The walls at Dr. Byrd's office and physical therapy area are covered in pictures & jerseys of atheletes, olympic medalists, dancers and professional players who have been treated there. Today one stood out, I don't remember whose it was, but a signed photo of an athelete thanking Dr. Byrd for a miracle. Honestly that's how I feel. Six months ago I wouldn't have allowed myself to hope for such great results.
If you've kept up with my blog you know that the decision to have the surgery was a long and painful one. I had a lot of fear and uncertainty. I basically put it off until I was barely able to walk. Those months were very dark. I suffered chronic pain in my hip as well as depression. I felt hopeless.
The first few weeks post-op were up and down. And although it seemed I was getting better I still had the fear of not improving, the what-ifs and what would I do's?
Today I was RELEASED from physical therapy. I will go back for a follow-up with Dr. Byrd next week and have a follow-up with my PT at the end of the month to be sure I continue to improve, but as of now I officially have a pain free, healed up, works great & ready for cardio right hip!!
And it's a great feeling to walk around pain free. It's been close to 4 years since I've had NO pain in my hip at all. Yesterday I really pushed my limits to see what would happen. I attended 2 Zumba classes, worked out at the gym AND attended a mat pilates class and guess what? Nothing. No pain, no problems...a little stiffness, but that will improve with time. Any and all improvements from this point on are simply icing on the cake.
I will return to spin class tomorrow! This blows my mind. I won't be running, keeping in mind I have my left hip to be cautious of...but my right hip is healed. The floor never got swept out from under me. I have to say thank you thank you to those of you who have supported me, brought meals, watched the kids...prayed. I am so thankful to Dr. Byrd and his staff. I feel like the luckiest girl alive to have had such an expert surgeon. I have no doubt it has made a world of difference in the quality of care I have recieved.
I will let you know how spin class goes...but cheers to ZUMBA!!
Take Care,
Vanessa:)
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17 comments:
What a woinderful resolution to the start of your blog which was so full of fear and worry as you say. Then you saw the best man there is and now you're doing great - full circle, well done!
ps do you do any PT maintainance exercises?
Thanks Louisa! Yes I am still doing lots of PT excercizes on my own that my therapist gave me.
-Going for more time on the eliptical machine, about 30 min.
-Lots of bridge work, and straight leg raises while in bridge pose
-balancing on one (post-op) leg
-using the abductor & adductor machines at gym, 3 sets of ten
-leg lifts at gym
-4 way leg lifts with weight band 3 sets of 10, those are the ones where you stand on "good" leg and lift leg straight in front for a set, then behind, across and out...make sense?
I'll probably need to keep up with these for the year, maybe always to keep the muscles in good shape. We'll see.
How are you feeling?
Vanessa
That is exactly how I feel Vanessa! It had been 4 years of pain and no doctors were able to offer help till we found Dr. Byrd. I am at 2 months since surgery and I feel so much better than I thought I would and feel like I can have a more normal existence instead of hobbling around all the time. My only regret is not finding him sooner!
Thanks for sharing your story!
Caroline
I am confident in my surgeon who will be performing my surgery in just about five weeks, but I am very fearful the way you were before your surgery. After following your blog, I now know 100% guaranteed, if things do not go as well for me as they have for you, I will be making a visit to Dr. Byrd. I am so happy for you, and though you are well on the road to recovery, please continue to blog. It's important for those who are still dealing with the pain and just learning of their diagnosis to read such a wonderful success story. Happy New Year!
Anonymous,
Good luck with your surgery:) I hope you find the relief you're looking for.
I am committed to keep updating everyone for better or worse...and there's a left hip surgery coming one of these days.
Happy New Year to you!
Vanessa
Glad to see that you're a success story! I'm so thankful that you've published this blog, not only did it help me through this, but my whole family has learned a ton from your story!
I'm 2 weeks post-op at this point, and feeling great! We kept the Game Ready for an additional week, which is going to be expensive (375 total), but well worth it. I'm off narcotics, but still on the Aspirin, Naproxen and Lyrica.
My wife's step-sister and her boyfriend are in town, and we went out downtown last night. I over did it a bit with the angles I was sitting (nothing above 90 flexion and no external rotation), but other than that the pain was minimal...just muscle fatigue and tightness! I'm so amazed at how I'm progressing thus far!
I get to get in the pool this weekend (soooo excited!), and Shawn remains my favorite PT at Dr. Byrd's office. I've also added weights to my leg lifts, kicks and extensions, which is great...oh and I'm on the bike for 12-15 minutes a time! I'm also down to one crutch at home, but two when we leave...counting down until I can drive again!
Like you, I have to watch my left hip as it's ripe for the same issue, Dr. Byrd just thought the labrum wasn't frayed enough to cause pain yet, but he was clear within the next 3-5 years we'll have to be looking at it (blech).
Anyway, Happy New Year to everyone!
Sam Ferrise
sam@ferrise.net
Vanessa, Thank you very much for your blog. It is indeed very helpful to read through your history and situation. I've been dealing with horrible hip (and back) pain going in and out of numerous Dr. offices for about 8 months. Finally yesterday i was diagnosed with FAI (in both hips, but right is worse). I'm planning on having surgery on Feb 16th. Unfortunately it is open surgery rather than arthroscopy, but at least its a diagnosis and if all goes well i won't have this problem in the future.
Your words of encouragement and hope are helping me a great deal. I'd be lying if i said i wasn't afraid of having surgery but i'm having a real difficult time knowing that after i recover from one surgery i'm probably going to have to have the other one done as well. It just seems like a very very long tunnel and i'm dreading the journey, but your words and advice make the light a little bit brighter. I just have to keep telling myself "eventually i won't be in pain".
I also have two young children (6 and 4) and it absolutely kills me to not be able to play with them or even be around. My pain is so bad i'm already on narcotics and will be leaving work on disability because i can't sit for more than 10 minutes. This has been a nightmare, both phsicially and mentally, which i don't think most people understand.
I apologize for the long post but i'm just sitting here in bed a bit depressed needed to get some stuff off of my chest and luckily found your post, where i know you and others understand.
please keep posting and any advice you can give to prepare myself, i'm all ears.
Jason
jasonkron@aol.com
Hi Vanessa, I'm Gilly, 41 & a mum of 3 from the UK. I was dxn last Jan with secondary (to RA), OA and in Nov after an MRA, with FAI. Reading your blog has been very useful to me as I too have been told that surgery will be my best option, though in my case it will be an open procedure due to the secondary OA, there's a good chance I'd end up having some kind of replacement at the same time due to that. My two older children are 18 & 16 but my youngest is 9. I'm still reading and researching all my options, but at present my train of thought is to wait, at least until my little girl is in secondary school. I am very loathed to lose that last little bit of time with her while she's 'dependent' on me to get to and from school etc. At the moment I'm still able to manage the short walk, with a cane, though somedays as you know are unbearably hard. As you know the recovery is long, 9-12 mths for open surgery. Also I miss my yoga!!!!!!! With RA my yoga is very important to me to keep as supple and flexible as possible. I only recently found out that yoga isn't a great idea with impingement, after going at it hell for leather for months thinking that I was helping my OA & RA. Oops!
I'd like to thank you for writing this blog as I'm sure it's going to be invaluable in both making my desision at the right time to go for the surgery and for when I actually go through it. Your determination to have the best possible recovery is inspirational.
Thanks again and I wish you all the very best for continued recovery and for the second hip when you decide the time is right.
Gilly x
Vanessa,
So happy for you that your recovery is speeding along!! It has been great to read all of the blogs about FAI; we need to support each other and raise awareness for this at times crippling condition...
I am 9 and 19 weeks post op FAI with Dr. Philippon.... feeling great for the most part. My 19 week hip has always been giving me problems... 2 Kenalog injections and possibility of going back in to break up scar tissue....we'll see :)
feel free to check our my blogs; http://noelblevins.blogspot.com/
Jason, Gilly & Noell,
Wow, thanks for posting. It's wonderful to know this blog may be comfort for others. The day I was diagnosed the surgeon told me I wouldn't find much info on FAI if I googled it, so I sat down and created this blog and it has followed me every step of the way. It's been a great help to me:)
Jason- best of luck to you in your upcoming surgey! The advice I would give is to be extra cautious, follow your restrictions to the letter. You've got your whole life to get back to activities, so don't get over confident. But equally important do your PT religiously. If your surgeon doesn't set you up with PT, then let me know and I'll help you get in touch with someone who has been through PT for open procedure. You can email me anytime:
vanalynch at bellsouth.net
Gilly,
I waited a little over a year for my baby to start walking and honestly because I hadn't yet formed the peace of mind to make the decision. I finally hit my breaking point where I was in constant chronic pain and it began to rule my thoughts, my life day to day. So, I made the decision fast, Dr. Byrd set me up with the surgery in like 10 days from the day I said go.
The first 4 weeks were very hard. I was totally helpless and did absolutely nothing. But once I was off crutches I started to get my life back. And I was hopeful. There's a lot of power in being hopeful.
Noell,
I will check out your blog! Thanks for posting and please let us know how your recovery goes. Wow, I guess having two close together has really been an adventure! After my surgery my left has been doing really well, so I'm putting that off as long as possible, fingers crossed!
Take Care everyone, thanks for posting!!
Vanessa
Hi Vanessa!
I also thank you for this blog. It has been utterly interesting and educating to follow your recovery, especially as we had our operations almost at the same time. My first hip was done on Sep 21. -09 (cam type fai and labral tear, artrithis to some degree). My recovery has gone almost as well as yours, although in my country we get no PT, just instructions to exercise on our own. I went to PT on my own though, because at one point it seemed that the recovery didn't progress. Also hydrobics has been extremely useful.
On Jan 11. this year I had my other hip done. Same problems but a little less artrithis. It seems that recovery is almost exactly the same as with the first one. And, some small issues I still have in my first hip seem to improve radically after my second op :-) Seems like there is more balance now in the whole hip area. Of course, it's too early to say how all this will end, but my hopes are kept high, and I truly think that the future will be brighter!
Wishing you, and everybody else who follow this blog, all the best.
Martina (from Finland)
Hi Vanessa, Thanks for all the information you are sharing in this blog. I just made an appointment with a colleague of Dr Byrd's in California to be evaluated for FAI arthroscopy.
Do I or Don't I??? After reading Vanessa's blog I got really excited and scared at the same time.
Excited because after suffering hip pain on and off for the last 2years, I really do beleive I have FAI as my symptoms point to it and scared that too much damage may have been done because I am 63 years old.
I had xrays, an MRI of my spine and my hip,and a body scan in 2008.All reports reported mild and minimal degenerative changes and slight altered signal. I went to UCLA and a orthopedic surgeon ( who gave me a simple physical exam and said he'd see me in a couple of years for a new hip) -both quickly dismissed it as arthritis.
The pain would really affect me mostly in my right groin and lower back especially after exercising on the elliptical and or bike. But then I went to NY this December and came back with pain being greater... feeling it more often from exercise and extensive walking etc. My chiropractor chalked it up to the cold weather. Yet all the reports said minimal degeneration and I was in pain??
I knew something else was wrong so I revisited reading all those MRI reports and interpreted them through google. OMG!- smack dab in one of the reports the radiologist wrote a "borderline component of cam-type femeroacetablum impingment with a sublte osseous bum on the femur. " None of the doctors said a word about this or suggested I check it out. The question is is it FAI and if so, is it too late to save the hip? I have only been feeling intense pain at times for past few months.
IS AGE A DETERMINING FACTOR as to whether one is a candidate for hip arthroscopy? Anyone out there my age where hip arthroscopy has been recommended? Anyone know a FAI hip doctor in Los Angeles?
Unfortunately age is a determining factor for hip arthroscopy, but varies by surgeon. The more common opinion is that the ideal candidate be in their thirties or younger, but there have been posters on this blog your age who have had surgery.
Maybe this doesn't sound comforting, but many people with FAI are very young, even teenagers. At least you didn't suffer that long:) Also, there are a lot of people with FAI who would LOVE a hip replacement and can't have one because they are too young. I'm not saying that's going to be your route, but the recovery is much easier and shorter! So I wouldn't worry too much about age at this point. Finding answers is very hard though, and that's the big battle to fight for most of us.
Good luck and please let us know what happens!
Thanks for posting,
Vanessa
Hi Vanessa, I have been fortunate to find your site,I have felt very alone since my diagnosis of fai (in both hips). I feel very confused after having an MRI Arthrogram,my consultant said he could operate,but with no guarantees it would help. I left his office feeling very distressed and not really knowing what has happend. I said I wanted some time to get my head around it all,now I am due to go back in March. If you could help me I would be very grateful,as someone who has been through all this before,what I need to know is,
1. What questions do I ask,I have not got a clue where to start.
2. I am being treated in the public Hospital (not private) and feel I am not getting the time I need to talk properly.
I would be so grateful if you could try to point me in the right direction.
I am a 49 year old Female,and live in England.
Vanessa - I agree that I am thankful for you taking the time to keep up this blog!! I am the parent of a 14 year old girl with labral tears and FAI on both hips. We have all our paperwork submitted at Dr. Byrd's office. One thing that concerns me is his facility does not get good online reviews for:
1) the anesthesiologists and
2) cleanliness/rate of infection.
These two things concern me. It seems strange that one of the leading experts in the world would not ensure that the facility is excellent in every way rather than just in the piece he controls. What are your thoughts on these two aspects - anesthesiology and infection? Had you read these same online reviews?
Thank you!!
Anxious mom
Hi Shari,
I'm not familiar with the reviews, so I can't really answer you on that one. But I can tell you that Baptist Hospital is one of the best here in N'ville and I can't imagine where that would be coming from. I wouldn't worry about it, the anethesioligist I had was great and I had no problems with infections.
Hope that eases your mind some,
Vanessa
Hi Vanessa,
How great that you are recovering so well. I unfortunately am still having some complications with scar tissue and external rotation. I am not allowed to try paddling yet... am wondering if you have tried paddling yet? I look forward to the day when I can say I am pain free... feels like it will never happen though!
Cheers,
Leanne
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