Hip pain only at night

Romer

Romer

Recycles dryer sheets
Joined
Jun 13, 2021
Messages
421
Location
Centennial
About 2 year's ago I started having Hip pain3 only at night and only after I have been in bed for 4 hours. It wakes me up at 2-3AM. I shift and stretch and sometimes fall back asleep with it hurting a bit later.

I getup in the morning and it goes away. It doesn't bother me all day. I have tried various sizes of knee pillows.

I thought maybe it was the extra weight I was carrying. Having retired I became more active with 4 mile walks every day. 20 minutes doing cardio a day. Working in the yard, etc etc. I eat what I want, just less. Being more active seems to have lowered my appetite. I ended up losing 60 pounds since I retired. The pain I had in my knees is gone. I no longer need my CPAP or my Blood Pressure Medicine. Can run up and down the stairs instead of using the handrail to pull me up or carefully walk down.

I take 3 Advil and put Biofreeze on my hip before bed

My Dr gave me some stretching exercises to try which don't help

Still have the night time hip pain

I swapped our softer Temperpedic for the more FIRM one we had in the guest room. That did help more than anything else, but still occurring.

Before bed I do 5 min on the elliptical and 30 sit ups to loosen it up. That does help a bit, but still enough to wake me and keep me up. I do sleep better with that routine.

I looked through the supplements thread and am now taking Turmeric

It could be I need a Hip replacement, but it does not bother me at all during the day. From what I understand these are essentially paid for under Medicare, so wondering if I should wait another 2.5 years until I am 65.

It could be that even though I went to a firmer bed, Tempurpedics just don't work for me anymore. I would hate to spend thousands on another mattress to find I still have the hip pain. The ones we have were expensive and still very comfortable otherwise.

I know I should probably go see a Dr who specializes in this area.

Wondering if others experienced this and what they did to resolve. Thanks for the opportunity to vent if nothing else.
 
Romer said:
I know I should probably go see a Dr who specializes in this area.
Click to expand...

^ This, definitely this. It is a far better idea than consulting a bunch of random folks on the internet.

FWIW, a friend suffered from gradually increasing hip pain for a decade or more. His GP treated him with painkillers and physical therapy until it finally got to the point he couldn't walk without agonizing pain. He finally went to an ortho who did an MRI which revealed his hip joint was totally shot and scheduled a hip replacement. He's having a very rough time in rehab due to the deterioration of the muscles and tendons around the hip.

Moral of the story: don't wait.
 
REWahoo said:
^ This, definitely this. It is a far better idea than consulting a bunch of random folks on the internet.

FWIW, a friend suffered from gradually increasing hip pain for a decade or more. His GP treated him with painkillers and physical therapy until it finally got to the point he couldn't walk without agonizing pain. He finally went to an ortho who did an MRI which revealed his hip joint was totally shot and scheduled a hip replacement. He's having a very rough time in rehab due to the deterioration of the muscles and tendons around the hip.

Moral of the story: don't wait.
Click to expand...

+1

Better advice than this you won’t find anywhere.
 
Have you tried a drink of water? To increase your blood pressure and perfusion.
 
From a person who has two hip implants, don't wait too long to get it properly diagnosed. BTW, my new hips are GREAT!:)
 
I know someone who was having nearly constant hip pain, but just chalked it up to arthritis. Eventually, it got bad enough to have an MRI, which found what appeared to be some lesions. That was enough to order a PET scan, which discovered that it was cancer that had metastasized into the bones. About as bad as it could be.

"I don't want to go to the doctor just for this. Maybe it will go away by itself."
 
I have an appointment for January 10th with a Dr. I made it after posting this.

With already planned vacations for next year, not seeing a 3 month window for recovery until September. I see it says no long plane flights for 3 months after surgery. Vacations getting in the way . . First world problems :) Maybe mid February could be squeezed in. I will see what he has to say

Just confusing that it only hurts at night after I have been in bed for 3-4 hours
 
I lifted a 42 pound box the wrong way and hurt my back or strained a muscle. I get the same sort of symptom but my leg also hurts. I think the four hour delay is due to a slight pressure on the muscles gradually bui!ding up over the four hours.

I have had too many other things going on so I have put this off. Over the past four weeks seems to have gotten a little better.
 
I had sudden hip pain come on suddenly during an aggressive biking situation back in 2012. I expected it to fade after time like most pains I've had at times. But it didn't, although it was very mild most of the time. Xrayed in 2014 and found nothing. And now over 11 years later, with no worsening over those 11 years, until recently, I have had it bother me in bed when lying on my back, and I think it is worsened more now if I lie on my side with my weight on that hip. Just so weird the way it came on suddenly in 2012 at a specific point in a bike ride and has remained pretty much the same in the 11 years since. But I hope it's not getting worse now. I'm avoiding lying on the side with that hip. It's usually not something I feel during exercise like biking, just occasionally in a mild way.
 
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My hip pain improved with firmest mattress I could find and stopped sleeping with wedge. Then developed sciatica. PT helped, along with Alieve. MRI indicated arthritis of spine so am taking MSM powder (learned about MSM on this forum) mixed with tart cherry juice. After 3 weeks am no longer needing pain meds and all is back to normal.

Glad you’re getting it checked out. Once you know for sure the cause, you can decide which treatment options to try first.
 
My guess is the hip is shot, arthritis...
Im only 51, have degenerative joint & disc disease.
Been in the gym most of life along with being a ford engine mechanic for 30+ years for the same dealer my entire career,
My back & both of my shoulders are shot...
My point, I have arthritis in both shoulders, I have my good days & bad but I can have zero pain during the day, come night time I want to rip my arms out of their sockets.
My shoulders kill at night!
If you do an internet search, arthritis pain at night"
And the pain has nothing to with im imagining it cuz my mind isnt busy at night, its there at night but mistly not during the day even though I also have both torn rotators & right torn labrum.
You will find multiple articles....
Heres one article:
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/arthritis-symptoms-worse-at-night#causes
 
Romer said:
I have an appointment for January 10th with a Dr. I made it after posting this.

With already planned vacations for next year, not seeing a 3 month window for recovery until September. I see it says no long plane flights for 3 months after surgery. Vacations getting in the way . . First world problems :) Maybe mid February could be squeezed in. I will see what he has to say

Just confusing that it only hurts at night after I have been in bed for 3-4 hours
Click to expand...
+1. I don’t recommend going to a doctor for every little thing, but you’ve made a good effort to figure it out yourself, time to ask a professional. Hope it’s something easy to address. Getting old ain’t for sissies.
 
I second the suggestion to get a pro assessment. Iwas boring an airplane via tarmac stairs and twisted to grab a bag from behind me and got a sharp pain in the groin. Initially only a mild inconvenience. 7 mon later after my PT told me it likely not a hip flexor injury as I thought but arthritis. I was a week from an intl trip I suffered through before I could get a x-ray. Ortho told me the hip joint was shot and when did I want joint surgery. In our market that is a 30-60 day wait.
I concluded being older was not going to make it easier so scheduled as soon as possible--now set for late Jan. The amount of discomfprt in the last month was not necessary had I had xray last summer.
You are not doing yourself or your body any favors waiting.
 
Romer said:
I know I should probably go see a Dr who specializes in this area.
Click to expand...
Yes, go find an orthopedist who specializes in hips, preferably in a practice that can also look at your back, feet, and legs (sometimes a problem in one area manifests in another, ie, uneven walking is a foot problem that actually wrecks your hip.

Get an xray, and hopefully an MRI. A diagnosis is the best first thing before any more stretching ideas - as you might be doing the wrong ones.
 
Romer said:
I swapped our softer Temperpedic for the more FIRM one we had in the guest room. That did help more than anything else, but still occurring.
Click to expand...
Perhaps it's still your bed? How does your hip feel after you sleep in a different bed (e.g. like a hotel bed)?

I have a 3 layer foam mattress that I can adjust the firmness by shifting them around (e.g. hard layer on top, soft layer in middle, med layer at bottom, etc). It's trial and error to see which firmness works best for you. Perhaps this is something to explore, especially if a Dr. suggests going under the knife.
 
Interesting that a firm mattress reduces your pain. I find that when my hips, shoulders, or whatever hurt that a soft memory foam topper on top of my memory foam mattress helps to reduce the pain.
A couple years ago while helping a friend he noticed I'd limp a few steps after getting up off the floor. He said that was similar to him before he had a hip replaced. Talked to my doc about that and where it hurt and he said it was the tendon connecting the hip to the knee and not at the joint. Gave me some stretches and it helped. Still limp at first but after walking a bit the pain goes away.
Listen to your body and get it checked out.
 
It's good that you are going to an orthopedic to allow for a proper diagnosis. You will be better able to assess your condition and potential treatments following a diagnosis.


If - you need a hip replacement - and that is as of yet unknown - I would not base my timing of surgery upon the advent of Medicare.


Does sleeping in a recliner and/or not side sleeping on the hip reduce the pain level?
 
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braumeister said:
I know someone who was having nearly constant hip pain, but just chalked it up to arthritis. Eventually, it got bad enough to have an MRI, which found what appeared to be some lesions. That was enough to order a PET scan, which discovered that it was cancer that had metastasized into the bones. About as bad as it could be.

"I don't want to go to the doctor just for this. Maybe it will go away by itself."
Click to expand...
"In my case" more than 9 times out of 10, "most things" do just go away/heal all by itself, usually within a few weeks or at worse within a few months. But at some point (certainly less than 2 years) I'll have it checked if it doesn't go away.

Of course, some common sense is needed. Ex, I broke a tooth (molar) a few years ago. I knew immediately it wasn't going to get better by itself. :) So in a few days I was off to the dentist. It was broken bad enough the dentist couldn't save it.:(

OTOH, as an example, if I were to start having severe chest pains and a hard time breathing, it's off to the emergency room, ASAP.
 
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Romer said:
I have an appointment for January 10th with a Dr. I made it after posting this.

With already planned vacations for next year, not seeing a 3 month window for recovery until September. I see it says no long plane flights for 3 months after surgery. Vacations getting in the way . . First world problems :) Maybe mid February could be squeezed in. I will see what he has to say

Just confusing that it only hurts at night after I have been in bed for 3-4 hours
Click to expand...

Cart before horse - Surgery should be the last thing your doc is recommending, and if they are a good ortho that's the attitude they'll take. It could be a million other things, so diagnosis is the first thing you do.

And even if you do need a hip replacement, or there is something torn, if your doctor recommends a cortisone shot to tide you over a few months give that a try.

A lot of things that don't hurt much or at all in the daytime become raging angry joints at night. Talk to anyone with shoulder pain. In part, it's because the body retains water more overnight, which increases inflammation just a tick.
 
The history you give of pain at night is suggestive of a bone lesion called osteoid osteoma. The classic history is pain at night relieved by aspirin or anti-inflammatory. Most patients are much younger than you are but they can occasionally occur in older adults. They are usually located more toward the middle of a bone, not right at the joint but they can occur near a joint.

I agree you should see an orthopedist. Given your age, this is likely osteoarthritis, but make sure the orthopedist considers the possibility of osteoid osteoma. When they occur around the hip they can be confused with other pathology. You don't want an unnecessary hip joint replacement.
 
MarieIG said:
It's good that you are going to an orthopedic to allow for a proper diagnosis. You will be better able to assess your condition and potential treatments following a diagnosis.


If - you need a hip replacement - and that is as of yet unknown - I would not base my timing of surgery upon the advent of Medicare.


Does sleeping in a recliner and/or not side sleeping on the hip reduce the pain level?
Click to expand...

I am not in a lot of pain, just enough to wake me up and be uncomfortable. If I stretch in bed and shift positions it goes away for a while. If I lay on my back, it doesn't hurt at all

My ankles also can get uncomfortable after about 4 hours. Both of them kind of around the whole leg and sometimes radiates up. I will bring that up as well

Thanks everyone for the support
 
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