I have a good friend that had both hips replaced and she is back to riding her horse with no pain. I hope you can get this good of a result as well.

Thank you, Moni. I wanted to put it off as long as possible but decided why do that. I really thought the recovery period would be a lot longer than the knee, but people I have talked to said it is easier.

Thanks, Beth. At my age, I don't have a lot of time to waste. ;)

LOL, I hear ya. I have another friend who has also had both hips replaced, though not at the same time but she doesn't ride. She had no problems getting back to walking fairly quickly. I think your attitude when getting this done has a lot to do with how your recovery goes.

I had my hip replaced 2 years ago. Waited far to long before giving in and having my first surgery ever. It was no problem post operatively. Minimal discomfort for a day or two, controled with meds. So much better then not being able to walk without major pain. Would recomend anyone that is told it is time, go for it. The only thing that bothered me was having to sleep flat on my back for a week or so. I am a side sleeper and not turning was hard , really not a big problem. Did have PT at home and for a month after. Don't worry, get your date to feel better.

My mom had it done with very little problems. She did have to stay in a recovery therapy facility for a week or two. She did recover well from it. She was nearly 90. Her health issues began after that.

I broke my hip and femur in 2009, and had a replacement. I was told no impact exercise, which would rule out riding, unless you want to get another one again soon. But maybe they have advanced now. I have the bad metal on metal and it pains me sometimes. Have you tried natural anti-infalmmatiories, like turmeric, etc? Where are you? A friend in Europe had hers done this year and it was easier for her than it was for me in the US years ago. Look up hip precautions and try them for now, until you decide. (NO deep bending, crossing legs, impact exercise or wearing high heels--ever again, lifting heavy stuff, do sleep with pillow between legs, etc. This is what they told me to observe for a couple months, but I do this when it hurts.) Get several opinions before you do it, and good luck!

Marilyn, I was 48 when told mine was shot and needed to be replaced. What a blow, I walked into that office thinking I had sciatica, and turned into my mother before coming out again ;0) I put the surgery off for 4 years, feeling I was too young (and tried every self help-surgery postponing method I could learn about including acupuncture in the meantime). During that 4 years I did so much right side compensating to avoid some of the pain, my left leg had become noticeably weaker pre-surgery and it took many weeks of PT to equal out again.

From what I've seen of knees, I think you are right they are more difficult, more bruising and swelling. The surgery wasn't difficult at all, the recovery kind of tedious. I did it in January, the only time of year I thought I could drum up enough patience for letting it heal.

I hadn't been on a horse for a number of years, and haven't been on one since...but I could see difficulty in mounting until things are healed and strong again. (there will be at least some temporary restrictions for range of motion, raising your knee too high). Riding Western, and never taking a dive off that horse (that would be disastrous) might work OK, but will you promise to talk to your doctor and tell him precisely what your expectations are, what activities you cannot give up. The two of you need to be right on the same page with your goals before you decide when, and if. Please meet with him, you may have his full approval but you'll want to hear it with your own ears - and, let us know how the appointment goes.

(the only lasting restrictions my doctor gave me were no downhill skiing, or singles tennis, nothing I would miss)

No experience but you have my heartfelt empathy.

Marilyn, I'm sorry your hips are giving you such pain and that you are looking at surgery for relief. I know several people who have had hip replacement surgery done and not one of them regrets it.

I had a boss who had terrible hips. He rarely arrived at work before 10:00 because it took him that long to get going in the mornings. He was destined for a wheelchair and then he had hip replacement surgery (first one and then the other). After he recovered from surgery, he was walking three miles a day and was even able to resume cross country skiing. It was the best thing he ever did for himself and he was like a new man.

Best of luck to you.

I've had both knees and a hip replaced. The hip is so much easier to recover from. You'll be glad you had it done, I am.

In 1972, I was involved in a car crash that broke my hip bone (not the head of femur). It was put back together with screws, after 3 months the screws were removed.

By the time 2005 arrived, there were lots of problems with the hip area. I could barely walk. Total hip replacement and I did my exercises daily. It was wonderful.

For years, I worked in a nursing home and the PT people knew that my hip had been replaced. There were some older folks there who just too a bad attitude and would not consider getting going with their therapy. I would get paged into the PT gym and do jumping jacks. It was to show that my hip was fine, and that an overweight man in his mid-60s (at the time) was doing great with the metal hip. Most of them got up and got going.

The mother of a good friend, who also rides horses, had her hip replaced a couple of years ago. She is very active on her nearby farm and always had a problem with her hip due to a difficult birth. She is approximately my age (68), and the problem was causing her much more pain with age. She had her hip replacement and wishes she had done it earlier.

We have some other friends (younger - in their 50's) who also have had hip replacements and both skied the next year. They too worked out a lot prior and after, using a lot of pool therapy at home. They both had their surgeries in the spring/early summer so they could take advantage of their home pool. But if you have access to a pool at a gym or fitness center, it is highly recommended to do additional workouts on your own.

My brother had knee replacement 6 years ago, in his early 50's. He went thru a lot of pain and was in agony. He's not one to lie still, he's very active, and impatient. He did the physio of course, and we all assume he did too much physio and over-worked his knee. He would be of the mindset that 'more is better' which is not always the case. Running is out for him, but he can still bicycle, which he loves to do.

I remember when you had your knee replaced. YOU handled it very well! You were working it out, eating well...doing it all right. I'm sure in your case a hip replacement will be a great success! I am of course sorry you have to go through this, but I know you'll have excellent results.

When I was going to water aerobics with my ripped knee there was a lady who was in great pain from a misaligned hip replacement, Sylvia. She could swim with no pain, but walking....putting her weight on it was terrible for her. So, from that, take away, to pick your surgeon well. I'll be thinking about you and hope you post here after it's done.

Hi Marilyn. So sorry that you're having to deal with all that pain. I haven't had any joint replacements but have heard people that have had them both, say that the knee is worse. Prayers and good thoughts coming your way for a good outcome for whatever you decide to do. Merry Christmas and Happy and Healthy and pain free New Year to you and Jody.

I had my left hip replaced at age 63; right, age 67. I had bone loss from years of requiring steroids for asthma. I'm 75 now; both hips are 100%.

You will be sorry you didn't do it sooner. Pain is debilitating, all by itself.

I came home on Day Three after surgery and had home visits by an RN (blood thinner monitoring) and a PT. I could be home because my DH was able to assist me until I was healed. We borrowed a raised toilet seat and a shower chair from our Senior Center's lending closet. I used a walker briefly, then a cane, briefly. I was grocery shopping with DH by Day Five.

I think that doing the PT as prescribed is key to a successful outcome -- not slacking; not pushing too hard. The pain blockers make this possible; take them! Find a surgeon who does hips all day, every day. (Your knee guy may not be the best option.)

Hips perform a simple back and forth function. Knees have a more complex range of movement.

No personal experience but from my experience with many friends, after you have it replaced, you will be wondering why you didn't do it sooner. I guess we all have to go through the necessary pain it takes to help make up our minds. Good luck with the surgery......you're the kind of person that will do well. Attitude is everything!

My sister had it done at her local hospital three months ago and suffered horribly after it. She had to go to rehab and the people there said "get back to your dr. and get a good scan to see if anythings going on" Sure enough one of the pieces had moved and was pressing on nerves and it was infected, she was admitted to Boston hospital for second surgery which went well but then she got pain in her back that was off the charts so back to Boston to find L4 and L5 were fractured but they did a procedure where they made tiny incisions and inject through a needle a type of filler that would bond and mend. The pain was gone completely but had to be on strong meds due to the bad infection the first time. Long story short, she has been away from her home for 3 1/2 months and finally came home yesterday. So get it checked out thoroughly please. I'll say a prayer the pain resolves rapidly and you can get on with your life and on your horse too lol.

Ouch! I hope you get through surgery and healing without too much trouble.

Thank you, everyone. I appreciate the input. I am going to start with the doctor who did my knee. He knows I ride and he is easy to relate to. When he was at the other clinic, he did mainly knees but I was reading his reviews yesterday when I looked up his new phone number.....he sent out a mailing, but darned if I know where I put it....and most of them were from hip replacements and one was a shoulder. I trust him to speak to me honestly about it. When I had my knee done, my leg had become bowed and shorter than the other one. It was constantly swollen and I was dependent on hydrocodone....prescribed by another doctor. I had no idea he could straighten out my leg. I never even mentioned it to him....I thought that was just the way it would be. He said my knee was one of the worst he had ever seen. I did the PT and my range of how much I could bend it was already 111 deg. before I even started PT. (PT didn't start until about a week or 10 days after I left the hospital, although I started PT in there and knew the exercises to do.) I am in a FB group for women past 55 who still ride and I posted the question there and quite a few of them had had hip replacements.

I am getting ready to start looking for an older, very gentle horse. I don't have any aspirations of anything faster than a walk or trot. I already use a mounting block when I mount. A far cry from when I was young and could swing up by grabbing a piece of the mane....riding bareback....but, I am willing to make some concessions :).

My Dad had it many years ago. He said he would never do it again, but the other hip got so bad he had to. I don't remember what he told me about that one. Good luck with yours.

I've had both hips replaced. A neighbor has had both hips and both knees replaced. My surgeon said I should have had mine done 20 years ago and I wish I would have been able to but no way could that have happened.

Knee replacement and hip replacement are very different. The knee moves differently so in theory, the knee is worse. Talking to people who've had it done, it really depends a lot on the person. Both are MAJOR surgeries. The issue with the hip is the implant ball is much smaller than the body's natural ball. Hence they put a "filler" liner in there to take up the space. One warning made several times to me is that a hip can dislocate much more easily than the body's natural ball. As you heal, the muscles and other stuff will settle back in and help protect it. Ask your doctor about riding the horse, I'd assume it should be no problem but if you get thrown, it'll likely be far more risky than for someone who has not had replacements.

Best advice I can give is the advice I was given from a good friend who had her knee done - do the exercises they suggest before surgery. It'll make things a lot smoother. And it does. I was in therapy for my back and the therapy was most of the exercises they recommended so I did a crash course and pushed myself hard. Everyone was amazed how well I did. I wasn't expected to do well after the surgery but I surprised all of them.

For me, I was well prepared for the surgeries. My surgeon was fantastic and his MA was also amazing. Was there pain? You bet. A lot? Yeah but that's relative. For some it would be excruciating. For me it wasn't simply because I've had such incredible pain for the last 25 years I've effectively become numb to a lot of the pain.

My GF needs both knees replaced and she's scared to death to do it and keeps putting it off. But that's another story.

I was given the choice on having a spinal or general anesthesia. No brainer for me, I took general even though some claim the spinal lasts longer. There's problems with spinal in that it doesn't always work for one thing. They've had people where it quit in the middle of surgery so they had to use general. With mine, since mine were so bad, what was normally expected to be 2 - 2.5 hours took 6.5 hours the first time and 8.5 hours the second time around. No way would a spinal have lasted that long! But I was given the choice. And there's of course risks with any anesthesia to consider too.

The doctor(s), therapists, nurses, etc were all amazed with my recovery, how well I did so soon. However a walker was ordered for a period of time immediately following surgery more for safety than necessity. With a hip replacement you're basically learning to walk again. Not a big deal but it's a bit different for a bit. Most adjust quickly.

Good luck. And you're wise to go with a surgeon you trust. Makes a big difference. Plus they know you and I think that's a big advantage.