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After Hip Surgery: Getting Dressed

To protect your hip, you must learn safe ways to do daily tasks. This includes getting dressed and undressed. Your doctor may suggest tools to help you. These include a reacher, sock aid, and dressing stick.

Caution

Be careful not to bend forward or lift your knee above your hip.

Putting on socks

Sit on a chair or on the side of the bed.

  • Pull the sock onto the sock aid as you have been shown.
  • Hold the sock in front of the foot on your operated side. Slip your foot into the sock. Pull the sock aid out of the sock.
  • Put the other sock on with the sock aid, or bring your foot toward you and slip the sock on with your hands.
Seated person using long-handled sock aid to put on sock.

Putting on pants

  • Sit on a chair or the side of the bed.
  • Using a reacher, catch the waist of the underwear or pants with the grasper.
  • First, slip the pants onto the leg that surgery was done on. Then slip your other leg into the pants.
  • Use the reacher to pull the pants over your feet and above your knee. Pull them to where you can reach them with your hands.
  • Hold the pants with one hand. Push up from the chair to stand. Steady yourself with your walker.
  • With your hands, pull the pants the rest of the way up.

Putting on shoes

  • Wear slip-on shoes or use elastic or Velcro shoelaces so you don't have to bend.
  • Sit on a chair. Put your foot into the shoe. Use a reacher or long-handled shoehorn to pull the shoe on.
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