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Im alone and wondering what other people do in the same situation

Posted , 15 users are following.

juliatnr
juliatnr

HI, I am alone and have pretty much done this alone since after the first week.  I am very bored and cant wait until I can drive again.  I watch tv, play with my dogs,  read magazines, of course do therapy.  Anyone have any ideas what I could do so as not to be so lonely?  I really use this site to ease the lonliness. If it werent for my therapist I think I would have gone insane.  I wont be "released" by my surgeon until Dec 8th. 

3 likes, 43 replies

43 Replies

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  • christineuk62
    christineuk62 juliatnr

    Posted

    Hi Julia, are you in the UK? 

    If yes , ring Social Services and explain your predicament. 

    I have had carers since I came out of hospital end of Feb this year. My BF works so they come 3 times a day. 

    They're great for help with personal care or even just a brew and a chat. 

    Hope this helps you 

    • juliatnr
      juliatnr christineuk62

      Posted

      I am in the states and they only gave me a therapist once a day for the first week then reduced it a day till Im down to two xs a week.  I enquired about a caregiver but did not qualify since I could put on my shoes, go potty and walk before I got out of the hospital.  I would have to pay for a caregiver.  Thanks...just responding cheered me up!
  • susan20089
    susan20089 juliatnr

    Posted

    Hi Julia, I am so sorry to hear you feel so alone. What about friends and relatives - can no one come and see you? What about getting out and walking?  What about any of the people on here from US, perhaps they could help. It's a shame you aren't in uk as we are quite a helpful bunch and the country is not quite so vast, we could suggest stuff depending on the area you lived in. That is why I am so surprised that US citizens come on this site when it is UK. Can anyone suggest support groups in the US to help this lady?  
    • liz34614
      liz34614 susan20089

      Posted

      I am sure there are lots of local volunteer organisations near you, have you tried your local church, ring the paster and ask about a visiting service.  Also ring your local dog rescue, and ask if someone could give you a little help with the dogs for a few weeks.  Ask your hospital if they have a list of visitor scemes or call your local Samaratains number, and ask them to provide you with some visitor organisations.  There will be plenty of local people just waiting to visit ... all you have to do is let them know you are there!   Good luck and do keep in touch.
    • juliatnr
      juliatnr liz34614

      Posted

      Thanks....Im going to call my church and see if someone can come visit and look online for any other groups.  I work with disabled people and here in the states they are called the invisible population.  I know now what they are going thru and how they feel.  If it werent for this forum I wouldnt have made it this far.  Thanks again for the ideas.
    • joy47826
      joy47826 susan20089

      Posted

      Susan, there are tons of support groups, anyone on the net can find them....I was pretty much non technical but I've come a long way since 2005 when I bought my first desk type.

      There are others here besides from the US too....I came here to talk more about hip replacement mess as I also talk to other hip groups....hope we in the US aren't too much bother....I've been on groups and many from the UK are there....we have a lot of folks living in our city from the UK.    Joy 76 US  

    • susan20089
      susan20089 joy47826

      Posted

      Of course people from the US aren't any bother. I was just curious as to why when there are two separate sites, you shoukd choose the uk one.  Julia said she was lonely, obviously living so far away people from the uk can't really help. If she lived in this country obviously there would be more that we could suggest.  I find that some of your comments in the past have been made to start an argument.   Please don't pick on things I have said and try to insinuate people from the US are not welcome here.
    • juliatnr
      juliatnr susan20089

      Posted

      when i first went on this site i didnt realize it was a uk site.  I needed advice, and people to talk to about my tkr since I am alone.  UK, US, Canada, Mexico...it doesnt matter to me where people are from.  We all have gone thru some kind of traumatic joint surgery and that doesnt change depending on where we live.  I have also gone thru a double TMJ joint replacement surgery and wish I had this site then to help me thru the process.  Thank you to all who have replied where ever you live.
    • susan20089
      susan20089 juliatnr

      Posted

      To be honest I couldn't care where people have come from, people are people but it seems that operations and treatment are different in different countries. Loneliness happens wherever you live and hopefully support is there.  The internet is a very useful tool used the right way. 
    • joy47826
      joy47826 susan20089

      Posted

      Susan, am I missing something?  Are there two separate sites here?  Joy 
    • Emis_Moderator
      Emis_Moderator susan20089

      Posted

      Hi all,

      Just to clarify in case there is any confusion -  "I was just curious as to why when there are two separate sites, you should choose the uk one"

      There is only one patient.info forums site which is UK based but anyone from any country is welcome to post. This is the point of internet forums, it doesn't matter where you are from.

      Regards,

      Alan

    • susan20089
      susan20089 Emis_Moderator

      Posted

      Of course it doesn't matter where you are from. I just thought it was a bit odd coming onto a patient uk site. Possibly because I wouldn't dream of going on a us or any other country site myself looking for  answers. I think our own health service eorks differently from other countries. It's a personal choice I think. I ann sorry if I seemed curious. I did reply to Joy to this effect. 
    • CanadianSharon
      CanadianSharon susan20089

      Posted

      I think the more points of view the better...it's the World Wide Web, that how the UK site picked up us foreigners.  I personally have always felt that the UK has a good medical program and knowledge, that's what drew my interest to this site.  I was pleasantly happy to connect with so many positive people interested in helping others.  I appreciate everyone 's caring and helpfulness.  I hadn't given it a second thought about not being from the UK when I connected with this site...I was just pleased to find others to connect with.  Hope that we are all continued to be welcome. Thank you.
    • Oldfatguy1
      Oldfatguy1 susan20089

      Posted

      Makes it pretty obvious, pain and suffering are universal no matter whose well trained scapula and saw gets you there. Actually it was the PVNS page that piqued my interest as it seems more prevelant in Europe than the US. That took me to the tkr page looking for people like me that had a long history of the tumor and consequences thereof. From there it went to the tkr page where I might be able to pass on a 10 yr history of violence leveled on my knee. One of my findings, I cannot find either Hispanic or black who have experienced PVNS. So far, only whites with European background. The drs tell me its genetic and I am a 3rd generation German.
  • CanadianSharon
    CanadianSharon juliatnr

    Posted

    I also live alone.  I had a friend stay with me the first two days.  I agree it's lonely and even a little depressing recovering from this surgery.  It was a real treat when I could drive again.  For me I honestly didn't feel like doing that much the first three or four weeks.  I actually didn't seem to have the energy.  I sew, so as soon as I was able I did a little...  I had planned to knit, but found I didn't have the concentration.  I think the telephone and computer got he through the first weeks.  I used my iPad in bed.  I found I also read this site a lot....especially at night when I was uncomfortable nd couldn't sleep.  It's just one day at a time....i learned the new meaning of patience.
    • juliatnr
      juliatnr CanadianSharon

      Posted

      Sounds like we did alot of the same things. (The reason i am alone is becuz my husb is deployed. )  i too have learned the meaning of patience. I just wrote on here to make sure i was doing and thinking "normal" things. Thank you for writing. I feel much better and not so lonely.
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