6 Month Post-Revision Update

Wow, I can't believe it has been 6 months already. 6 months since I tossed the hip brace, 6 months since I retired my crutches, 6 months since I was praying to a higher power to either make me stop vomiting or take me out back and shoot me, 6 month since I have had an argument with a surgeon :-)

For those of you just joining my blog, here is how it all went down: In March of 2007, I had my right hip scoped for a labral tear and pincer FAI. In July, the left hip was scoped for a labral tear, cam and pincer FAI. At that point, the right hip went bad and I realized I needed surgery again. It took a lot of diagnostic tests, injections, pleading and begging, but finally, my surgeon agreed to do it, but.....there was a catch. He was convinced that my pain was from a tight, impinging psoas, I did not think so. In fact, I was so sure, I made him promise he wouldn't touch my psoas. I wouldn't even sign a consent for for it I was so sure. So, he hesitantly agreed to do the surgery with the psoas promise, and as a compromise, I agreed to let him do a psoas bursectomy, if needed. Lo and behold, I woke up with an intact psoas as well as sans bursectomy since the psoas was not the problem.

3 months of long, intense rehab, with a few blips and bumps and knee injuries along the way, as well as some intermittent PRN PT visits, here I am.

I can't believe that 6 months later, I still walk around and gleefully think to myself "whoohoo, I am no pain", with a little smile. I still feel like I am walking on clouds some days and as if this was a dream, and I will soon wake up with that dreaded groin pain. I still say to myself almost every day. "shit, I am one lucky chick to have a happy ending after so much bullshit", 3 surgeries in 8 months really takes a toll on you, physically and emotionally.

So, what is still going on? My psoas has its moments, and more than once I have had to return for a quickie PT session to have it worked on. It also has caused me to have some back pain in addition to the muscle aches. My adductors are weak and tight, and I swear I think I have had a "snapping adductor". My psoas does snap now, I am not sure if it did, or to what extent it did pre-op. My theory to why I have so much muscle pain now is well described in prior post. I have soooo much more ROM now than I ever did and my muscles are trying to compensate by tightening up. I need to continue to strengthen them, but I prefer Spinning to PT, so who knows how this will end!

All in all, muscle pain and soreness 6 months later is a good deal for me if it means I have no more joint pain! If you need a surgeon, I have only positive things to say about mine! And what can be better than a happy ending!

Why I Still Don't Think My Psoas Needs to Be Released

I have been experiencing pain in my psoas with some snapping, and no, it is (still) not pride that keeps me from running back to my OS to have it released. My feelings still hold true in my case, and in many cases regarding releasing tendons.

Many of you have asked me why I was so adamant about not having my psoas released. No, I am not a psychotic bitch who wanted to make my OS absolutely crazy, or an arrogant PT who thinks she knows everything. Firstly, I knew with all my heart that it was not the root of my problem, so releasing it would not have abolished my pain, and I was 100% correct in that, as was found on arthroscopic examination. Another point, for me, is that I have a hypermobile SI joint, which periodically gives me problems. All of my surrounding muscles are extremely tight, hamstrings, TFL, ITB, Piriformis....My feelings are that my muscles tighten to protect my SI and maintain in correct alignment.

My right hip is the one giving me the psoas issues.This is the "revision hip". This hip now has a tremendous amount of ROM, compared to pre-op, and compared to the contralateral side, since a lot of bone was taken down. Don't misunderstand, I love the way it feels now, but, my body has never functioned in this range before, it "thinks" that I now have an unstable hip, which in comparison to pre-op, I do. My ROM values are normal and not indicative of a hypermobile hip, yet I do not have the neuromuscular control yet to feel stable there. Initially, my adductors were tightening and going into spasm to stabilize. Once I strengthened them well (with a few knee blips along the way), they fared quite well.

Then my ITB went haywire, and still does occasionally, but I had been doing a lot of abductor strengthening as well. Psoas is now playing into this and making sure to get its share of the limelight. I am hoping that my new found love of Pilates will help with the neuromuscular control I need in the right hip, to help the entire joint stabilize and function well.

Lets just say, I did not have this realization, and decided that now would be a good time to have my psoas released, since it is acting up, I would most likely end up even more unstable hip and would probably begin to have problems with my ITB or maybe the adductors again. This would lead me down a vicious path of multiple releases. Even if the releases are not surgical, but rather manual (PT type) releases, things don't always work out so well, as I experienced at another course I took. It is imperative to retrain the muscles properly to avoid this and to re-educate the joint. Neuromuscular re-education needs to be a huge part of rehab, not just bridges, straight leg raises and clam shells.

I know I am having issues because I have not been the most compliant patient with my PT, especially after the MCL incident in December. But, I am pretty fed up with hip issues, so maybe I need to stop writing and get my butt into Pilates gear!!!

Disclaimer: This is in no way meant to be printed and brought to your OS to negotiate a tendon release (tenotomy), every case is different and every body is different. This post (and the entire blog) represent only my opinions, are not medically or scientifically backed, but rather, me venting and sharing personal ideas and experiences.
I will get off of my soap box now.

I Think That If I Ever Wake Up Painfree I May Actually be Dead

So where do I begin the tale of this beautifully hideous Monday. Maybe with the continued knee pain, or with the fact that I am no longer a PT drop out. Yes, you heard correctly. P will have the pleasure of seeing me again (as a patient) on Wed.

Why? Why is this happening? Should I look at this logically, scientifically? Or more in the "why do bad things happen to good people" way? So....the knee pain is there, it is not constant but it can get pretty bad at times. Luckily, it goes just as quickly as it came. But....I must be somehow compensating (ahhhhh....I hate that word) since my right hip (left knee is troublesome) started acting up yesterday. I have been stretching and FABERing and doing all sorts of fun things but I think it is out of my hands now and needs some 'more' professional help. Hence my crawling back to P to work on it and also have a quick look at my knee since I think this is all due to that adductor exercise way back when.

I am pretty sure the hip thing is the adductor insertion point onto the pubis becoming tight and painful, I am also having trouble getting into a full FABER position. Honestly though, I am not very good about stretching on my own and Spinning is all I do for exercise with a (really) quick stretch at the end. Maybe I need to practice what I preach a little bit more.

I will see what P has to say but the thought of even an MRI at this point makes me want to live in pain for the rest of my life. Also, I don't know how much I want to know what is going on in this knee, in grad school I had it x-rayed for similar issues and it showed decreased joint space and an MRI showed a joint effusion. I never followed up bc I had custom orthotics made which helped 99.9% and then I got pregnant with L, finished school, got pregnant with Jk, had 3 hip arthroscopies...so I have been sort of busy. I am seriously hoping that if I am diligent about wearing my orthotics (cut back on the cute Tory Burch's) and start strengthening and stretching the right muscles, things will get better!

ITB, WTF????

So I did overdo it yesterday, but there was a Tory Burch outlet! Yes, I went shopping, but not just any shopping, outlet shopping. Which includes walking and walking and walking. Right hip was on strike yesterday, I guess it read my previous post and said "hahaha, I'll show you how happy you can be" and acted up all day. My ITB was sore during the mall trek and my adductors once again began firing little spasms. I am having a ton of company this weekend so I spent some time in the kitchen last night, plus, I am on the committee of a big event on Sat. night so I spent time setting that up. By the time I got home to make my Moroccan meat turnovers, I could barely stand. Add to the picture that J was actually home and wanted to (gasp) help in the kitchen, I made turnovers for about 30 minutes (could have been done in half the time had it been a solo job, but its the thought that counts!)

Fast forward to this morning, 6AM alarm clock goes off and ITB is KILLING me. I mean REALLY killing. Like, call P and beg him to squeeze me in today killing. But I didn't. If things don't shape up by tonight I have a foam roller at home I can roll over the ITB. Or, if J is still in a good mood I will teach him how to stretch it!

Turning the Bend

I think tomorrow is 12 weeks post-op, wow, how time flies when you are having fun! I can't believe I have had the privilege of experiencing 3 hip arthroscopies, how did I ever get so lucky!
Thankfully, everything went super this last time! I attended PT a whopping 3 times this week, I guess that takes care of the dropout status, for now anyway. J is traveling this week so I won't be making it in early to have P work on me, so this week I revert to drop-out status once again. The only thing is, I may really need P tomorrow. My SI joint is giving me grief this week. It was giving him grief as well Friday, I asked him to manipulate it, which is a high velocity, low amplitude thrust that if done correctly, will generally result in a "pop". I am generally a great "popper" but it would not go for him. I was so sore all day Friday and Saturday as well. Today it feels better but I am keeping my fingers crossed that it remains like this. SI pain stinks, I develop a deep achiness right along my PSIS. It is definitely not my first bout of SI pain though, at one pint in time, I had taught J how to fix it for me, the only trouble this time is that I am not sure what type of dysfunction I am having so cannot instruct him in correcting it. I find that in the past, I am always developing 'issues' on the weekend, when I have no access to 'help'! SI joint issues are a small price to pay for hip relief, and I will take this any time over groin pain, losing my mind, and another surgery!

A New Culprit

SARTORIUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I waltzed into PT yesterday 40 minutes late and begged P to take me! He did luckily bc the tightness is making me insane. I aksed him to figure out something new, tear some tissue, break scar tissue, jump on my leg, surgically release it.......I was desperate and annoyed! After he calmed me down, he got to work. He palpated sartorius on each side and found it was more prominent on the right, more tight and more tender. Aha! So off he went to ART it and do his magic. He also continued with the PA mobs in prone with some ER followed by a serious hip flexor stretch with a dose of contract-relax. I felt amamzing when I finally had to get up and see patients. Best I have felt in a while!

Unfortunately, I worked a REALLY long day yesterday to cover someones vacation, and I am working today to cover as well, so after 8 hours straight on my feet, I was in pain and (gasp) limping a little. I am better this morning and getting ready for another long day in the office.

Interestingly, as P was working, he was feeling around my scope sites on my 'tender' area and it has become a little bit numb. Par for the course I guess. It still burns at times as well, and I keep forgetting to try the Lidocaine patches. Lets see if today I can remember!

Thank You To the Wonderful People in My Billing Department

I just received this letter in the mail:

Informational copy only. Original letter addressed to MSPT (my office)
Dear Billing Department:

We're responding to your 011708 inquiry about our processing Susie on 12/26/07.
We determined that we processed this claim accurately and no further payment is due. The reason (s) is listed at the bottom of this letter.

Network physicians/ other health care professionals/ facilities: Please refer to your administrative guide for further review options.
Non network physicians: Please refer to the PRA for any review rights that may be available to you.

If you have questions about this letter please call customer care.

Under the plan, notification was required but not received. Therefore, we have declined payment for the service because requirements of the plan were not met.

Let me explain the absurdity of this. First of all, I have been in PT for 10 months now (and counting). My plan only allows for 30 PT visits/ year, in or out of network. My office is in network, but my therapist is out of network (it is a big game we play with the insurance companies). To access my in-network benefits, authorization is needed by an outsourced PT company who will read P's notes and 'approve' x number of visits. Then he requests more, and it becomes a pile up of paperwork and a losing battle with the insurance company. I have out of network benefits too. These do not require authorization (i.e prior notification), and get billed at a higher rate and paid at a higher rate. So the billing department has been billing out of network. It is great for everyone. I get my deductible taken care of (they obviously don't charge me), P has no paperwork, and the office gets paid more. These out of network visits are also capped at 30, but no one seemed to notice, or someone in the billing department appealed them...who knows. All I know is that PT has been paid for, very well I might add, for the last 10 months. And I have definitely exceeded 30 visits (I think I exceeded 30 visits with one surgery alone! Dr.Kelly's PT protocol is for 1x/week x 1st month, 2x/week 2nd month, 3x/week 3rd month) At some point in time, it became more difficult to bill out of network so the billing people started billing in network. They have done so for a while, and now, United Healthcare realized there was no authorization. Oops!
I keep forgetting to count the total # of visits I have had, it is scary though! I have an appintment tomorrow that I am keeping!

I am finally feeling less tight in the capsule. Ironically, I have not been on my bike since Thursday bc of all the family outings. Tonight I am finally in bed, alone, and ready to sleep ALOT!

As Tight as a.....

I can't think of a simile, but my hip is TIGHT. As I was riding tonight, I got into some standing sprints for the first time, but it felt as if there was a cord wrapping tighter and tighter around around my hip with each revolution, until I couldn't take it anymore. I kept saying to myself, 'it is not your problem, P will deal with it tomorrow...' but hell no, it is my problem now! Especially since Jk is asleep and I have no one to sit on my leg and stretch me!

Interestingly, I had a pretty shitty day on Sunday and Monday. Ironically, those 2 days were really really cold, the kind of days where you don't want to go outside unless absolutely necessary, the days where you drive down a street in Manhattan and there are no people on the sidewalk. Why is the cold bothering me so much???? I was between Tylenol and Darvocet, I was going to start with Tylenol and then take a Darvocet if it didn't help but it must have bc I never went for the stronger stuff!

I am going ice skating again tomorrow with hipster Amy, who has been banned from the ice by Dr. Kelly, but L really wants to learn how to skate! I am more nervous about freezing my ass off than breaking something since we are going to the Wollman Rink in Central Park, the indoor rinks are closed tomorrow or don't have public hours, I already started packing a bag with extra socks and sweaters! You can take the girl out of Miami, but you can't take Miami out the girl (did I ever mention I was from Miami, and have been 'stuck' in NY since college???)

On a positive note, I think I had the best ride tonight since my revision scope! YAY!!!
Just curious....should I still call scope#1 a 'failed hip arthroscopy' or 'part 1 of the job for my right hip'!
Also, I think I have to change my profile since I mention the 'twisting/popping' incident and really, it has nothing to do with anything, other than sending everyone down the wrong path on the ever so fun investigation of 'why does my hip hurt AFTER my arthroscopy?"
(I have to stop exercising at night, I have way too much energy)

The Importance of PT (blah blah blah)

I returned to PT, again. I am going to stop being such a hotshot and STOP dropping out. I even made another appointment for Wednesday. See, I am having some joint capsule issues, yes, after hip arthroscopy, even 9 weeks later (or am I at 10....I have lost track) you can still have these ridiculous issues. It is a joke at this point, I am fixed, yet still having issues.

My capsule is so tight, P did work hard (thanks P) and is surprised at how tight I get. The mobility within the joint is poor (not my ROM, but the joint accessory motion), I am stiff. Since we are having so much fun already, m gait becomes stiff and I begin to lose extension, again. So I walk slightly 'off', and now my back hurts AHHHHHHHHH.

Luckily, it is stiffness in my back, and luckily, the people I work with are amazing and can quickly help me. Interestingly, the pain travels along my vertebrae. Yesterday, I pointed to where it hurt and P said it was L3-4. He did a manipulation on it, and it was better. Then my thoracic spine hurt, so I recruited another PT (I was too embarrassed to tell P something else hurt) so he manipulated my T-spine. I think every vertebrae 'popped' with one quick manip! When I got home, my lumbar spine hurt again and I really needed to 'crack it'. Clearly, J is not skilled or trained in this, so I have been doing this twisty rotation thing hoping to elicit a pop, I have not been all that successful.I did go on my foam roller for a while and it helped, but I need some PT too!

Back pain is worse than hip pain bc I can find few positions that alleviate it, other than lying on my stomach with a pillow under me.
And the fun continues! When will this end?
I do plan on ice skating this week though, back pain or no back pain.I had grand plans to go rock climbing this weekend but the gym I chose is closed for a competition, so it will have to wait! But I am so excited to do it again!!

I am in Adductor Hell

Poor P, he just doesn't get it. He is going to be shocked tomorrow at how things have deteriorated in the 'PT addressable area' tomorrow (as opposed to the 'surgeon addressable area'). My muscles and joint capsule are so tight, it hurts so much. I contemplated taking a Darvocet today the adductor was so bad. I ended up lying on the floor in a FABER position and having Jk sit on my knee to stretch it out. I want it to 'pop', or something, I think I am developing scar tissue in there and it is contributing to my problem. So it has been a rough day!

To top things off, I took the kids to CVS, which for some reason unbeknown to me, makes them wild. So we finally got out of there in one piece and Jk needed a diaper change. It was snowing and cold, but we had no choice. So I started doing it in the passenger seat of my car, but then realized I ran out of wipes. "Shit', I said. To which L replied 'Mommy, that is not a nice word.'

Someone actually asked me today if I can 'feel the cold' in my hips. I am not sure if any of this is weather related. I like to think it is not, since I reserve thatfor 90 year old little old ladies with arthritic hips (so I fit 50% of that description). Hmmmmmm, maybe I can!

Everyone is in bed, I am also getting ready to get in bed soon and watch Gossip Girl on Tivo.

Just To Keep everyone on the Edge of Their Seats...

My hip hurts. I am pretty sure the muscles are acting up, but I am f___ing annoyed. See, we are past this. It is like a relationship, we should be done with the awkward, getting to know you part, and be on to the 'romantic walks on the beach', or rock climbing and spinning together. I have yet to 'poke around' the area to figure it out. Yes, instead of sitting my lazy butt in front of the computer, I should be stretching, but I had such a great ride tonight I want to relax a little.

Maybe it is wishful thinking (I am rambling again...I know), but before the FAI was bulldozed out, I could literally take my index finger and point to where the pain was. This pain is readily identified with the entire pinky side of my hand, from the tip of my finger to my wrist, right in the joint crease.

Also, pesky adductor is acting up again. I need to get off of the computer and stretch....I did make an appointment to see P on Friday morning, which means I am, once again, not a PT dropout. Lets keep me at PT PRN status. I actually received a prescription from a doctor today which said PT at 'my discretion'! So I am doing the same....but for myself.

I play this game called 'what if I was my own patient', to see how I would handle this muscle issue. Firstly, I would not approve of rock climbing or ice skating yet. Maybe spinning, but low-level. Definitely not what I have been doing some nights, like tonight. Did I mention I hurt more now that I am off of the bike than I did before I got on? Oops, I left out some important details. I also had a crazy day at work plus I cooked dinner for 2 other families tonight. Ok, so maybe I don't practice what I would otherwise preach. But this hip shit is getting really old.

Rain, Rain Go Away

I woke up early this morning, anticipating 6 inches of snow, so I had to give myself plenty of time to dig out my car and make it to work. I woke up to rain. Yuck. But better than snow! It rained all day, it was a dreary, cold, January day in New York. The weather made my hip feel achey. Like an old lady. I could 'feel the rain'.

I was hoping for a snow day, the office would have been slow, yesterday we all took a continuing education course, so a slow day would have been great for practicing! But what I got was a rainy, achey day.

Being that I was at my office yesterday, and P was there too, I took advantage and had him mob my hip. I have been getting tight again, the same joint capsule, stiffy feeling. Not the clamping down feeling, more like tight and stiff. So he worked his magic and I was happy. I don't think that counts as 'PT', so I am putting myself back into dropout status.

My tender area near the top of my thigh, around my scope sites miraculously got better the day I picked up the Lidocaine patches. It is not 100%, but it has gotten better. I have been having some burning too, in the tender area as well as directly above my knee, where I was numb immediately post-op. I have not tried the patches yet.

To add to all of this fun, I think I am entering into a Crohn's flare-up. I have upped my meds and will self treat for the time being! I had a feeling it was coming, I have been exhausted the past few days and wasn't too sure why. Now I know!

Maybe we will have a snow day later in the week and can practice our new techniques. I finished a continuing education course yesterday and signed up for a new one in April. I think I will be going alone though. It will be difficult to go with no friends, especially since I am always embarrassed at all of my postural 'dysfunctions'! Yesterday, I was having trouble with my hand placement for a technique, so the instructor came over to help me and asked if I could pronate my wrist more, since it looked like I wasn't fully pronated....Nope...I am tight all over!!!! Oh well, I still 'got it', and now officially work for the best PT practice in my area, as voted so by the residents!!!

Landsickness

No, I am not being facetious. I have friggin' land sickness. I have been off of the boat since Monday morning yet my body feels like I am rocking. Clearly, it is all in head, or brain, or ears...or something! I have discovered these acupressure sea bands that seem to be helping, but I have to always wear long sleeves to cover them up for fear of looking like a bigger lunatic than I already am!

The cruise was great, rock climbing was incredible. It was definitely a personal achievement, not bc I need to climb walls to feel accomplished, but my hip can handle it, which makes me feel awesome! Kudos to P and Dr. Kelly for making it happen!

At this point, things are great. I can feel like there is 'something' in my hips, the left one (6 months out) feels more 'confident' when I walk, run, ride....The right still has occasional adductor issues. Time will heal!

I am in limbo with PT! The day I left for the cruise was the same day as I had the horrible capsule issues after scope #2 (7 weeks, 5 days). That day, the joint capsule started tightening. Shit, I thought, its happening again. But I tried to stretch it as often and discreetly as possible (in the airport and on the plane) and warded off an attack by my angry joint capsule. I did take Darvocet that day, just to be sure I wouldn't have issues. I didn't take any again bc I was on vacation, without the kids, so drinking was a must :-) I even went off of my antibiotics for the weekend (I know, me being smart again).

I saw P on Wed., we focused mostly on joint mobs for the capsule, we are definitely being preventative on this. I have no appointments set up for the future right now. We will play it by ear. I have not been on my bike since returning due to my dizziness issue, which sucks, although I think it is better than nausea bc I can function for the most part, and I am not throwing up (knock on wood). If by Sat. I still feel dizzy, I will ride anyway. My goal for 2008 is not to see doctors...dizziness included!

When I first began my 'hipscope research', there were so few success stories. I am proud to be a success story x 2!
p
Stay tuned.....The Cost of Hip Arthorscopy....coming the next time I post!

I am No Longer a Drop-Out, I am a 'Crawler Backer'

Today is the one year anniversary of my first appointment with Dr. Kelly. Who would have thought that after a long argument with his receptionist 13 months ago, who almost refused to give me an appointment because my injury was not 'sports related', that I would be recovering from not 1, not 2, but 3 surgeries...all done by him. I told you so!!!!

I have been busy the past few days, J and I are going away for the weekend, without the kids. We are going on a weekend cruise to the Bahamas, and my in-laws are watching L and Jk. I have been furiously cleaning up he apartment, not cleaning cleaning, but putting things away.Like all of my maternity clothes which were stacked on our treadmill, someone wanted to borrow 1 shirt, so I had to pull all of it out, and then repack it. The desk is a mess, , my Spinning Bike is in the way.......basically make it look like I didn't have surgery 7 weeks ago and my nanny is really not on vacation!

I had to return to PT. To add insult to injury, P said 'I knew you would be back...it was only a matter of time.' I think I am hitting my 7-8 week dip.This has happened in the past, I regress for a while but eventually do come back.I have been having a lot of muscular pain, mostly adductors and TFL, maybe some psoas and occasional piriformis spasms (nice). My anterior capsule is also pretty tight, this is why I developed a limp a few days ago, I have lost extension, yet again. Since this was a sudden decision, I had to go in today, on a day I don't normally work. Even though P really mobed the heck out of it, I am tight. He also worked my psoas, iliacus, adductors and stretched my hip flexors. I am typing in bed, and just took half of a Darvocet to take the edge off. Just a reminder...the last time I took a painkiller was post-op Day 2. I am not a happy camper...plus I have to begin (and finish) packing for my trip.

I received a call form one of Dr.Kelly's people yesterday, I was supposed to call them at 6 weeks post-op to report on my progress. We discussed the tenderness issue, and she said it sounded like a 'nerve thing'. She said they don't write for Lidocaine patches, but she will discuss it with him.I told her that he had said that if the nerve issues got bad, he could give me Lyrica...which I DON'T want. She admitted that she doesn't think it works anyway!!! I am waiting to hear back...no call today though...surprise surprise!!!

I am a little bit nervous since I am exactly where I was after scope #2 when the post-op pain got really really bad. Hopefully this won't happen...but I am taking Darvocet on the cruise!

The True Test Drive....I give my Hip a B-

I had it this morning. I hate the winter, I hate the cold, I hate ice...I am from Miami....I left for college about 10 years ago and still long for warm weather.
I decided to take the kids out for a walk this morning, a real walk, in the double stroller. I don't think we had done that since my surgery, at least not this distance. I bundled everyone up, stuck them inside the stroller sleeping bags and headed out. The stroller must have weighed 100 lbs. They either got really big in the last 7 weeks or the added weight of winter gear is more than I imagined.

I did have some pain during my walk. Nothing crazy, but pain. Mostly the adductor insertion point, or possibly joint pain, it was hard to tell while I was walking and with all the clothes on. Also, my psoas acted up a bit. but now, 6 hours later, I am fine.

Last night, I had some time on my hands so I went through some old posts, August-November. I am shocked, things got pretty bad. How quickly we forget when things are better. How lucky I feel that I don't have that kind of pain and the emotional issues I went through those months, it absolutely sucked! I know that there are so many more people dealing with similar issues who are not so lucky (or persistent, pains in the ass) to get it taken care of so quickly. And even more people still searching for a diagnosis of their hip pain. It makes me sad. At least I hope that with my blog, more people will learn about their pain and symptoms and seek the appropriate care.

I know everyone is wondering what will become of my PT routine. I am a quitter!! I think I am taking a leave of absence for the time being and seeing how I fare. If I need it, I will be taken back in with open arms!! But the next few weeks will be difficult with the nanny issues, travelling etc, and I feel great! So I am taking the liberty of dropping out. I have not done anything on my own. I should, at the least, be working on my adductors since that is my 'weakest link'. I am not. I still have hopes to return to spinning, just as soon as I am not sick anymore. I can't even make it through the day without a nap at this point. I am calling the doctor tomorrow, regardless of anything!!!

A Look Into the Past

My neighbor left me a trashy magazine at my door today. We had been discussing the Brittany Spear's sister pregnancy thing and she mentioned that she had bought OK magazine bc it featured a story on it. I read the story (nothing out of the ordinary for a teenage pregnancy) and then read my 2008 horoscope, honestly, this was my horoscope:
Health: Last year exacerbated health issues for many Cancers, mainly due to stress and demanding work schedules. This year, your health improves, and you should have more of that cherished nesting time. Add variety to your workouts.....

I wish I knew this a year ago and I would have been prepared! 2007 brought more doctor's visits, diagnostic tests, radiation exposure and surgeries than many people experience in a year.

I think I am not going to PT on Monday, and will soon take on the official 'dropout' status.I had better keep my mouth closed though. After my second surgery,P and I had discussed 'dropping out' at 6 weeks since I was doing so well but then I had the joint capsule/ psychotic psoas issue, as well as the whole 'revision BS'.

SHIT! I had though that it was 6 weeks out when that happened, and I was free and clear. Seems like it was closer to the 2 month mark......(color draining from my face) that whole episode and the next few days were awful, especially the next morning. But I will keep a positive attitude and keep plugging along.

On a more negative note, I am still soooo sick. I am definitely going to the doctor on Monday, there is no question that I have a raging sinus infection and NEED antibiotics. It is sad that I have an entire arsenal of narcotics here, I could easily maintain a healthy drug habit with all of my pills, but I lack a simple Z-pack!!!

6 Week Update

I can't believe it has been 6 weeks since my revision surgery. I see that there are a lot of new readers, so welcome, I hope you are enjoying this pathetic rendition of what my life has become!!! J/K!! I am actually really happy!

Just to recap- I had a revision hip arthroscopy on November 12, 2007 after my original scope on 3/5/07 failed secondary to residual FAI (femoroacetabular impingement). I originally had a labral tear and cam and pincer FAI, the initial surgery did not address the cam FAI (long story). In the long run, I am very happy my surgeon was not overly aggressive because you can always go back in and take down more bone, but you can never put it back!

So, 3 hip arthroscopies later, I can say that it was all worth it because I am in a much better place.

Just yesterday, we went to the NY Botanical Gardens holiday train show, it was our 3rd year going, I guess it is a tradition now! I have vivid memories of going last year. My hip hurt so much, and this was before I had been 'officially' diagnosed. I was so anxious at the time, as well as frustrated that the simple task of pushing my stroller hurt. Yesterday was a pleasure, for my hip anyway. We waited in line for over 40 minutes just to get in, and then the entire show was done in 'line form'. The kids loved it, and we had a blast. I never once thought about my hip!

I cannot remember if I have joint pain. Clearly, it is not an issue. What is still an issue is the 'invisible bruise' on my thigh.It still bothers me at work, when leaning with that leg against a treatment table. I have learned to fold a towel in between me and the table to help add more cushioning and protection there. The scope sites have been neglected this time so are tender to the touch, they are in the vicinity of the 'invisible bruise', so the entire area is tender to the touch, still.

My numbness is still there, and most recently has began to burn. It is not constant, and has only happened a few times, but is quite irritating. The alternative would be to try a heavy duty med called Lyrica, but the side effects are pretty intense, so I can only imagine what that would do to me, so no thank you! Hopefully it will not get worse than this.

My pain in the ass is better, but my piriformis is still in spasm, not as bad as last week though, phew. I had PT today and had P work on the scars and 'invisible bruise' and stretch my psoas, which is tight (but not so tight it needs to be released!!!)

I am supposed to go back to Spinnning today/ this week as per my own goal but I have a pretty bad sinus headache/ infection so it will have to wait a few days until it clears! Tomorrow is a new day though!!!!!

My left side is almost 6 months out, doing great, with just some pretty noisy popping/ snapping. The noisiness is painfree so I am not in the least bit concerned.

Distracting Pain

I think I had some ass spasms today, as well as invisible bruise pain...but I am not too sure. My knees hurt so much that everything else pales in comparison.

I woke up and they still hurt,I think the left is worse than the right, but it changes. I went to acupuncture today, and it was actually pretty cool. I asked him to be careful when putting the needles in my leg bc of the MCL sprains. He asked if I wanted him to treat that too, so I said ok. He palpated around me knees and felt where it hurt, then he put some needles into my elbows and felt my knees again... most of the pain was gone. There was still an area that was painful, so he adjusted one of the elbow needles and it got better. All I can say is FREAKY. Unfortunately it did not have long lasting effects, they still hurt. I iced a little tonight but lost my icepack to an eager 3 year old.

Why is it that I, the PT, actually injured myself during PT.
This is a lesson to all of us....Listen to yourself. I told P I didn't think I could do that exercise...but I tried it anyway......STUPID!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Fun Continues

Things have been 'wonderful'. Not only was my ass spasming, my thigh hurting, my adductors weak and spazzy (is that a word?), now I have blilateral MCL sprains (in my knee), whoohoo, it is a never ending party around here.

I have to admit, the MCL pain is worse than a lot of the hip related stuff, pre and post op. I have a stingy feeling on the medial side of both knees, feels like the ligament is ripping if I do certain things, but haven't been able to pinpoint what.For example, I am in bed with my laptop and they hurt. P tried taping one but it didn't really help. I should ice, it would really help snice the MCL is more superficial than say, my labrum, but I hate ice. Once again, I am hoping that I will wake up tomorrow and I will be better.

So what provoked this? Remember on Monday I tried the Fitter for my adductors. Apparently, I was sooooo not ready. It seems my knees went into too much valgus as I attempted to pull the fitter across into adduction and stressed the MCL. Ouch.

An update on my ass: It is piriformis.Much to my dismay, P did some ART on it and as painful as it was, it really did help. It hurt too. Today was rough! I am ready to pass out and have knee relief ASAP!!!!!!!!!!

I was just thinking...how much more pathetic can this get, I injured myself while rehabbing!!!

I Still Never Learn

I spent some time tonight reading posts from August, which would put me at a similar point in recovery after my second scope. I should have just copied some of the posts and pasted them here instead of rewriting!!

It seems that my activity level is putting a damper on my pain level. I was pretty sore today, and being at work never helps this. I started to worry but see that the same thing happened in August. I guess what they is true, history does repeat itself!

My day started with pain, I hate waking up in pain, luckily I can't remember the last time this happened. Clearly yesterday's stupidity was not resolved with a good night's rest! I briefly spoke to P about the adductor and thigh pain. We agreed that nothing could be done about the thigh pain (more on it momentarily), but he agreed that the adductors needed strengthening. He decided I should do the Fitter into adduction. I didn't think I could do it, even with low resistance. He said I could and even demonstrated it to me. Ok, didn't look too bad, so I went to try it. First with the left leg. I could barely move the platform across. 'Oh', said P, 'you really are weak'. It was also really painful since all the wrong muscle tried to compensate, I felt like my patella was going to dislocate medially. Not good. So I tried a few on the right. Surprisingly, it was a little better, but still really difficult and hard on the patella. I need a few more weeks and will return to this!

We settled on standing hip adduction with a theraband and sidelying hip adduction with no weights. I was sore the rest of the day.

I was also super drained today, not sure if the pain got to me or what, but I fell asleep at 7:00 and took an amazing power nap while L slept next to me in my bed!

If history repeats itself, the next few weeks will be tough, as I return to life as it was pre-surgery with a newly shaped hip. My muscles will be sore and tight and the joint irritated and painful with my activity. But 5 1/2 months after the second scope, I am doing great and my only complaint is spasmy adductors. I can take some muscle soreness and aching joint!

Back to the pain on my thigh, which has beautifully worked itself onto the bony portion of my butt! Yep, so now it hurts to lie on my back too! Interestingly, the invisible bruise got worse when everything else hurt more, and as I gently leaned on a table or wall, it screamed out to remind me it was there. I will also have to further investigate the pain in the butt and get back to you. I will be going for acupuncture session #3 tomorrow, maybe being relaxed will help the muscles too!!!