1. Community
  2. Operations and surgical procedures
  3. Hip Replacement

7 days post-op

Posted , 11 users are following.

stevieleeds
stevieleeds

Firstly apologies for not posting until now. i couldn't hold attention on anything longer than a nano-second in hospital!

The staff were superb and couldn't do enough to help, a superb example of the nhs doing such an amazing job.

I am 51 and was in a ward of 80-90 year olds, and i soon found they were all coping and recuperating much faster than me. I was "sick", whereas they were recovering from a minor operation!. My surgeon finally told me on day 4 that "the younger you are, the longer it takes to recover, initially". Which I found somewhat bizarre, but offers me some hope.

Some observations in order to help others:

  1. Pain relief. You HAVE to tell them what you are feeling, otherwise they don't know. Some patients seemed to get by on paracetamol. They couldn't find anything strong enough to control MY pain: paracetamol might as well have been tic-tacs, oxycodone just made me hot and dizzy. IV morphine sent me on a psychedelic trip, as did tramadol which also made me vomit. The anaesthetist said the pain blocks would last 12 hours, i had pain immediately on coming around from sedation. The ONLY pain relief that actually worked was Oromorph, so this was written up every 2 hours.
  2. Constipation. I have just been since Friday morning (6 days) after 4 days on Movicol. The hospital was not proactive with laxatives, so i would keep asking.
  3. Physio. Lets face it, all you want to do is sleep. All they want is you walking and sitting. I found sitting in a chair THE most uncomfortable position, and still long for my 2 hours in bed in the afternoons, and as long as possible in bed at night. I know you have to do what they say, but it is very hard work.
  4. Coming home. Is bliss, however you will have set- backs, and you will be petrified of dislocation. i have already pulled my elephant leg over my good one, totally crossing them, and last night I spilled my urine bottle all over the floor and twisted badly by reflex action to try to stop myself spilling it. Meds are different at home, and to manage the pain i am having to take more than what is prescribed, due to massive pain breakthroughs at around 2am and 5am.

Enough for now, try to get some sleep!

Steven

0 likes, 12 replies

12 Replies

  • lynne210668
    lynne210668 stevieleeds

    Posted

    hi steven

    Ive found your post really interesting as im 50 and 10 weeks a go i had my right hip replaced and my experience with pain relief and recovery have been very similar.

    l have felt really frustrated that i havent bounced back as well as i thought i would especially as it seemed to me that my dad seemed to recover better than i have several times ive told myself to woman up!

    Hope the rest of your recovery goes well Lynnex

  • cherilyn34997
    cherilyn34997 stevieleeds

    Posted

    Hi Steven, thank you for such an honest account, im due my thr on monday, im 43. Had my pre op yesterday and i think i was the youngest there. Ive been told also that the younger you are the longer the recovery time.

    Hope you start to feel normal soon.

    Cherilyn

  • larry43899
    larry43899 stevieleeds

    Posted

    10 years ago i was in hospital after a resurfacing on my left hip.

    I had constipation in hospital from the pain killers and then an accident when i couldn't get to the toilet in the private room I'd been given.

    When i got home i felt a bit dizzy for a while and two fingers on one hand were numb from the epidural but managed to ditch the pain killers straight away.

    Even though the op was 100% successful and Wrightington is at the forefront of hip/knee replacements, i didn't get any physio till i didn't need it.

    I was only 50 when i had my op and had been encouraged to carry on cycling which i did right up to the day before the op.

    A matterof weeks later i was back on my bikes and even survived a few fall offs.

    It's just the first couple of weeks when you feel like a spare part after the battering your body has had during the op.

    Good luck.

    • stevieleeds
      stevieleeds larry43899

      Posted

      So good to hear your positive story. Its amazing how everyone is different. i always thought i had a very high pain threshold, however sitting here now i have pains in my entire leg due to swelling, trauma at the wound site etc., splitting headache like i drank 3 bottles of wine on an empty stomach ( i haven't touched a drop for 10 days. excruciating pain in my hand ( god knows- crutches?) and i am full of paracetamol and dihydrocodeine! The person in my bed before me had the same op and went home same day as his surgery.

  • jo02933
    jo02933 stevieleeds

    Posted

    Hi Steven

    i had one hip replaced at 48 and the other at 49...i am 50 now...and was in hospital for 3 days for each.

    My second hip was far worse than the first.

    Without wanting to scare anyone my spinal block wore off just a they were stitching me up and whilst the anaesthetist was trying his best to calm me it was an awful experience.

    I found my second hip took longer to recover from as well. I think because i lacked confidence in my previous hip replacement worrying that it would fail me.

    Whilst waiting for both hips i took zomorph and amatriptoline (not sure how its spelled).

    I don't take as many as i did before the operations, i'm 10 months post op, but i still need some especially during the night as my legs ache.

    As for crossing my legs...I physically can't they just won't cross!

  • marion36675
    marion36675 stevieleeds

    Posted

    Glad you're home, Steven. I am 10 weeks post op and have had a great recovery. I ditched the walking sticks at 2 weeks, walked 1.5k at 3 weeks and started driving after 5-6 weeks. I can now do most everyday things including tying my own trainer laces although I'm still very careful how I bend and do it very slowly. They do advise you to continue to take care so that you don't dislocate the new joint for a few more months and it's not a big deal taking things slowly.

    If you are having trouble getting your operated leg in and out of bed, hook your dressing gown cord under your foot and lift the leg in and out. It's a lot easier and takes away the fear of dislocation. Good luck and I hope your recovery is as good as mine. (I am 66 and was very fit before the op.)

    • stevieleeds
      stevieleeds marion36675

      Posted

      Thanks for your reply. A word of warning about the gown cord idea. My leg was swollen up so big and heavy that i couldn't physically lift it into the bed myself, so i tried the gown chord lift, over-estimated the weight of the leg and subsequently lifted it over my good leg, breaking a cardinal sin of hip precautions. if anyone is going to try that, make sure you're good leg is so far away that you can't cross them!

    • ptolemy
      ptolemy stevieleeds

      Posted

      Oh no!! I was given a sort of material loop in hospital which was easier to use than a gown chord. Next to my grabber probably the best gadget I had.

  • Rocketman_SG6UK
    Rocketman_SG6UK stevieleeds

    Posted

    That's a great insight into your recovery, not all are as bad, not all are as good

    I hated Tramadol, I craved the next dose just before it was due .... very nasty feelings. I found Coedine was OK for me.

    • stevieleeds
      stevieleeds Rocketman_SG6UK

      Posted

      Thanks Rocketman. I am quite concerned about the amount of pain i am still having and the associated pain killers. I am taking tablets at the same time as hospital, 0800, 1200, 1600 and 2000. This neatly gives the 4x2 500mg paracetamol doses (which i still maintain might as well be tic-tacs, but hey-ho). with these i need one dihydrocodeine with all four, and i can feel the pain returning 20-30 mins before a dose. i am then taking the anti-bloodclot tablet with the evening dose. This leaves me running on empty between midnight and 0800. Last night i was in agony at 0200 so took an extra dihydrocodeine. its 0615 now and i might just be able to cope until 0800. I only have enough dihydrocodeine to last until Saturday 20000. After that i have some previously prescribed codeine phosphate 15mg which I'm hoping to drop down to by then.

    • monkeypearl
      monkeypearl stevieleeds

      Posted

      Hiya Steve, 😊

      i know it's heading for the weekend now, but it might be best to try and have some contact with your GP. I'm about one week ahead of you (5th Oct THR)

      I'm on tramadol and codeine to help with pains, also night time I'm on amitriptyline and zopiclone...🙄

      All the best bud with your recovery, stay positive and things will pick up...

      Stay safe & Stay Happy 😊

      Pete😁

    • Rocketman_SG6UK
      Rocketman_SG6UK stevieleeds

      Posted

      That does seem a lot of painkillers to be on still, but it is early days, and we're all very different in how our bodies react to pain and painkillers.

      I didn't take any of the painkillers I was sent home with on day 5 after the operation. Unfortunately I did not have blood thinner pills this time, but had to inject Tinzaparin, and having a blood clotting disorder this gave me some massive bruises.

      I think that in your place I'd be contacting the surgeon's office or hospital to explain your pain levels and request more or different medication.

      Best wishes

      Graham

Back to top

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.