peppermintpatty
Pearl Clutcher
Refupea #1345
Posts: 3,938 
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Post by peppermintpatty on Nov 20, 2017 13:04:07 GMT
So to recap, I broke my ankle when I was 10, then tore the achilles on the same leg. Wearing the boot caused knee problems which lead to 2 surgeries, most recently 2.5 years ago with major surgery done (not replacement). July of 2016 I started having pain in my hip flexor (same side), shrugged it off even though it hurt like a bitch, went to pt and it felt a bit better but the pain came back with a vengance. They found I have bone spurs, missing cartilage (from the spurs) and a labral tear. So Jan 10, I am having it all fixed. The tear isn't the problem, it's the cartilage repair that will be brutal which will have me on crutches for 6 weeks with no weight bearing. They said I will also be in a brace. The other fun thing is I will have to be on blood thinners because I developed DVT a month after my knee sugery.
I still have a lot of what I used for my knee surgery (tray table, shower seat, padded stuff for my crutches) but I was able bend at the hip with my last surgery. I'm not sure what I will need for the hip. I am assuming getting on and off the toilet is not going to be easy. I was on a CPM machine for my knee but will not be for my hip. I'm trying to get my ducks in a row with food and stuff to keep me entertained (as I know I will be home at least 3 weeks). My dh will have to go back to work after a few days and a dear friend is coming to stay with me the second week to help out.
All I have been told is the recovery will not be easy. That doesn't help, much.
Anyone been through this? Any advice is appreciated.
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Post by jassy on Nov 20, 2017 13:12:17 GMT
My son's friend had this surgery on one hip, and is soon having it on the other - apparently, he has a congenital defect that causes an overgrowth of bone to tear into the labrum.
I don't know the nitty gritty of his recovery and he is a teenager FWIW, but I know it went better than expected, faster than expected, and he was 100% pain free at the end of it. The kid was actually back on the soccer field as good as ever in under 6 months!
I hope you have a similarly great recovery!
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Post by bigbundt on Nov 20, 2017 13:34:12 GMT
I haven't been through it but have a labral tear and have done a lot of research on the surgery. The recovery is hard from what my doctors have told me and everything I've read about people who have done it. If you do a google search for it a lot of running forums have people sharing their experience with the surgery and a few blogs, good information there.
From what I gathered, once you get past the crutches part it is better but you just aren't fully recovered for a few months. The recovery time was a concern of mine but my doctor said that the months healing after are probably similar to what I am going through now with regards to taking it easy and being careful.
I have two small children so I have opted to not have the surgery because of the downtime. PT has fortunately helped me so that is what I am continuing to do.
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casii
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,517
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Post by casii on Nov 20, 2017 13:42:29 GMT
I haven't, but I've had 2 friends who have and one of those had surgery on both hips. Recovery is long, but if done right, totally worth it. One friend went on to run a tough 50K and a 50 mile race. Do you have a good PT? They're worth their weight in gold and I hope your insurance allows you generous visits. Maybe even if your PT will offer a free pre or post surgery consult?
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peppermintpatty
Pearl Clutcher
Refupea #1345
Posts: 3,938
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Post by peppermintpatty on Nov 20, 2017 14:16:29 GMT
I haven't been through it but have a labral tear and have done a lot of research on the surgery. The recovery is hard from what my doctors have told me and everything I've read about people who have done it. If you do a google search for it a lot of running forums have people sharing their experience with the surgery and a few blogs, good information there. From what I gathered, once you get past the crutches part it is better but you just aren't fully recovered for a few months. The recovery time was a concern of mine but my doctor said that the months healing after are probably similar to what I am going through now with regards to taking it easy and being careful. I have two small children so I have opted to not have the surgery because of the downtime. PT has fortunately helped me so that is what I am continuing to do. It's funny, I don't have the time to do the months of PT because I just started a new job in July and I don't have a lot of leave time plus my commute is now an hour. Add the 90 minutes per visit that PT will require and I just can't do it. My orthopedic surgeon said PT may help short term, but the tear will never heal and will only get worse so I opted for the surgery. Luckily my kids are 19 and 15 so one is at college and the other is self sufficient  . |
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Post by bigbundt on Nov 20, 2017 15:01:49 GMT
Wow, my PT appointments were no where near 90 minutes. Maybe half an hour? The first and last appointments were long because they were assessing but the ones in between not so much. I went once a week for six weeks and my pain is almost gone. Now I just do the exercises on my own every day. If I slack off with that, the pain returns. Since my pain was helped so much with PT, that is what I am sticking with. I am just dealing with the tear though, not all that you are. My orthopedist said that the tear will never heal on its own but that surgery doesn't always completely fix everything anyway even after months of recovery. So we decided on the conservative approach of PT and potentially cortizone shots before we consider surgery again. |
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peppermintpatty
Pearl Clutcher
Refupea #1345
Posts: 3,938
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Post by peppermintpatty on Nov 20, 2017 15:38:09 GMT
Wow, my PT appointments were no where near 90 minutes. Maybe half an hour? The first and last appointments were long because they were assessing but the ones in between not so much. I went once a week for six weeks and my pain is almost gone. Now I just do the exercises on my own every day. If I slack off with that, the pain returns. Since my pain was helped so much with PT, that is what I am sticking with. I am just dealing with the tear though, not all that you are. My orthopedist said that the tear will never heal on its own but that surgery doesn't always completely fix everything anyway even after months of recovery. So we decided on the conservative approach of PT and potentially cortizone shots before we consider surgery again. When I would go and get my exercises done quicker than usual, they would add more! I couldn't ever get out in less than 60 minutes and I don't have the time My problem is I can't have the cortizone shots. I have an issue with my eyes and can't take any type of steroid medication so I am limited on what I can do. My orthopedist said my tear was a result of the bone spurs causing cartilage loss which in turn caused the tear. So I have the option to not fix the cartilage and everything else but if they are in there, they might as well do all of it. |
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