Hip Replacement and Eagle Pose

Hip Replacement and Eagle Pose2009-10-10T00:52:35+00:00
Viewing 7 posts - 1 through 7 (of 7 total)
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  • truemg
    Participant
    Post count: 3

    Greetings! I am new to Bikram, practicing for nine weeks, 3X/week. I have a full hip replacement (due to arthritis) on the left side. It was a minimally invasive procedure and I have no post-surgical restrictions on movement.

    In the Eagle pose, when I balance with a bent knee on my left side, my prosthetic joint “clicks”. It’s not painful, but I do worry about damaging the ceramic coating over time. I don’t get any clicking on straight leg balancing poses, just when I am down in the “seated” position on that side.

    I am thinking perhaps that after three years I still need to re-build some of the underlying support around the joint so perhaps it will get better in time? For now, I’m doing the pose on that side without crossing my right leg as that seems to make it feel more unstable.

    Any other practitioners out there with hip replacements who might have thoughts on this?

    Thanks to all.

    Heather

    fraseram
    Participant
    Post count: 356

    I am familiar with your struggle as I have osteo fragility and have broken my hip not once… but twice LOL
    With the replacement joint even when you are ‘healed’ and no longer have restrictions the new joint DOES have very real limitations that I would honor. I would be VREY careful in Eagle and not put pressure on your hip when bent past 90 degrees. also be aware of toe stand and spine twist and feel what is comfy in your body. Try these poses out of hot room so you can get a more honest feeling of them and your hip then apply that in the hot room so you don’t go past any danger points.
    I am so glad you found this practice and it does so many beautiful things just be careful as well. Once they replace your hip they can only go in and ‘fix things’ or give you a new hip maybe once more. Their options are limited if you were to do something so please use caution.

    truemg
    Participant
    Post count: 3

    Thanks for your comments and suggestions. I agree that guardianship of the joint needs to be first and foremost, particularly as my surgery was done at the relatively young age of 48. My knees have also been affected by arthritis, so I have not even attempted toe stand!

    It’s just as difficult to hold back as it is to push harder. And then to do both within the same 90 minute time frame, well I guess that’s my challenge.

    Cheers,
    H

    Gabrielle (The Hot Yoga Doctor)
    Forum Owner
    Post count: 3047

    Hi Heather and Amy

    About 24 hours ago I posted an answer to this question and I don’t know where it went. So I will write my notes again.

    Here’s the gist of what I said:

    Heather I wanted to know if you had spoken to your surgeon about what exactly could be the structure that is clicking. It is worth knowing from a mechanical standpoint so that you can work out your envelope of movement. You want to be able to move functionally and without fear that you are doing damage!

    I also wondered whether you could tell me where exactly the clicking occurred.
    >> Does it happen at the moment you lift the leg off the ground after you are crouching?
    >> Does it happen at the moment you cross the upper leg over the balancing leg?
    >> Does it happen at the moment you wrap the toes behind the other calf muscle?

    The only clue to your practice is the words you have offered. I have no idea what your technique is like. It is possible that there are elements of your practice in this pose that could be putting your at risk? (There is information in the forum, in the manual and even more in the pose tutorials.) It may be worth the trouble to check the forum as a first port of call. Check out things like your initial crouching position.

    I believe that the ceramic prostheses are the most hard wearing over time. Check whether it is indeed a coating or if the whole component is ceramic. But the wear on the surface is many, many times less than the metal or other materials. I would find out what the click actually is.

    I think I included everything from the initial post.

    Namaste
    Gabrielle 🙂

    Gabrielle (The Hot Yoga Doctor)
    Forum Owner
    Post count: 3047

    Aahhhh

    I remember what else I included:

    What you are doing is an excellent way to deal with your issue in the meantime. Great thinking! :cheese: And it’s perfect for continuing that way if you discover that your prosthesis or hip or any anatomical structure is at risk. It is worth really knowing if that is the case.

    If you are willing to answer those questions in the above post then that would be great.

    Namaste
    Gabrielle 🙂

    truemg
    Participant
    Post count: 3

    Thank you, Gabrielle. Lots of good questions. First, a surgeon story….

    I visited my surgeon earlier this year when I was having a lot of knee pain. After looking at my x-rays he said, “I have good news and bad news. The bad news is you have no space between your patella and the bone beneath so the pain is from bone rubbing on bone. The good news is we can replace just the patella, so a full knee doesn’t have to be done. Would you like a shot of cortisone for the pain now?” That said, I think surgeons only find you engaging if they get to play inside you. Once you are healed up, they lose interest. BTW — I REALLY love my surgeon and he did a fantastic job, but that’s just kind of how they think, you know?

    As for the knee pain, I declined the cortisone shot, made some changes to my diet to reduce inflammation and modified some mechanics in my everyday movements to reduce pressure on the patella. A few months later, I started Bikram. At this point I experience virtually no knee pain. I really do not want to have to undergo another surgery. And I really like the positive changes I am seeing throughout my body as a result of the yoga. Definitely the best therapy for arthritis I’ve found yet!! 🙂

    How is my technique? I’m pretty new at this but I do listen carefully and try to follow instructions. I’m keeping my weight back on the heel, torso as upright as possible and not hunched over. If I can go in slowly, nail the balance and not move a muscle everything is cool. It seems like it’s those little adjustments one makes in the balancing that causes the clicking. It definitely can get worse when the leg crosses over, but of course that’s a more challenging balance point. Even without crossing the leg, I can still have some minor problems — again, I feel like it’s in those small adjustments needed to balance — but I’m trying to address that by focusing on keeping EVERYthing tight around the joint. It seems to help if I tuck in my butt a bit and really tighten the abs. It should be noted that I have no problem at all with the balancing series, so it’s clearly something that changes in the mechanics with lowering down into that bent knee/sitting position. Hmmmm…..

    I try to keep in mind that even three year post-surgery I have not necessarily been doing anything to prepare me for THIS particular posture so perhaps it’s just a matter of rehabilitating and strengthening some of those little structures around the joint that just haven’t been addressed in this way. I also try to remember that when it comes to balance, I don’t get any neural feedback from within the replacement joint as one does with natural bone, so that adds to any balance challenge.

    So, my plan for now is to scale back and try to master the posture (and build strength) one piece at a time. Get the arms in place, enter the crouch but not too deeply, make sure I’m back on the heels, slooooowwwwllly lift my leg and work hard at holding that as tight and still as I can. I’m hoping I can build up some strength around the joint and maybe — maybe! — someday be able to cross over.

    Sorry for the long post! I really do appreciate the opportunity to discuss this and would welcome any suggestions you might have!

    Cheers,
    Heather

    Gabrielle (The Hot Yoga Doctor)
    Forum Owner
    Post count: 3047

    Hi Heather

    No apologies for the long post required! Those kind of details are really appreciated.

    I actually think you have it nailed despite your lack of neural feedback. Learning your best well-aligned position, getting your wrap without going too low is what I would also suggest. You won’t be sinking as deeply into your hips or sitting so heavily with your upper leg surrendering onto your balancing leg but with square hips and upright body you are doing a great job!

    Namaste
    Gabrielle 🙂

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