My annual follow-up was back the very end of December. I had to arrive early, to get a few x-rays taken prior to seeing the Doctor (Thorsett, who is still just an awesome guy). Then, on to the exam room...
He looked at the x-rays, had me walk "the runway" (up & down the hall connecting the other exam rooms), and proclaimed that everything looked fabulous. I thought so too. I did tell him about getting back into agility with my dog, Dharma, a bit tentatively I admit. However, his first question was, "How is she doing!?" So, I showed him photos from our trial, explained her placements & Q's. He was encouraging and positive. He had just done another total hip replacement on a woman in her early 50's that also runs agility.
His final comment to me was that he wanted me back in 5 years. He also hoped that my next replacement would, because of his retirement, be done by one of his Junior partners...an estimated 15 years from now.
Life is great. My leg is great. I have strengthening work to do. My big toe goes numb now & then, and climbing up & down ladders seems to be the roughest thing on me. But, that's an easy enough thing to avoid!
Last post, I'm guessing. Hoping!
Friday, March 2, 2012
Friday, December 24, 2010
What the hell happened here!?
Or maybe a better question would be why is one leg twice the size of the other?? It's disgusting and feels a bit like the insides are going to burst out of my skin!
Yesterday the swelling was up around my butt and the incision, which runs about 6 or 7 inches down the back of my rear-end/upper-thigh as opposed to lower and on the side of my thigh.
Seriously, it is currently totally gross looking. Lumpy, still tinted orange from the iodine (*) scrub, and a massive purple-blue bruised creeping out from under the bandage. I can barely bend at the knee from the swelling. It's just about the weirdest sensation I've ever felt!
The above was written 12/12--5 days after my surgery. Now, 12/24, the swelling is limited to right above my incision, and down in my lower calf/ankle area. I have a cankle!! :-) It is still tender around my knee and down the outside of my calf, and ankle, but just tender. Not too bad.
I'm getting around pretty good, have been off the pain meds for over a week now, and have been driving and getting out & about a little at a time. I'm bad...I don't know what is "too much" until it's too late. Like when I'm trying to sleep and my entire leg is angry with me and won't let me sleep. But, that will pass soon enough.
I had the staples taken out 12/16. The surgeon had a student with him, since I guess I am considered an unusual case. That's par for the course. Of the 4 surgeries I've had in my life, all but one have been a bit extreme or unusual. Why? Most likely because I am too stoic for my own good and let things get out of hand before committing to have it "fixed". He said that the incision looked great, and that I'll be able to start pool PT soon. My first pool PT is next week--I can't wait! Regular PT has been going great. Painful at times, but great. My PT, Ginger Holman at Woodburn Therapy Group, is fantastic and has a great sense of humor about things. It helps. Immensely. I'm now doing mini-squats and riding an exercise bike for nearly 10 minutes without much agony! Ha!
Was it worth it? Hell yes. There is NO pain where there was before. My surgeon said that the ball was pretty much worthless, and that the cartilage around it just "peeled off like an orange peel" (sorry, pretty gross!). There was also pretty extensive damage to the socket, and he had to really put a lot of fixatives in there. My implement is ceramic on ceramic, which is supposed to be top of the line, be very durable, and only get smoother with time. The socket is reinforces farther back than a lot of people, due to the damage, so I have to be extra careful for a bit longer to ensure that the bone grows through the mesh he put in there to help it. I would recommend anyone in my area that needs any type of orthopedic surgery to seek out Dr. Thorsett, at Silverton Specialties. I had, given the circumstances, an outstanding experience with both the surgeon and the hospital staff.
It will take time...but I'm more than ready to wait out to be over a decade-plus of pain.
Yesterday the swelling was up around my butt and the incision, which runs about 6 or 7 inches down the back of my rear-end/upper-thigh as opposed to lower and on the side of my thigh.
Seriously, it is currently totally gross looking. Lumpy, still tinted orange from the iodine (*) scrub, and a massive purple-blue bruised creeping out from under the bandage. I can barely bend at the knee from the swelling. It's just about the weirdest sensation I've ever felt!
The above was written 12/12--5 days after my surgery. Now, 12/24, the swelling is limited to right above my incision, and down in my lower calf/ankle area. I have a cankle!! :-) It is still tender around my knee and down the outside of my calf, and ankle, but just tender. Not too bad.
I'm getting around pretty good, have been off the pain meds for over a week now, and have been driving and getting out & about a little at a time. I'm bad...I don't know what is "too much" until it's too late. Like when I'm trying to sleep and my entire leg is angry with me and won't let me sleep. But, that will pass soon enough.
I had the staples taken out 12/16. The surgeon had a student with him, since I guess I am considered an unusual case. That's par for the course. Of the 4 surgeries I've had in my life, all but one have been a bit extreme or unusual. Why? Most likely because I am too stoic for my own good and let things get out of hand before committing to have it "fixed". He said that the incision looked great, and that I'll be able to start pool PT soon. My first pool PT is next week--I can't wait! Regular PT has been going great. Painful at times, but great. My PT, Ginger Holman at Woodburn Therapy Group, is fantastic and has a great sense of humor about things. It helps. Immensely. I'm now doing mini-squats and riding an exercise bike for nearly 10 minutes without much agony! Ha!
Was it worth it? Hell yes. There is NO pain where there was before. My surgeon said that the ball was pretty much worthless, and that the cartilage around it just "peeled off like an orange peel" (sorry, pretty gross!). There was also pretty extensive damage to the socket, and he had to really put a lot of fixatives in there. My implement is ceramic on ceramic, which is supposed to be top of the line, be very durable, and only get smoother with time. The socket is reinforces farther back than a lot of people, due to the damage, so I have to be extra careful for a bit longer to ensure that the bone grows through the mesh he put in there to help it. I would recommend anyone in my area that needs any type of orthopedic surgery to seek out Dr. Thorsett, at Silverton Specialties. I had, given the circumstances, an outstanding experience with both the surgeon and the hospital staff.
It will take time...but I'm more than ready to wait out to be over a decade-plus of pain.
Saturday, December 11, 2010
It's all downhill from here!
I'm up, moving & ready to get back to 'normal'! Once I can sit at my desk for a bit, rather than standing over it, I'll post more about how things went. There were a few bumps in the road, but for the most part, it went well.
Thank you SO MUCH to all of my friends, family & well-wishers. You all helped make this a much more pleasant experience than it could have been. I have to admit, WiFi in the hospital is a wonderful, wonderful thing!!
Thank you SO MUCH to all of my friends, family & well-wishers. You all helped make this a much more pleasant experience than it could have been. I have to admit, WiFi in the hospital is a wonderful, wonderful thing!!
Thursday, December 2, 2010
The countdown is on...
So, I am now down to one more day of work (Friday), and then surgery to come Tuesday a.m. I'm excited. And terrified. Overall, excitement outweighs fear on the scale, but it really feels as if fear just all of a sudden jumped on the scale and said, "Hey! You! Some scary and difficult times are just about to begin!" No kidding,
like when the chunky kid jumps on the teeter-totter & tosses the littler kid right off! But, then the little kid gets a friend or two to help stabilize so they can all play together.
But, now I realize one huge reason why I chose the surgeon that I did. He is also a fantastic cheerleader! He said to me today, "Everyone thinks of hip replacement as an 'old person' surgery. But, YOU are not an old person, so we're going to treat this like a sports injury. And we are going for aggressive rehabilitation, are you ready for it?" I laughed, and simply said, "Bring it on."
like when the chunky kid jumps on the teeter-totter & tosses the littler kid right off! But, then the little kid gets a friend or two to help stabilize so they can all play together.
But, now I realize one huge reason why I chose the surgeon that I did. He is also a fantastic cheerleader! He said to me today, "Everyone thinks of hip replacement as an 'old person' surgery. But, YOU are not an old person, so we're going to treat this like a sports injury. And we are going for aggressive rehabilitation, are you ready for it?" I laughed, and simply said, "Bring it on."
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Walkers & Crutches & Canes, Oh my! Two weeks pre-op...
Today was the "pre-op" class for my upcoming total hip replacement. I was the only hip replacement
patient there, the other 3 people were there to have knee replacements done. Only twice did I hear,
"You're too young for this!" Yeah, no kidding! :-)
The class involved 3 different nurses telling us all about what will happen to us during and the day of our
surgery, what to expect the few days after surgery prior to going home, and about all of the different
"attachments" we will need (or, some that we may find useful).
Walkers, crutches and canes are all varying option for mobility assistance, depending upon what your surgeon
recommends. These are a few examples of "attachments". But, the nurse also talked about things like TED stockings, raised toilet seats, shower seats (all three necessary), a pincher-like grabber device, and a really cool thing called a "sock-it". The Sock-It is a funny looking half-tube that has what looks like jump-ropes attached to the end/sides of it. You put your sock over one end, hold the rope-handles, and slide your foot down the tube and into the sock. Pretty cool, since you cannot bend over for at least 8 weeks!
I also found out that once I am released, I'll be giving myself Arixtra (a blood thinner) injections for a week, yippee (insert sarcasm here). I KNOW it's necessary, but it's surely not going to be fun!
Blood was drawn from both arms, then more will be drawn next week for cross-matching. I should have asked WHY they cannot do the cross-matching with the blood drawn today, since that was initially my big roadblock for attending
the Eukanuba National Championships. The scheduler insisted that I have bloodwork done the day prior to my surgery, and that in no way could it be done sooner. The herding group shows on Sunday morning, I felt pretty confident about being able to get back in time from Long Beach, California for my surgery the following Tuesday. But, given the weather right now (light snow on the Willamette Valley floor), I don't want to chance not making it back in time. *sigh* Oh well...hopefully Dharma & I will have another opportunity in the years to come...best of luck to my friends that will be down there having a great time without me!
I'm still swimming 2 or 3 times a week, but it's getting COLD outside, and so I suppose the break from it will be nice until the weather eases up a bit! Right now, I'm beginning to compile a list of questions for my surgeon when we meet next week. Things like how long before I can return to work, how long before I can take up swimming again, and what my scar will look like.
Thankfully, I have a good support system of friends and family to help me through this, and the knowledge that after it's all said and done, I'll feel like myself again!
patient there, the other 3 people were there to have knee replacements done. Only twice did I hear,
"You're too young for this!" Yeah, no kidding! :-)
The class involved 3 different nurses telling us all about what will happen to us during and the day of our
surgery, what to expect the few days after surgery prior to going home, and about all of the different
"attachments" we will need (or, some that we may find useful).
Walkers, crutches and canes are all varying option for mobility assistance, depending upon what your surgeon
recommends. These are a few examples of "attachments". But, the nurse also talked about things like TED stockings, raised toilet seats, shower seats (all three necessary), a pincher-like grabber device, and a really cool thing called a "sock-it". The Sock-It is a funny looking half-tube that has what looks like jump-ropes attached to the end/sides of it. You put your sock over one end, hold the rope-handles, and slide your foot down the tube and into the sock. Pretty cool, since you cannot bend over for at least 8 weeks!
I also found out that once I am released, I'll be giving myself Arixtra (a blood thinner) injections for a week, yippee (insert sarcasm here). I KNOW it's necessary, but it's surely not going to be fun!
Blood was drawn from both arms, then more will be drawn next week for cross-matching. I should have asked WHY they cannot do the cross-matching with the blood drawn today, since that was initially my big roadblock for attending
the Eukanuba National Championships. The scheduler insisted that I have bloodwork done the day prior to my surgery, and that in no way could it be done sooner. The herding group shows on Sunday morning, I felt pretty confident about being able to get back in time from Long Beach, California for my surgery the following Tuesday. But, given the weather right now (light snow on the Willamette Valley floor), I don't want to chance not making it back in time. *sigh* Oh well...hopefully Dharma & I will have another opportunity in the years to come...best of luck to my friends that will be down there having a great time without me!
I'm still swimming 2 or 3 times a week, but it's getting COLD outside, and so I suppose the break from it will be nice until the weather eases up a bit! Right now, I'm beginning to compile a list of questions for my surgeon when we meet next week. Things like how long before I can return to work, how long before I can take up swimming again, and what my scar will look like.
Thankfully, I have a good support system of friends and family to help me through this, and the knowledge that after it's all said and done, I'll feel like myself again!
Sunday, November 7, 2010
First post--The History & 30 days out!
I'm 40. Yes, an active 40, healthy but currently "broken". Two years ago, I had 3 pins put into the femoral neck on my left leg in hopes to repair a severe fracture to a nearly 20 year old injury. Needless to say, it didn't work.
I've battled pain in it for over 10 years, pain that affected my walking for about 7 or 8 years, pain that affected my quality of life for about the past 4 years, and occasionally debilitating pain for the past year. Truth be told, it sucks ass. I despise not being able to do what I want to do. I have active dogs that I've done dog-sports and shown them for nearly the past 7 years and right now I'm barely able to do that. I work, but the past 2 years, even some of what I can do there is compromised. I've always taken a lot of pride in how well I do my job, but even that has dwindled some. Like I said, it sucks.
The purpose of this blog? I know I am not the only one going through stuff like this, even at my age a co-worker my same age just had a total hip replacement about a month ago. However, he's had some pretty severe spine issues for a few years, and other health issues. Other than my leg, my other health issues are strictly compensation problems. My spine is a bit twisted, my left knee hurts now & then, and my right heel is oftentimes quite painful from bearing the majority of my weight. I've somehow managed to keep my weight down, and actually have lost weight the past year or so. Despite the rampant heart issues and high blood pressure that runs on both sides of my family, I'm good in that department too. So, I have the highest of hopes that my surgery and post-surgery recovery will be successful. I have the utmost trust in my orthopedic surgeon (Dr. Thorsett, Silverton Specialists ) and fully understand the importance of rehabilitation physical therapy. Even now, with the pain of arthritis in the joint, I am swimming or attending water aerobics three times a week to strengthen my leg muscles that have been ignored for far too long.
Please, share your stories, I'd love to hear how your surgery & recovery went. Today is November 7th. My surgery date is December 7th. Which, by coincidence, is also my 41st birthday. I suppose this could be one of the most important birthday gifts I could give myself. :-)
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