Hi folks. It's about 4 and a half weeks since I had my hip replacement. Is an uncemented hip replacement. I was fine and relatively pain free up to my physio appointment at 3 weeks when they told me to do more. Like getting up and down normally without stretching out the operated leg, walking indoors on 1 crutch and going up and downstairs more normally. I am now in pain when walking in the groin of my operated leg and not sure if this is normal or I am doing too much. I am 53 and want to get around more but finding it hard now this pain has come. Not seeing my consultant until the end of January so not sure who to ask. What if I have done some damage??
I can only speak from my own experience Kim but I did feel the exercises I was given by my physio at 5 weeks were too aggressive for me at that time.I eased of a bit and found them easier a month or so on.Maybe you have pulled a muscle?I am 64 by the way.We all heal at different rates and not always as quickly as we would like!
Best wishes
Janet
Hi Kim
Im 3 weeks post LTHR & seem to be doing very well, getting more mobile etc. Having said that, ive just had a couple of quite painful days which have kept me awake, missed my afternoon nap & broken night's sleep. It sounds as if it's all perfectly normal, still very early days for us after our brutal operation so pains to be expected. Like you, i also fretted that i had done some damage!
My consultant appt is at 12 weeks too, so Feb1st before i get to see him. It would be nice to get reassurance at the 6 week point though the physio helps a lot.
Keep up the good work, get plenty of rest & gradually move towards a return to normality- good luck!
Margaret
Thanks Margaret. Yes it is quite a brutal operation and am sat here now worrying I have done too much and caused damage. Are you walking around a lot or just pottering around the house?
Don't worry - it is a brutal opertaion yes, but the "spare parts" are incredibly strong. If you had done some damage, then you wouldn't be sitting there worrying about if you had done some damage - you'd know!
I was doing so well (and still am) last Tuesday that, at two weeks post op, the surgeon discharged me until my annual check up. Walking fine, pain free, getting back to normal life.
Then, on Wednesday I had the follow-up physio class. I questioned the wisdom of what they were doing with people at the time. They had people doing a form of "circuit training" with 25 minutes of non-stop exercises, and the supervision was so lax that I could see people doing the exercises incorrectly and not being corrected. The length and intensity of the exercise exceeded that which was outlined in their own advisory booklet! They also didn't assess people for other conditions - despite me telling them twice about exercises that I couldn't do or wouldn't do due to other conditions, at the end of the class one of the physio's still told me to turn my right foot forward - impossible due to the condition I had told them about three times, once explaining that I was seeing another consultant at the same hospital next week about!
As a result of this I was in some discomfort all the rest of that day and Thursday - not pain exactly, but definitely overdone it, and I was the fittest person there! Goodness knows how the others felt!
I won't be going back, and I have told them (and the hospital) why. I have my own physiotherapist, so I am lucky - I don't need them. And she's good. This is what she told me right from the start, so I am passing it on. Build up slowly after the operation. If you only do one more thing a day, then that is fine. If some days you do one less, that is also fine. Listen to your body - if it hurts stop doing it! So if you can walk on one crutch a bit of the time, accept that for now. If you can manage a couple of steps normally, accept that for now. There isn't a race on here, and providing you aren't sitting on your backside the whole time, then you are progressing 
I've also said this elsewhere, but it really is advisable to massage those muscles. Not just the ones in the hip around the scar (stay away from those until the scar has healed), but the ones running up the back of the hip, in the groin area, down the front and the back of the upper legs and in the calves. You may not realise just how hard all of those muscles are working to get you recovering, and they get tight and can cause pain - and often the pain doesn't hurt where the problem actually is. I've been massaging twice a day since I was let out of the hospital, avoiding only the area around the scar for now, and I am sure it really has helped.
dear kim,
warm welcome to the best hippies forum where we share our personal experiences and stories ...
As you already mentioned, you are just recovering fro a major invasive surgery .
I agree with Beth ... if it hurts, stop doing it .... there is NO GAIN IN PAIN, after hip replacement surgery ...
go at your own speed and listen to your body ..if you are more comfortable getting up with stretched leg, just keep doing that - make sure your chair is at proper height and start practicing getting up while leaning on arm rests first without stretching the operated leg .. just at your own pace, at home - same with going uo and down the stairs ...
are you full weight bearing ?
the pain you feel is normal -
the problem is (with me anyway) that I always try to please my physical therapist and either overdo it or doing it incorrectly ...
our body is learning how to move and walk again while major healing is taking place.
aches and pains in the hip and surrounded muscles might persist for some time because bone, a living tissue, continues to re-model and adapt around the metal implants. This increased metabolic activity can lead to lingering soreness and swelling after increased activity, all of which will disappear with time. .
Talk to your physical therapist - don't get intimidated okay?
I really love Beth's comment and her advice to get massages ...
How are you getting on otherwise?
big warm hug
renee
Hi Kim
I started walking outside at 1 week post op, a major milestone for me & distinctly wobbly! I set myself a goal of walking a little bit further along the road each day gradually working towards the shop at the end of the road. I now do this every day & think its time to extend the boundary again & challenge myself a bit more. Still on 2 crutches but just 1, or increasingly none round the house.
Were off out on a shopping trip today, not the first, but know i will have to be sensible & have lots of extended coffee stops!
I like the massage advice too, look forward to trying that out when i get back.
Have a lovely day 💕
Well my physio gave me a couple of things to do that were so painful I listened to my body and refused ... But did swallow the temptation to say Have you ever had a hip replacement matey ???
Thanks Margaret. How far post-op are you? I always feel as though I am lagging behind other people but it's marvellous that you are doing well.
Love this forum as feel that post-op care is lacking and not sure where to go with my questions.
Thanks so much for your warm reply. It's good not to feel so alone. The family mean well but they just say I am overdoing it and to rest and take more painkillers. I had stopped taking painkillers so feel I am going backwards by needing them again.
Xxx
Hi Kim,
Renee and Beth are right. Im nearly 7 weeks and still have some pain if I over done my excesice. Listen ur body if you are tired
Or feel pain stop and rest. Next day try to do little bit more.
I have my physio in hospital just started but mostly I will hydro
pool. I have over done my excesice too and I pay for that next
day. I hope you will better soon and without pain. Just take it
easy please.
Hug Madla
Thank you all for your help and advice and kind words. I am feeling quite low at the moment but I am sure it will pass. Good to know I am not alone and that I can ask my fellow 'hippies' for help if I need it
Thanks again.
I agree with all the others, stop if you're in pain. I'm in the UK, and had physio in hospital until I came outl on day 2. After that saw the physio only once at week 6, and was discharged. I did have some achy times, after swimming for example, andI afterwards always took it easy for a few days. Take care, I wish you a good recovery. Don't overdo it.
Kim, I would still get up with outstretched leg. I'm 14 months post RTHR. When I saw physio at 4 weeks she told me to lay on operated side and also to get off of crutches. I was down to one by then indoors. Found it difficult to lay on side so didn't do it. Did get off of my crutches fully by week 6. When I saw my surgeon he reduced some of the restrictions and told me I could lay on my operatedcside with a pillow. When I told him what physio said he was not impressed. Take your time love with what feels right for your body. I had a fall 8 weeks ago. Landed on my knees had pain in my femur but hip did not move it is uncemented also. I remember how scared I was of doing something wrong in the first 3 months. I fell because I ran up stairs totally forgetting I shouldn't.
Coincidentally, after posting this morning I had a bad fall in the park this morning. My bad ankle just turned and gave way, I ended up on the ground, and there was absolutely nobody around to help (which is very unusual). I'll be honest, it was really scary, and I couldn't get enough strength under me to get up. I did manage to drag myself to my feet by crawling along to a tree and using the strength of my arms to pull myself up. I then proceeded to continue the dog walk!
Oh yes, I have very sore knees, a lot of very nice new bruises and aches. And that includes the hip. But it just goes to show what I said about how very strong the spare points are. There's no damage other than some scrapes and aches. That said, I am lucky because my decades of judo taught me to automatically fall correctly, something that most people cannot do, so please don't try this at home
Hi Judith where is the after care in the UK
once your discharged from hospital? I asked
when my physio started and was told hip
replacement patients don't get it.WHAT
Hi Kim / you have overdone it/ I'm 4 months post RTHR and I can still overdo/ everyone heals at a different pace but at 3-4 weeks you are nowhere near healed. You do have to be careful what you do for at least 3 months/ yes I've had several instances of pushing it to hard and the pain in the back groin comes back. It is scary because it feels like the pain BEFORE the surgery. I thought oh-no! I've damaged something, but a day or two of rest usually fixes it.
Just this last week I was able to get out on job site and do a couple of days of physical construction type work/ what I had done for 30 years/ just barely getting strong enough at 4 months to keep up. I was pretty sore for a few days after but also feeling stronger daily/ by the way I'm 64 years old and have also had both knees replaced. It just takes time and you do need to push yourself but at 4 weeks you still need to go easy.
Well we do here in Wales ... About three weeks after the op then hip classes !
Thanks again everyone. I feel very disappointed with the directions from the physio. They didn't even say not to do it if it hurts. I now realize I have been overdoing it and am going to keep walking but not do the other stuff until I can do without pain, in particular taking the stairs normally. The pain in my groin and buttock after that can't be right. No more pushing!!
Take care everyone.
Oh no Beth. Take care. Falling scares me more than anything!!