Starting to walk

[obxpelican]

I am now almost 3 weeks post-op and I've been walking around the house as much as possible without my crutch and as much as possible not limping.  When you started walking did the area in your gluts and near your incision get tight? 
I have zero pain in my joint, but I do get tight after a while

Also, when did you folks tackle steps without crutches and how did you go about it?

[ahershberger]

I am 3 weeks and one day post-op and walk around the house some without my cane.  I went from one crutch to a cane almost 2 weeks ago.  My physical therapist says to think about your steps and put equal weight on each leg and not to go too fast.  I mostly take steps  around my kitchen where there are lots of counters to hold on to if I need them.

I have had assorted pains in my operated leg and hip area but not the same arthitis pain.  They come and go and it must be all the muscles and tendons waking up. I find I need my cane early and late in the day for obvious reasons. One of my pt exercises is to tighten the butt (glute) muscles and hold for a count of 5 doing this for 15 reps.  I have noticed a huge difference from when I first started to do this!!

Yesterday I walked outside almost a mile (with cane) and today over a mile. I was sore all over today so I got off my feet for awhile.

Alison

[obxpelican]

Allison,

You sound like you are doing well.... how did you handle steps without the crutch/cane?  I can go up without as long as the bad leg is the trailing one.... not sure how I feel about leading with my bad leg.

Keep up the good work, you've left me in the dust, I guess I am more like the tortoise.  ;-)

[Big Bill]

Alison... every day brings improvement...until you do too much...remember the word moderation   . You are doing great at 3 weeks. I am at 7 weeks and do 2 miles in about 35 minutes on a track type nature trail. I am in the gym several days a week. I still do the standard beginning exercises too . It all helps, just pace yourself. Everyone heals and recovers differently. Pat has put together a wonderful forum here. It is real...with real people,issues, accomplishments and everything A-Z ! Use it to get better and continue to share your experience. 

      Best Regards , Big Bill  C.A.S.H.   7/9/08   

[ahershberger]

My advice to you (and only my opinion) is to do your basic pt exercises for as long as it takes to get your operated leg stronger.  I didn't begin to attempt to walk until all of my exercises came easy to me.  Don't get me wrong...after 15 reps, I definitely felt every exercise and still need some pain relief.

Also, let me fill you in and make you feel better...I stand 5'4 inches and only weigh 101 lbs. so that could account for me getting around fairly easy at this stage!

Alison

[ginnie]

I guess Im slower then most ... I used 2 arm crutches for the better part of 3 weeks ,, every day putting a little more weight on my legg until I could go all over on one crutch. I am 6 weeks out today and walk around my house with out support ,, but in the evenings when I am sore or after pt I still use the one crutch ,, I try to do a little something more every day .. everyone heals at their own pace

[CITY2SOUTH]

Chuck,

Get a cane...It's easier then using 1 crutch and helps balance you out so you don't limp...Luckily I live in a ranch home so the only steps I did in beginning was the day after surgery with my PT buddy Joe...lol..I can now go up and down without a problem at 9 wks post. I do limp occasionally when I am tired and get stiff if I sit too long.

Lisa
Uncemented/Biomet/Gross/6-23-08

[obxpelican]

I cannot wait till I can re-join Bally's and get back into their pool.  Swimming is what will really get me going, on that I am sure.  I have one more week to wait, I still have some small scabs and Lee said I cannot have them before going back into the water--- arghhh!!!

I was thinking about some vitamin d on the incision, anyone have any luck putting something like that on?


Chuck

Chuck,

Get a cane...It's easier then using 1 crutch and helps balance you out so you don't limp...Luckily I live in a ranch home so the only steps I did in beginning was the day after surgery with my PT buddy Joe...lol..I can now go up and down without a problem at 9 wks post. I do limp occasionally when I am tired and get stiff if I sit too long.

Lisa
Uncemented/Biomet/Gross/6-23-08

[Cubby52]

Hi Ev1
 I am almost 11 wks post op and finally getting better as I've had a lot of pain on outer hip. At about 2 weeks I started on the treadmill on an incline holding on to the bars so I could gauge the amount of weight on my op leg better. I also alternated stepping my op leg inward and outward so I could work out the whole joint and not just repeat the same motion. What also felt good for me was to put the treadmill on a very high incline and walk backwards! Very slowly of course and holding onto the bars. That would be the last thing I did before getting off it.
  Another exercise that helped me was to get on all fours; hands and knees and extend op leg curling toes and stretching and then adding a tensing the quad. Then I would bend the knee and keep the foot flexed so sole of foot faced ceiling and slowly raised and lowered bent knee. That 's a good glute exercise and it seemed to relieve my outer hip pain too.
  Just keep up the beginning exercises and be patient. I thought I'd be all better in 3-4 weeks because I'm in good shape but hey, I had to be reminded several times that this is major surgery. I believe I initially overdid it and had a setback a couple weeks ago so went back to all the beginning exercised and now I'm getting better. Good luck to you and be patient. Cubby

[TomBuell]

Hi All - This is sounding more and more like a competition for who can recover fastest and do the most. I suspect that some of the talk about bursitis, etc., is due to overdoing the exercises. Everybody recovers at a different rate, and I hope that people are proceeding as their bodies allow. I know that I've pushed myself too hard at times, but sometimes we just have to wait for time to heal our wounds - literally.
I'd say that if you have questions, ask you doctor and not your PT. I think the latter are still trying to understand how hip resurfacing patients recover as compared to total hip patients. My PT called my doctor's office to clarify some of the questions he had.
I'm feeling progress, but I'm learning to take it at my own pace.
Good luck everyone
- Tom
RBHR 7/1/08
Dr. Ari Pressman - Pittsburgh - excellent!

[CITY2SOUTH]

Tom,

I totally agree with you. I pused it to hard a few weeks back and suffered for it. It put me back about a week. I resumed exercises but at a slower pace this time. In a past post I read someone dislocated there femur and it scared the bejezers out of me. I've also decided not to go with PT. My Dr. does not require it and leaves it to the patient to decide so I think I'll just take it easy, learn some new stretches and exercises along the way and keep my Polar care out just in case I need a good chill. I walked a mile today and did some exercises. Just going to take it day by day.

Lisa
Uncemented/Biomet/Gross/6-23-08

P.S. Tied my shoe today with less strain then in the past. Yippie!

[Pat Walter]

Hi Gang

I had a member of the Hip Talk Group write to me because they felt the posts here were a bit offensive. I don't believe they were even involved in the current thread.   I did not think so and thought the person might have misunderstood their meaning. So I wrote a note to the person and am copying much of it below because there is a message to all of us in it.


I can't tell you how many times I was criticized and chastized for reporting about my recovery on the Yahoo Surface Hippy Group.  No one ever wants to hear how you are doing if you are not suffering and on pain meds for weeks.  It just seems to be the human way.

I was on one crutch at 4 days and none at 4 weeks.  I was walking almost a mile a day by 11 days post op with my one crutch.  I never took any meds but Advil after leaving the hospital after 2 1/2 days. This is a typical recovery for Dr. De Smet patients.  There were 8 of us together when I was in Belgium at the time and I was probably the slowest of the whole group since I was older.

Everytime I tell people how my recovery was - people constantly wrote to me and told me to stop telling my story.  It only offends the slower recovering people and makes new people think they will recover faster.

That's rubbish - we all have a story to tell, good or bad - fast or slow.  It takes all of us to tell our stories the way it is.  Then people can read all of them. 

I actually don't hardly ever post on Yahoo much any more and seldom tell my story for the same reason.  It is too good for people to hear!  Rubbish - that's the way De Smet patients recovery.  Most overseas patients recover much faster because the doctors are so experienced they have done thousands and know just what people can and can't do.

It always seems to many people like they are in a competition with other post op patients during recovery.  They are not - you can only do what your body allows.   Everyone is very anxious to get well and get on with life so we often push more than we should because someone else seems to be doing better.  You can't judge yourself by someone else.  We can however, share our stories so people know how we all recovered.  We are here to support each other and I think this group does a great job of that.

Pat

[TomBuell]

Very interesting Pat. I find this site very helpful to hear how others are doing - and I was glad to hear from people farther along with me (longer post-op) that things I worried about were often normal and not permanent.
The important thing for me to remember (at the risk of sounding like a broken record) is that we all recover at different rates for different reasons. Remember the story of the tortoise and the hare - it's important to go at your own pace.
- Tom

[dgm]

Thanks for that post, Pat.  I think everyone has a story - that is one of the things that I found so valuable on this site.  First it was reassuring to know that I could be pain-free before surgery.  After surgery, it was helpful to hear how people were recovering. I have to say, I was so encouraged by reading the success stories that really kept me going in that long stretch waiting for surgery.  I will admit, I was lucky and had a fairly smooth recovery with only a few bumps in the road.  But it sure was reassuring when things came up, particularly during the first 6 weeks after surgery.

I agree with Tom, I found the recovery stories helpful after surgery - the good and the bad.  Things that you are experiencing are completely new after surgery and I found my mind at ease hearing that I was not alone.  Ditto on remembering we recover at different rates.

Shame on anyone who would criticize someone's successful recovery story!  I know it's frustrating when things don't seem to be moving as fast as we'd like or when there are serious recovery issues, but the way I see it, we should be here to help and support one another, not criticize someone's good fortune.

Just my 2 cents.
Denise

[sroberts]

Hi Pat,

I really don't know how any of the recovery stories here could be construed as "offensive".
This website is awesome. The support is genuine and is filled with people who care. This is an example of your leadership and mission to help others. You are doing so much for folks and it is fostered by the fact that everyone here has a voice and is listened to.

Thanks for you!

spencer

[fenceman]

My Dr. must be very conservative because I am only allowed to put 75% weight on my op leg and walk with 2 crutches for 6 weeks.  I am 3 weeks out on Wed and starting to feel better.  Doing basic PT and walking everyday.

[TomBuell]

I know, it's funny how each doc is different on post-op instructions. I could only put 20 percent pressure with 2 crutches for 3 weeks. (I weigh 265 lbs - 6'5" - which might have something to do with it.)
- Tom
RBHR 7/1/08

[B.I.L.L.]

I am at 16 days out and did a 1/2 mile today on one crutch. I can do a few little baby steps un-asisted but don't have much strength or confidence yet. Don't know why anybody would get upset over someones posts about how well they are or are not doing, it's a message board people, take whatever you get out of it and move on with your own lives. Sheesh you would think having this surgery would be enough drama without getting your panties in a bunch over a message board Ha Ha!!  Let that stuff roll off Pat.    Judging from what I have read in here I think I am behind most people but am more interested in the long haul and don't feel the need to push myself past my comfort level.  I got two bucks on the tortoise...

[Pat Walter]

Hi B.I.L.L.

Sounds like you are doing great. 

Don't push yourself, you are early in your post op recovery.

You are right - we all end up in the same place eventually and it is not a race.

I just think everyone is anxious to get on with their lives once the get their bionic hips, but unfortunately the rest of their body is not bionic so it takes time.

Talk about a fast recovery, I read the story about an emergency room doctor that had a hip resurfacing and went back to work the day after he left the hospital and never looked back.  People heal at such different rates.

Keep up the good recovery.

Pat

[xocy]

Below is an email I sent at the request of a future hippy. I'm older than most of you and was a bilat the last week in June 08. I am not considered a "jock", but I was determined to be a "bilateral poster boy". I was very regular with my exercises and walking at least twice per day.

In my opinion, and my doctor's, I had a remarkable recovery. I hope my enthusiasm is not interpreted as being boastful. I was just so afraid of having a hip replaced, much less two in one week. Many people on this web site helped me; a gift from God. My heart goes out to anyone who is recovering slowly. I hope I can offer encouragement. How many of us have seen the video of Jimmy Conners walk without cruthes the day after surgery, only to have a totally different experience ourselves. In the email below, I discuss a few, simple modiifications I made that I believe helped me in my first six weeks. These changes were not endorsed by Dr. Gross. Try them at your pace and be careful.

I still continue to rehab, but I am backsliding a bit. You tend to become complacent. The rehab after the first six weeks is more difficult.

Mike
Bilateral
Dr. Gross
L 6/23/08  R 6/25/08



I'm glad to share anything I know. Dr. Gross and his staff may not endorse my modifications. I was a bilat. How about you?
 
First, I was disciplined about doing my exercises and walks twice per day. My driveway is about 400' long and has two hills. Lee discouraged walking hills, but I had no choice. I started the hills after a few days home and did it gradually (part way up the hill initially), but I'm convince the hills help speed the recovery of the fannie muscles.
 
Secondly, after a week or so I modified the leg extensions. Rather than laying flat on the bed, I turned sideways on the bed, so my lower leg would hang off the bed. I still kept the rolled up blanket under my knee as a fulcrum. This way I had a much bigger range of motion during this exercise. I added leg weights as soon as I could do 30 reps.
 
Thirdly, the instructions tell you to lay on the bed and point your toes to flex your calves. I suggest you find a step and to toe raises instead. Even when you are on crutches you can do this.
 
Contact me after you six weeks and we can discuss a few others. Walking, especially hills is really beneficial.
 
Good Luck,
Mike