Well, here I am. Back with a new hip. My first ever "major surgery". Somehow, over a period of several years, I had lost most all the cartilage in my right hip. The doctor told my husband that at least in one area it was bone-against-bone with zero cartilage at all. I knew it hurt to stand up for more than just a few minutes, I couldn't quite straighten out my left leg when I walked, and couldn't pull that knee up in order to tie shoelaces or put a sock on.It was pretty miserable and 6 months of PT last year didn't accomplish a whole lot.So, my surgery for the hip replacement was scheduled for mid-December. On the 4th of this month, though, the doctor's office called and asked if I'd like to move up that date to the 10th. Well, why not. So, on Tuesday, I checked in at CHI St. Lukes Lakeside in The Woodlands.You can watch the surgery in this video, https://youtu.be/5NqJa_J2dfwSince the incision is along the front of my hip, there's no need to cut through any muscle or ligaments. Apparently, the healing time is greatly reduced using this approach.Now my challenge is getting better and improving my strength and conditioning. Having that pain for so many years left me out of shape with more than a few pounds gained. I'm supposed to start PT this week and will get to the gym, the chiropractor, and the masseuse as soon as the surgeon gives me permission. I'm really anxious to get my whole body back in shape so my family can start traveling and doing what we love to do.My doctor was Dr. Jonathan Sparks and the hospital was really excellent. The #1 risk from this surgery is an infection in the joint, post-surgery, so the hospital has those super clean, super sanitized rooms where the surgeon and staff wear space suits. Also, the hospital only does joints and certain heart procedures. The PA told me they can avoid a lot of the dangerous bacteria that people get just by not doing any surgeries that open the gut. I thought that was interesting.Thanks to everyone for your kind words and concerns. The recovery at the moment is a little rough since my system doesn't handle pain meds very well, but I'm taking it a day at a time and pretty soon, this will all be behind me. I'm using a walker to get around and any day now will graduate to......a CANE!!!! (Never thought I'd say those words before my 80th birthday!)
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