Rolling into Surgery: One Woman’s Hip Replacement Journey
By Susan Flansburg
I write in a number of platforms about a lot of topics. This blog series was written for a client about my own hip replacement. From painful hobbling to surgery, and recovery to rehab, I was able to offer lots of tips that I hope have been helpful. Contact me to learn how I can help tell your organization’s story!
By Day #3 post-op, Saint (Husband) Alan was grumbling I hate feet as he jabbed a towel at my wet toes after my shower. By Day #5, he tossed a sock at me and said, Put it on yourself.
Well, I couldn’t. I had just had a hip replacement (which I wrote all about). That said, I could maybe have been a tiny bit less demanding.
I used a cell phone as my service bell. Every time I needed something, I called him.
He would be one floor down, making dinner, feeding the dog, cleaning up from dinner. He usually answered.
Can you get me some water, I’d ask. Can you adjust my covers? Can you rub my shoulders? And, the piece de resistance:
You’re not doing it right!
Really, it’s a wonder he stuck with me throughout the entire ordeal.
Writing this blog about it was fun, though, even as I felt super sorry for myself.
(Well, you would, too. My right leg felt 6 inches longer than my left and twice as wide. When I sat down, it felt like I was sitting on one of the dog’s toys. My right ankle looked as swollen as Great Aunt Hildegard’s. And I couldn’t find any place to sit that was actually comfortable. And that’s just the beginning.)
My purpose in writing it was to help other people get ready for similar surgery, as well as to assure them many post-op bumps-in-the-road are typical.
The point is, it was worth all the trouble. I was able to go back to yoga within a couple of months and have since become a certified yoga instructor. I can hike for miles. And I no longer view stairs with resignation or dread.
I hope my experience is helpful to you or anyone you know who is facing similar surgery … or, for someone like Saint Alan, post-op care.