I had THR in 2000 at age 63.  I couldn't sleep more than 90 minutes
at a time; the pain woke me that often.  Now I can sleep 6-9 hours.
I have resumed square dancing, which I set aside in 1996.

The doctor stated I'd be in the hospital up to a week, then spend
another 4 to 6 weeks in rehab.

I was home in 12 days --- 3 in the hospital and 9 in rehab.  I did
most of the rehab by myself because I never saw the damn OT's
and PT's after the first week.

You'll probably play a better game of golf after getting that THR
for yourself.  You'll be able to concentrate on you swing and
follow through rather than the pain.  You'll be able to play 18
rounds instead of maybe 9 (you didn't mention your current
limit).

There are others in the group who have had THR and I hope
they will speak up and share their experiences.

... This place is so dumb, the town hooker is a girl who crochets.

     I had my left hip replaced in 2003, at age 62. I spent 5 days in
     the hospital. After 6 weeks I went directly from crutches to walking
     freely: I never got much out of the cane that I was supposed to use in
     making a transition.

     The post surgical pain was not very intense. My biggest problem
     in the hospital was needing to chase off nurses trying to get me to
     use their pain medications and morphine drip--I never used as much as
     an aspirin post-surgery

     Your most important consideration should be in choosing a surgeon:
     find out who in your geographic location is known for the best hip
     work; see 2 or 3 of them and decide on the one you're most comfortable
     with. See whether you can find someone who uses an anterior cut
     instead of a posterior: it's rare in this country, although common in
     Europe, but it has a much better record in avoiding
     dislocations. [This is the type of surgery that I had] You will want
     the uncemented procedure used for younger people since you want to
     resume an active life style. You may also be able to have the
     surgery done with the smaller cut that is often used nowadays;
     then you'll be up and walking in days instead of weeks.
     [I wasn't a candidate for this because I already had a metal
     plate and rod in the femur that had to be removed

      I do a lot of biking and walking, and my limits have nothing to
     do with the hip.

     This URL links to a long summary of my experience:

                http://www.armory.com/~mom/THR1.html

                            --thelma

Hi Coach,    You have received two really good personal experiences with
getting a hip replaced.  It really is all about being pain free and facing
up to what over 300 lbs for 20 years has left you.   Your main problem is
getting the right doctor and you can do that.

Harv

I've had both hips and both knees replaced and am very happy with them.  It
amounts to short term pain for long term gain.  That being said, it is
really important to obey the rules that the Doctor lays down for the first
while and do your physial therapy faithfully.  Good luck on your decision.
Lorrie F

Don't wait, get it fixed ASAP and you wont be sorry.  my experience and
recovery is about the same as everyone else's. congrads on the weight
loss.that is great.  wish I could find the motivation to loose about 75-100
lbs.
I have arthritis in my feet,knees and all around and can hardly walk to shop
or anything else.  know my weight has some bad affects on me. thanks and
have a great day. go ahead and get that THR.
Janice

re: golf - you dont have to give it up, but you DO have to be sensible
about it. Case in point: a young man in his early thirties recovers
remarkably well from his uncemented THR and amazes the doctors with his
body's near miraculous ability to heal. He walks out of hospital 5 days
after the surgery with just a cane, which he doesn't seem to really
need. He feels so good, that three weeks post-op he plays golf. His
swing was great, so good that it twisted the shaft of the uncemented
prosthesis ninety degrees inside his femur! Immediate surgery left him
with a cemented hip this time - not so great given his age and health,
they're much harder to revise. the moral of this story? In a year after
an uncemented hip replacement you can probably go back to golfing, but
ask your surgeon. If the replacement is cemented, it may be much less
than this - again: ask your surgeon. Personally, not being able to walk
without excrutiating pain from a pretty well shattered hip (on two
occaisions) made me feel worse about myself and the THR's made me feel
pretty good about myself as I was able to return to most activities
(obviously not powerlifting, but hey, my smashed ankle sort of put a
stop to that already).

Regards,

Ari

PS- I mean it, take it easy with the golfing until you get surgeon's
approval to return to it!

Hi Mark,

I've not had hips done, but have had both knees replaced.  It all boils
down to having a life or not.  Easy decision if you look at it that
way.  Most important thing is to find a really good surgeon that you
like and trust.  Go for it.

Lyn

I am glad I found this group.  It visit for Mended Hearts every Saturday
with heart patients going into or coming out of open heart surgery.
Always tell them that better days are ahead...land they appreciate
someone who has 'been there, done that' telling them so.....you folks
make me feel better about this.  I have an appointment with my
orthopedist the 1st week in August, and I think we are shooting for the
2nd week in December as soon as our high school football season
concludes.  I had a complete heart exam two weeks ago, and got clearance
to have the heart surgery.  My cardiologist and heart surgeon have both
discussed the matter with my orthopedic surgeon.

Thanks for your encouragement.

Mark