Hello everyone!
I will give my 8 week report in case anyone is interested. So far I have not had any serious problems or concerns. The first 1 to 2 weeks after surgery is probably the hardest. Understand that everyone is different and also I had both done within three days. After that first week or two things get much better.
I have been walking without a cane for about 3 weeks. I walk with a slight limp or waddle but nothing like my old hips. It seems like once I get moving and warmed up I walk normally. At least it feels that way. I know my gait or ROM isn't back to normal yet. My steps still seem a little short. If I sit for a long period of time, I am very stiff the first 4 or so steps until I loosen up.
Going up and down steps is still a little slow and somewhat sore feeling on the leg muscles. I have just in the last 2 weeks been able to get out and walk daily because the winter in PA has been really icy this year. Before that it was just a little walking around the house and occasional trips to the mall. The weather slowed my recovery somewhat, I'm sure, but than I knew it would be a factor when I found out my surgery dates. But then I'm not in a race and I want to recover and heal well.
It seems like progress is noticed weekly. I find myself reaching down or doing something that just a few days earlier I couldn't do or was more difficult. I can tie my shoes but it is a stretch. For some reason the left leg is harder to do than the right. My tie ends up hanging on the right side of the left shoe. I am able to put pants on but it is a little slow getting the feet in the pant legs.
When I sit in a chair or stand up from a chair, I still use my arms to help. I am very wary of the pressure on the femur neck and try to minimize it as much as possible. Maybe that motion is nothing to be very concerned about at this stage, but I can't get used to it. I still want to be careful until the 6 month period is over.
The incision sites are sore when pressed on and when I ride in a car they get pretty sore while riding. I have that baseball or golf ball feeling that others have described. Never any bad pain just uncomfortable. Once in a while they are itchy.
I had my 6 week recheck with Dr. Gross. He was pleased with how everything looked and is going so far. I asked him about acetabular cup position and he said that they are "perfect". He didn't say anything about angle, I was just happy to hear what he said. I'm sure I will go back to South Carolina for my one year recheck. It can be done with local docs, but I just would prefer to see him.
Overall this has been a very fascinating and exciting experience. Scary and not fun at times, but I knew there would be those times. The awful achy arthritis pain is of course gone. The unexpected knife stabs of pain that would strike at any time when moving or just standing are gone. When I walk there is just a smooth motion that I haven't felt for many years. My posture while walking and confidence are back. What an incredible feeling! There is still a post op slight soreness at times when walking and standing, but I notice it becoming less with time. Now and then I do feel a slight "clunking" sensation that others have described. I'm not sure it can even be described as "clunking". It just feels like the soft tissues around the surgery sites are maybe not strong yet. It's in line with what others have described on this forum.
I am still off work and will be going back at the end of this month. The doc cleared me to go back at 6 weeks, but I have the time saved up and would prefer to get more rehab time in. My job requires a lot of walking and standing on a concrete floor.
I'll post my progress later, especially when I can finally do things I haven't been able to do for 2 or 3 years. If anyone out there is sitting on the fence about getting resurfacing and you are hurting and can't do daily activities that you once could, don't put this off. I can't wait until the day I am totally healed and I can do anything I want to do. If I think of anything I may have forgot, I'll post it later.
Topic: UPDATE---8 weeks post op (Read 1409 times)
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