getting ready for surgery

On July 13th I had an arthrogram (see the last post!) and though the metal anchors in my hip caused some blurriness (a.k.a. artifact) my surgeon believes that my labrum has become detached and that arthroscopy is our best option. This will allow us to see what's and fix it in a minimally invasive way. Last Thursday we found out that there was a cancellation for this Tuesday and they were able to fit me in! That's the day after tomorrow and I can't believe it. I've been getting ready this weekend (which apparently includes a lot of trips to Target) and I'm incredibly thankful to get this over with during the summer and have the chance to start my senior year without crutches! I hope to have lots of photos and in-depth posts about my recovery. To start things off, here's a pre-surgery list! Packing and getting ready for surgery is a huge part of my mental preparation and it really helps me come to terms with things and feel less anxious.
  
Things to bring:

• loose fitting pj or sweat pants (if you bring one thing, bring these!) You will want to wear jeans for a week or so after surgery.
• T-shirt
• slippers/grippy socks for slippery hospital floors
• magazines + music
• a thera band (if you have one and if your protocol includes it) to tie your ankles together to keep your post-op hip for rotating externally.
• toothbrush, toothpaste, hair brush, etc.

You're never too old for a stuffed animal and they're great at holding oxygen masks near your face.

MRI arthrogram- pictures!

I've already written about arthrograms once here (I go in to way more detail about the process of the procedure, flouroscopy and the MRI scan )Yesterday I had an arthrogram on my left hip to check for a labral tear. (a tear of the gasket-like rim of cartilage on the hip joint called the labrum. The contrast injected into the hip joint during the procedure makes the labrum much easier to see on the MRI scan that follows the procedure.) I sometimes feel like I've had so many hip procedures in the past three years, but when I thought about it I realized that this was only my second arthrogram. All I can say is that I was a ball of nerves before the procedure and there was nothing to be worried about. The initial injection of the number stings a bit but the best part was I couldn't even tell that the contrast needle went into my hip. If you've never had a hip injection before  I'll admit it can be scary. Everyone's experience will be different but the best thing to do is trust your radiologist. From start to finish it tends to only take about 20 minutes and if they inject some numbing agent into the joint with the contrast (which they usually do so you can lie still and pain free for about an hour in the MRI scanner) you'll be pain free for a bit after the procedure. It's a win-win. By all means I'm not saying it's a walk in the park, but it's best to look at things in a positive light. It also really helps to have something fun to look forward too after the procedure (for me, that's ice cream). Bring on the five inch needles!

hip strengthening and balance exercise

I've been given this exercise in physical therapy a few different times as it's a  great multipurpose exercise for practicing balance and strengthening the muscles around the hip. Plus it's pretty fun and you can join the circus once you get really good at it. It's a great thing to do pre- surgery to strengthen and also post -surgery if you have muscle atrophy (wasting or loss) from the surgery and recovery. Always check with your physical therapist first, of course! You do need a small exercise trampoline for this but to get stated you can always just do it on solid ground. The trampoline just adds to the balancing element of the excercise. As you can see in the video, I wobble a lot, especially on my left leg. This weakness, we think, is from those crazy six months on crutches after my last surgery. To do this stand on one leg and have someone throw you a ball. At first they can throw it straight at you but as you get used to it they should begin to throw it to the left, right and higher or lower. This forces you to move your body to catch the ball which in turn tests your balance. Depending on your tolerance you can switch legs every 30 to 60 seconds but you should stop if you have pain.

Hello again!

I apologize for the complete lack of posts for the past months, I simply wasn't able to  as junior year really took almost all of my time and energy. But now I'm back! Yay! I'm excited to be able to do this again because I enjoy writing about this (and hopefully you enjoy reading about this too!) I hope to have more physical therapy videos and more explanations about surgeries and more general thoughts about this whole hip surgery experience.
Ty