John’s Bilateral Hip Resurfacing with Dr. Iwersen 2008
January 14, 2008
I’m almost 4 weeks post op with Birmingham Method
I used your site before surgery to learn more about what to expect and appreciated the information. As far as recovery goes, swelling is gradually going down but from reading your post Pat I guess that is a gradual process and at least I don’t have arthritis pain anymore. About a week ago I could have carried a food tray on the shelf of my butt but it’s much less now. What I notice that seems to be different about my physician’s recommendations is that I am on “toe touch” weight bearing only and no bending past 90 degrees at the hip (the little grabber and sock puller are my friends) till I go back for x-ray end of this month. I’m being pretty religious about it- using a walker, getting out a bit to, as my wife says, blow the stink off me. Doing the dozen puny exercises three times a day and more and I’m icing my butt still which I got from your site. I found it interesting in one post that you said maybe there’s more swelling with people who are in shape before surgery because maybe it’s harder to dislocate the hip and get in there to do the work. I was in good shape before surgery- doubled up on my elliptical training two months before to be in good shape for surgery and recovery. Maybe I should have sat around drinking beer instead. hah hah. My butt is numb which I figure is normal. I’m using Traumeel cream for swelling and internally I’m taking arnica. I was off pain meds after two weeks. I guess that’s about it. Thanks for the site. I don’t think I would have had this surgery without a friend telling me to go to this site and I’m real hopeful that I will be a functional human being again within a year or so. Thank god for sick leave from work.
February 11, 2008
I’m 2 months post surgery. After I got the staples out I used Emu oil on the scar and it has healed up very nice with a non-Frankenstein looking red line and nothing jagged.
February 13, 3008
Even with being off my leg for 6 weeks, which I have learned is a very conservative order order from a Doctor, I was able to get up and eat at the table using the walker. However, my wife and I went out and bought a higher, padded sturdy office type chair with arms to use at the dinner table and computer so as to not violate the 90 degree rule. One of those grabber/reacher things is a necessity as is the plastic sock puller and I like the shoe horn even now. Kids got me a plastic tray/table for the laptop so it didn’t heat up laying on my lap in bed while I was watching DVD’s. The toilet seat height extender was a necessity, with splash-guard thing. I found it helped me a lot to get back into doing light free weights on the bed. Reading this website was a big help too. He won’t believe how good he will feel in a couple months. According to the PT I see now worries about dislocation are a thing of the past after 6 weeks.
April 25, 2008
I’m 4 months post op from my right hip resurface and doing great. I work out on the elliptical machine 30 minutes or so until the left hip kills me then I stop. I’m going in for my thrashed left hip May 6th because I can hardly walk anymore. My right hip was my surgeon’s 15th BHR and he acknowledged that he was conservative about my recovery and that’s why he had me on a walker for a month. He told me a couple weeks ago that, assuming everything goes well, he would let me walk without the walker a couple weeks sooner so I figure as he gets more experience he is moving more towards the norm. I assume he’s worried about fractured heads. I guess there probably isn’t a question in here after all, I was going to ask if you thought I could start walking even sooner but what’s another week. Thanks for the site. It was a big help for me the first time through and I figure sharing our experiences helps others too.
April 27, 2008
I’m 59 4 months post BHR on right hip. going in for left hip next week, can’t wait. right feels great. no more pain
May 14, 2008
I just has my second resurfacing a week ago. the first is doing great and I expect this one will too. but it was worse and hurts more right. my second hip, which the Dr said upon xray looked worse than the first, had no symptoms till I had to put most of my weight on it while the first healed
June 13, 2008
I had my first hip done in mid December and by May, when I had my other hip done, I was back to doing squats with full body weight plus 10 pounds and working out like normal on the elliptical machine. The way I was progressing I figure I could have been back to doing all my leg work like I had been up till surgery. I think sticking with the workouts up till surgery really helped with my recovery. I’ll keep you posted on how I do this time around. Seems to be about the same trajectory as last time but I’m only one month out so I’ve got a ways to go. One thing I will say is don’t jump back in too fast with too much weight, and what you think you can do- cut that in half.
June 18, 2008
Re: Pernicious Anemia. I had a routine blood test and my red blood platelet size was bigger than it should have been and my homocystine level was through the roof, which is not good, and makes you stroke prone. My Dr. noticed this and tested me for what’s called “the intrinsic factor” in my blood. I didn’t have it. It’s the enzyme that allows you to absorb the B12 in meat and whatever else contains B12. Without the intrinsic factor you could chow down on meat all day and not absorb any B12. I give myself a shot of one half of 1CC of B12 twice a month and the difference is astounding- especially at first when your B12 level is in the toilet. PA is pretty rare so the chances you have it are slim but it’s worth checking and I’d have to say that a shot of B12 probably wouldn’t be a bad thing for anyone once in awhile over the age of 40. Don’t get me started on the video thing. My brother sent me a link to a BHR surgery before my first and I thought about watching it but knew myself well enough that it would make me anxious so I have yet to watch it. I think I’ll wait another couple months till I’m well recovered from my second surgery. As far as the pain goes, it’s nothing compared with what you are living with and the meds they give you really help, unlike the pain we’ve had from OA which at least in my case was untouchable with OTC meds. The first 24 hours are hardest but do-able, in fact, some people have very little pain at all. I think it depends a lot on the expertise of your surgeon as to how much pain you have, also your age I guess and what kind of shape you’re in. I’m 59 and not real stoic about pain so if it had been horrible I’d say so- and it wasn’t. The best part is, here I am 5 weeks post op and I’m walking around pain free. Some discomfort and stiffness when I sit too long typing like this but nothing compared to the hell of not being able to do anything physical before the surgery. Don’t think too much. I’m a psychologist by profession and my impression is that if you go and buy a book on thought stopping techniques you could master the technique quickly and be better able to deal with all of this. Sure it’s major surgery but it’s not that major and if you are in good physical shape and have someone to take care of you for a couple weeks you’ll be fine.
June 25, 2008
I’m 59, a former runner now an elliptical machine user and bike rider
I had hip #1 done in late December and # 2 done almost 7 weeks ago
My Dr is conservative
both times I was off the affected hip for 6 weeks
toe touch weight only, used a walker and crutches
I did some arm exercises and the half dozen PT exercises that are in the discharge booklet
tried to walk around a lot during the day and after the second surgery I walkwed out to the end of the driveway 10 times day- it’s about 50 yards long
I got off crutches last friday but I’d been gradually putting more weight on it the final week
Sunday I did 10 minutes on the elliptical with low resistance and narrow length of stride
Yesterday I walked in the warm therapy pool for an hour and “ran” in the water for 20 minutes with the aqua jogger belt
today I did a little mowing and raking, then I did 15 minutes on the elliptical
after that I stretched a lot and was even able to touch my toes and do a yoga plow pose
I feel pretty good tonight, legs are tired but no pain
this is the same procedure I followed after the first surgery and I was probably 85% recovered, in my estimation, by the time of my second surgery