Countdown

[rlm62]

Patrick,

Good luck, it sounds like I am about a week or so behind you.  I have my resurfacing on Nov. 20th.  I also started with minor pain but in my left hip after work or playing with my boys in the yard.  Although for me I know that this day would come.  I also played sports as a youngster from Little League to street football (I am still amazed that we didn’t get hurt more or get hit by a car) not to mention the countless tree I fell out of as a kid.  I also love to hike in the mountains.  We recently built a cabin in the Franklin area of NC.  I have hiked sections of the Appalachian Trail and throughout the national parks in the area.  The last time I was up there I could barely walk down and back up our mountain road, about one mile and I needed a walking stick.

Like most, I had mostly good days with a few painful days a month and no limp.  Then it got to the point that the bad days became more frequent and affected my work.  I own my own company and my clients would ask if I got hurt because I began to limp more often.  For me the pain just became part of my day and I didn’t realized how much I began to limp. I worked as a structural engineer for many years and decided at forty that I was going to start my own company but on the construction side of the business.  So for the past 10 years I have carrying tens of thousands of pound of materials up high-rise buildings and climbed a mountain scaffolding not to mention the normal twists and falls that just happen.

Although I just turned 50 in September, it took me at less three to four years before I went to see an orthopedic surgeon.  I live in Tampa and I am having Dr. Lyons doing the procedure.  I first saw him about a year and a half ago and had my first x-rays of my hip.  At that time I had very little space in the joint, almost bone on bone.  This past September I had an appointment to see him again and to take an updated x-ray.  Now no space in the joint, bone on bone.  I told him that I think I can go another six month and maybe just get a shoot.   He said I could have that done, but again he told me “you will know when you are ready”.  That must be something they are taught in med school.  Well I went home limping and thought to myself, why am I going to keep putting it off and be in pain.  Not to mention the inability to do the things with my family.  So the next day I call back to the office and ask when can the doc do the resurfacing.

So, Nov. 20th is the day.  I can’t say I am scared but more apprehensive.  I am looking forward to no more pain.

Well again good luck and hope to hear from you afterward. 

[hernanu]

Welcome to the site, rlm! sounds like it's the right time with you. Nov 29th is the two year anniversary of my second, so I'll be wishing good things for you.

I can tell you that the OA pain is gone right after the procedure, just the recovery pain, which I found to be completely different and manageable... and the best thing is that it goes away. Good luck.

[patrick_d]

Countdown continues....2 weeks out....Anything you all wish you had (or maybe had not) done in the last 2 weeks before your surgery?

Hi RLM â€" Nice to hear your story too.  It doesn’t take too long reading these hip stories to notice all the common trends.  That really helped me make my decision.  The NC mountain area around Franklin is gorgeous.  It would be a great place to spend a few weeks resting and recovering!  Hope your procedure goes smoothly.

[blt01]

Patrick,

I'm right there with you...two weeks from today.  I'm going to try to run a few times prior to surgery as I know I wont be able to for some time.  Other than that I'm just trying to keep my sanity from all the nervousness.

Good Luck and see you in Columbia,

Brad

[patrick_d]

One week to go.....any last week thoughts or suggestions?

[IslandCatt]

One week to go.....any last week thoughts or suggestions?

First two weeks kind of suck, but things start to get much better after that.

That being said, here are some of the good things that you can look forward to:
- The hospital staff people are usually really nice.
- Hospital food is pretty good these days.
- People are really nice to you when they see you hobbling around on crutches.
- You'll see improvements just about every single day.
- Your pain will be managed very well and the post surgery discomfort will be pretty minimal.

[Pat Walter]

scolis0713

Congratulations on the new hip.  I look forward to reading your post as you recover. Would you start your story under the Hip Stories section, please. It is nice to find the stories in one place when new people are learning about resurfacing.  Also nice to watch your story progress.  Good Luck.

Patrick
You time will be soon.  Just keep positive and think about all the things you will be doing next summer.  Everyone worries a bit, but best to plan on what to do with the new hip than all the things that could possibly go wrong.  There really are many, especially when you use the top surgeons like Dr. Mont.

Good Luck to you both.

Pat

[blt01]

Patrick,

See you in Columbia.  It's funny how being a week out and I'm telling myself that my hip is not that bad, maybe I should wait.  I guess it's normal to have doubts leading up to the event.  Can't wait to be an old fart with a new part.  I'm telling my kids that I'm going to be refurbished.

Brad

[patrick_d]

Islandcatt and Pat â€" Thanks for all the comments.  I have sort of resigned myself to the fact that the first 2 weeks are not going to be fun.   I talked to a buddy of mine that had his hip done about 2 years ago and asked him about that first week and he said it was mostly a blur and a distant memory.  He has long since moved on with the rest of his life, best to focus on that part.   

scolis0713 â€" Very glad to hear that things went so well for you.  Dr. Gross uses a spinal and sedation too, so I hope to be in a very similar situation.  Hope the recovery continues to progress nicely

Brad â€" I get it, if I have a minute when it doesn't hurt I think maybe I have not waited long enough….then all I have to do is try to walk with a normal stride and let it catch once and those worries go away!  I have been telling folks I am going to be bionic, sounds impressive even if it is not exactly true!  See you in Columbia.

[hernanu]

Patrick, the way I viewed it was that it was a new beginning, and like all beginnings, it has its fits and starts. 

The best thing about it all is the complete absence of OA pain. No more grinding, mouth twisting, no sleep and always getting worse pain. There is no more of that after.

What you do have is the pain and discomfort from the surgery. It's not fun, and we all recuperated at our own pace, but the progress is there, it is a palpable feeling that things are getting better.

There was no feeling for me that there was something foreign in me, it was more like a release from the hell of some alien thing eating my hip. I could keep telling you how it feels so much better, but in the end, each of us had to experience that blessed relief even though other things are in play the first two weeks.

Good luck, I know you'll be able to tell the difference and will enjoy that part of it, even if the other parts are hard.

[Mike D]

Patrick-
Not long to go now- dig in for those first couple of weeks. I think they are just about getting sleep when you can and staying comfortable.
Some lucky people seem to breeze through it but I found it hard at times, like many others on here.
I wouldn't have wanted to do it without being able to log on here and read all about people going through the same thing, knowing it wasn't just me watching some crappy horror film at 4.30am then sleeping in the afternoon!
Look forward to reading about your progress, Mike.

[Tin Soldier]

"He said I could have that done, but again he told me “you will know when you are ready”. 

I think it's called jedi med school.   

RLM - when you take your first hike in the woods after full recovery, I bet it will seem almost spiritual.   Keep thinking about that as you get closer to the surgery date.  I think Hern put it well in that this is the start of a new journey, I'll add, one without pain.  Along the lines of what Pat said, for both Patrick and RLM and Blt- as you get closer to sugery, and if you get more anxious, (we all do), you should try to find some confidence in that you've made it this far and you've chosen a good surgeon.  Let them do the what they do best and just put you trust and faith in them and you'll be fine. 

Good luck fellas

[scolis0713]

Patrick and Brad,
Good luck this week. Today is day 5 with my new Corin hip resurfacing devise put in by Dr. Mont in Baltimore. If I can help with any questions feel free to ask. I have my story under subject "Hip resurfacing with Dr. Mont".
Scott

[patrick_d]

One more day.....headed down to Columbia, SC this morning.  Catch you all on the flip side.

[imgetinold]

You won't believe how seamless the whole thing is.  You'll be totally fine.

Just make sure you take the meds on schedule for at least the first week.  If it's a pill every 4 hours, or every 12 hours, take it!  If you don't, then by the time you realize you should have, you'll have a pretty miserable couple of hours.  That was my biggest mistake, since I'm not a pill popper.  I still weaned from all but Tylenol by day 10, but those first 7 days or so......I stayed on track (after my mistakes).

Looking forward to your post where you say "Dr. Gross is the best", and "it was way easier than I thought".

[Pat Walter]

Good Luck.  Looking forward to your posts after you have a new hip!

Pat

[Dan L]

Pat;

If my math is right you're either in prep or recovering, hope you're doing well and enjoying the outlook for all better really soon.  Let us know when you get a chance, you are in extremely good hands.

Ice, stay ahead of the pain, do the exercises and follow the restrictions.  Try not to let the narcs get you bound up too bad.

Dan

[hernanu]

Good luck, Patrick...