Woo hoooo

Hi Linda, I'm only doing 4 hours phased return to work & the nature of my job is office & site so I'm 'staying in' the office for a bit. My commute is less than 1 minute in the car!

I'm a natural early riser so I'm trying to ignore the 'Sleep Club Rules' (post from a few weeks ago) & get back into a routine (easier said than done)! My manager is great & doesn't mind what hours I work so if I'm up early I will go into the office at 6am/7am & come home at 10am/11am! I could quite get used to this part time malarkey! Hope you are well x

Very nice hours and commute! And great that your manager is flexible too.

I'm doing fine but I will be glad to get the 2nd hip done (20th) and that recovery behind me.

I hope that knowing what to expect will make it easier and I have been strengthening muscles in antiiccccccipation (do you know Rocky Horror)?!

Plus family and friends also know the drill and I know to count on the generous family here.

Hopefully there won't be too many surprises along the way but everyone says that no two surgeries are alike ...

Still - I am definitely planning on kicking up my heels for the holiday season.

Big hugs - it is really good to hear that you are doing so well.

L

Make sure to keep us posted on your 2nd x

Hi Adam, not sure we've chatted before so welcome.

We also only have 1 toilet but there is only the 2 of us. My husband has said he can now pee in a perfect straight line!

The crutches went after 10 days & I use trekking poles. Much easier, help you to walk upright & correctly. I only use them if I'm out on a big walk with my dog & I know the ground will be uneven. I don't use anything during a normal day but I did work really hard at my physio exercises x

That sounds a good idea with the poles. I am only using one crutch the majority if the time, but it does put my shoulder up a bit. What sort of piles are they?

It's still early days for me anyway (19 days). I lost a week due to catching what they politely called a hospital acquired infection. To make it worse it was hepatitis A and left me on a IV drip for a week. At least that is all behind me now.

I can't manage without crutches yet, as I still have a slight limp. My hip replacement was after four months of not using my left leg much after a failed fracture repair. My left leg was an inch short until the replacement sorted the length issue. So I also have a lot of lost muscle mass to regain.

I got my poles from Costco but any outdoor sports shop (not sure if you are UK based but if you are GoOutdoors & Blacks sell them).

My Physio advised I switch to poles as crutches don't really do you any favours. They make you lean forward & you tend to put all your weight on your hands. Also, like you have experienced, they make your shoulders ache. I really would recommend poles.

Sorry to hear about your infection but glad you are now on the mend. The best way to practice getting rid of the limp is to stand tall & walk heel to toe really really slowly. If you can practice this in the garden of along a hallway (even better if you have a mirror to watch yourself), you will find you don't limp. It really works but the key is to practice slowly. I did this after a knee op a few years ago & it worked then as well. It's also really important to walk little & often & to religiously do your exercises x

Thanks fernlady

I am in the UK, In Farnborough Hampshire.

I will try your suggestion with working in the hip. I have a long upstairs corridor towards a mirror, so that sounds a good bet.

The crutches also give me pain around the arms where the arm supports are. Being hairy and with the hot weather they cause a bad case of ingrowing hairs. It's ok if I wear something long sleeved but it has been too hot for that.

Lol! How funny, I hope you never went into detail about constipation!

TBH, when I've been out & about you don't have a choice about toilet seat height. My surgeon (at my 6 week check up) asked me to keep the seat until week 12. I've got quite used to it now!

So you're officially a one week hippie! Best of luck with your recovery, think positive, do your exercises & you'll do great & don't forget to keep coming back here for advice, it's a brilliant site x

I wish I had got one after I had my hip repaired in April. I spent four months without one and in a lot of pain. As soon as my hip was replaced they gave me the raised toilet seat, which has made it so much easier. No more hanging onto the sink to sit down.

I also bought a frame that fitted around the toilet which was a lifesaver x