14. Day 17 post op - 2 weeks

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So its been just over 2 weeks since my surgery.  I had my 2 week follow up a couple days ago and had my stitches taken out.  For the most part it didn't hurt but of course there were the 2 or 3 that decided to be stubborn and take the extra tug, which stung a wee bit.  Steri-strips were placed over the wounds.  I asked the Physician's Assistant (PA) why Dr. Birmingham wanted his patients on crutches for 4 weeks, as opposed to 2 weeks like some others.  He said that was a good question and the purpose was to avoid (or try to avoid) tendinitis, by keeping it only weight bearing 20% flat foot.  I was satisfied with the answer.

However, knowing that some only have crutches for 2 weeks, and I"m stuck at four, I found myself cheating a little bit at home, mostly when preparing meals for my daughter and I, as its hard to maneuver around the kitchen on crutches with food or constantly moving around with my hands full.  The walker helps moving food, but not preparing.  Because I did this, I made sure that all my other movements around the house were on crutches.  Is this good or bad, who knows, but sometimes you have to deviate a little.  Do I advise it, of course not.  I did notice my knee a little sore from full weight bearing, but it didn't last too long.

My new PT exercises are not as boring so I'm finding them easier to do.  They are starting to focus on muscle building, as opposed to flexibility.  I was the master of the stair climber before surgery (self appointed master of course) so I had a lot of thigh and calf muscle to begin with.  I started using the stair climber as my only cardio after my original injury because the hip motion is the most minimal.  If you think the stair stepper is a child's workout, try setting it at one of the highest levels, keep your body (and the stairs) up, as opposed to middle or lower in height, and do that for 40 minutes.... its a B####.  I've seen people use it on a low setting, reading a magazine.... not the same.  I am usually moving so much that I don't think I'd even be able to read.  But it served its purpose and kept my injury "as is" without damaging further, at least that's what I think, because it never hurt worse.  I just figured if extensive hip motion (spinning) damaged it, then I need to do the opposite, minimal movement.

I have been off pain meds for over a week now and drove yesterday for the first time to take my daughter (and my father, in case she decided to bolt on me) to her first ever Easter egg hunt.  She loved it, and I did too because it lasted all of 10 minutes.  I felt fine driving.  It actually felt pretty normal, other than the brace on my leg.  I had pretty much mastered getting in and out of the passenger side, but the steering wheel served as a new obstacle.  I had to use exterior range of movement in order to get in, which i'm not supposed to be doing yet, so I'll keep driving to a minimum, only when needed.

As you can probably tell, I'll start doing updates less frequent, because at this stage, every day isn't going to differ much, especially not like the first week.  The post op has been going good so far and I don't yet regret surgery.  Still to this day, being my first surgery, everything has gone better than I expected.  If I ever have other surgeries, I hope recovery is this good.  Of course its early on still, and the PA told me that I'm going to get a lot stiffer as time goes on, as the scar tissue starts to form, so I don't look forward to that, but one step at a time.  I can't wait to be off crutches officially, so I can get back to playing outside with my daughter and just being able to move around freely.  The crutches have got to be the worse part by far.  It wasn't so bad when I "needed" them, but knowing I am able to walk without them, makes it that much harder to use them.  But I need to keep up with the doctor's orders to make sure i'm a successful case, so I will continue to do as I'm told :)

13. Day 8 post op - 1st day out and about

So today was the first day I really spent time doing things other than a Dr appointment.   We all I really did was go to Breakfast with my wife,  a quick stop at the DMV, and went  grocery shopping with my wife.

The only gripes I really have is that my brace was killing my back.  I don't know if it makes me sit funny to avoid it digging into my back or what,  but by the time I was done eating I was more than ready to walk around. 

The DMV where I'm from is usually a 5 minute trip,  which it was again,  thankfully.   The trio to the supermarket,  even though I used the electric scooter cart, was terrible.  I was getting a rush of super sleepiness, and I just couldn't get my back comfortable.  I tried adjusting the pad but nothing worked until I got home and took the whole thing off. 

All day my back was killing me.  I couldn't sit in one spot for more than 15 minutes without having to get up and stretch.  I'm sure I'm using new muscles to compensate,  and me cutting off the prescription meds let the pain come out.  I'm finding it better to lay in bed with the CPM. 

Sitting inside is getting me a little stir crazy but luckily (if you want to call it lucky) is still nut nice enough to be outside.  I get to people watch a little out my window and luckily I have amusing neighbors to keep me entertained! 

Even though I sometimes find it hard to find the motivation to do my PT, I do it.  Although I do it on the floor to help my back stay flat.  While this helps me in a way,  my over clingy dog likes to cuddle. .. This pic is completely candid and is the way he lays on me,  I did not arrange his placement.... Try doing pelvic raises like this haha.... 

I may have mentioned it already,  but if you're currently recovering from FAI or are already healed,  leave a comment as to where you were at one week.  If I'm sitting in a chair with my legs out in front of me I can't bend all the way forward and I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be able to or not.   The only reason it has me worried is because when I was in for my one week post op he took off my shoe and on the way out he said put your shoe on and come out.... I put the shoe on but it was very difficult and I got winded lol.....  so leave a comment and let me know! !

12. 1 week post op - 1st day solo

So i'll admit i've been spoiled since i've been home.  Today marks the 1 week post op date and as I'm writing this its exactly 7 days since I was sitting in the hospital.  The first thing the doctor said when he walked up to me pre-op was, "How ya doin?"  My reply was, "If i said scared shitless, would you be surprised?"  He wasn't surprised.  

I mentioned before that on the way to my surgery we stopped at Aldi's supermarket and picked up a roller walker (under $60 compared to walmart's almost $90).  I wanted this because it seemed easier than crutches, it had a table I could carry things with, and a chair if I ever got tired on my 30 second journeys.  I've had help the first 6 days, but today was the first day I didn't have someone here with me during the day to help with the menial tasks.  I didn't realize how much effort it now took to make myself breakfast, or a snack, or put all my pads on for the air/water machine.  I got winded pretty often.  However, without the walker, eating without standing in front of the fridge would have almost been impossible.

By tomorrow I'll be off the script meds, and I'll take a few OTC ones just to make sure I didn't jump the gun... remember its better to keep the pain under control, then wait til its painful and try to get it to go away.  I really just noticed yesterday that my vision has been kinda blurry, and its hard to read small print.  My eyes have always been 20/15 (for those of you not interested in math, thats better than 20/20).  I did a little google'ing and it seems its either because of the pain meds still in my system or my body's reaction to pain, so basically i'm going to assume its a little of both at this point.  

But in regards to my daily activities, i get winded doing a lot of these things.  I'm trying not to use my op-leg because all movement is still supposed to be passive, and it still worries me to bend over to tie a shoe or put on a compression pad; 1, because its kinda tight, and 2, i'm not sure how much I'm supposed to utilize it.  That being said, my PT stretches are pretty involving, so I guess I shouldn't worry about it too much.  

I have about 8 or 9 PT exercises to do, which feels like an entire workout, and that's only after my first two PT visits.  I can't imagine how many home workouts i'll have once i'm into month 2.  I hate working out, especially at home (because there are so many distractions... well, mostly just the couch) so I'm finding this difficult to get the motivation for, but I know that in order for me to get back on the bike I have to do it, so I'm doing good so far.  

11. Day 6 post op - 1 week doctor visit

So it's been almost a full week since my surgery and I've said it before, and I'll say it again, I'm doing better than I would have expected after having hip surgery.  Per doctors orders I'll still have the crutches for 3 more weeks, and I'll have to continue wearing the brace when i go out until the 6 week mark, more of  a reminder to take it easy.

I get these waves of nausea in the mornings, when in a car, and just before bed.  I'm not sure if its the medication, but its really very annoying.  I don't mind having to throw up if i need to.  But that lingering feeling of nausea, but not enough to throw up, is worse than vomiting in my book.  I'll have to try and take a benedryl later to calm the effects.  I'm not itchy all over anymore, and I'm guessing in 3 more days I should be off the narcotics and able to start with tylenol/advil/aleve, etc... (not sure if one is better than the other for inflammation or surgeries or whatever, I'll have to do some research on that).

Other than some tightness when i do my 8 PT exercises (had 2 visits so far), I don't really have much pain at all.  A little tenderness by my incisions and deep in my joint when I do deep stretches, but other than that I'm pretty satisfied with the whole situation.  I've read other people's blogs that say they are pain free but then months later pain starts coming back.  I hope that doesn't happen here.

My only concern right now is that my right foot (on operated leg) is always freezing cold, almost to the point its painful.  I've been putting a heating bag on it for the time being.  Today at my 1 week post op visit I didn't see the doctor, only his PA.  He basically just made sure I was keeping up with the brace and the crutches, which I am, and he checked the steri-strips and operation site which all appeared good.  I asked him about my foot and he squeezed my toes and said the blood flow is fine so he wouldn't worry too much about it.  It's getting pretty bad so I'll hook up the heating pad later today and use that for a while.

He did suggest (or order) that I keep the compression sock on for another week, which is getting pretty grungy, but he didn't have any replacements so I guess i'll keep the grungy one on for another week.  I also have to have my wife lift my leg to 90 degrees and slowly rotate the hip joint for 10 minutes, 3 times a day.  She has been a big help so far, but I think i'm starting to push my limit!!

After my appointment I stopped at the store with my mom and daughter and decided that it was finally my turn to take a crack at the electric shopping scooter!  My daughter rode along and we had a great time.  Well it wasn't that spectacular, but it was a new experience that I can cross off my bucket list...

I'm still pretty tired most of the day, and like laying in bed in my CPM machine watching HULU with my ice machine on.  Not sure if I even need the ice machine anymore, but I think its more of a comfort thing already, and it helps me feel relaxed.  I can stop the ice at anytime, but I'm still supposed to wear the air compression cuffs (and probably the hip compression pad) if I'm sleeping or laying around for long periods of time.... so I guess I should have it on all day :)

10. Day 4 post op

I find myself waking up about 3 times a night.  Not in pain,  just waking up.  I set my alarm in the early AM to take a pain pill and my wife changes the ice packs in my cold therapy machine.   Hoping the constipation ends today.  If nothing happens by 1pm I will try a laxative.

On a separate note,  my daughter loves laying in bed watching episode after episode of Caillou on Hulu.  I think we watched 7 in a row last night and we're back at it again this morning.  If I'll miss anything when this is all over it will be moments like this.

I catch myself trying to move my operated leg but usually remember in time that it should be all passive so I switch to my leg grabber/mover (that's the technical term of course).

My wife is back to work today so my mother is over to help me and the munchkin.  I say back to work, but I know she sees it as a break.  The child is an adorable genius with a heart of gold,  but she is her own special kind of tornado.

9:45am: Finally had a small bowel movement,  given the circumstances it was probably the closest thing I've had to a workout in the last week haha.   I sat on the couch for a little while and a rush of nausea came over me,  just as it did last night before going to bed.   I took a zofran then and again now and I'm going to try and nap the nausea away.  Not sure which I dislike more,  pain or the feeling of maybe having to vomit. .. That's a tough one.

Before my surgery, I spoke to co-workers about surgeries they've had, mostly shoulder surgeries, which stemmed from impingement, so I guess kind of the same thing, just in a different part of the body.  I was told about sweating profusely, especially at night, and waking up soaked.  I was not looking forward to that.  However, so far, I havn't had to experience sweating, or burning up or anything like that.  The worst so far is still the nausea. 

5:45pm:  Took my first shower since the surgery.  Holy hell was that refreshing,,,, and a ton of work!  I had help but still, I feel like I was using muscles I didn't know I had.  I could stand on my surgery leg, which my doctor directed me to do when showering and using the bathroom, but I still tried to not rely on it in case it gave out for some reason.  I took my bandages off, leaving the steri-strips (per doctors orders) and it just feels good to let everything air out.  I'll put my compression sock back on, but for now, time to let things air out.

9. Day 3 post op

Woke up normal this morning and still feel pretty much the same, no sudden pains or aches.  My itching was a little crazy when I awoke, so I took a benedryl. Not sure if it took care of the itching, but i've napped for 4 hours so far today (in comparison to zero naps the first 2 days).  Since I can't tell if I'm itching while i'm sleeping, I guess it worked haha.

I'm being stubborn to the extent I'm trying to lift my leg in and out of bed by myself (using the leg lift rope I got from therapy, not using my muscles).  My daughter is great for the most part, but is tough to put to sleep, so last night I hobbled into her room after she was screaming for me.  Luckily she went down for a nap today pretty easily, and I fell asleep as well, so my wife was able to get a nice little break from all of us (even the hyper dog).

Today is going to be the first full day without the Oxy's, which had me worried up to this point, but so far the Hydro's are taking care of the pain.  From what I've heard from others regarding orthopedic surgery in general, as well as the post-op instructions, is don't try and ween yourself off the pain killers too soon, because once you let it get to the point where the pain hurts, its hard to bring it back down.  On the flip side, I want to get off these pill as soon as possible as to avoid any sort of dependency, so I have to be careful when I start to ween myself.   Instead of one every four hours, I'll do every 5 today,  then every 6 tomorrow.  I can always go backwards if needed.


The way I've been doing my PT at home starts with an hour or so on my CPM machine to "loosen me up."  Then I do a 1 minute walk on crutches around my small living room.  I'm careful to try and keep only 20lbs flat foot, but its hard for me gauge.  Then I do my PT which is 3 times a day and only takes about 3 or 4 minutes to do.  Then I put the ice machine on and relax.  The incision sight is still a little bruised, which it wasn't the first day, but the swelling is gone.  My hip area still feels funny to the touch but nothing horrendous.

Here's a pic of the bruising,  hopefully it starts to go away. ...

Just to update my bowel situation,  no movement yet as of 2pm.  2 more glasses of prune juice,  so between yesterday and today I think I'm up to 6 or 7 glasses... yuck!

In one of my first posts I mentioned that its a bad idea to watch youtube videos of the surgery pre-op, but I decided to pull a couple up with my wife last night.  I'm sure there is some finesse, but man, it looks rough lol.  Not only that, but I think I only understood about 2 words out of the 20 minute video, which is obviously my lack of a medical degree.

8. Day 2 post op

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I'll update this as the day goes on,  something tells me i'll have some time :)

AM:  just woke up.  A little stiff this morning.  About an hour before I actually woke up my hip was super stiff so I rolled onto my good hip and slept on my side for an hour and it seemed to help a bit.   I notice my leg weighs less and isn't so full of water;  even to the touch it doesn't feel like a water balloon anymore.   I jumped right into the CPM after using the bathroom and then I'll do my PT once the CPM loosens me up.   The doc said 3 to 4 hours a day or up to 6 hours.  I'm trying to use it quite a bit, it feels so good!!!!

Please leave a comment below and let me know if you were given a Continuous Passive Motion machine for home and/or cold water therapy machine.  I'm curious as to how doctors methods differ around the world!

PM:  everything is still the same.  It still feels good to get up and walk around,  even though the crutches are killing my arm pits.  I just like stretching my legs and my bad leg too.    I have noticed that I'm starting to itch all over.  No change in meds,  but my upper arms and calves are itching the worst,  my groin a little and thighs.  The incision sights are fine,  they don't itch a bit.

I said I would keep things real, so I may as well mention that I've been urinating on my own and pretty frequently, however, I still havn't had a bowel movement for over 48 hours.  I've had a few glasses of prune juice (gross) but hopefully tonight I will be able to use the restroom.  I don't feel constipated or anything along those lines, I just don't have to go.

Well I've spent the last 3 hours in bed with my daughter watching cartoons on our laptop so it's been a pretty good day overall!  Off to bed soon, as soon as I give myself a makeshift bath (wipe down).

Tonight is my last of 5 oxys after the surgery so we shall see if the pain changes tomorrow.