Hip Surgery Recovery Tips

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Arthritis is a common health complaint that worsens with age. Fortunately, several methods and procedures are available to help slow and even reverse the effects of arthritis. Weight loss, improved exercise, medication, and physical therapy are some of the early treatment methods that a doctor may recommend. If these methods fail to bring about adequate improvement, however, surgery may be your next step.

Joint surgeries are often intensive and great care must be taken during the recovery period after hip surgery. By following your doctor’s treatment plan and recovery tips for your hip replacement surgery or other hip surgery, you can do your best to ensure that reduced pain and freer movement are part of your future.

Types of Hip Surgeries & Recovery after Hip Surgery

Depending on your age, health issues, and body type, there are a host of different hip surgeries that your doctor may recommend to you. Arthroscopies, joint resurfacing, osteotomy, synovectomy, arthrodesis, and total hip replacement are some common hip procedures, each with different levels of intensity and potential side effects.

Of these surgeries, the total hip replacement is one of the most intensive and invasive procedures. While hip surgery recovery after this procedure is lengthy, it is also a reliable surgery with a very long history of success. As long as you select a qualified orthopedic surgeon and follow proper hip replacement recovery tips, you should expect the best out of your procedure: less pain, more movement, and a reliable new prosthetic hip joint that will serve you for 20 years or longer.

Recovery after Hip Replacement Surgery

Hip replacements are predictable but demanding procedures. Unlike less invasive procedures, your recovery after hip surgery will continue far beyond the first few months post-surgery. You will have to follow your surgeon’s hip surgery recovery tips for many years to come.

If you’re considering or are preparing for hip replacement surgery, a list of hip replacement recovery tips can be helpful to have on hand as you learn what to expect in the coming months.

• Eat Well: Nutrition is important for lifelong health but takes on even greater importance as your body goes through the strenuous healing process that follows any intensive surgery. As you recover after hip surgery, opt for a post-surgery diet with foods full of protein, vitamins, healthy fats, and fibers. Skip out on processed foods full of sugar, salt, and unhealthy fats which can hinder the body’s natural healing process.
• Ask for Help: Even after you’re able to walk again (2-4 days after your surgery), essential daily tasks such as errands, driving, and normal household chores can still be difficult and exhausting to complete. There are many ways to follow the hip replacement recovery tip of asking for help. You could ask a friend or family member to stay with you, employ a private nurse, or stay at a professional postoperative care retreat equipped with all the accessibility features and recovery center amenities you need to heal well.
• Manage Your Pain as Needed: Pain, swelling, and bruising are normal side effects to expect as you heal. For the first few days after surgery, your doctor may prescribe pain medications to help make you comfortable. Potentially one of the most important hip surgery recovery tips, make sure your pain medications are approved by your doctor, as some over-the-counter medications can actually slow down healing or cause harmful side effects.
• Follow Your Physical Therapy Plan: Your doctor will most likely assign you to physical therapy for a few weeks or months. As with all hip replacement recovery tips, make sure to follow the doctor’s orders, as this will decrease your hip surgery recovery time and increase your mobility.
• Prepare Your Home to Accommodate You: For the first months of recovery after hip surgery, regular at-home tasks such as bathroom use and going up and down the stairs can cause strain to your new hip joint. Rearranging your house so you can avoid the stairs and elevating your toilet seat are just a few of the measures you can take to prepare your home for your recovery.
• Use Your New Joint Wisely: Another long-term hip surgery recovery tip is to avoid pivoting on your affected leg or crossing it over the midline for up to 1 year after the surgery. This hip replacement recovery tip can be difficult to follow, but is nonetheless crucial in order to avoid dislocating your new hip joint.
• Maintain a Healthy Weight: When your weight increases drastically, you also increase the stress you put on your new hip joint and run the risk of wearing it down or causing other complications. Eat well and commit to regular exercise to prevent this from happening, and to speed up your recovery after hip surgery.
• Exercise Right: Unfortunately, certain exercises will become less accessible to you even after you heal and pass the initial recovery period. At the same time, exercise is necessary to help prevent blood clots and promote general health. You will have to ask your doctor or physical therapist for appropriate hip replacement recovery exercise tips that can work for you.

Receive 5-Star Care at Pearl Recovery Retreat

Recovery after hip surgery can be quite a difficult process, and the tips above are a testament to that. It’s definitely not a recovery that you should try to go through alone. No matter your age or physical fitness level, you need loving care to help you along your way. Your friends and family may lend you their time, which can be very helpful. If you’d like more professional and consistent care, however, spending a brief amount of time at a recovery center is a great hip replacement recovery tip to consider.

At Pearl Wellness, not only do we provide an all-female nursing staff well-versed in hip surgery recovery care tips, including rehabilitation and nutrition, but we also offer a 5-star retreat facility at the Viceroy L’Ermitage in Beverly Hills. There, you will have access to luxury hotel amenities as well as our host of optional healing services such as nourishing IV therapy and hyperbaric oxygen chamber treatments. No matter how long it takes you to get back on your feet, physically and mentally, you can rest assured that all your needs will be met at Pearl Wellness.

Think that a stay at Pearl Wellness may be right for you? Go beyond these basic hip replacement recovery tips and contact us today to create a personalized care plan for your recovery after hip surgery.