Hi everyone,
My brief story goes like this. I am 3 months out from a hip revision surgery. Surgery went great but extensive bone grafting disallowed my walking and exercising for 8 weeks.
Then when I could finally begin movement, another condition, not hip related, popped up and kept me couch/bed bound. Just yesterday I took my first "real" walk outside with my frame walker and walked 1/2 mile and today did the same.
Now I have new pain on the outside of my hip. Beneath my 12 inch scar. It feels sharp and stings and I am icing it. Could it be that I am breaking through scar tissue that healed without movement which might never have occurred if I had been able to begin walking right after surgery?
It does not feel like the hip itself has been compromised for I would recognize that, but please fellow hippies, put your heads together for me. Has anyone else had to wait 3 months before they could go outside on a true walk, not just around inside the house?
💛 Dawn, USA
it is highly likely that you have adhesions under your internal and external incisions. I would imagine that they would cause the pain youre describing now that youre moving. the muscles are suddenly moving much more and pulling at the adhesions. If it doesnt ease you really should visit your GP to get professional input.
I agree re adhesion; it really is hot spot under the incision Dawn. I believe we don't know how it will resolve depending on the scar tissue we produce . Mine was a bitch right up til now 19 months, but guess what, stopped painkillers and that aggravation has either resolved or the brain no longer registering it. You're just making slower progress in not having been able to walk immediately. But you will catch up. Ditto sub scar discomfort. Have you been able to reduce painkillers..... Sarah
massage the area with vit e cream or aveeno to loosen the scar tissue and help the adhesions to loosen.
Hi Dawndee,
I had hard skin above my scar for the first 3months, and sometimes a slight ache, I used bio oil and it's the bomb!! no more hard skin and my scar has faded, so good luck, get down to walgreens or rite aid and buy some,
love, Lynne.
Hi Lynne,
I have used bio oil all this time, but perhaps I did not spend enough time actually massaging the scar enough?
💛 Dawn
I haven't heard from you in awhile. I am sorry to hear you have been down. BUT glad you are up again.
Maybe it is a little nerve that is healing or kicking up a fuss. Give it time to heal.
How is tthe family and Tennessee? My son says weather has been good by Nashville.
I have still been seing a chiropractor for my back. It has helped a lot but I still have groin pain etc. It is hard to believe my hip new pain was from my back! He tells me I need to have a MRI. I have an appt mid June. We will see what it shows. I am able to walk a lot farther. I walked with the family 3 miles Sunday. I wish we could get this last problem fixed. I can not sit and I loved walking.
Hi Sara,
Yes I have been able to go for many weeks without the pain killer. I have and still am taking Gabapentin three times a day. Seems I have really sensitive nerves and Gaba has allowed me to not need the Oxycodone. However, after I walked, I lasted as long as I could but had to give in to taking a pain pill yesterday and today.
Glad to know yours went away. I am going to keep walking and kill the fear of these sensations. Since I had a failed THR, I would recognize if this pain was serious enough to alert my surgeon. Now I had a successful THR done posterior method and that is new to me. My other two were Anterior Approach, so there was hardly a scar to deal with.
💛 Dawn
Thank you Helen. I have been using Bio-oil, but now believe that I did not massage the 12 inch scar enough. This was my third THR but my first long scar and admittedly, it kind of creeps me out! In kind of a squeamish way.
💛 Dawn
Hi Elaine! Glad to hear from you too! Tennessee is having wonderful weather right now. But for me, a pulmonary patient, it has been difficult to breathe because my heat pump is on the Fritz and no budget to fix it.
I sure hope the MRI reveals your back problem and I pray it is fixable. How amazing for you to walk 3 miles! You go girl!
Hugs
💛 Dawn
hi Dawn ... wow, that is a long time being inside the house ... did that have anything to do with your non--hip related issue? I am 10 weeks post op and have this weird "pain" in and around my scar ... some stabbing and shooting as well as pinching - also massage it with bio oil but that doesn't really help - the scar looks good albeit a little tight ...PT is telling me it is the muscle, but I feel that it is not ... it is a different pain --- what does she know, right? after reading the posts here on this wonderful forum I am not too worried about it anymore - seems part of the healing, like everything else ... just a wee bit uncomfortable because it is there ... keep on going slowly and take care - you are in my thoughts - warm hug
Thank you Renee for the warm hug! This site it Good for virtual hugs and also for sharing up close and personal descriptions, experiences and helpful tips that doctors often cannot convey, and that unbeatable sense of not being alone.
What kept me immobile after the 8 week mark was my heart rate. All my vital signs have always been great. No heart disease, or high blood pressure or high cholesterol, etc. But suddenly just walking 12 feet and back caused my heart rate to go up to heart attack and stroke range. For me that is 160 bpm.
Even after sitting down it would not go below 100 bmp. The ONLY way for me to keep my heart rate down was to lay flat! Physical therapists would not work with me for the normal hip exercises because by law they are not allowed to if the patients heart rate goes over 110 bmp during the exercises.
So, I then had blood work, EKG and a CT-scan with contrast because of a suspected pulmonary embolism which could not be found. Wearing a heart monitor revealed that my erratic pulse is directly related to my pulmonary disease which I was born with.
So finally, my doc put me on a new med which seems to help keep my heart rate out of the danger zone.
BUT, when I took my first walk, my heart rate went up to 195 bmp!!! OMG! I took my second walk today because I want the forces in this Universe or my fear to know face to face that I REFUSE TO FEEL FEAR! I WILL exercise! I am SICK and TIRED of feeling SICK and TIRED! I want to walk.
I went through too much hell to finally have a hip that works and then not be able to use it?!?! NOT. When I walked today my heart rate did not go over 140 bmp. So THERE! To what ever is trying to keep me down!
Then the pains described in my post came and I almost let it deflate me ....but I posted on here and am gathering strength and energy from wonderful fellow hippies! If I die, I WILL die walking!
And that is that. Warm hugs back at ya Renee!
💛 Dawn
Dearest Dawn – Thank you for sharing your story with us … this explains why you were not allowed to walk for such a long time … so what to do now?
I might have told you that I recently moved from Los Angeles to Holland, after almost 34 years living there - I am using this as justification for what I am going to say here ( LALA land, and such J) –
I am a firm believer of the body-mind connection, am a certified, clinical hypnotherapist and Reiki, energy healing, Practioner – (not practicing here as the rules are so complicated) –
I know that you are upset, frustrated, angry , discouraged, depressed and feel abandoned – It is normal – you have been and still are dealing with so much –
So …. First of all, stop beating yourself up – your body is working so hard to heal her self – talk to her (so L.A. right?) and soothe her – be your own best friend … so she can relax … there are wonderful videos on you tube that might help you visualize and relax you – even if it is for a couple of minutes ….
Try it – you might like it …. In the meantime, be kind and gentle with yourself – I hope you are a sleep right now … sending you healing – love and light to a wonderful soul …..
Hi Dawndee,
did you massage it in 4 times a day especially after showering? if it does'nt work you could try some kind of stretch mark cream , the stuff Iused when pregnant (ages ago lol) was something called Forces of Nature Scar Control cream, hope thishelps,
love
Lynne.
Thank you Renee, so much. I will try.
Hi Dawn,
I'm so sorry to hear that you have a bit of a set back....truly I can't give any advice as I'm so clueless when it comes to anything health related...however, I did not venture out much until I was 3 months out....I think it was more nerves than anything ...so paranoid that I would trip, etc....
You posted this a few days back, so I'm hoping that your pain has calmed down somewhat.
On a selfish note, I'm glad to hear from you online and hope that you and your family can start to enjoy this summer weather!!!
I'm still anxiously waiting for a date for my left hip, so until then I'm pretty much house bound myself, as even though I have the right done (and it feels fantastic), I'm in so much pain with the left I can't do much (that's ok, as I need to save some money as my bathroom is falling apart and I should be saving to fix it instead of shoe shopping)!!!
Thinking of you and the girls,
Patricia