New Guy here....awaiting new BHR in mid June!

[MarkNC]

I'm thankful this site is here!  It's been great reading "real" stories by "real" people who are experiencing (or gonna experience) the same thing I'm heading toward.  I'm a 46 year old male who has suffered from a deteriorating hip for around 8 years.  I used to be physically active (martial arts) but have been a slug for the past few years due to pain caused during/after much activity.  My future miracle worker is going to be Dr. Ward at Baptist Hospital in Winston-Salem NC....(I'm an eternal optimist!).  I'm looking forward to sharing my experiences (and asking a million questions) on this forum.

One point of interest...my hip pain started after I was diagnosed with Lyme disease (dadblasted ticks!)...all my joints hurt and swelled, but the ol' hip never seemed to recover.  Anyone else associate there initial problem with Lyme disease?

[MarkNC]

Well...tomorrow is the day.  I would be lying if I said I wasn't nervous!  My subconscious and body have teamed up on me...trying to fool me into thinking "gee...it sorta, kinda feels better now!  Maybe I don't really need this surgery".  Luckily, they had me go off of my arthritis meds 3 days ago, so the sharp "twinges" when I step wrong have returned and my limp is pretty severe.  I have to wait a few seconds (or minutes) before walking when I first stand from a seated position...yep, it's time to get this done.  I haven't exercised (especially in the cardio kinda way) since it became too painful.  I am driven by the knowledge the so many of you have indeed returned to active lives since getting your BHR's...I hope (pray) to be amongst your successful ranks by tomorrow afternoon.  I'm opting for the "knock me out" anesthesia since I don't want hear all the power tools at work!

I hope to post about the success of my left BHR soon!  Thanks for this site and the good, genuine information provided.

[wayne-0]

Good luck Mark,
I love the eternal optimist attitude, that is 3/4 maybe 7/8 the battle right there. You will do things in a few months down the road without pain that will blow your mind. Alot of what you posted reminds me of my situation 17 months ago. Today things are fantastic for me. Hope your surgery and recovery go smoothley.

Wayne

[LOGAN13]

In 8 short weeks my BHR has given me my life back. You too will be happy you had it done & wonder why you waited so long.

 Life without pain is GREAT  !



Wishing you all the best Mark


Tim

[Tarhoo2]

Mark,

I hope all went well with your surgery.  I had mine done 3 months apart, 2 years ago, and I haven't looked back -- except to remember how bad they had gotten and to appreciate how much better life is now.  I am optimistic that you will have the same experience and will be happy to share recovery advice and stories.  For now, be patient and make sure you ice and elevate.

Please let us know how you're doing.

Jim

[MarkNC]

Well....It's official!  I'm lying here in the hospital with a shiny, new Birmingham Hip!  They said surgery went well...I opted for spinal and some kinda block (can't remember the name of it).  I'm currently in a bit of pain directly in the hip joint but taking a little oxycodone to take the edge off.

Thanks for the well wishes!  I'll continue to post my progress as my adventure continues.

[Pat Walter]

Hi Mark

Congratulations on your new hip.  Glad things are going well for you.  I hope your recovery continues to go by quickly and without any problems.

Keep in touch.

Pat

[jack]

Congrats Mark-
Before you know it a month will have passed and the initial recovery will be a foggy memory.... it goes fast. Best of luck!

[Tarhoo2]

Congratulations!  Stay ahead of the pain.

[MarkNC]

Thanks for all the positive words folks!  Here's an update...

Felt great until the nerve block wore off, then felt quite a bit of pain in the new hip.

Ate everything I could get my hands on....starving!

Had an episode of going pale, blood pressure dropping and sweating like crazy.  The hospital staff quickly began pumping me with more liquids...spell passed and they kept checking me all through the night. 

Pretty much a sleepless night...did manage to grab a cat nap here or there..

Only had Tylonol and aspirin since around 7 pm yesterday.

Should be walking today!

[MarkNC]

Next update:

Just finished PT and took a cruise down the hall on a walker.  They gave me 10 mg of Oxycodone (I'm allergic to stuff in the Codeine family).  The oxy took the edge off of the PT pain. Did all my bed exercises.  Man, that hip abduction hurt!

Had catheter removed...pee'ed in a jug to prove stuff still works okay.  Only have an IV in my hand now.

They're thinking about sending me home today!  (have to conquer the stairs this afternoon)

[MarkNC]

Hospital sent me home!  They said I was doing great...climbed all the stairs and vitals were all good.  Pain is more under control thanks to good ol' oxycodone...and wouldn't you know it.  Thunderstorm just knocked out neighborhood power...oh well, at least I'm home.  I've navigated the house with my walker several times now...new hip feels better each time I use it.  Pretty stiff, but good grief it's just over 30 some hours since my operation.

[Tarhoo2]

Sounds like you're doing great!  Hope you have home nursing and therapist visits scheduled.  They were invaluable to me.  I trust you're dealing well with getting up and down from a sitting position and getting into and out of bed.

[MarkNC]

Tarhoo, I have the world's best Wife who is absolutely awesome.  She has helped me every inch of the way so far.  Actually, they sent me home with instructions for rehab exercises but no official therapists (at least not at this stage)  I go back in two weeks for my followup so I imagine things will change then.

[MarkNC]

Update day 3:

Been doing all my exercises.  Pain is improving when I use the walker...I can put more weight on the operated leg each day.  I got pretty light headed after a batch of exercises and getting my bandage changed...I attribute it to doing too much too fast and the pain killers.  I felt better after retreating to my recliner.  My incision is pretty darned big!  It looked to be 10 or so inches.

[Tarhoo2]

Mark,

A caring partner to look after you is the best support you can have.  You're going to get through this and not look back.  I still often recall my own mantra as I recovered, trying to be patient and give my body a chance to heal: "I walk because I can."  It was that bad before the first surgery and it got even worse between the first and second one, while I was favoring the BHR hip and the deterioration of the other hip accelerated.  I am SOOO greatful for what my orthopaedist was able to accomplish -- I literally got my normal life back.

Jim

[MarkNC]

Day 4: (I'm counting day of surgery)

If you folks get tired of all my updates, let me know!  I'm just hoping my experiences will help other people as time goes on.

I slept ALL night last night!  First time since I can remember actually sleeping that well.  Prior to the operation, I would wake up multiple times a night with hip pain.

 I've cut my oxycodone to 2 1/2 mg per dose a couple of times a day now.  Pain at rest is nearly zero!  Still quite a bit of pain when doing my PT exercises, but I feel the muscles strengthening daily...even from morning to night.  The only one still giving me a fit is the one where you lie on your back and slide your operated leg left and right...muscle still very, very weak and painful. 

Walking on the walker I'm reminding myself to actually walk with good posture.  I spent several years unable to straighten my left hip when standing/walking...had to keep a slight bend forward and never let the leg break the mid-plane position on my body or it would hurt like mad.  NO MORE!  When walking with proper posture, it feels great!  Other than the occasional muscle twinge, everything feels amazingly smooth.

I still haven't, well, gone "number 2" yet! I read here that constipation could be an issue with pain killers...I'm taking some mild laxatives to help get things moving along...hopefully!

[MarkNC]

Me again...days 5 & 6.

Improvement continues daily!  I can bear full weight on the operated hip with no real pain...I just don't trust my muscles yet.  I'm stuck on the walker until July 1st for my followup.  Bandages are totally clean when changed now...I HATE the tape though!  We've tried several types but I swear, pulling off the tape hurts worse than any other experiences since the surgery! 

By the way, Milk of Magnesia works miracles on encouraging "nature" to take its course!

[Len]

Keep at it Mark, I didn't need a cane after 2 weeks but your body will tell you what you can tolerate. I am + 4 weeks now and wow the ROM and lack of pain is amazing. Just wait until you feel better than you did before your surgery. I was told to let things heal for 6 weeks and then work on strength, I was in less pain when I left the hospital than when I walked in, without meds. Len

[sarahb]

Awe its a really great read this, like a good book and hopefully will have a happy ending !!  Wish you well Mark and continue with the updates, they are great  :-)

I'm currently recovering from a hernia op in the same leg (right groin) but all going well and enjoying the british sunshine and obviously have a lot more time on here than when I am working !

Take care and good luck xx