Hi LMS, my case was a lot simpler than yours. The first time I went to my GP (I was in my early 50's) he sent me for xrays which showed arthritis in both hips. He said I should give it 10 years and then get the hips replaced. I went back to him after a year and told him I couldn't wait that long so he sent me off to the clinic to be evaluated.
The therapist examined me, checked my range of motion and referred me to Dr Beaule. I lucked out with the timing, he had stopped taking new patients because his surgery wait time had gotten too long (it seems there's lots of us with bad joints). She'd just gotten an email that morning saying he was taking new patients again so my wait time for surgery was only 3 months.
I think Dr Beaule is an excellent surgeon but he's an extremely busy guy. Any time I've been in to see him they're at least and hour behind schedule and I only get to see him for a few minutes.
The surgery itself went very well. I stayed awake during surgery (it was optional) and it was fascinating to hear everything going on. Even though I had both hips done I was up walking the next day and able to go home after 2 nights in the hospital.
I'm in a small town that has a Civitan that loans out medical equipment. I was able to get everything I needed there (raised toilet seat, walker, crutches). I set up a bed in the living room beside the recliner and spent about a month sleeping there. Because I had both hips done at the same time I was on crutches for 4 weeks.
Recovery has gone very well. I go to the gym several times a week. My left side has been great. I do still get pain on the right side but that was my worse side prior to surgery. Mostly it's been pain in the upper hamstring area, but it's slowly improving. It mainly a muscle imbalance issue. Because the front and inner legs (quads, hip flexor, etc) were so tight for so long, they're stronger than my hamstrings and still tight which tilts the pelvis forward stretching the hamstring. Also I stand up straight now where before I was hunched forward with my butt sticking out. Now that I understand it I'm focusing more on strengthening my hamstrings.
Deep tissue massage has helped a lot, as has yoga. My massage therapist is very impressed by the scars.
Overall it's been a life changer. I be on my feet for long periods of time without pain. I'm no longer chewing on pain killers like candy and I'm back to playing hockey. Next week I'm taking my son on a ski trip, it's been about 4 years since I was last able to ski.
Good luck!