Fractured hip*

Posted by faith123 @faith123, Apr 30, 2017

Ifell 9 mths. Ago and fra tured my hip. I still have to use a walker. Is this normal? I'm 81

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Went to ortho dr. This week. Only sulution to my problem which is the screw is got bone growing around it, is surgury and he says at my age and my other health problems it would be risky. Guess I haven't a choice but to endure.Any feed back?

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@faith123

Went to ortho dr. This week. Only sulution to my problem which is the screw is got bone growing around it, is surgury and he says at my age and my other health problems it would be risky. Guess I haven't a choice but to endure.Any feed back?

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Hello,
My recommendation would be to seek 2 additional opinions. Take all your films & reports and have each Dr weigh in. Prepare all your questions and make sure you clearly understand their responses & recommendations. PT and pain management are a way to assuage your problem, but are no remedy. In the interim you might come away with feeling more informed to make a better decision about what's possible and what would work best for you. I'm guessing you're working wth an ORTHO with a spine focus as well, a neurologist. Typically, your insurance provider will pay for 2 opinions. Good luck!

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@faith123, I fell and fractured my hip in June. After surgery, my husband 3ho was under my full time care and I were put in a nursing home. He was in the Dementia unit and I was in the Rehab unit, but I could visit him as I was able. He did not get the same quality of care that i got in the rehab unit. I used a lot of my spare time repeating my exercises and walking the halls. Of course I started in a wheelchair, graduated from wheelchair to a cane and finally walking alone using the railings along the walls in the hallways for support and stopping to rest as needed. I worked hard so I could recover and take care of my husband again. I have no family except a daughter who never visited or called, so I came home alone to finalize my recovery.

Six days after I was home, my husband passed away and that set me back a lot. I still have no appetite and no desire to go anywhere or do anything. I know this is due to grieving and I am determined to get through this and enjoy the rest of my life. (I am almost 74, my husband was 82) My faith has played a big part in my recovery, also my sense of humor. After losing Fred, I lost a lot of self-confidence in walking without my cane. I still use it when I take the dogs out and certain other times when I do not feel confident or think I may be on my feet for a long time. My friends and church family have been very supportive and I still exercise every day. And I pray a lot! I still have pain in the groin area where a screw is holding me together while i heal. I no longer feel pain the other places in my leg and knee area where there are other screws and metal. I was told to swing my arms when walking and to try to get my gait back to my usual way of walking.

My suggestion would be to push yourself just a little more than you think you can do but not enough to injure you . Just enough to make you feel good that you achieved it and to encourage you to try harder. And I will pray that God will be with you to help you find peace and healing so that you can begin to try a little walking inside without canes or a walker. Try to find some sources for fun and enjoyment and to change your discouraging days into happy days. Find someone who would benefit from a call from you occasionally so you can add outside interests back into your life. I have people that i send cards to and some I call every week or so, to give me less time to think about myself. And I always feel so good that I have brought joy to someone else who needs it. My little reward to myself.

Good luck with your recovery!
Diann

REPLY
@deev

@faith123, I fell and fractured my hip in June. After surgery, my husband 3ho was under my full time care and I were put in a nursing home. He was in the Dementia unit and I was in the Rehab unit, but I could visit him as I was able. He did not get the same quality of care that i got in the rehab unit. I used a lot of my spare time repeating my exercises and walking the halls. Of course I started in a wheelchair, graduated from wheelchair to a cane and finally walking alone using the railings along the walls in the hallways for support and stopping to rest as needed. I worked hard so I could recover and take care of my husband again. I have no family except a daughter who never visited or called, so I came home alone to finalize my recovery.

Six days after I was home, my husband passed away and that set me back a lot. I still have no appetite and no desire to go anywhere or do anything. I know this is due to grieving and I am determined to get through this and enjoy the rest of my life. (I am almost 74, my husband was 82) My faith has played a big part in my recovery, also my sense of humor. After losing Fred, I lost a lot of self-confidence in walking without my cane. I still use it when I take the dogs out and certain other times when I do not feel confident or think I may be on my feet for a long time. My friends and church family have been very supportive and I still exercise every day. And I pray a lot! I still have pain in the groin area where a screw is holding me together while i heal. I no longer feel pain the other places in my leg and knee area where there are other screws and metal. I was told to swing my arms when walking and to try to get my gait back to my usual way of walking.

My suggestion would be to push yourself just a little more than you think you can do but not enough to injure you . Just enough to make you feel good that you achieved it and to encourage you to try harder. And I will pray that God will be with you to help you find peace and healing so that you can begin to try a little walking inside without canes or a walker. Try to find some sources for fun and enjoyment and to change your discouraging days into happy days. Find someone who would benefit from a call from you occasionally so you can add outside interests back into your life. I have people that i send cards to and some I call every week or so, to give me less time to think about myself. And I always feel so good that I have brought joy to someone else who needs it. My little reward to myself.

Good luck with your recovery!
Diann

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Hello Diann, @deev

I am so sorry to hear of the loss of your husband. That had to be very difficult for you, especially since you were still in recovery from your surgery. I am so glad that you have an attitude that has propelled you through these difficult times. I'm sensing that your faith, determination and ability to reach out to others has had healing effects on your physical and emotional well being.

Thank you for offering encouragement and support to @faith123 and to everyone else who reads your post!

If I may ask, was your fall and fractured hip the result of osteoporosis?

Teresa

REPLY
@deev

@faith123, I fell and fractured my hip in June. After surgery, my husband 3ho was under my full time care and I were put in a nursing home. He was in the Dementia unit and I was in the Rehab unit, but I could visit him as I was able. He did not get the same quality of care that i got in the rehab unit. I used a lot of my spare time repeating my exercises and walking the halls. Of course I started in a wheelchair, graduated from wheelchair to a cane and finally walking alone using the railings along the walls in the hallways for support and stopping to rest as needed. I worked hard so I could recover and take care of my husband again. I have no family except a daughter who never visited or called, so I came home alone to finalize my recovery.

Six days after I was home, my husband passed away and that set me back a lot. I still have no appetite and no desire to go anywhere or do anything. I know this is due to grieving and I am determined to get through this and enjoy the rest of my life. (I am almost 74, my husband was 82) My faith has played a big part in my recovery, also my sense of humor. After losing Fred, I lost a lot of self-confidence in walking without my cane. I still use it when I take the dogs out and certain other times when I do not feel confident or think I may be on my feet for a long time. My friends and church family have been very supportive and I still exercise every day. And I pray a lot! I still have pain in the groin area where a screw is holding me together while i heal. I no longer feel pain the other places in my leg and knee area where there are other screws and metal. I was told to swing my arms when walking and to try to get my gait back to my usual way of walking.

My suggestion would be to push yourself just a little more than you think you can do but not enough to injure you . Just enough to make you feel good that you achieved it and to encourage you to try harder. And I will pray that God will be with you to help you find peace and healing so that you can begin to try a little walking inside without canes or a walker. Try to find some sources for fun and enjoyment and to change your discouraging days into happy days. Find someone who would benefit from a call from you occasionally so you can add outside interests back into your life. I have people that i send cards to and some I call every week or so, to give me less time to think about myself. And I always feel so good that I have brought joy to someone else who needs it. My little reward to myself.

Good luck with your recovery!
Diann

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@deev (Diann),

I am sorry for your loss. Thank you for your nice note of encouragement to @faith123 despite the difficultly of grieving you are experiencing right now.

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@faith123 I read your post this morning and am so inspired by your story. You have a wonderful attitude and expectation of healing and complete recovery. I am impressed with the ways in which you are taking care of yourself and how you've included helping others into your plan for health. You are a positive role model for the rest of us. Thank you so much for sharing your situation, grieving, and healing process as encouragement with us. Gail B Ledesma

REPLY
@deev

@faith123, I fell and fractured my hip in June. After surgery, my husband 3ho was under my full time care and I were put in a nursing home. He was in the Dementia unit and I was in the Rehab unit, but I could visit him as I was able. He did not get the same quality of care that i got in the rehab unit. I used a lot of my spare time repeating my exercises and walking the halls. Of course I started in a wheelchair, graduated from wheelchair to a cane and finally walking alone using the railings along the walls in the hallways for support and stopping to rest as needed. I worked hard so I could recover and take care of my husband again. I have no family except a daughter who never visited or called, so I came home alone to finalize my recovery.

Six days after I was home, my husband passed away and that set me back a lot. I still have no appetite and no desire to go anywhere or do anything. I know this is due to grieving and I am determined to get through this and enjoy the rest of my life. (I am almost 74, my husband was 82) My faith has played a big part in my recovery, also my sense of humor. After losing Fred, I lost a lot of self-confidence in walking without my cane. I still use it when I take the dogs out and certain other times when I do not feel confident or think I may be on my feet for a long time. My friends and church family have been very supportive and I still exercise every day. And I pray a lot! I still have pain in the groin area where a screw is holding me together while i heal. I no longer feel pain the other places in my leg and knee area where there are other screws and metal. I was told to swing my arms when walking and to try to get my gait back to my usual way of walking.

My suggestion would be to push yourself just a little more than you think you can do but not enough to injure you . Just enough to make you feel good that you achieved it and to encourage you to try harder. And I will pray that God will be with you to help you find peace and healing so that you can begin to try a little walking inside without canes or a walker. Try to find some sources for fun and enjoyment and to change your discouraging days into happy days. Find someone who would benefit from a call from you occasionally so you can add outside interests back into your life. I have people that i send cards to and some I call every week or so, to give me less time to think about myself. And I always feel so good that I have brought joy to someone else who needs it. My little reward to myself.

Good luck with your recovery!
Diann

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@JustinMcClanahan Thanks for your comments. It helped me to write about what happened and what I am doing to recover. I hope I can help others, because that helps me!

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@gailb

@faith123 I read your post this morning and am so inspired by your story. You have a wonderful attitude and expectation of healing and complete recovery. I am impressed with the ways in which you are taking care of yourself and how you've included helping others into your plan for health. You are a positive role model for the rest of us. Thank you so much for sharing your situation, grieving, and healing process as encouragement with us. Gail B Ledesma

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@gailb It is so helpful to share and hear from others. Thank you!

REPLY
@deev

@faith123, I fell and fractured my hip in June. After surgery, my husband 3ho was under my full time care and I were put in a nursing home. He was in the Dementia unit and I was in the Rehab unit, but I could visit him as I was able. He did not get the same quality of care that i got in the rehab unit. I used a lot of my spare time repeating my exercises and walking the halls. Of course I started in a wheelchair, graduated from wheelchair to a cane and finally walking alone using the railings along the walls in the hallways for support and stopping to rest as needed. I worked hard so I could recover and take care of my husband again. I have no family except a daughter who never visited or called, so I came home alone to finalize my recovery.

Six days after I was home, my husband passed away and that set me back a lot. I still have no appetite and no desire to go anywhere or do anything. I know this is due to grieving and I am determined to get through this and enjoy the rest of my life. (I am almost 74, my husband was 82) My faith has played a big part in my recovery, also my sense of humor. After losing Fred, I lost a lot of self-confidence in walking without my cane. I still use it when I take the dogs out and certain other times when I do not feel confident or think I may be on my feet for a long time. My friends and church family have been very supportive and I still exercise every day. And I pray a lot! I still have pain in the groin area where a screw is holding me together while i heal. I no longer feel pain the other places in my leg and knee area where there are other screws and metal. I was told to swing my arms when walking and to try to get my gait back to my usual way of walking.

My suggestion would be to push yourself just a little more than you think you can do but not enough to injure you . Just enough to make you feel good that you achieved it and to encourage you to try harder. And I will pray that God will be with you to help you find peace and healing so that you can begin to try a little walking inside without canes or a walker. Try to find some sources for fun and enjoyment and to change your discouraging days into happy days. Find someone who would benefit from a call from you occasionally so you can add outside interests back into your life. I have people that i send cards to and some I call every week or so, to give me less time to think about myself. And I always feel so good that I have brought joy to someone else who needs it. My little reward to myself.

Good luck with your recovery!
Diann

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@hopeful33250 Theresa thank you for your comments. Sometimes it was really hard, but because we were in separate units at the nursing home, I was able to pull away from being with my husband 24/7 and because I came home alone, I was able to realize that i was doing ok on my own. I believe this was God's plan in answer to my prayers for peace and for us to be in His care. I never prayed for total healing for either of us but that he would lead us as he wished. My faith has guided me through this.

I was under care for osteoporosis after I broke my foot and ankle in 2004. I finally had to stop the medication in 2016. i also am a Type 1 diabetic since childhood. So I have spent much of my life with health concerns. But I did actually fall when out in the yard with my three dogs. There is no fence, so I had all three on leashes when they spotted a cat. They wrapped their chains around my legs and tried to take off, bringing me down on some brick trim around a flower bed. I was face down but tried to stand up and fell backwards on the bricks. I feel blessed that I healed so quickly, but I have always taken care of my health. Sometime I will give my experience on self-diagnosing my diabetes. It might be interesting to someone with a child that is diabetic.

REPLY
@deev

@faith123, I fell and fractured my hip in June. After surgery, my husband 3ho was under my full time care and I were put in a nursing home. He was in the Dementia unit and I was in the Rehab unit, but I could visit him as I was able. He did not get the same quality of care that i got in the rehab unit. I used a lot of my spare time repeating my exercises and walking the halls. Of course I started in a wheelchair, graduated from wheelchair to a cane and finally walking alone using the railings along the walls in the hallways for support and stopping to rest as needed. I worked hard so I could recover and take care of my husband again. I have no family except a daughter who never visited or called, so I came home alone to finalize my recovery.

Six days after I was home, my husband passed away and that set me back a lot. I still have no appetite and no desire to go anywhere or do anything. I know this is due to grieving and I am determined to get through this and enjoy the rest of my life. (I am almost 74, my husband was 82) My faith has played a big part in my recovery, also my sense of humor. After losing Fred, I lost a lot of self-confidence in walking without my cane. I still use it when I take the dogs out and certain other times when I do not feel confident or think I may be on my feet for a long time. My friends and church family have been very supportive and I still exercise every day. And I pray a lot! I still have pain in the groin area where a screw is holding me together while i heal. I no longer feel pain the other places in my leg and knee area where there are other screws and metal. I was told to swing my arms when walking and to try to get my gait back to my usual way of walking.

My suggestion would be to push yourself just a little more than you think you can do but not enough to injure you . Just enough to make you feel good that you achieved it and to encourage you to try harder. And I will pray that God will be with you to help you find peace and healing so that you can begin to try a little walking inside without canes or a walker. Try to find some sources for fun and enjoyment and to change your discouraging days into happy days. Find someone who would benefit from a call from you occasionally so you can add outside interests back into your life. I have people that i send cards to and some I call every week or so, to give me less time to think about myself. And I always feel so good that I have brought joy to someone else who needs it. My little reward to myself.

Good luck with your recovery!
Diann

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Hello Diann, @deev

Your life seems to be one of contentment and acceptance about what you have experienced. That is a tremendous strength!

Yes, please share with us the story of your self-diagnosis of diabetes - sounds like it might be helpful and educational for us all.

Examples of proactive individuals dealing with their health concerns is an important part of what Mayo Connect tries to do.

Teresa

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