12 Days Post Op: Progressing Well

I am progressing reasonably rapidly at the moment.   I still require some assistance to survive the day, though the amount of effort required from the 'assistant' is reducing as I am starting to be able to use more of my own strength.  I am still a little way off being a superstar of the rehab process but I think I at least deserve a gold star for effort!

The main area where help is required is to get in and out of bed.  My legs are still too heavy to move around from a laying ore reclined position in bed around to the side of the bed without a little help.  It still astounds me as to how much weakness that there actually is.  I understand the concept that I was cut open, bone sawed off, extra pieces put in and all sewn back together again, however, I just can't seem to grasp how this makes all the muscles go to sleep.  I understand that muscles will waste if they aren't used but still it hasn't been that long since they were used properly.  I guess that I have underestimated the amount of activity that I actually did do in a regular day even if there were a few lazy ones back to back sometimes.

It really is a vicious circle that needs to be broken out of as quickly as possible as when you are weak, activity is difficult, slow and you do less of it.  The less you do, the less you can do.  As an example, Pre-surgery simple activities like going to the bathroom aren't a planned and executed event, you just go and think nothing of it.  Post-surgery they are. In addition, middle of the night trips become a major exercise so returning to sleep isn't particularly easy.

I don't think that I started down that path of doing less and less, which is extremely positive.  I was lucky that even though I was ill for the first week post-op, I had the encouragement and assistance that I required to get started on the path to recovery.  (Even when I was high on oxycontin the first time I had it ever and was freaking out and throwing up, I still tried something.)  Each day I get stronger and have both more ability and more endurance to complete the exercises and add new ones in.  I'm hoping that this continues for a while yet as I still have a number of old skills to remaster.

The big one is walking.  I am currently using a rollator/gutter frame that looks like this to walk.  I am using significantly less pressure through my arms and walking is slowly becoming more fluid.  It is more difficult to walk in the rehab gym on the bars, though this too is getting easier as time passes.  The bars are a prelude to crutches which I will need to be an expert on before I am allowed to go home.  My left side is still recovering from a bruised nerve and is weaker than my right side.  There may have also been a pre-existing weakness in this side that I wasn't aware of as it was the side that had the most joint damage.  Thankfully I was still able to have the BMHR on the left and it didn't have to be changed to a total hip.  Surgeon's skill or luck or likely a lot of the former and a little of the latter, I don't know, I am just grateful as it will make revision a little easier.  As I walk without pressure through the arms, I fall into the left side as the hip stabilisers aren't there yet.  I have added in other exercises to start to encourage these guys to fire and work a bit harder.  The residual numbness in the left side is almost gone, so hopefully we will soon see strength returning a little quicker than it has on this side so far.

Sleep is still difficult and is likely to continue to be for a little while yet.  I have started to get into a little bit of a routine in which I am able to get about 3 hours before waking to get up and move around for a bit and then back to sleep again a half hour later for another 3 hour stretch if I am lucky.  There is always further little sleep time depending on waking times, though this can be as little as an hour.  I manage a nap in the afternoons before the afternoon rehab session or in the early evening before my 10pm meds.

I am spending a higher than normal amount in bed and suffering muscle tightness in my mid and lower back.  The periodic muscle pain is pretty much all there is as the actual hips themselves are pretty much pain free.  There is still a lot of swelling left and ice is one of my best friends.  As I understand it, this is pretty normal and will continue to be this way right throughout the rehabilitation process.