Re: Excellent article in today's New York Times

[Guest guest]

Thoughts and prayers – keep in touch.

Cheryl in Missouri

Re:

Re: Excellent article in today's New York Times

Hi Everyone,

Well I am off on Tues. morning to

have my left total knee repl.. at 7:30 am. I had the right

one done Nov. 29th. The partials I had done in March/May of 2003 didn't work.

They came completely loose and messed up my knee cap too. I had 3 optscopics in

2002. My totals are a different surgeon than the first 5. I live in

SE Texas and am seeing Dr. Arthur Chau now He is really a great Doc. I am going

to be in Hermann Memorial in Sugarland if anyone knows where that is. As usual

I am nervous as hell and am not looking forward to it. Blessings!

Salem

Sigrid Macdonald

<fontgirl2002@...> wrote:

Susie,

That's really tough that you're still in pain

several years after

both of your operations :-( I feel for you.

Have you tried all of

the traditional stuff like extra physiotherapy,

aspirin cream, or

alternative medicines such as acupuncture?

They didn't work for me

but they work for some people.

Another thing that I found was that I really

needed to experiment

with my exercises. I couldn't do exactly

what the physiotherapist

said or follow all the instructions from my

trainer at the gym. I

have problems with both my hip and my knee --

well, my hip has been

pretty good since my THR but my knee is bad -- and

I find that many

exercises that I do to help the hip, hurt the

knee. Sometimes, the

best exercise for me is no exercise at all until

the pain stops. I

know that's not recommended but I try to follow my

intuition.

Good luck to you. It's awful being in pain,

especially after you've

been through those two procedures.

Best, Sigrid

> Hi Margaret,

> I'm sorry to hear your still in pain, for I

had a Hip replacement

four years ago on April 12 it will be five

years and my knee

replacement is three years ago and I'm still in

pain and and use

pain medicine have to use a cane .Well I hope you

feel better and

have a nice day.

>

Susie

>

>

>

> --------- Re:

Excellent article in

> > today's New York Times

> >

> > >

> > > I really think that people need to

speak their own

> > truths. Brody

> > > spoke about her own experience and

lamented the fact that

> > she wasn't

> > > prepared for the amount of pain

that she experienced, nor

> > was she

> > > given sufficient medication. That

shouldn't necessarily

> > scare other

> > > people away.

> > >

> > > Every person's recovery from joint

surgery is different.

> > I just

> > > wrote a book called GETTING HIP:

Recovery from a Total

> > Hip

> > > Replacement. The reason that I

wrote the book was

> > precisely why

> > > Brody wrote her article -- I was

not prepared for the

> > amount of pain

> > > and swelling that I had following

my THR. I was left

> > extremely

> > > anemic after the operation and my

doctor never used

> > anti-embolism

> > > stockings. I also did not

adequately medicate myself

> > because I

> > > thought that it would contribute to

my weakness and

> > sleepiness.

> > > Because I was only 50 years old at

the time, I figured

> > that my

> > > recovery would be relatively quick,

but it wasn't that

> > way at all.

> > >

> > > In my book, I interviewed 10 other

people around the

> > world who had

> > > hip replacements, and one man whose

hip was resurfaced.

> > Their

> > > experiences with recovery differed

radically. Many

> > people found the

> > > surgery to be a breeze, but others

had a lot of pain and

> > expected to

> > > recover more quickly than they did.

> > >

> > > One of the main things that I

learned by going through my

> > THR was

> > > that there is no real gold standard

in terms of recovery

> > time.

> > > Sure, there's a general estimate

but it's like a bell

> > curve. Most

> > > people will fall somewhere in

between the normal range,

> > but lots of

> > > other people will fall outside of

the parameters. Some

> > recover more

> > > quickly and others take a longer

period of time. On the

> > plus side,

> > > most people that I have spoken to

are quite satisfied

> > with their new

> > > hips by the time that they have

fully recovered.

> > >

> > > I admire Brody for writing her

article. I don't really

> > think that

> > > it will scare too many people. Maybe

it will prompt them

> > to ask

> > > more questions of their doctors and

prepare more

> > thoroughly before

> > > hand by reading, and understanding

as much as possible

> > about hips

> > > and knees.

> > >

> > > Best, Sigrid

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

[Guest guest]

Hi Dave/Everyone

Been keeping quiet while I recouperate but I am reading the posts daily. Had my surgery Jan 13th and if some of you remember I was petrified to say the least. I had talked to a physiotherapist prior to the surgery and quite frankly, she came on real strong and made it sound like I would be an invalid after the surgery. Tears came very easily after that visit and fright set in. One of the bigest things she told me that totally discouraged me was that I would never be able to take a bath again.

I am happy to say that the surgery was a success. I spent two days in the hospital and two more in the rehab hospital since I was living alone the doctor thought that the extra two days would be of benefit to me. As it turned out I had someone who able to come stay with me 5 days afterwards and I have been alone since. The first two weeks were the worse. Meaning, the capability of moving, the pain etc. But at the end of the second week, I was able to attend 2 days of a tournament my grand daughter was in. I went off and on for hours, yes I had a driver then but just to be able to get around on two crutches was very pleasant for me. By the 4th week after surgery I was driving, and I even had my first bath. I am not suggesting everyone jump in the tub, but if its done in a careful manner, it can be done, I have proved it.

I am presently using a cane but if I walk to much, the next day I am hurting and use the one crutch for better support. I stopped taking pain killers a couple of weeks ago.

Hang in there Dave... u have done the worse two weeks. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. And yes the meds may be assisting in the depression.

Thanks everyone for the support and the information shared, every word helps.

Happy Valentines Day to all

Carole

Margaret <zztinau@...> wrote:

Dave you have had major pain and emotional stress. Boththese things can bring what I call drop. I find that forthe first few days after surgery I can do anything - then 5days to a week or more I hit a patch where I can't doanything.My hubby says I can never tell when I have had enough,especially if I am working on a special event. Until theevent is over I just keep going. I "know" it is doing medamage, but I keep going, keep smiling. As soon as theevent is finished I die - can't move, crying, tired.Perhaps this is the way nature intended.When you first get hurt you can still move to safety.After you have had time to get to safety, to find a bolthole, you can't move. This gives your body time to heal.You see I often think of myself as the tiger and this istiger behaviour,

survival behaviour.Margaret from Australia Re: Excellent article intoday's New York Times>>> Theis thread truly fascinates me. I was not at allprepared for the> feeling of helplessness that I experienced post surgery.I felt> like I had actually been shackled to the bed for monthsrather than> being immobile for just a few days. Today is my twoweeks and I go> to have my staples removed tomorrow. I tossed aside thewalker> after just a couple of days and walk unassisted for whatI consider> to be pretty good distances. I practice my PT every day.My new> hip has made my right side about an inch taller than theleft and> that,

toghether with the ongoing arthritis on the left,has me> limping, but not enough to stress me out. My maincomplaint at this> point is my emotional state. I take generic pain medsevery 4-6> hours as needed and I wonder if they are doing this to meor if the> experience has done it. I am a 49 year old man that hascried more> tears and done more sobbing in the last two weeks than Ihave in> years. I just can't seem to get it together. It'salmost like> being bipolar. One moment, I'm just fine, the next I'mbawling over> the most insignificant thing. I feel like I need ashrink, big> time. I also get very angry at nothing and I'm drivingmy wife nuts.> cheers,> dave, 49

[Guest guest]

Hi Carmel,

For me evrytime I increased the amount of exercises at first i got

sore so I would do them mostly at night, take pain meds and then

sleep. If your os says your hip is fine then keep going with the PT

and pain killers. Sometimes PT hurts but it does you good, so hang

in there and take whatever painkillers you need to keep you active.

I would not go much on what she is saying about not getting your

range of motion back to put on your socks. I think that if you can

stretch a little each day towards this it will come. I had no

adduction when the knee was bent after the op and the PT said it MAY

never come back but it is! I always like to prove doctors wrong...

I for one am looking at a 6 months recovery-we were all different

prior to surgery and after so DONT compare yourself to others or you

will feel bad-especially since the OS has given you the all clear.

At this stage you often dont feel you are making progress and then

you try something new and suddenly make some progress-in spurts!

Even if it takes a year to get back to normal then it will be worth.

Keep your eye on the prise when the PT is tough. I'm sometimes sore

after PT, and only know the next day if I've overdone things. So as

long as your PT doesnt cause you pain that lasts a few days your

getting the level right.

Keep going. I made a big jump between 3 and 4 months looking back on

it even though it didn't feel like it at the time. If you improved

between 2 and 3 months, the chances are you will in the next month

too,

best wishes,

Leigh

Hi, I too was not prepared for the pain, swelling of my operated

leg and foot. I am now three months post op and am coming along

very slowly. I have my up and down days where I feel good and

fairly happy and feel as though I'm making progress and then I have

days where I feel that my life will never be back to normal. I saw

my OS last Monday, he said my replacement is fine but he was

disappointed in the movement of my operated leg. With the swelling

and stiffness, it's hard to do my PT properly. So I'm still off

work and still on pain meds which I take twice a day, used to be

four times a day. I have to see him again in another month. I

finally went out shopping with the help of my crutches and my friend

to drive me but I was exhausted by the end of it. The PT tell us to

do these exercises but by the end of it, I'm in too much pain. Does

anyone else feel this pain after exercising and walking? Does it

really take six months to one year to fully recover? I also wonder

if I

> will ever be able to go all the way down to the floor. My PT

said that my leg will probably never go past 100 degrees for putting

on socks for example?

> Thank you,

> Carmel

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Leigh,

You're absolutely right about proving doctors wrong. I did notice today during my physio, in one exercise where you lay on your side and do the leg lifts, I managed to do about four leg lifts. Although a very slight lift, it still lifted without me having to do too much work. Two weeks ago I wasn't able to do one. So, you are right. It does take time and patience. My goal is of course to get stronger thigh muscle but also to go back and dance which I love to do. I'm hoping to be out by late spring. Did you have a leg length difference? My right leg is slightly longer, not much but PT said I may need a lift on the other side. Did you experience this? The doctor said it may correct itself in time. I'm glad to hear that I may be able to put my socks and/or pantihose on once again and be wearing a skirt for a change in the summer. Of course I'll keep going, what other choice do I have? Also, try to

find a shoe that will fit my swollen foot.

Thank you Leigh and all the best to you too!

Carmelleigh_3220004 <Lgh@...> wrote:

Hi Carmel,For me evrytime I increased the amount of exercises at first i got sore so I would do them mostly at night, take pain meds and then sleep. If your os says your hip is fine then keep going with the PT and pain killers. Sometimes PT hurts but it does you good, so hang in there and take whatever painkillers you need to keep you active.I would not go much on what she is saying about not getting your range of motion back to put on your socks. I think that if you can stretch a little each day towards this it will come. I had no adduction when the knee was bent after the op and the PT said it MAY never come back but it is! I always like to prove doctors wrong...I for one am looking at a 6 months recovery-we were all different prior to surgery and after so DONT compare yourself to others or you will feel

bad-especially since the OS has given you the all clear.At this stage you often dont feel you are making progress and then you try something new and suddenly make some progress-in spurts! Even if it takes a year to get back to normal then it will be worth. Keep your eye on the prise when the PT is tough. I'm sometimes sore after PT, and only know the next day if I've overdone things. So as long as your PT doesnt cause you pain that lasts a few days your getting the level right.Keep going. I made a big jump between 3 and 4 months looking back on it even though it didn't feel like it at the time. If you improved between 2 and 3 months, the chances are you will in the next month too,best wishes,LeighHi, I too was not prepared for the pain, swelling of my operated leg and foot. I am now three months post op and am coming along very slowly. I have my up and down days where I feel good and

fairly happy and feel as though I'm making progress and then I have days where I feel that my life will never be back to normal. I saw my OS last Monday, he said my replacement is fine but he was disappointed in the movement of my operated leg. With the swelling and stiffness, it's hard to do my PT properly. So I'm still off work and still on pain meds which I take twice a day, used to be four times a day. I have to see him again in another month. I finally went out shopping with the help of my crutches and my friend to drive me but I was exhausted by the end of it. The PT tell us to do these exercises but by the end of it, I'm in too much pain. Does anyone else feel this pain after exercising and walking? Does it really take six months to one year to fully recover? I also wonder if I> will ever be able to go all the way down to the floor. My PT said that my leg

will probably never go past 100 degrees for putting on socks for example?> Thank you,> Carmel> >

[Guest guest]

> Hi Leigh,

>

>a skirt for a change in the summer. Of course I'll keep going, what

other choice do I have? Also, try to find a shoe that will fit my

swollen foot.

>

> Thank you Leigh and all the best to you too!

> Carmel

>

Swollen feet?? Go for sandals!!!! They usually have straps that

can be chabged.

Valeri

[Guest guest]

Hey Salem, I will be holding you in prayer in the morning as I drive a half hour out to pick up my granddaughters for a shopping trip. I can only wish for you the joy that my knees have brought to me. Hugs Marge

Hi Everyone,

Well I am off on Tues. morning to have my left total knee repl.. at 7:30 am. Salem

[Guest guest]

Hi Dave,

I had a Hip replacement four years ago and I remember when I was on the pain medicine I was liked that and I didn't want to do anything I was living with my brother at the time and he got me off them and that was no fun then I had my Knee replacement done three years ago I was able to control my pain medicine better I was living with my son .Well I wish you the best of luck and a speedy recovery.

Susie

--------- Re: Excellent article in > > today's New York Times > > > > > > > > I really think that people need to speak their own > > truths. Brody > > > spoke about her own experience and lamented the fact that > > she wasn't > > > prepared for the amount of pain that she experienced, nor > > was she > > > given sufficient medication. That shouldn't necessarily > > scare other > > > people away. > > > > > > Every person's recovery from joint surgery is different. > > I just > > > wrote a book called GETTING HIP: Recovery from a Total > > Hip > > > Replacement. The reason that I wrote the book was > > precisely why > > > Brody wrote her article -- I was not prepared for the > > amount of pain > > > and swelling that I had following my THR. I was left > > extremely > > > anemic after the operation and my doctor never used > > anti-embolism > > > stockings. I also did not adequately medicate myself > > because I > > > thought that it would contribute to my weakness and > > sleepiness. > > > Because I was only 50 years old at the time, I figured > > that my > > > recovery would be relatively quick, but it wasn't that > > way at all. > > > > > > In my book, I interviewed 10 other people around the > > world who had > > > hip replacements, and one man whose hip was resurfaced. > > Their > > > experiences with recovery differed radically. Many > > people found the > > > surgery to be a breeze, but others had a lot of pain and > > expected to > > > recover more quickly than they did. > > > > > > One of the main things that I learned by going through my > > THR was > > > that there is no real gold standard in terms of recovery > > time. > > > Sure, there's a general estimate but it's like a bell > > curve. Most > > > people will fall somewhere in between the normal range, > > but lots of > > > other people will fall outside of the parameters. Some > > recover more > > > quickly and others take a longer period of time. On the > > plus side, > > > most people that I have spoken to are quite satisfied > > with their new > > > hips by the time that they have fully recovered. > > > > > > I admire Brody for writing her article. I don't really > > think that > > > it will scare too many people. Maybe it will prompt them > > to ask > > > more questions of their doctors and prepare more > > thoroughly before > > > hand by reading, and understanding as much as possible > > about hips > > > and knees. > > > > > > Best, Sigrid > > > > > >

[Guest guest]

Marge, Have you been doing anything differently? I find that I have

to be awfully careful about positions. Sometimes I can cross my

legs without any difficulty, but on other days it really bothers

me. Or if I squat a lot playing mini golf, or put the stationary

bicycle up too high at the gym, that will bother my hip. Other

times, I have twinges of pain for no reason at all, and then they

pass. Very mysterious!

Hope that you can figure out what's bothering you now :-)

Sigrid

> How curious that this should be the topic of conversation just

now. I have been experiencing some kind of pains in my replaced

hip. The first pain there since recuperating from the op done in

October, 2003. But!!!!!!! My op leg has stopped having edema. I

have not the slightest idea what is going on. I will take all I

can get. lol

> Marge

>

> Basically, what I think is that many people recover well and

without major difficulty within a three-month time frame. However,

many other people take more time like 6, 9 or occasionally 12 months.

[Guest guest]

Carol,

I agree with you completely. When people have different

experiences, they should be clear if their problems are more

complicated than that of other people. Certainly, I would think

that having the knees straightened would be painful. Moreover,

Brody had both knees done at once. I can't imagine that!

When I said that I feared that people might be " mad, " I was being a

bit facetious. " Mad " is much too strong a word. " Unhappy " may have

been a better choice.

I never wrote my book in order to complain about what I went

through. Nor did I claim that my own experience was typical.

That's why I interviewed 10 other people, so that there would be a

wide variety of recovery experiences.

As an orthopedic patient, I'm fully aware of how nervous people can

be before joint surgery, and I would never want to add to anyone's

anxiety. My main purpose in writing the book was that having a THR

was not what I expected. It really was MUCH harder and I did

suffer. But some of my suffering was needless. Those were the

things that I wanted to share with other people, so that they didn't

have to go through what I did, particularly with the anemia and

swelling.

Hope that you're feeling better now :-)

Sigrid

> > Hi Margaret,

> >

> > We seem to be in the same boat here. I too am having similar

> problems to

> > you, the main one being returning to work after my op. I am

only

> working

> > mornings at the moment but even this is really tiring. I wasn't

> this bad

> > even when I went back to work after having my son and I thought

> that was bad

> > enough.

> >

> > You do begin to feel paranoid when you read how many people who

> post on this

> > site seem to have such a quick recovery. Hopefully it won't be

> much longer

> > for us.

> >

> > Good luck

> > jo

> >

> >

> >

> > _____

> >

> > From: Margaret [mailto:zztinau@y...]

> > Sent: 13 February 2005 03:36

> > Joint Replacement

> > Subject: Re: Re: Excellent article in

> today's New

> > York Times

> >

> >

> >

> > I agree with you Sigrid that we need to tell our own

> > truths.

> >

> > I had a hip done in 1990 which needed no post op pain

> > killers once they took out the morphine drip (on day 2).

> >

> > It was revised in August 2004 and I am still taking pain

> > killers - not routinely, but at least 2 or 3 times a week.

> > This is not what I expected.

> >

> > At first, I used to see all these glowing reports of NO

> > Pain on this list and think there must be something

> > seriously wrong with my hip.

> >

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Salem, Good luck with this! I realize that I am posting too late

for you to read it but I will be thinking about you all day.

Fingers crossed and hoping that it goes well for you. Keep us

informed as soon as you can. Best, Sigrid

>

> Susie,

>

> That's really tough that you're still in pain several years after

> both of your operations :-( I feel for you. Have you tried all of

> the traditional stuff like extra physiotherapy, aspirin cream, or

> alternative medicines such as acupuncture? They didn't work for

me

> but they work for some people.

>

[Guest guest]

Susie,

Sometimes it's really hard to find a balance of rest and exercise,

or finding an exercise that helps one joint and doesn't bother the

others. I'm glad that the Motrin helps but it's a shame that you

still have pain :-( I feel for you and hope that that will improve a

bit over time.

Take care. Sigrid

> Hi Sigrid,

> Thanks but I take pain medicine like Motrim it helps but it still

doesn't take all the pain away.

> When I do my exercises My knee doesn't hurt me but my hip bothers

me when I do the one where you slide your leg up half way and down

again and when I lift my leg half way up that bothers my Hip also .

My knee doesn't bother me . Well I wish you luck too .Well you have

a nice day.

> Susie

>

>

>

> -------------- Original message --------------

>

> >

> >

> > Susie,

> >

> > That's really tough that you're still in pain several years

after

> > both of your operations :-( I feel for you. Have you tried all

of

> > the traditional stuff like extra physiotherapy, aspirin cream,

or

> > alternative medicines such as acupuncture? They didn't work for

me

> > but they work for some people.

> >

> > Another thing that I found was that I really needed to

experiment

> > with my exercises. I couldn't do exactly what the

physiotherapist

[Guest guest]

Jo,

It's really tough being at the mercy of the doctors. It sounds as

though you still really need physio. Why else would you be going?

You know what you need, but it's hard when you come up against a

wall of dealing with a physician who won't agree.

I hope that your GP will help to act as your advocate. That's also

terrible that you don't have another appointment with a specialist

until next January. That's a long way away! I will keep my fingers

crossed that your GP will come through for you with the physio.

Take care, Sigrid

> Hello again,

>

> I live in the UK but as in the US the level and quality of care

differs

> depending on where you live. My doc isn't blocking physio as such

but just

> quite simply says that don't need it! This something that I don't

agree

> with and am currently arguing my case via my GP. I find it hard

to come to

> terms with the fact that they will do the surgery but leave you to

try to go

> about your life as normal with little or no advice. I am very

frustrated by

> the fact that considering the docs say that I have had major

surgery I don't

> have another check up at the hospital until next January.

>

> I don't really know where to go from here apart from helping

myself and

> unfortunately this means paying for physio myself if I am to

progress with

> my recovery. I do feel that had I known things were going to be so

> difficult and that I would be going it alone (no help from GP or

hospital) I

> don't think I would have had the surgery when I did but put it off

for a few

> years until my son was a little older.

>

> Jo

>

>

>

> _____

>

> From: Sigrid Macdonald [mailto:fontgirl2002@y...]

> Sent: 13 February 2005 21:08

> Joint Replacement

> Subject: Re: Excellent article in

today's New York

> Times

>

>

>

>

> Hi Joanne,

>

> Sorry to hear that you've had such a hard time. 10 months is a

long

> time to wait to have a reduction in pain, and I can't imagine

having

> to take care of a two-year old at the same time! You're so young.

>

> That's really terrible that your doctor is blocking you from

having

> physiotherapy. Are you in the US or in another country? I'm in

> Canada. We have social medicine here, so they are always trying

to

> cut people off and get them off services ASAP. Fortunately, I was

> very lucky that my doctor allowed me to stay in the hospital for

an

> entire month. The reason that I needed all of that time was

because

> he left me deathly anemic, and every time I got up to walk for

> almost two months, I felt like passing out. So, I couldn't go

home

> after the regular 5-7 days.

>

> It doesn't seem right that you should have to pay for the physio.

> Is there some wait for you to get a second opinion on that? Also,

> it certainly is frustrating to go through all that swelling. I

> received some relief from the swelling finally when my

> physiotherapist started using a therma press. It's a contraption

> that straps around your leg and massages it. It takes down

swelling

> very rapidly. Check that out if you can.

>

> If you want to read more about my book and other people's

> experiences, you can check out my web site at

>

> www.sigridsrecovery.blogspot.com

>

> I didn't want to post the address before because I'm not trying to

> advertise. Although I will say that lin's husband, Rannie, is

> in the introduction to my book. I wanted to use him as one of the

> 10 people that I interviewed but I found that I was getting too

many

> young people. I really wanted a wide variety of ages, so I could

> not use Rannie's whole story. However, I did refer to him in my

> introduction. He had the fastest recovery of anyone I'd ever

heard

> of! Go Rannie :-)

>

> Best, Sigrid

>

> > " " ! Terms of Service.

>

>

> --

> No virus found in this incoming message.

> Checked by AVG Anti-Virus.

> Version: 7.0.300 / Virus Database: 265.8.7 - Release Date:

10/02/2005

>

>

>

> --

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> Checked by AVG Anti-Virus.

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10/02/2005

[Guest guest]

Dave,

Hang in there! Two weeks after surgery is a very short period of

time. I don't know what kind of medications that you're on but

personally, I had reactions to Percocet and it made me cry. In fact

my sister from California called me in the hospital, and all I could

do was cry on the phone! It was so embarrassing. For me, it was a

combination of all kinds of things: the general anesthesia, the

anemia, the pain medications, the frustration, the pain, and the

restrictions. And I have a problem with low blood sugar and a

glucose IV in the hospital really messed my blood sugar up big-time.

I'm sure that you'll feel a lot better with every passing week. Did

you have a general or spinal anesthesia? And have you talked to

your doctor about your medications? Because if it is the meds,

maybe the doc can change them to something else. But if it's the

experience or the sum total of every thing, just keep telling

yourself All Things Do Pass!!!

Hope that you feel a little better with every new day.

Sigrid

> > I agree with you Sigrid that we need to tell our own

> > truths.

> >

> > I had a hip done in 1990 which needed no post op pain

> > killers once they took out the morphine drip (on day 2).

> >

> > It was revised in August 2004 and I am still taking pain

> > killers - not routinely, but at least 2 or 3 times a week.

> > This is not what I expected.

> >

> > At first, I used to see all these glowing reports of NO

> > Pain on this list and think there must be something

> > seriously wrong with my hip.

> >

> > At 25 weeks I still have a bad limp, cannot walk a street

> > block, find difficulty sleeping at night because of the

> > pain.

> >

> >

[Guest guest]

Carole,

I'm really sorry that you went through that terrible experience with

your physiotherapist. People should really be more careful about

what they say, especially the professionals! I'm glad that you've

already had your tub baths. Ah, who could part with the unequaled

pleasure of a hot bath :-)

Sounds as though you're doing pretty well now. I hope that there

are physiotherapist reading this board who realize the effect that

they can have on their patients. I was told that I could never sit

on the floor again. Well, I can't sit crosslegged but I do sit on

the floor without any difficulty. Sometimes I even sit on the curb

outside, but I am careful never to jack knife my hip when I get up.

There may be some people who can't do that anymore, but luckily, I'm

not one of them.

Glad to hear that you're moving along :-)

Best, Sigrid

> Dave you have had major pain and emotional stress. Both

> these things can bring what I call drop. I find that for

> the first few days after surgery I can do anything - then 5

> days to a week or more I hit a patch where I can't do

> anything.

>

> My hubby says I can never tell when I have had enough,

> especially if I am working on a special event. Until the

> event is over I just keep going. I " know " it is doing me

> damage, but I keep going, keep smiling. As soon as the

> event is finished I die - can't move, crying, tired.

>

> Perhaps this is the way nature intended.

>

> When you first get hurt you can still move to safety.

> After you have had time to get to safety, to find a bolt

> hole, you can't move. This gives your body time to heal.

>

> You see I often think of myself as the tiger and this is

> tiger behaviour, survival behaviour.

>

> Margaret from Australia

>

> Re: Excellent article in

> today's New York Times

>

>

> >

> >

> > Theis thread truly fascinates me. I was not at all

> prepared for the

> > feeling of helplessness that I experienced post surgery.

> I felt

> > like I had actually been shackled to the bed for months

> rather than

> > being immobile for just a few days. Today is my two

> weeks and I go

> > to have my staples removed tomorrow. I tossed aside the

> walker

> > after just a couple of days and walk unassisted for what

> I consider

> > to be pretty good distances. I practice my PT every day.

> My new

> > hip has made my right side about an inch taller than the

> left and

> > that, toghether with the ongoing arthritis on the left,

> has me

> > limping, but not enough to stress me out. My main

> complaint at this

> > point is my emotional state. I take generic pain meds

> every 4-6

> > hours as needed and I wonder if they are doing this to me

> or if the

> > experience has done it. I am a 49 year old man that has

> cried more

> > tears and done more sobbing in the last two weeks than I

> have in

> > years. I just can't seem to get it together. It's

> almost like

> > being bipolar. One moment, I'm just fine, the next I'm

> bawling over

> > the most insignificant thing. I feel like I need a

> shrink, big

> > time. I also get very angry at nothing and I'm driving

> my wife nuts.

> > cheers,

> > dave, 49

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Sigrid,

I'm feeling much better now! The surgery on my other hip has been moved up from June 23 to April 13! I probably have a strong sense of security in the surgeon because he is in such demand. They are booking appointments for him now for December/January. I begged the surgical nurse (weekly) to move me up!

My recovery may have been really good (like this next time I suspect/hope) because I put surgery off for so long. I was in so much pain pre-op that just being able to move my legs in bed made me happy! The drugs probably helped too, although I didn't really rely on them too much.

As for Jane Brody -- I'm a subscriber to the NYT and her columns. But she didn't talk about straightening her 'knees' she referred to 'legs' (I think the femur between the knees and ankles). I've heard of this type of surgery, and I'm hoping someone else in this group has too -- although no one has responded as of yet. I'm wondering -- does it work? I'm not really so vain that I'd endure the pain just so I could wear skirts without feeling self-conscious, but I am curious about it.

I hope things are going well with you Sigrid.

Take care,

Carol

Sigrid Macdonald <fontgirl2002@...> wrote:

Carol,I agree with you completely. When people have different experiences, they should be clear if their problems are more complicated than that of other people. Certainly, I would think that having the knees straightened would be painful. Moreover, Brody had both knees done at once. I can't imagine that!When I said that I feared that people might be "mad," I was being a bit facetious. "Mad" is much too strong a word. "Unhappy" may have been a better choice.I never wrote my book in order to complain about what I went through. Nor did I claim that my own experience was typical. That's why I interviewed 10 other people, so that there would be a wide variety of recovery experiences.As an orthopedic patient, I'm fully aware of how nervous people can be before

joint surgery, and I would never want to add to anyone's anxiety. My main purpose in writing the book was that having a THR was not what I expected. It really was MUCH harder and I did suffer. But some of my suffering was needless. Those were the things that I wanted to share with other people, so that they didn't have to go through what I did, particularly with the anemia and swelling.Hope that you're feeling better now :-)Sigrid> > Hi Margaret,> > > > We seem to be in the same boat here. I too am having similar > problems to> > you, the main one being returning to work after my op. I am only > working> > mornings at the moment but even this is really tiring. I wasn't > this bad> > even when I went back to work after having my son and I thought > that was bad> > enough.> > > > You do begin to feel paranoid when you read how many people who > post on this> > site seem to have such a quick recovery. Hopefully it won't be > much longer> > for us.> > > > Good luck > > jo> > > > > > > > _____

> > > > From: Margaret [mailto:zztinau@y...] > > Sent: 13 February 2005 03:36> > Joint Replacement > > Subject: Re: Re: Excellent article in > today's New> > York Times> > > > > > > > I agree with you Sigrid that we need to tell our own> > truths.> > > > I had a hip done in 1990 which needed no post op pain> > killers once they took out the morphine drip (on day 2).> > > > It was revised in August 2004 and I am still taking pain> > killers - not routinely, but at least 2 or 3 times a week.> > This is not what I expected.> > > > At first, I used to see all these glowing reports of NO> > Pain on this list and think there must be something> > seriously wrong with my hip.> > > >

> > > >