It's exactly 5 months until the first day that I could have surgery- May 30th. I went to the doctor yesterday and found out that there isn't much I can do until I'm ready for surgery. He said it sounds like I have a labral tear on my left side which can be fixed with a scope. But if I fix it now, it will likely tear again before my PAO. I asked if a cortisone shot would help with the pain. He said it would stop the pain for a little while, but that cortisone also stops the cartilage from healing. So if my cartilage is trying to heal itself, getting a cortisone shot would make it stop. He supported me using the cane and made sure I knew how to use it correctly. He said if I want to exercise, I should use the recumbant bike. I told him how it hurt my knees the last time I tried and he told me to flip the pedals over and pedal without the straps over my feet. That way my knees aren't forced to go a certain direction. He said that the day of surgery another doctor would go in first with a scope to repair my torn labrum, then Dr. Scheid would perform the PAO. He said since I've seen Maiers, he could be the doctor to fix my cartilage. I also got good news that Maiers always does the first surgery of the day, so I won't have to wait all day to have surgery done. They said I could give blood a month before to be given back to me after surgery. I asked if Jeff could do it for me if he was a match and they said that he could do that. I have to call Scheid's office at least 6 weeks before I want to have surgery so that they can coordinate and schedule everything. His assistant says it can get complicated with 2 surgeons involved.
Dr. Scheid also said something that really made me think when it comes to scheduling the surgery. He said to think back to where I was one year ago, 6 months ago, 3 months ago, and now. One year ago I didn't even notice my hip except for the clunking/popping when I walked. All of my pain was in my knee. 6 months ago (end of June) I was recovering from knee surgery and only barely noticing an ache in my hip. 3 months ago (end of September) my hips still weren't a big issue, just aching, no major pain. And now, I'm in almost constant pain from my left hip and now getting pain in my right hip. Where am I going to be by the time I can have surgery? I don't think I even want to think about that. Having surgery during the school year means using all of my sick/PTO days (I only have 6.5 accrued right now), taking 1 week without pay, and then only getting 60% of my pay for the rest of my time off. I also have to worry about my job being given away while I am gone. So, I'm going to grit my teeth until May 30th.
Changes I plan on making to help me through:
1. Using my cane at all times at work and for major trips out of the house (grocery store, big shopping trips, etc.)
2. Going to the gym only twice a week, use the recumbant bike and rowing machine
3. Rearrange my work space at school so that I can sit and teach as much as possible. Work out a system with teachers where I won't need to walk to each room to pick kids up.
4. Since I won't be able to exercise as much and as rigorous as I want, I am going to stop eating all meat but fish. Hopefully this will help me keep my weight down.
5. Enlist Jeff's help more when it comes to cleaning the house. I don't have to do it all myself.
1 comment:
can I recommend a stool if you need to address the whole class? I have one that I lean against more than sit on, but it's great for taking some of the stress off of my knees. Also, a tall chair with a back (bar chair?) might help too!
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