a doctor following that protocol before surgery.  Otherwise you are assuming the risk yourself, by bucking the doctor's protocol.

A local senior skier, Level III (age 70ish) returned to downhill skiing soon after knee surgery.  When asked "why so soon?", he replied "my doctor doesn't know about it!"  Is he stupid or what!

[the flash]

Hi Everyone,  someone mentioned not lifting 50 pounds.  My doc never mentioned anything about lifting.  Is there a "a rule of thumb".  My garnddaughter is about 25 pounds and I have been lifting her since about week 5.  Any opinions?  I am in week 13 and I cut the grass and do some chores and despite a little pain, mostly on the side and not at the implant, I can do almost anything that is not too strenuous.  Except that I really don't exercise other than tose same chores.  Hope that makes sense.  Should I be exercising ans doing some PT??

thanks

[John C]

These are very good questions for your doctor, since they are all a little different. I think that the 50 lb rule is pretty common for the first six months. I think that most doctors would agree that some form of exercises are good for developing the muscles that support the hip, and protect it from unexpected events. Your doctor should be able to give you a list of exercises that he supports during different phases of your healing, and should be able to consult with you as to whether you need a PT to assist you with the exercises.

[beckie]

....I am 8 1/2 weeks post op.....from my birmingham hip. I had a follow up doc appt last week and he said I don't need PT anymore. He said I can do some strengthening exercises at home. I wonder if this is the norm? I have read lots of these posts and feel some of the same things as y'all. Soreness in the leg area....trouble putting on socks, cutting toe nails,washing the bad foot,etc. I no longer use my cane,or my reacher or my raised toilet. But I wonder if I am doing enough exercises for my leg?
I used to be active .....and I am getting kind of depressed because I feel like I don't walk normal yet. When will that happen??

[kwarendorf]

Hi Becky - Sounds like you're doing just fine. I'm 4 months post-op and you seem to be on about the same timetable. I found that the frustration of "still" not being able to put my socks on was off set by the little bits of progress I made/make every day. MY doc told me that the best thing you can do is walk. He said I didn't need PT any more either. Yesterday I walked about 3 miles from my apartment to the theater, saw a play and then walked home. No problem  Sounds like your dong great. Just keep at it!

Kyle