December 16, 2014
Today is the 1 year anniversary of surgery on my right hip. I can honestly say that I don't even notice it anymore. The stretches i have been doing for the tendonitis in my left hip have helped a lot and I was able to avoid an ultrasound guided cortisone shot. I am now having thigh muscle soreness that goes from the middle of my thigh around the outer hip. I am not sure if this is from the tendonitis, but I have a feeling it's from the Heterotopic Ossification ( HO). HO develops when some of the stem cells from the bone that is trimmed land in the muscle and bone starts to form in the muscle. Dr Hip hasn't given me any treatment yet, just a follow up xray at the beginning of january to see if the HO has advanced. So now I will just continue with stretches and PT and hope that my normal walking will return.
December 19, 2014
Today I have no groin pain and I am not limping when I walk. This is the best christmas present I've ever had! The soreness in my thigh remains though, especially after activity. I also walked to the mailbox today and back and since I live on a mountain, this was an accomplishment! I haven't done that in a very long time!
Friday, December 19, 2014
Monday, December 15, 2014
A Couple of New Diagnoses
About a week after my November visit with Dr. Hip, I was getting up from the bed in a lying down position to put my son to to bed. I felt my left hip lock up and had some excruciating pain in the front. When it subsided, i got up and the anterior part of my groin was very sore. Of course as most of us labral patients think, I thought I retore my labrum, or I was afraid that the suture anchors came out. I thought " what have I done?" I'd hoped I didn't ruin any of the work that had been done. I went to PT for a few more sessions and he thought maybe I had just moved the wrong way or something. My next Dr. appointment wasn't until December 5th, so I waited to see if the pain would just "go away" instead of calling his office. I only call there if I absolutely have to. Well, the pain/soreness got really bad that I thought I could use a cortisone shot and i told myself that I would ask for one when I went for the office visit. My limping got worse and I was getting stiff on the outer hip area. Every time I would raise my leg, my thigh muscles would feel so sore and I would feel pain when i pressed on the front of my groin. The pain somewhat resembled the pain of a labral tear, but I didn't remember the pain on palpation with a tear. This was a different kind of a pain.
December 5th 2014
Office visit with Dr. Hip
I was limping so bad from the hip pain and my ankle seemed pretty normal. I had slight swelling in the ankle but not really much pain, at least not that debilitating deep pain. When he had asked me about the ankle, I kind of brushed it off because my hip was hurting now. It seemed that the pain went from the ankle to the hip. Oh boy, where to next, was all I could think of. I told Dr. Hip that once the swelling in the ankle went down, the pain wasn't too bad. But that was one set back that I totally did not expect to have. He assessed my hip and diagnosed me with hip flexor tendonitis, and that the locking up that I felt was the hip flexor. I had never had tendonitis, so this WAS a new pain I was feeling. As much as I wanted a shot that day, he suggested I try PT first and to call if I feel I needed a shot. I guess because my hip exam wasn't so good and i was having stiffness and pain, he did an xray that showed Heterotopic Ossification. Could this experience get any worse for me? I felt like a case study. Every time I went for an office visit, I had something new wrong with me. I fell into the 1-5% of everything here. But I was willing to deal with whatever God gave me. There was no treatment given for the H.O. as of this visit, just to follow up with him in 6 weeks for another xray. PT taught me some good stretches to do for the tendonitis.
December 5th 2014
Office visit with Dr. Hip
I was limping so bad from the hip pain and my ankle seemed pretty normal. I had slight swelling in the ankle but not really much pain, at least not that debilitating deep pain. When he had asked me about the ankle, I kind of brushed it off because my hip was hurting now. It seemed that the pain went from the ankle to the hip. Oh boy, where to next, was all I could think of. I told Dr. Hip that once the swelling in the ankle went down, the pain wasn't too bad. But that was one set back that I totally did not expect to have. He assessed my hip and diagnosed me with hip flexor tendonitis, and that the locking up that I felt was the hip flexor. I had never had tendonitis, so this WAS a new pain I was feeling. As much as I wanted a shot that day, he suggested I try PT first and to call if I feel I needed a shot. I guess because my hip exam wasn't so good and i was having stiffness and pain, he did an xray that showed Heterotopic Ossification. Could this experience get any worse for me? I felt like a case study. Every time I went for an office visit, I had something new wrong with me. I fell into the 1-5% of everything here. But I was willing to deal with whatever God gave me. There was no treatment given for the H.O. as of this visit, just to follow up with him in 6 weeks for another xray. PT taught me some good stretches to do for the tendonitis.
Friday, December 12, 2014
It's All a Waiting Game
October 2014
About a week after my 6 week post op hip visit, my ankle was getting significantly worse. After waiting on line for an hour for my flu shot, the ankle was double in size. I made an appointment to see my primary care physician for the following monday. He took one look at my ankle that day and said that we need to check for a blood clot and get an xray. Blood clot is my biggest fear. If there is one thing I don' t think I could handle is that. So for the next few hours I was panicking, praying, and waiting. Results were negative and the xray showed a lot of swelling. So, he sent me for the MRI which I thought for sure would show a stress fracture or something like that. It did show swelling, a ligament tear, and some bone swelling of my inner ankle (the one that had been bothering me). At this point I decided to see a foot and ankle doctor just to be sure it wasn't anything else.
Dr. Foot was a little too confident for me, but did a thorough assessment. He stated that "clearly this isn't an ankle issue. This is saphenous neuritis, a tarsal tunnel syndrome". He also said that my MRI was 'nonsignificant' to my case. To this day I don't even know if he looked at the MRI.He was also going to give me a cortisone shot in the ankle but I refused at the last minute. All I could think of was something ELSE bad happening, like sticking it in my nerve by mistake. I broke down crying in his office, saying that I was"done" with all this and I couldn't handle this anymore, He also wrote a prescription for an EMG test, which I never even went for, i only wanted his opinion and surely got it. It's nerve injury.
November 7, 2014
Another office visit with Dr Hip. This would be about my 1 year anniversary going to his office. And I am not out of pain yet. The worst part of the whole thing is the waiting. Wait for the test, wait to see if it gets better, wait and do PT first. It really is a waiting game, hurry up and wait. Stinks especially when you want to be out of pain the 1st day you walk in the office. I told him what Dr. Foot said and Dr Hip agreed to look at my MRI. One thing I like about Dr. Hip is that he always reads your films right in front of you. This way you know that he saw them. He agreed with the tarsal tunnel and didn't think I'd need a shot yet. He said he could put me on Lyrica or Neurontin but I don't like taking stuff unless absolutely necessary. So, I decided to ....just wait!
As for my hip that day, things were going ok. I was starting to have some pain in the front, but I thought it was because the therapist stretched me a little too hard. Dr. Hip said it's scar tissue, and that will, you guessed it, 'go away'. I went to PT a few days later for some nerve desensitizing, but my PT didn't offer this in his facility. So I stopped going to PT and continued exercising at home. And I noticed within the next week or so that the tingling and pain in my ankle was starting to finally subside.
About a week after my 6 week post op hip visit, my ankle was getting significantly worse. After waiting on line for an hour for my flu shot, the ankle was double in size. I made an appointment to see my primary care physician for the following monday. He took one look at my ankle that day and said that we need to check for a blood clot and get an xray. Blood clot is my biggest fear. If there is one thing I don' t think I could handle is that. So for the next few hours I was panicking, praying, and waiting. Results were negative and the xray showed a lot of swelling. So, he sent me for the MRI which I thought for sure would show a stress fracture or something like that. It did show swelling, a ligament tear, and some bone swelling of my inner ankle (the one that had been bothering me). At this point I decided to see a foot and ankle doctor just to be sure it wasn't anything else.
Dr. Foot was a little too confident for me, but did a thorough assessment. He stated that "clearly this isn't an ankle issue. This is saphenous neuritis, a tarsal tunnel syndrome". He also said that my MRI was 'nonsignificant' to my case. To this day I don't even know if he looked at the MRI.He was also going to give me a cortisone shot in the ankle but I refused at the last minute. All I could think of was something ELSE bad happening, like sticking it in my nerve by mistake. I broke down crying in his office, saying that I was"done" with all this and I couldn't handle this anymore, He also wrote a prescription for an EMG test, which I never even went for, i only wanted his opinion and surely got it. It's nerve injury.
November 7, 2014
Another office visit with Dr Hip. This would be about my 1 year anniversary going to his office. And I am not out of pain yet. The worst part of the whole thing is the waiting. Wait for the test, wait to see if it gets better, wait and do PT first. It really is a waiting game, hurry up and wait. Stinks especially when you want to be out of pain the 1st day you walk in the office. I told him what Dr. Foot said and Dr Hip agreed to look at my MRI. One thing I like about Dr. Hip is that he always reads your films right in front of you. This way you know that he saw them. He agreed with the tarsal tunnel and didn't think I'd need a shot yet. He said he could put me on Lyrica or Neurontin but I don't like taking stuff unless absolutely necessary. So, I decided to ....just wait!
As for my hip that day, things were going ok. I was starting to have some pain in the front, but I thought it was because the therapist stretched me a little too hard. Dr. Hip said it's scar tissue, and that will, you guessed it, 'go away'. I went to PT a few days later for some nerve desensitizing, but my PT didn't offer this in his facility. So I stopped going to PT and continued exercising at home. And I noticed within the next week or so that the tingling and pain in my ankle was starting to finally subside.
Surgery 101
August 14, 2014
Surgery 101. Or so I thought. The day started off as normally as the first surgery had. Little did I know that the next chapter of my 'hip story' was about to begin. Dr. Hip is a very qualified surgeon in this field. He has done many, many, hip scopes and went to one of the best fellowship programs in our country. I know there are risks in every surgery and I've also taken care of many folks that have had surgery and that did well, so I was never AFRAID of having surgery. I always knew I'd wake up and there would be some pain, etc. It's the unexpected that I had to learn to handle and have faith that I could handle it. Needless to say, I am now a person that is scared to have any surgery in the future.
The surgery went really well. I had a labral tear which was sutured and 2 anchors were put in my acetabulum. Dr. Hip said that the cartilage was soft, no visible arthritic bone and no synovitis. I had some pincer impingement so he shaved minimal bone, about 1-2 mm, because of my dysplasia. I had 2 port holes, sutures, bandage, and I was aware and ready for the rehab protocol. My CPM machine was all set up at home.
As soon as. I woke from surgery in the recovery room, I felt my left ankle to be incredibly sore, I thought it was broken. It felt like it had been crushed by something. The pain from my ankle surpassed the pain in my hip. I was able to gently rotate it around but it really hurt like the devil. The next day Dr Hip assessed it and said that it was from the traction boot that is used during surgery. This did not happen with my first surgery, so this was new for me. He said "It will go away". And that was it.
I was afraid to partial weight bear throughout the week because it hurt so much. I was toe touching which I know isn't good if I want to rehab my hip. The tenderness was so bad that I called Dr. Hip the following week hoping he'd bring me in to xray it or look at it again. He said that he didn't think it was fractured, try ice and elevation, see him next week, and that I CAN put weight on it. So, I painfully did what he said and went back the following week for my follow up visit. I don't know, but it seemed to me that something wasn't right.
August 29, 2014
He said that my hip is doing fine. As for my ankle, I have " bruised ligament, tendons, soft tissue injury" - aka, ankle sprain. Ok, guess this can happen. He gave me pt exercises to do and no xray taken. Why not? He said it's because it sounds like it's getting better. Well, it didn't feel like it. So in his office, I stood on both feet and told him that my inner ankle felt 'tingly' and the bone hurt. He said that's because there are nerves there. I was sort of upset because I went in for one problem and came out with another, and now I had to try and handle both. I was willing to try but things only got worse.
Mid September 2014
I woke one morning and my ankle was throbbing, i had shooting pains up my inner ankle bone and I couldn't walk on it. I also had some tingling going from my inner ankle up towards my big toe. I used the crutches and called his office. I was told to come in tomorrow for an xray. Tomorrow! I wanted to be seen that day but I'll take it. I had thought about going to see another doctor about it but wanted to see what the xray showed and if he would just tell me again, "It will go away". The xray showed swelling near the inner ankle bone, no broken bones. I did have some visible swelling as well. Again, he said this is from the traction boot. He diagnosed it as an Ankle Contusion,
and saphenous neuritis. I had another appointment in2 weeks f/u hip, and he said he would order an MRI if I was still having pain.
Over the next couple of weeks as I was on my feet, my ankle really started to get swollen, mostly after being on my feet for a while. And I had deep pains around my ankle and a "pulling" sensation going up my calf. My calf was sore, almost like after a bad charlie horse kind of sore. And the area behind the tibia bone was tender to touch. This was definitely not getting better. It was getting worse. And I was really getting upset.
September 26, 2014
This was my 6 week check up for my hip. By the way, the hip is coming along fine. A little sore here and there but to be expected. As for the worsening of my ankle, Dr. Hip, well, I'll just say, didn't order an MRI. He said it will only show swelling and again, that "this will go away"! I think he just wanted me to go away and I almost did. I was so upset when I left there. I almost took all my films and left. But I did trust him and. I still had hope that it would go away.
Surgery 101. Or so I thought. The day started off as normally as the first surgery had. Little did I know that the next chapter of my 'hip story' was about to begin. Dr. Hip is a very qualified surgeon in this field. He has done many, many, hip scopes and went to one of the best fellowship programs in our country. I know there are risks in every surgery and I've also taken care of many folks that have had surgery and that did well, so I was never AFRAID of having surgery. I always knew I'd wake up and there would be some pain, etc. It's the unexpected that I had to learn to handle and have faith that I could handle it. Needless to say, I am now a person that is scared to have any surgery in the future.
The surgery went really well. I had a labral tear which was sutured and 2 anchors were put in my acetabulum. Dr. Hip said that the cartilage was soft, no visible arthritic bone and no synovitis. I had some pincer impingement so he shaved minimal bone, about 1-2 mm, because of my dysplasia. I had 2 port holes, sutures, bandage, and I was aware and ready for the rehab protocol. My CPM machine was all set up at home.
As soon as. I woke from surgery in the recovery room, I felt my left ankle to be incredibly sore, I thought it was broken. It felt like it had been crushed by something. The pain from my ankle surpassed the pain in my hip. I was able to gently rotate it around but it really hurt like the devil. The next day Dr Hip assessed it and said that it was from the traction boot that is used during surgery. This did not happen with my first surgery, so this was new for me. He said "It will go away". And that was it.
I was afraid to partial weight bear throughout the week because it hurt so much. I was toe touching which I know isn't good if I want to rehab my hip. The tenderness was so bad that I called Dr. Hip the following week hoping he'd bring me in to xray it or look at it again. He said that he didn't think it was fractured, try ice and elevation, see him next week, and that I CAN put weight on it. So, I painfully did what he said and went back the following week for my follow up visit. I don't know, but it seemed to me that something wasn't right.
August 29, 2014
He said that my hip is doing fine. As for my ankle, I have " bruised ligament, tendons, soft tissue injury" - aka, ankle sprain. Ok, guess this can happen. He gave me pt exercises to do and no xray taken. Why not? He said it's because it sounds like it's getting better. Well, it didn't feel like it. So in his office, I stood on both feet and told him that my inner ankle felt 'tingly' and the bone hurt. He said that's because there are nerves there. I was sort of upset because I went in for one problem and came out with another, and now I had to try and handle both. I was willing to try but things only got worse.
Mid September 2014
I woke one morning and my ankle was throbbing, i had shooting pains up my inner ankle bone and I couldn't walk on it. I also had some tingling going from my inner ankle up towards my big toe. I used the crutches and called his office. I was told to come in tomorrow for an xray. Tomorrow! I wanted to be seen that day but I'll take it. I had thought about going to see another doctor about it but wanted to see what the xray showed and if he would just tell me again, "It will go away". The xray showed swelling near the inner ankle bone, no broken bones. I did have some visible swelling as well. Again, he said this is from the traction boot. He diagnosed it as an Ankle Contusion,
and saphenous neuritis. I had another appointment in2 weeks f/u hip, and he said he would order an MRI if I was still having pain.
Over the next couple of weeks as I was on my feet, my ankle really started to get swollen, mostly after being on my feet for a while. And I had deep pains around my ankle and a "pulling" sensation going up my calf. My calf was sore, almost like after a bad charlie horse kind of sore. And the area behind the tibia bone was tender to touch. This was definitely not getting better. It was getting worse. And I was really getting upset.
September 26, 2014
This was my 6 week check up for my hip. By the way, the hip is coming along fine. A little sore here and there but to be expected. As for the worsening of my ankle, Dr. Hip, well, I'll just say, didn't order an MRI. He said it will only show swelling and again, that "this will go away"! I think he just wanted me to go away and I almost did. I was so upset when I left there. I almost took all my films and left. But I did trust him and. I still had hope that it would go away.
Monday, December 1, 2014
Another Summer of Hip Pain
May 2014
I was hoping that the summer of 2014 was going to be "hip pain free" and I could go on with my life, but that wasn't the case. I had to continue with the hip strengthening and doing what exercise I could, hoping to get into some kind of physical shape, even if it was just a little something. With physically demanding events coming up, I knew the left hip pain would kick in and I wanted to be proactive in controlling it. Dr. Hip gave me a cortisone shot in late May, and that lasted for a few weeks this time. I got through walking in NYC, transferring my son's drum set to school for the talent show (that is very physically challenging!), and just the working on my feet day to day. I actually felt 75% better by the following week and I had a few weeks after of '"walking normally". This was such a blessing that was always taken for granted. I hardly even noticed my right hip anymore, guess the surgery was a success there. I was really enjoying my gait until the cortisone wore off.....oh well!
June 2014
The kids are out of school and time to open the pool. This requires a lot of physical work and I was willing to do my part. I had discovered Tylenol Arthritis pain med since I can't take NSAIDS like Advil or Motrin, and it seemed to help for a bit. One afternoon, after a morning of blowing up rafts and getting furniture out of the shed, I was standing in the kitchen and shifted my weight from one hip to the other and I felt a pinch and a pull. Oh no! Another tear? Can''t be but probably is, I thought. I had decided then that I should have another arthroscopy to repair this and hopefully preserve my hip. A few days later I developed the soreness in the groin, especially with internal rotation. My next appointment wasn't until July 1st, so I had to just manage day to day, the way I had been doing for the past year or so.
July 1, 2014
This was my 6 month check for my right hip and he said it was recovered. This was great news, as now I can focus on my left. He offered another injection, but I told him "I just want the problem taken care of!" So I scheduled the scope for August 14th, having to go through another summer camping trip (which is a physical vacation) in hip pain!
I also thought that the next hip scope would be a breeze for me, having gone through the one. Boy, was I wrong!
I was hoping that the summer of 2014 was going to be "hip pain free" and I could go on with my life, but that wasn't the case. I had to continue with the hip strengthening and doing what exercise I could, hoping to get into some kind of physical shape, even if it was just a little something. With physically demanding events coming up, I knew the left hip pain would kick in and I wanted to be proactive in controlling it. Dr. Hip gave me a cortisone shot in late May, and that lasted for a few weeks this time. I got through walking in NYC, transferring my son's drum set to school for the talent show (that is very physically challenging!), and just the working on my feet day to day. I actually felt 75% better by the following week and I had a few weeks after of '"walking normally". This was such a blessing that was always taken for granted. I hardly even noticed my right hip anymore, guess the surgery was a success there. I was really enjoying my gait until the cortisone wore off.....oh well!
June 2014
The kids are out of school and time to open the pool. This requires a lot of physical work and I was willing to do my part. I had discovered Tylenol Arthritis pain med since I can't take NSAIDS like Advil or Motrin, and it seemed to help for a bit. One afternoon, after a morning of blowing up rafts and getting furniture out of the shed, I was standing in the kitchen and shifted my weight from one hip to the other and I felt a pinch and a pull. Oh no! Another tear? Can''t be but probably is, I thought. I had decided then that I should have another arthroscopy to repair this and hopefully preserve my hip. A few days later I developed the soreness in the groin, especially with internal rotation. My next appointment wasn't until July 1st, so I had to just manage day to day, the way I had been doing for the past year or so.
July 1, 2014
This was my 6 month check for my right hip and he said it was recovered. This was great news, as now I can focus on my left. He offered another injection, but I told him "I just want the problem taken care of!" So I scheduled the scope for August 14th, having to go through another summer camping trip (which is a physical vacation) in hip pain!
I also thought that the next hip scope would be a breeze for me, having gone through the one. Boy, was I wrong!
Friday, November 28, 2014
My Saints for the Year
So I stayed on crutches for a couple of weeks and started PT shortly after surgery which was good. I needed to start moving around because I didn't want to get blood clots. I was driving by Dec 28th but found things very tiring. Dr. Hip said the scope has to go through 28 muscles and it takes time to build up endurance again. I felt I was still in the dark about why this was happening by the year end. Every New Year's day mass at our parish, the priest puts names of saints in a basket for the parishioners to pick as their "saint of the year". He encourages everyone to choose one and that it may be one you have never heard of. If this is the case, then he also encourages you to research the saint and learn about them. He also says "The saint picks you". Now I had already been praying to St. Luke,for my physician, as they are human too and need prayers. I had my children pick the saint for me since I was still on crutches and it was easier. They chose Sts. Cosmas and Damian, saints for physicians and surgeons. As Father said, i had never heard of them and I didn't know there was another saint for doctors, but I was going to use this to my advantage. These were my saints for the year.
At the end of January 2014, I was doing lunges at home as part of my PT "at home" exercises. I felt a sharp pain and pull in my left groin, and subsequently developed soreness in the left groin. Now I was really confused! Why would both of my hips have the same problem within a year of each other? I was hesitant to tell my physician, I didn't know him well then and I didn't know how he would take it. But. I had to at some point tell him, hoping he could give me answers that I would understand.
I was told a few things by people....pinched nerve in my back causing groin pain (PT told me this. A bunch of bull!) or, my left leg was compensating for the limp on my right. But I knew what I felt. It was cartilage tearing. I know the feeling. I started doing hip strengthening on my left as well as my right. I knew the routine by now. Meds, PT, surgery. But I wasn't ready yet for that.
February 25, 2014
It's been 1 year since first injuring my right hip and here i am still in pain, now with my left. Dr. Hip checked my ROM and hip flexor tests, causing much pain on the front of my left groin. He said no MRI yet, do PT. He said this does have something to do with the special shoes I wore as a baby and that the reason my feet point straight up when lying down rather than out is due to my 'anatomy'. He never came out directly and said I have HipDysplasia at that time. But after researching it myself, it sure seemed like I had some form of it.
I had another appointment at the end of March, so mid March, I called and asked if I could get an MRI. I wanted to ask him if this was caused by Hip Dysplasia, but I never got a chance to speak to him. After praying to my saints, I went to my March appointment. This was not a good visit. I left there in tears. My MRI showed labral fraying, bursitis and cartilage changes. He confirmed that this was Congenital Hip Dysplasia, but PAO surgery was probably not recommended for me. Ok, then
what was my option? Another arthroscopy? He didn't really say. Actually, I don't even know what he said the rest of the visit. All I heard was "Hip Dysplasia", and since I had researched it a little bit about it, i knew that it wasn't such a great thing to have. I do remember him saying " It's not like you have cancer". Maybe not, but I still had the pain.
When I left there that day, I cried the whole hour drive home. Cried on the phone to my husband too. I felt very alone. No one really understood this and I didn't know anyone that had it. I turned to my Saints a lot, hoping that Dr. Hip was guiding me correctly because I didn't have anyone else to trust or ask questions to. I also decided that I needed to find out all I could about Hip Dysplasia and what my options were.
April 13, 2014
4 months since the surgery on the right hip and i had gone for my first bike ride with my family around the park. I did ok, but got tired after 45 minutes, mostly because of my left hip. Normally I could ride for a couple of hours. I remember my hip feeling almost normal by then and told Dr. Hip that "4 was the magic number"! He gently corrected me and said " 6 months recovery. 6 is the magic
number". Whatever. All I knew then is my left hip was hurting way more then the right one ever had.
May 6, 2014
I had to make sure I understood everything that was going on with my hips. I had questions written down and I was reciting a whole script during the 1 hour drive down to his office. I also get quite nervous during the visits. They seem so short and this is your life! It's almost like you want to be told what is going to happen to you but you don't want to hear it. It's weird being a patient when you are used to being a nurse.
After a prayer to my Saints, Dr. Hip walked into the visit and explained everything to me, just like I wanted. He showed me my hip xray and pointed out the deformity, i have bilateral retroversion and left hip more dysplastic then the right. It is still mild though, but enough to give me symptoms. I was satisfied with the answers and knew I wasn't crazy. My pain was and is very real. I was also glad that he found the deformity, as my first orthopod did not catch it. And i knew then that God helped me find the correct doctor for this problem so far.
He recommended a hip injection and possible an arthroscopy in the future, but wasn't sure I would do as well since my left was worse then my right. I had to think about what I wanted to do.
At the end of January 2014, I was doing lunges at home as part of my PT "at home" exercises. I felt a sharp pain and pull in my left groin, and subsequently developed soreness in the left groin. Now I was really confused! Why would both of my hips have the same problem within a year of each other? I was hesitant to tell my physician, I didn't know him well then and I didn't know how he would take it. But. I had to at some point tell him, hoping he could give me answers that I would understand.
I was told a few things by people....pinched nerve in my back causing groin pain (PT told me this. A bunch of bull!) or, my left leg was compensating for the limp on my right. But I knew what I felt. It was cartilage tearing. I know the feeling. I started doing hip strengthening on my left as well as my right. I knew the routine by now. Meds, PT, surgery. But I wasn't ready yet for that.
February 25, 2014
It's been 1 year since first injuring my right hip and here i am still in pain, now with my left. Dr. Hip checked my ROM and hip flexor tests, causing much pain on the front of my left groin. He said no MRI yet, do PT. He said this does have something to do with the special shoes I wore as a baby and that the reason my feet point straight up when lying down rather than out is due to my 'anatomy'. He never came out directly and said I have HipDysplasia at that time. But after researching it myself, it sure seemed like I had some form of it.
I had another appointment at the end of March, so mid March, I called and asked if I could get an MRI. I wanted to ask him if this was caused by Hip Dysplasia, but I never got a chance to speak to him. After praying to my saints, I went to my March appointment. This was not a good visit. I left there in tears. My MRI showed labral fraying, bursitis and cartilage changes. He confirmed that this was Congenital Hip Dysplasia, but PAO surgery was probably not recommended for me. Ok, then
what was my option? Another arthroscopy? He didn't really say. Actually, I don't even know what he said the rest of the visit. All I heard was "Hip Dysplasia", and since I had researched it a little bit about it, i knew that it wasn't such a great thing to have. I do remember him saying " It's not like you have cancer". Maybe not, but I still had the pain.
When I left there that day, I cried the whole hour drive home. Cried on the phone to my husband too. I felt very alone. No one really understood this and I didn't know anyone that had it. I turned to my Saints a lot, hoping that Dr. Hip was guiding me correctly because I didn't have anyone else to trust or ask questions to. I also decided that I needed to find out all I could about Hip Dysplasia and what my options were.
April 13, 2014
4 months since the surgery on the right hip and i had gone for my first bike ride with my family around the park. I did ok, but got tired after 45 minutes, mostly because of my left hip. Normally I could ride for a couple of hours. I remember my hip feeling almost normal by then and told Dr. Hip that "4 was the magic number"! He gently corrected me and said " 6 months recovery. 6 is the magic
number". Whatever. All I knew then is my left hip was hurting way more then the right one ever had.
May 6, 2014
I had to make sure I understood everything that was going on with my hips. I had questions written down and I was reciting a whole script during the 1 hour drive down to his office. I also get quite nervous during the visits. They seem so short and this is your life! It's almost like you want to be told what is going to happen to you but you don't want to hear it. It's weird being a patient when you are used to being a nurse.
After a prayer to my Saints, Dr. Hip walked into the visit and explained everything to me, just like I wanted. He showed me my hip xray and pointed out the deformity, i have bilateral retroversion and left hip more dysplastic then the right. It is still mild though, but enough to give me symptoms. I was satisfied with the answers and knew I wasn't crazy. My pain was and is very real. I was also glad that he found the deformity, as my first orthopod did not catch it. And i knew then that God helped me find the correct doctor for this problem so far.
He recommended a hip injection and possible an arthroscopy in the future, but wasn't sure I would do as well since my left was worse then my right. I had to think about what I wanted to do.
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