JB’s Hip Resurfacing with Dr. Gross 2012

April 25, 2012

About 5 hrs post op, so forgive typos and nonsense please.

Surgery was pretty easy…pre-surgery pain/nausea "cocktail" designed by Gross
Shot in back when I got in surgery room, and then i woke up in recovery.
Didnt get to wallk/get out of bed today due to late hour of surgery…which means…wait for it…catheter. Discovered that on my own, what a… surprise? Jamie was my surgery nurse, great from little I remembered. Dr. Ghandi (no relation) was my "pain doc", great job so far but still wearing off.
No bone density issues, told that is pretty rare so don’t panice, just get it checked early if it’s a concern.

Katie, was my Providence nurse, great!
Heard from everyone, unsolicited by all, that I picked…"the right guy", "the best guy", "the only one they would use". How I felt, but good to hear.

Thirsty as a…camel? Ate everything I got after surgery, meal from Wendys from my wife (definitely get a frosty) and then the hospital dinner,,,pretty good there as well. It’s pretty much a ortho surgical hospital, so not the mass produced hospital/cafateria/school menu.

Legs still tingling on and off…feel strange. Picking up "new leg/hip", feels good so far. Strangest feeling is….NO CONSTAT PAIN IN HIP. Taking it easy rest of day. Have fallen asleep couple times today while sending out the "group text" to friends and family.

How often does ice need to be changed in Polar unit?
Putting a Halloween Run date on my calendar….thanks again Andy, for icer and handy/dandy item, nice to practices with and see what I woul need. Thanks to everyone else for info Ive gathered on this site…Out soon, probably up in middle of night….sending you all pain free wishes.

jb

April 26, 2012

First day post op…still on pain meds and in moving car so please forgive "messiness".
Medical part, woke up today, with minimal pain from incision, no swelling ( I know it should be coming in next few days), no nausea, no pain med hangover. PT sessions are very simple, walking a bit on crutches, lessons on the do’s and don’ts, and a quick group sessions going over things and a short stair walk. Great advice from Dr. Gross, less is more. Only time femoral head will crack is in first 6 months after surgery…unless of course you wreck a bike or something.

Facilities comments…OUTSTANDING. Eveyone involved were incredible. Midlands staff was great, they’ve got the process down. The level of attention at Providence was off the charts. Even my wife mentioned it. I had Stacy, Shirley/Cheryl, Irene and Barry overnight. Alice, Shawn and Jerri for PT.Exercises are pretty simple. Everyone stressed that more is not better…I believe Dr. Gross even said Less is More…how prophetic.

April 28, 2012

Day Two Post Op…better than yesterday. Still no swelling, pain meds ok, fluid still running right thru me. Friend who is a PT showed me some more excercises, to work on strength. Still trying to find a comfortable position for sleeping, may try opposite side or even stomache if I can get there without straining anything…getting back up may be bigger issue though.
This surgery is still such a shock to the body…even if all goes well, still long time to recover.
No running, breaking 90 or twisting for the next six months…then look out…jb

May 1, 2012

Have stepped up walking a little bit each day outside w/crutches. Don’t always use the crutches, mostly for balance vs. weight now. Started walking short distances around house w/out crutches.
Still no swelling, still mostly what I’m calling incision pain.
Have had a couple of oops moments that my body let me know about. Stepped w/wrong foot coming down the stairs, let hip "fall open" after sitting down on a chair…wow, that sharp pain lets you know right away you’ve gone astray.
Still following the program…baby steps. Will have to go back to work next week, at about 12 days post op. Trying to gear up stamina to that level. Still feel more rundown/tired than anything else. Weaning off of pain meds, have only been taking before bed but will try to go without tonight.

Got a good reminder from a friend who is a PT. He said so many people see the surgery date as the end of the road…but then you wake up feeling crappy and have therapy/rehab to get back past where you were before. Easy to get depressed/down after the surgery, but looking forward to the payoff down the line. Hope everyone is healing well.

May 7, 2012

 I’m at Day 12 post op and thought I’d add some updates/comments so others may know what to expect/look forward too.

Totally off crutches at around day 8. Take one with me if I’m worried about uneven ground or crowds…good to beat back kids with. Dropped pain meds pretty early, day 4 or 5 maybe. Using a muscle relaxer to help me get to sleep, probably won’t need after working most of day today. Yes, I started back working today. Hardest part is in and out of car and the driving. Have had what I can only call spasms, shoot thru leg…like big muscle being pulled taught, similar but not quite like cramp.

I wish I had…worked on stretching/building up core muscles better before surgery. Found myself turning and reaching for things and almost pulled muscles straining while trying not to move the hip. Should have prepared more for after surgery, instructions on ice machine are an hour at a time, not leaving it on all night while your sleeping…but maybe that was why I didn’t have much swelling?

Something has got to be done about creating/inventing a decent toilet seat option. I have read several comments by others on this same issue, almost willing to say it is the hardest part of the whole process. Dropping down, never far enough back and feel like I’m squezing in when I’m pretty thin to start with….but enough potty talk.

Walking pretty well. When I go for longer walks each day I focus on small straight steps, no limp or "hitch" in hip. Don’t feel any pain while walking or after. I live in Atlanta area so there is no such thing as a totally flat area. I go even slower whenever there is any kind of incline to reduce the distance/amount of incline…don’t know if that makes sense or even helps but it lets me justify it. Increasing distance day by day, was doing 3 walks daily but now that I’m working will be pressed to get in two, one early and one late.

May 15, 2012

My surgery was 3 weeks tomorrow, and I did a 2 mile walk today…kind of by mistake. Thought it was about 1/2 mile or so to our pool, so I did an out and back. Turns out it’s a mile to get there, my wife clocked it on her way back. Felt great, nothing more than an occasional twitch when dealing with an incline or a misstep. Did a little ice afterward (which I haven’t been doing much of lately).

Still only trouble I’m having is in and out of car and driving. I’m often in my car and on my laptop, which can cause some uncomfortable moments/cramping. And the next time I get my sock on straight the first time I put it on will be a monumental moment. Feeling awfully lucky with how things have gone so far…can’t wait to start working out in the pool in about 10 days

June 6, 2012

Six week post op appt tomorrow, so I’ll let Dr. Gross tell me what to do…though I did get some Naproxen from a friend to ease the inflame/pain.
Haven’t pushed it besides maybe walking too far on occasion. I figure why risk it after so long and now so much invested (time and $). Hope to greatly increase activity/work out level after tomorrow.

June 11, 2012

back on the Celebrex and feels much better.
Given the go ahead to do more exercises, light weights (when hip is involved), stationary bike and elyptical. Warned about overdoing and how bad I’ll feel after, and how it won’t help recovery.
Lee loved my x-rays, didn’t see Doc cause some inconsiderate guy had a dislocated hip during my appt. Told that I’m still early in recovery and not to push it.

Still creaky (think rusty wheel) on first couple of steps after sitting for awhile or getting out of car. No limp, at least not noticeable, after walking for a bit. Funny how little things are either harder or just not done now…jumping over a puddle, quick jog to get across street in traffic.
 

August 21, 2012

Holding off on refilling the Celebrex prescript again. Afraid that if I keep taking, at about 4 months post op now, my body will become dependent on it. Rather have some discomfort and let the body adjust.

Getting in two walks a day, at least one good aggressive one…which has included a very slow jog for about a block or two, total probably between 3 and 4 miles. Feels good overall, feel the first couple of steps after sitting now that I’ve stopped the Celebrex, but I think that can get better.
Recovery isn’t so overwhelming that everything else stops, and if the pain is effecting what you can/can’t do, you’ve already waited too long.

September 11, 2012

I’m now at 4.5 months post op…and have to admit I’ve cheated and done some very light jogging during my walks just to see how it felt. Motion/movement seemed fine, no pain on impact and no additional soreness after completion. Granted, I jogged two blocks max…but it did feel good to get the sense that it was already better than before the surgery.

Trying to hold out for another month and a half…if I make it to 5.5 months before running I’ll consider that a success.

October 22, 2012

Following Dr. Gross’s protocol, I waited till 6 months before running (well, about a week shy to be totally honest). Ran on Friday, I felt fine while jogging, pretty normal/slow pace (about 9 min miles) and tried to take it easier/walk when on big downhills or around uneven ground.
Ran as part of my daily a.m. walk, probably ran about 2 of the 3 miles. Felt okay that day, little more sore than normal the next day but nothing after that. Still felling sporadic pain in/around hip, try to believe it is just muscular due to doing things I haven’t done in soooo long.

Plan on running two to three times a week to start, replacing the usual a.m. walks. Won’t be more than 3 miles for awhile. Running was major part of while I had the HR done, so I’m really hoping it works out.