Well, it actually happened, surgery really happened! Today I am 9 days post op and overall feeling pretty good. I actually got to go home the day after surgery, after the epidural wore off. I came out of surgery around 2:30PM and was feeling pretty good. I was told that I could go home after I got on the bike in physical therapy but the epidural was taking a very long time to wear off and I could not move my feet until about 6PM, which was after physical therapy closed, so no bike for me. I was in some pain once home and walking was difficult at first but I was happy to go back to our condo instead of having to stay in the hospital.
As for surgery, I was told that things went well. They did a lot of work. I had a labral reconstruction with a cadavar, an osteoplasty with rim trimming for combined FAI, thermal chondroplasty on the femur, chondroplasty on the acetabulum, plication of iliofemoral ligament, thermal treatment of the ligamentum teres, a synovectomy, and the removal of a lot of scar tissue. I was in traction for 127 minues.
The physical therapy protocol is very intense starting the day after surgery. I had to be at physical therapy first thing in the morning. I rode the bike for 20 minutes then one of Dr. Philippon's fellows came down and explained to me a little bit about what they did, showed me pictures and then the nurse changed my dressing. Each day I had physical therapy twice a day which includes 20 minutes on the bike, some simple movements and exercises and some soft tissue work, and then 20 minutes of icing. Also, each day I have to use the CPM machine for 4-6 hours, wear my brace while walking around, use the DVT preventative boots while sitting for more than 20 minutes, use the anti-rotational boots whenever I am sitting or sleeping, and of course crutches. It a lot to keep track of, but so far, I have been feeling great.
The plane ride home I was very worried about, but went well. Both of our flights were on time, which I was very grateful for as I was worried about getting delayed in Chicago.
We got home 4 days ago and its been wonderful being back. I was so happy to sleep in my own bed, even though sleeping has been difficult for me. I have been going to physical therapy here at home once a day this week and its been going well. There has been a small problem with getting the CPM machine home to Michigan, seems as though UPS mixed some things up, but hopefully we it will come tomorrow.
Overall, things have been going well. I am feeling good and able to get around pretty easy. I get tired easily, but that's about it. I am looking forward to this rehab process as I can't wait to see how things progress!!
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Sunday, January 20, 2013
The day before surgery with Dr. Philippon
Its the day before my hip surgery with Dr. Marc Philippon and I am getting pretty nervous. Its odd to be here again since my debacle of a trip last time, it almost seems surreal. I won't actually believe surgery is happening this time until I wake up in recovery. Seems like any little thing will cancel surgery, which before I never had any issues with. I have been wishing for this day for weeks and weeks now, but now that its tomorrow, part of me just wants to be home, cuddling with my dog, watching the snow fall. But I know that this is the first step to getting my life back as I knew it before. I have struggled for a long time now, coming to peace with the fact that I cannot do many things in life that seemed so easy before. How many people have to think about how long and when is the best time to do laundry to create the least amount of pain as possible. I want to ride my horse again, I want to take my dog for a walk and not worry that I will hurt to much to walk the next day, and I want to run. I want to work on being a fit person, as person who is proud of how they look and feel. So in some ways I am excited, hoping that this is a turning point in my life, putting the days of chronic pain behind me. It will be interesting to see how this recovery goes compared to my previous ones, but I know no matter what, I need to keep my spirits high and listen to my body.
So pre-op instructions so far have been pretty minimal, really only consisting of making sure I drink a lot of water or Gatorade. I have also had to wash for the past 2 days with Hibiclens, which is this awful pre-op soap that they make you wash with. I say that its awful because its not like normal soap, it has no soap like qualities. Its pink, makes you smell funny, and does not even suds like soap should. I have to shower tonight and tomorrow morning with it as well (EWWW).
Our travel this trip was overall very smooth. We were able to actually fly out of Houghton/Hancock airport yesterday on time, which I really did not think was going to happen, because we were getting some intense lake effect snow so the inbound flight from Chicago had been cancelled, but somehow, by the grace of God, they had just fixed a plane and we were still able to leave. We got to Chicago on time, had dinner, walked around then boarded our flight to Denver. Once in Denver we got our rental car and we were off to Vail. We got in late last night, about 11 PM MST only to find that our condo we were renting was missing the key to get in. So we decided to get a hotel room for the night until we could get a hold of the condo owner the next day, but ALL the hotels were booked, I mean, there was not a single room in all of Vail. So we had to go to the next town over and stay in a hotel there. We finally got to bed about 12:30 AM MST. Luckily this morning we worked things out with the condo owner and were able to finally get into the condo and unpack. I love this condo though, its really nice because it has 1 1/2 baths, which I know will come in handy after surgery. The bed is huge and it has a nice fireplace. So this afternoon me and my husband are just relaxing, watching some football.
So, tomorrows the big day! In some ways I feel like it has not even really hit me yet, but in others I feel like its happening too fast! Here's to new and improved hips!!! See you all on the other side!
So pre-op instructions so far have been pretty minimal, really only consisting of making sure I drink a lot of water or Gatorade. I have also had to wash for the past 2 days with Hibiclens, which is this awful pre-op soap that they make you wash with. I say that its awful because its not like normal soap, it has no soap like qualities. Its pink, makes you smell funny, and does not even suds like soap should. I have to shower tonight and tomorrow morning with it as well (EWWW).
Our travel this trip was overall very smooth. We were able to actually fly out of Houghton/Hancock airport yesterday on time, which I really did not think was going to happen, because we were getting some intense lake effect snow so the inbound flight from Chicago had been cancelled, but somehow, by the grace of God, they had just fixed a plane and we were still able to leave. We got to Chicago on time, had dinner, walked around then boarded our flight to Denver. Once in Denver we got our rental car and we were off to Vail. We got in late last night, about 11 PM MST only to find that our condo we were renting was missing the key to get in. So we decided to get a hotel room for the night until we could get a hold of the condo owner the next day, but ALL the hotels were booked, I mean, there was not a single room in all of Vail. So we had to go to the next town over and stay in a hotel there. We finally got to bed about 12:30 AM MST. Luckily this morning we worked things out with the condo owner and were able to finally get into the condo and unpack. I love this condo though, its really nice because it has 1 1/2 baths, which I know will come in handy after surgery. The bed is huge and it has a nice fireplace. So this afternoon me and my husband are just relaxing, watching some football.
So, tomorrows the big day! In some ways I feel like it has not even really hit me yet, but in others I feel like its happening too fast! Here's to new and improved hips!!! See you all on the other side!
Saturday, January 12, 2013
Almost there
Well, a week from today we fly back out to Colorado for surgery on the 21st. I called last week and talked with Dr. Philippon's PA and he said that all tests have come back negative for any infection in my hip, which is what I, plus my husband and GP, already knew, but I understand why they wanted to make sure that there was no infection. I am a little worried though because I was unable to get a hold of the surgery scheduler to confirm my surgery date and get a time, but I am assuming that will happen on Monday. Of course, the more I think about going out there for surgery, the more nervous I get. I want to be able to plan everything to the very end, but I know that I can't. I have planned and booked as much as I can and now I just have to let the days tick by and wait. So far it looks like the weather will be nice to fly, which is a blessing because living in the northern most part of Michigan, you just never know what the weather is going to do, especially in January.
So, not much to report on. I have our condo booked as well as our flights, the only thing I still need to book is a car rental, which the last time we were there, it worked out better to just get a car when we got into Denver. My pain has been steadily getting worse over the past few weeks. Sleeping has become very difficult as well, which does not help things much. Last night I only slept for about 4 hours before my hips just became too painful. I am trying to calm my nerves by doing things around the house but I have a hard time balancing being able to do things around the house and not putting myself in a lot of pain :/
Overall, just nervous. I would feel a lot better if I had gotten a phone call or email from the surgery scheduler to confirm my surgery, but I don't see why surgery would not be a go considering the PA told me that from his end it was. Anyways, I will update again once we are in CO!
So, not much to report on. I have our condo booked as well as our flights, the only thing I still need to book is a car rental, which the last time we were there, it worked out better to just get a car when we got into Denver. My pain has been steadily getting worse over the past few weeks. Sleeping has become very difficult as well, which does not help things much. Last night I only slept for about 4 hours before my hips just became too painful. I am trying to calm my nerves by doing things around the house but I have a hard time balancing being able to do things around the house and not putting myself in a lot of pain :/
Overall, just nervous. I would feel a lot better if I had gotten a phone call or email from the surgery scheduler to confirm my surgery, but I don't see why surgery would not be a go considering the PA told me that from his end it was. Anyways, I will update again once we are in CO!
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