Shoulder replacement on the horizon

Warrigal

Warrigal

SF VIP
Location
Sydney, Australia
People who have known me as a forum member over the past two years will know that I have had a hip replacement and a knee replacement. Both operations were extremely successful and I have the use of my legs back without the severe pain that had more or less crippled me.

The problem was osteoarthritis and it also manifests in both of my shoulders. The pain is very disabling and it is now time for another operation. On Monday next I will have a full shoulder replacement on my left side I will be in hospital for less than a week, followed by six weeks with my arm in a sling. When the left arm is strong again I will have the right side attended to.

I will not take my laptop to hospital because it is too heavy for me to manage with just one arm, and a feeble one at that, so I will disappear temporarily, but like MacArthur, I will return.

If anyone is interested in the details, I will be happy to answer questions.

A link to my knee operation experience https://www.seniorforums.com/showthread.php/25920-Knee-replacement-booked
 

Thanks Shali.

My biggest challenge will be dressing myself one handed for six weeks. I've been practising pulling up my knickers and pants and because my right hand is feeble I am having trouble getting them all the way up on the LHS. I will need to rely on Hubby a lot for some weeks.
 

Glad to hear hip and knee operations went well. Hopefully the shoulder follows. Was this a torn rotator cuff?

Last senior I know who consulted about a shoulder op/replacement was told it would be about a year recovery. Hopefully yours goes faster. Are they giving any pre op therapy? With shoulder ops in particular I hear about the use pre op therapy.

Good Luck
 
WhatInThe said:
Glad to hear hip and knee operations went well. Hopefully the shoulder follows. Was this a torn rotator cuff?

Last senior I know who consulted about a shoulder op/replacement was told it would be about a year recovery. Hopefully yours goes faster. Are they giving any pre op therapy? With shoulder ops in particular I hear about the use pre op therapy.

Good Luck
Click to expand...
The rotator cuff is OK and so are the tendons. It is the cartilage that is very worn and movement is bone on bone and very painful. My hands are feeble and inclined to shake when I am even holding a cup of coffee.

If the soft tissues were too damaged I would have needed a reverse technique where the ball, normally the head of the humerus, is placed on the shoulder and the cup section is placed on the humerus. This technique results in more limited range of movement. Fortunately, the scans indicate that I can have the standard anatomical technique. To access the joint a tendon has to be detached and the reason for the sling for six weeks is to protect it while it heals. Then the physio starts to get the joint working properly.

I hope to have both shoulders replaced and working well by Christmas.
 
Camper6 said:
Good luck. That's heavy duty stuff. Things will change while you are away in the politics forum.
Click to expand...

Things change a lot in a day over there.
Australian politics is in recess now for the Winter break of 6 weeks so I will be going cold turkey for a while.
However, I am confident that the Earth will continue to spin around its N/S axis and the Sun will still appear each morning.
In any case, I will only be off line for about a week. Once I come home I'll have little to do but watch the world via the lap top.
 
Best wishes for a speedy recovery, Warri. I had shoulder surgery in 2010 (not a replacement, though) and I felt like the weight of the world had been lifted off...well...my shoulders afterwards. You don't realize what chronic pain does to you until you don't have it any longer.

We'll keep our fingers crossed for you and look forward to having you back.
 
Wishing you the best and hoping you have a speedy recovery. I had surgery on my left hand last November so I know very well about the difficulties with pulling up the "knickers" lol. Still need to have my right hand done but seeing how difficult things were with my left hand tied up,I`m putting off the right until I just can`t take the pain any longer.
 
Warri, as others, wishing you the best and for a quick recovery. You will be surprised at how many things you will learn to adapt to doing, with only one arm. I had to do it when I broke my wrist. It became like a little puzzle/challenge every day to figure out a better trick. About the time you start getting good at doing things like that, it will be all over. Good luck.
 
It's great that your other surgeries went so well Warrigal, wishing you a smooth operation and quick and complete recovery, best of luck to you. :)
 
Warri.....it seems like from a physical standpoint you sure have been having a lot of bad luck the past couple of years. :(

I sincerely hope that the surgery and the healing process go smoothly.
 
Best wishes for successful surgery and quick recovery. I fell a few years ago, broke both shoulders and needed one joint replaced. Healing was slow but I had lots of therapy. I found healing from knee replacement was much more painful than shoulder.

Now mobility is a little limited but nothing else works as it did when I was 50 so it's OK. I use an over-the-stove microwave and also stack washer/dryer with controls at top. It's neither easy nor pretty but the job gets done.

You're very lucky that your husband is there to help. I relied a lot on off-spring and kind neighbors.

BTW, I'm 84 and have osteo-arthritis as well.
 
Warrigal said:
Thanks Shali.

My biggest challenge will be dressing myself one handed for six weeks. I've been practising pulling up my knickers and pants and because my right hand is feeble I am having trouble getting them all the way up on the LHS. I will need to rely on Hubby a lot for some weeks.
Click to expand...
I can't imagine how difficult it must be for people to go through situations such as these with only homecare aides to help.
 
Yes, these temporary challenges - pain and incapacity - are important lessons of life. They really teach me about empathy for people for whom the conditions are not temporary. It also generates gratitude for kindness and for a society where help is available. I have been treated very gently by all of the medical people involved in the run up to the operation and I know that I will be very well treated while in hospital.

I am 74 yo and I know that I will be questioned by the social worker to ensure that I will continue to have adequate care when I come home. This is what I mean when I refer to a society where help is available.
 
I have been living with just one working hand for 20 years now. You learn all sorts of tricks to get the job done. Its a challenge when you live by yourself but it can be done. Good thoughts and prayers for you.
 
Warrigal said:
People who have known me as a forum member over the past two years will know that I have had a hip replacement and a knee replacement. Both operations were extremely successful and I have the use of my legs back without the severe pain that had more or less crippled me.

The problem was osteoarthritis and it also manifests in both of my shoulders. The pain is very disabling and it is now time for another operation. On Monday next I will have a full shoulder replacement on my left side I will be in hospital for less than a week, followed by six weeks with my arm in a sling. When the left arm is strong again I will have the right side attended to.

I will not take my laptop to hospital because it is too heavy for me to manage with just one arm, and a feeble one at that, so I will disappear temporarily, but like MacArthur, I will return.

If anyone is interested in the details, I will be happy to answer questions.

A link to my knee operation experience https://www.seniorforums.com/showthread.php/25920-Knee-replacement-booked
Click to expand...

I wish you a speedy and pain free recovery.
 
Some advice on anaesthesia.

Pre-op advice is usually nothing to eat or drink from midnight but this is insufficient for a good outcome.

Planning to get up at 4.00 am I went to bed early at 8.30 pm and had nil by mouth after that.

The anaesthetist was looking for a vein that was not in the crook of my arm and due to dehydration he could not find one, even with aid of ultrasound.

My arm looks that of a very incompetent junkie, with multiple needlestick marks surrounded by circular bruises.

The poor man was becoming rather traumatised, but fortunately I am a stoic and kept very calm. Eventually he found one in my ankle.

I was told that I should have drunk a litre of water just before midnight and I will certainly remember to do that for the next op.

I was given a nerve block in the neck and was quite pain free for day one post op. About 10pm that night I started taking painkillers again but the operated arm isn't too bad to cope with. The other arm is giving me a lot of trouble though and in about 12 weeks I plan to front up again to have the second shoulder replaced.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top