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2 steps forward and one step back

Posted , 14 users are following.

joy76887
joy76887

Hi. I'm 12 weeks post LTHR. I don't know if this is normal or not but I seem to be taking 2 steps forward and one step back with my recovery. I do all my exercises but only manage to walk for about 10 minutes without being inj pain. I still use one stick for longer walks but I manage ok around the house and short distances.  When I'm sitting it feels like I'm sitting on a golf ball. My thigh to the back of my leg aches a lot and after a while it moves to the front and usually spreads down to my knee. My sick note runs out in 3 weeks and due to doing a very manual job as a care assistant with the elderly my Gp said my sick leave may have to extended further. Do you think I should ask for a referral to see a Physio? I just thought my recovery would have been quicker as I'm a slim, fit 60 year old. Sorry if I seem to be moaning. 

1 like, 16 replies

16 Replies

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  • beth2509
    beth2509 joy76887

    Posted

    Of course you aren't moaning! 

    The golf ball feeling - totally normal! Sorry, but give that one up. It is common and it will eventually wear off. When, nobody can say. It's all down to individuals.

    12 weeks is very early, and how people recover is not a pattern. Everyone is different.  To return to  a very physical job at 12 weeks is pretty demanding  - can you get adjustments to less physical work for a time? And fewer hours? 

    Assuming you are in the UK, you can ask for physiotherapy. Unfortunately, how long it takes to get it may depend on where you live. If toy have a look on utube there are a lot of extra exercises that you can do - under many circumstances, that is what a physio is going to show you to do anyway.

    Pretty much what you are describing, unless you are  in serious pain, sounds normal. Everyone had their own journey, and being fit our young or whatever doesn't mean you get to have a great recovery. Yours sounds not too bad. You are just expecting a lot and what your are expecting isn't what is happening. You need to cut yourself some slack. It will happen, but just not this minute!

     

    • joy76887
      joy76887 beth2509

      Posted

      Hi Beth. Thankyou for the reassurance. I most probably am expecting too much. As for my job, I don't think there is any way I could do less physical duties. But I'm entitled to 6 months paid sick leave so it looks as if I'm just going to have to use a bit more of it than I would have liked. I'll have a look on you tube for some more exercises. Thank you for your response.

  • herse
    herse joy76887

    Posted

    Hi Joy

    You are not moaning . It takes a while to mend everything after a big op. I would ask for a physio referral. I did find hydrotherapy brilliant but had to pay for it. Physiotherapy will be able to assess and give you specific exercises. I am 4 months and still limping particularly in long walks.

    Remember slow and steady - keep positive. If your GP says sick note needs extending So be it. Your health is important .

  • ian97093
    ian97093 joy76887

    Posted

    HI Joy it is the pressing the legs into your bed that strengthen the muscles.

    Hold the press for 10 secs then have a break, then the other side, the dep breathing also is so important too to give you the energy to push into your bed, and it is hard...And will pay off if you try for more seconds next time untill you get to 30...By the way the majic figure is 50...but that is a lot...Hope that you have the time to read my posts as I went throught it, there are quite a few about breathing and the benifits of the breathing excersises, I hope that you will read througn a few of my posts to see just what I mean, and what I posted, I had both sides done. If you need more info just PM me here.. 

    We are all here all of the time, I am so much better now and had two Steroid injs to come right , the second one really worked...razz

  • linda81469
    linda81469 joy76887

    Posted

    Oh Joy no no your not moaning!! This operation is a very serious thing!! It offers good days and not so good to very bad days!! I'm still having that and I'm at 7 months!! Also had tendonitis and bursitis. Sometimes I think it's the weather. Humidity, cloudy, cold, rainy days!! I still get that feeling of sitting on a lump!! It's getting better but still there! Sometimes I feel like my thigh is twisted on when I sit on certain chairs! I'm still icing and using heat. Ice for pain and inflammation and heat for tight muscles. Heat makes them relax. At least mine!! Exercises is very important to help with range of motion (rom) and to strengthen muscles. Have you had any yet with a therapist?? Is your pain in buttock or thigh or both? I've been going for 6 months now, this Wednesday will be my last day. Massaging too is good to help loosen the muscles. Don't go to back to work if your still having pain. Healing is very important and sometimes come slower than others. I hope you feel better soon and wishing you a speedy recovery. Hugs 🤗LD

  • denise79180
    denise79180 joy76887

    Posted

    Hi. I am 9 months out. I hear ya. I work with special needs kids very physical also. I had no sick leave so went back at 12 weeks. I was cleared by the surgeon but found it quite difficult. I was lucky, the boss let me do reduced hours for 7 weeks. I paid for physio which really paid off.

    Hope this helps.

  • madla39168
    madla39168 joy76887

    Posted

    Hi Joy 12 weeks is very early to be pain free, least i wasnt. I work in Healthcare in Nursing home in went back after 14 weeks and I find very hard

    to be on my feet 6 to 7 hours a day. I cut some hours for a while. I'm

    back to my normal hours but I do find some day hard and tiring. Try

    walking lots to bild walking it help it was recommended to me by physio. If you can stay home 6 months do that. It will get better with time.

    I still have to have another hip done and hopefully soon. Have

    an appointment on this Thursday.

    Good luck and take care.

    Hug Madla💗

  • laura49424
    laura49424 joy76887

    Posted

    Hi Joy - if you are moaning, we all probably are!

    It's a hard situation, and it seems never-ending. Today I am exactly 12 weeks post-op, and yesterday I went back to work. I am a teacher, so the problem is the long corridor of my school. I was afraid, but yesterday I could manage well.

    This morning I woke up with a funny knee - surprise surprise, a new symptom!

    Perhaps tomorrow it'll be the thigh - I never know what is happening in the morning when I take the first step. So I feel the very same: one day I feel confident and optimistic, the other depressed and anxious. And yes, the story goes that recovery is personal and that it takes a long long time... Take care smile

    • hippy28
      hippy28 laura49424

      Posted

      Hi Laura

      I was interested that you also have a ,moveable pain.

      After the op I was getting a severe pain just below my left shoulder blade when I was lying down. It really hurt by my ribs to take a deep breath. Once I stood up it seemed to disappear. Now that had gone and the pain had moved to the muscles at the top of my right arm. It's not there all the time but it suddenly catches me if I lift my arm up our move awkwardly.

      Don't know if this is connected to my THR. I asked my GP and he's given me an analgesic cream to massage in.

    • renee01952
      renee01952 hippy28

      Posted

      hi hippy,

      I think that THR surgery involves the whole body - 

      Slowly I started to walk funny, favoring my not painful hip/leg - walking up/down the stairs became more difficult - losing more mobility -

      (I was in denial for a while)-

      I don't know what kind of approach you had - I had 2 posterior THR's -

      this is major surgery where musles, tendons, etc are cut, joint forcefully dislocated, femur cut and prepared to have hardware placed - 

      And now you have to learn how to move again - walk properly - using rutches, or walker or cane ... this has an eefect on your upper body - shoulders, neck, arms, wrists - more dormant muscles are being activated - 

      I am many moons post-op and still experience sore muscles - knees, ankles and back and i know that I still need to be aware of my posture -

      Use the cream if it helps - I like to put some heat on the sore spots ...

      you are doing great !

      angel blessings

       

    • renee01952
      renee01952

      Posted

      P.s.forgot to mention the pelvic ... redface  

      remember, your body is a wonderland -

    • kimberley38758
      kimberley38758 renee01952

      Posted

      Yes, joint instability can cause an array of painful issues throughout the body.  It's so important to get the hip stabilized as soon as possible to prevent discomfort or even other injuries to the other joints and back.

       

  • sue13845
    sue13845 joy76887

    Posted

    It's one of the interesting things about how reassuring it is to hear others also taking time to recover - thankyou-admittedly I have had post op problems ( pulmonary emboli and a collapsed spine and a previous hip replacement three months prior to this one) which have not exactly helped! I too have felt two steps forward and one backwards. All frustrating - I am not sure what I expected but it wasn't going this slow! The thing that has helped me see steady but slow progress has bee my husband videoing me walking- it shows a demonstrable progress and quietly keeping in with the physio- I am retired which helps as do the 6 grandchildren !!! So keep on carrying on and I believe we will slowly get there- I guess your also in the uk- I'm sure having a good physio helps it would be well worth asking to go back- you are probably doing all the right things

    Good luck and keep posting

  • kimberley38758
    kimberley38758 joy76887

    Posted

    Hi Joy,

    I'm 8 months post FRHR.  By 12 weeks I was back to work with very little discomfort.  Just needed Ibuprofen occasionally for aches.  I would suggest that you see your physical therapist again.  They will be able to identify if there is anything out of the norm.  Hopefully, you just need to do a little more strengthening.

    Best of luck!

  • Rocketman_SG6UK
    Rocketman_SG6UK joy76887

    Posted

    Two steps forward, one back - normal  sad

    Needing the stick occasionally - normal  sad

    ?Thigh aches - normal sad

    Sitting on a golf ball (or lamppost) - normal sad

    And, yes, a physio is probably the best thing to help you out, they can correct you doing the things that you are getting wrong without knowing it.

    Sick note - I would get one for as long as you can if you have a manual job.

    Moaning - no, you are just concerned at the apparent lack of progress, we've all been there (well most of us), and recognise the immense physical and mental strain in recovering from THR.

    See my website for common problems and tips from other hippies on this forum, the website address is in my personal info here ...

       https://patient.info/forums/profiles/rocketman-sg6uk-907025

    and at the bottom of the moderator's "useful resources" page at

       https://patient.info/forums/discuss/thr-useful-resources-487147

    Best wishes

    Graham - 🚀💃 🤸

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