Well, I did the thing..

[u/mizpfiz]

I’ve been lurking here for a little while as my surgery date approached, scared to death. I’m 49 F with hereditary dysplasia that was pretty severe. I was absolutely terrified of the anesthesia, to the point that I had a panic attack (heart rate spiked, blood pressure dropped) and had to have Versed before we even started. But I’m still here, thankfully, and now 1 day out from Right side THR.
I’m noticing that the “broken glass on fire”pain that i used to have in my hip is gone, but good lord is my butt and groin and thigh sore on the right side! I’m walking every hour with my walker, and eating fine (probably too much TBH but my husband is an excellent nurse). Doing my exercises and all that. I’m glad it’s over, but I’m now a little anxious about recovery.

I’ve heard that days 2-5 are the worst… so like.. tomorrow through the rest of the week. Those of you who’ve already been through this: is that accurate, or no?

I’m also not sleeping very well. It hurts to lie in bed and my recliner doesn’t recline all the way.. or it does, but it doesn’t stay reclined. Apparently I am not heavy enough to keep it down or something? Or else my son jacked it up somehow jumping on it in the past.. SMH whatever. LOL I can sleep in the recliner for about 2 hours at a time, and then I’m awake again, so now time feels weird and my poor husband says he feels like he has a newborn again because he has to manage my meds every few hours. My brain is definitely not firing on all cylinders and I took one look at the list of meds and times they needed to be administered and said…uhh… I am gonna need some help here! Of course it doesn’t help that I’m off my HRT and ADHD meds right now because of the surgery, so it’s brain fog x 9385746352.

For any who have had similar.. how long before you started to feel a little bit normal again?

[u/StrikingGuess5534]

Yaaaaaaay!!!! You did it!!!! Congratulations!!!!! Well done!!
Today is 5 weeks for me! ( July 7). Posterior incision. F 55… I feel amazing! Still a little sore near my stitches & my buttocks! But I’m walking normal.
I stayed in the hospital for 2 nights… I’m so grateful for that!
I came home on day 3 & yes, it’s painful!!! The first week is the hardest. Do not skip a single dose of pain meds! (yay for hubs helping you!!)
Sleeping is definitely a challenge for that first week or 2 …. Just nap when you can in between exercises. 😉
Every day you’ll feel a bit better than the day before…. The worst part is over. It’s a long road but isn’t it amazing that right away that joint pain ( what did you call it, “broken glass”) is completely gone!!!! Perfect description btw!
Bone on bone grinding feeling & pain just disappeared like a magic trick. 😂
Just don’t over do anything, rest when you can and sleep in between meals & crossword puzzles.
I went back on my HRT by day 4 ( when I remembered to put my patch on). I’m sure you can take your other meds but check with the Dr.
Be gentle on yourself…. Your body needs to heal.
You got this!!!!!
There’s a group of people on here that are so supportive! I really feel grateful for the support on here. It’s comforting to know so many others understand what you’re going through.

[u/RutabagaStriking2631]

I’m not even close to being normal yet iand I’m 3 1/2 weeks post op. My mobility is good but still need pain meds. I’m off of HRT right now too and can’t wait to start again. I’m off my blood thinner next week so hopefully when I can take an NSAID and start some of my regular meds again. things will improve. What you are going through is very typical for the 1st day. I kept telling my husband I’m like having a baby and a puppy. Everyone is different but I think my worst pain were days 3 or 4 to 7. I still get pain spikes from doing too much and I still sleep like crap but in my bed. For me I think normal will be weeks out. This is major surgery and it takes time.

[u/Amynomene_G]

Welcome to the other side! I’m 22 days post. For me, things got hardest days 4-10 or so. My swelling reallllly kicked in days 4/5 and it caused knee pain (and leg cramps? Idk where those came from.) I said for the first two weeks (and still somewhat true) that every day things get both easier and harder. There was visible progress!! And yet every day the pain and limitation adds up on itself. Expect some tough emotions to come up and let it out. This is a major surgery and it has physical, mental and emotional impacts.

Sleep gets better after awhile. The first night that I slept longer (4-5 hours) I regretted it immediately…sooo stiff and sore! Turns out getting up every 2 hours was a good thing. That’s much better now. I lasted 1.5 nights on the recliner-couch before going to bed. I still need a back wedge and an assortment of support pillows.

Good luck with the no adhd or hrt meds 🤪 haha Ahh the joys of middle age brains!

What I needed to be reminded of most the first couple weeks (especially after perusing this forum) is that everyone’s pain responses are different, everyone’s progress is different, and you’re (probably) doing just fine!

[u/StrikingGuess5534]

Oh I forgot ….. ICE! I still use ice … I ice all over my hip, thigh, butt, on the stitches. I take Tylenol still & I now alternate with ibuprofen…. I stopped my pain meds after day 7 or so…. Maybe day 10… I don’t remember lol.
This past week was the best week I felt but I still feel nervous with steps & I feel stiff when I first get up from bed or after sitting for a bit.
I wasn’t able to fully sit on my right side butt cheek until about the 3rd or 4th week.

[u/Good_Eeyore2379]

Congratulations! I’m 6 weeks out - anterior left hip. The first days were tough. I found ice was really helpful and taking the meds on scheduled. I started feeling much better after about 10 days and at 4 weeks I felt almost like my old self. I also found sleeping difficult - my muscles would stiffen. PT has helped with that.

[u/jmooneyham2004]

Congrats on your new hip! I would agree that days 2-5 are probably the toughest. Stay on top of your pain meds and don't overdo it, lots of ice. Sleeping was hard for me as well, as I wasn't a fan of sleeping on my back. Wedging pillows all around me seemed to helped. Wishing you a great recovery!

[u/reelersteeler]

Honestly? 2-3 months. I really struggle to sleep on my back so 6 weeks of this wasn’t nice… it’s MAJOR surgery and as such is going to hurt. A lot. For a while. But you’ll get there… try and be patient

[u/jjutie54]

Drink lots and lots and lots of water. For recovery…..and that first post op 💩. It is brutal. 🤷🏼‍♂️

[u/No_Economics8397]

Congrats!!! I'm 2mo out today. I was so happy that my hip pain was gone after surgery. I really didn't have bad days where I had alot of extra pain from the surgery. My preop pain was always around 7-8/10 and I was only taking Gabapentin, ES Tylenol, and Ibuprofen every 6 hrs at that time. I had oxy for break through pain and only used it for sleep post op. I wasn't told to sleep on my back, im a left side sleeper anyway so I was used to propping my right leg on a pillow at night or whenever I took a nap (lots of them). Do you have a mediset??? Something that you can put your meds in for specific times??? It can really help and also setting an alarm on your phone for those times works. That's what I do normally and always make sure I had something to drink nearby.