Post op day 4

This has been completely different than I thought it would be.

I'm up on my feet, with crutches, but up on my feet...okay every once and a while I don't use the crutches. I probably shouldn't do that yet.

The last few days have been a mark of improvement. Every morning I wake up and I have more muscle control, less pain, less swelling and I can function a bit more normal. I did push it the last two days, pushing myself to walk, stand, keep up with my family and baby niece; and am consequently exhausted today. I can sleep a 10+ hour night and feel well rested. It is amazing what the body needs after a surgery.

I'm looking forward to the small and big steps in my recovery. I really can't believe what I am capable of at day 4 post op.

Here's to speedy, and smooth recovery!

understanding fai

here is a link from an amazing blog by a gal named vanessa. she has been through hip arthroscopy and it is such a blessing to read about the expereience of someone who is on the other end of all of this.

this link is to help people understand what it is like to go through all of this...good words she has, good words.

oh for it to be january...

Whelp, met with my surgeon yesterday. All in all a relieving visit. A lot more validation as to why i am feeling and the way I am. And surgery is three months out!

Turns out I do have femoral acetabular impingement (fai), with a turned hip socket, labral tearing (which includes cartlage delamination), and damage in general from the wear and tear of a misshapen femoral/acetabular joint.

I'm an info junkie and I thrive on the details so to have a surgeon who went through everything in detail was a huge relief. He was honest about the success rate, complications and general reality of the surgery.

So for details...at this point my surgery date is three months out, God willing I make it that long! I will be out of work about 6 weeks and fully recovered anywhere from 6 months to a year. The success rate is 60%-80% and with the bounty of findings I am a perfect candidate (hoping this means full recovery for me!). If the surgery is not a success I will have to live with it until a full replacement happens. This is, of course, worse case scenario. I'm just a realist wanting to know all the possibilities. There are possibilities of arthritis with the cartlage damage already incurred, but I have hope things will get cleaned up and I will be good as new!

At 26 I never thought I would be going in for hip surgery, but I will be ringing in the new year with a new outlook, and a repaired hip!

And in the mean time here's to pain management for three months :|

hurdles

9.23.10

physical therapy in essence was nothing but twenty dollars down the drain. i was told there was nothing my pt could do for me at this point. i had these lofty hopes i could get strenthening underway before surgery hit, but that was crushed. i am more than deflated...i thought there was more i could do pre-op to make post-op life a bit easier. the reality is sobering...

i was even more devastated to find out there might be warning signs of osteoarthritis...talk about a downer. at 26 i shouldn't feel like an 85 year-old woman, but after a long day i hurt...i wake up achy and now the possibility that i will live with the prospect of hip replacement in my lifetime. i might be looking too far ahead, but to know my life will forever be altered by this is a hard pill to swallow.

let's look at the positive. from going to the pt i was able to read the mri-a results, hence the arthritis scare, and find out where my tear is. i have an anterior tear (@ the front of my hip socket). affirming the pain i feel when i sit down is the pain i feel from the tear and not something else. i like having the details, putting the pieces together and knowing where things are jacked up and why i am in pain.

i am ultimately blessed beyond my own belief. i have such an amazing support system that lets me complain and cry when i need to and that is there for me every step of the way. i am thankful to not go at this alone.