Recliner?

[LynetteG]

I do not have a recliner in my home, and was considering possibly purchasing a recliner from a medical store which costs $850 approx. This chair not only goes all the way back into a laying down position, but also comes up the other way bringing you into almost a standing position to help get you out of the chair. Do you think I should spend the money on getting a recliner? My brother thinks that it's not good to have a recliner after this kind of surgery, as he says you need to get used to sitting upright - what's all of your opinions on this?

[loves to skate]

Lynette,

I wouldn't waste my money on one. They are meant for people with arthritis of the knees and hips who can't get up out of a chair without some help. After surgery, you should sit in a hard chair with arms (like a captains chair) to help you push up and when you can sit no longer, lie down on a sofa or a bed and log roll when you need to get up. If you use an expensive recliner like you are looking at, you will rely on it to get you up, rather than using your muscles to help build back your strength. Just my 2 cents worth.

Sally

[rich1752]

I used a recliner when I got home, but never reclined it. I would prop about 3 pillows behind me, so it would keep me straight up. I did try to recline it once, but it felt uncomfortable. I wouldn't waste my money.

[doodie]

Before my surgery my husband and I bought matching 'home theater' type reclining chairs - one for each of us. We did think about what might be comfortable after the surgery and I thought these particular chairs would be great....boy was I ever wrong! I could do no more than perch on the end of it for 5 minutes at a time. The seat was just too cushy and forget about the reclining part - not even remotely possible for me.

But around 5 months out, I tried sitting in the chair and reclining in it and it's good! So it wasn't a waste of money after all - just took awhile to be able to use it.

[debbei]

Lynette,

I wouldn't waste my money on one. They are meant for people with arthritis of the knees and hips who can't get up out of a chair without some help. After surgery, you should sit in a hard chair with arms (like a captains chair) to help you push up and when you can sit no longer, lie down on a sofa or a bed and log roll when you need to get up. If you use an expensive recliner like you are looking at, you will rely on it to get you up, rather than using your muscles to help build back your strength. Just my 2 cents worth.

Sally

I'm with Sally. At first all I could sit in were straight backed chairs with pillows behind my back. I tried to sit in recliners but they felt terribly uncomfortable. It was a good 6 months before a recliner felt good, and even then, it was with lots of extra pillows.

[LynetteG]

Thank you all for your input - that was exactly pretty much what my brother said

[ADMoul]

I guess we're all different. The recliner we had was my lifesaver for the first week or so at home. (It was just your basic leather one, not one of those with the seat that lifts you up.) I just couldn't get comfortable in bed. We bought the 3" mattress topper and a week ago, took it off. It just didn't work for me. I would get sort of squished down into it and it made it all the more difficult to try to move in bed. (My husband loved it, but that's the way it always goes!) Anyway, I could sleep in the recliner pushed back with my feet up on the ottoman more easily than I could in bed for that first week and the leather was easy to move around on. Granted, I had muscle spasms and more pain and discomfort at night than I had during the day so I guess it all depends on how you heal and what works for you. I'm one that likes a really firm mattress, though so maybe that was part of it. Some chairs are harder to get out of than others and I used a dining room chair with arms and a pillow at the kitchen table for meals. On another subject, definitely get the raised toilet seat with arms. For me that was a necessity and am still using it. Good luck--it's an interesting journey, but worth it!

[LynetteG]

Thanks Anne - I did actually get the toilet seat with the arms on it, and I also got a contraption that helps you put your socks on without having to bend, and a picker upper from my local medical store . I tell my kids that these are my hospital toys