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Rehabbing After A Hip Replacement: 5 Tips To Help

8 May 2019

Brent Chapman

Having your injured hip replaced following an accident is a major operation. Once you are recovered, you should enjoy better movement and less pain than you had with your old, injured hip. But getting there — enduring the rehabilitation process — can be a bit of a challenge. Here are some tips to help you make it through rehab.

1. Stay at a rehabilitation clinic.

You might be under the impression that rehab clinics are just for old people. But really, these clinics take anyone who is recovering from an extensive injury or surgical procedure. Staying at an injury rehab clinic for at least a few weeks after your surgery can jump-start your recovery. All of the doctors and other practitioners can come to you, rather than you having to find a way to get to doctor's appointments. There will be someone to cook your meals, help you shower, and so forth so you're not tempted to do those things for yourself too early and risk re-injury.

2. Get chiropractic adjustments.

When your hip is injured, and as you attempt to get around with an injured hip, you use the two sides of your body unequally. This can cause your spine to come out of alignment, which can make recovering from your hip replacement surgery harder. As soon as your doctor clears you to do so post-surgery, have a chiropractor adjust your spine. As long as you visit a chiropractor who is used to working with patients recovering from surgery, the process should be safe. With your spine in proper alignment, your weight will be better distributed between your legs as you start walking around on your new hip, so you won't experience as much soreness.

3. Do your physical therapy exercises.

Simply attending physical therapy appointments is not enough! Your physical therapist will likely give you a list of exercises you should complete at home. Make them a priority — even if they hurt. You need to focus on stretching and strengthening not only your hip but your entire leg, in order to adapt to the replacement and accelerate the healing process. Try making yourself a reminder chart. Give yourself a star for each day that you do your exercises. Once you accumulate 10 stars, reward yourself with something small like an ice cream cone.

4. Take your pain relievers.

Chances are that your doctor will recommend taking a pain reliever like ibuprofen as you recover from surgery. Many patients stop taking this medication once the pain subsides to the point of being bearable. But actually, you should keep taking your pain reliever for as long as your doctor recommends. The pain relievers prescribed post-surgery are usually NSAID pain relievers, which means they alleviate not only pain but also inflammation. Taking them to keep the inflammation down can help speed your healing process after the hip replacement.

5. Wear the right shoes.

When you are re-adapting to walking after a hip replacement, it's important to wear supportive shoes. Stay away from sandals and slip-ons with flat soles. Since these shoes do not support your arches, they will put more force and pressure on your hip, which may make walking more painful. If you need recommendations for shoes to wear after surgery, reach out to your doctor or even your chiropractor. They can even help you try on different shoes to see which ones may work best.

Injuring your hip is traumatic enough; having it replaced is another challenging process. Thankfully, if you follow the tips above and adhere to your doctors' guidance, you will soon be able to walk more comfortably again. 

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