Joe’s 6 Month Update Bilateral Dr. Gross 2016
Just posting for my (almost) 6 month post-surgery mark (I used 24 weeks because it came quicker :-))
Bottom Line: I couldn’t be happier.
To go back a year ago and recall all the hobbling and pain I experienced while trying to remain active, and then compare to how I feel now is simply hard to imagine. I’m doing activities that I haven’t done in *years*. I ran on the track a few weeks ago and did a little more than a 9 minute mile. I know that’s not too impressive, but in years past it would take me 9 minutes just to warm up a half of mile so I could even attempt to run more. I’ve played beach volleyball for a few weeks too, and while my jumping isn’t back to 100%, I’ve been able to run after balls and dive like I did 20 years prior.
At the gym I’m doing squats, lunges with proper form and little pain. I’m picking stuff off the ground and putting on my pants without holding onto to something, tying my shoes with ease, running up stairs. Senior citizens are no longer stepping around me during walks because I was too slow. Forget about it! I’ve even returned to playing basketball with my kids again in the driveway. I’d like to say I’m beating them, but I’d be lying (they’re teenagers now, and getting much better than me).
I could yammer on for the next hour about how satisfied I am with deciding to obtain hip-resurfacing. This website was such a important part of my decision. Without it, I’m not sure I would have been able to reject the numerous ways in which I was being dissuaded from getting this done, from unscrupulous lawyers ads on TV, to the uninformed and/or untrained physicians I encountered. I recall my rock-bottom moment during this journey one night after being informed that afternoon by a MD that “there was no way” I was a candidate for this procedure, “You’re hips are too far gone”. I remember sitting alone at home, and telling myself over and over “You’re becoming a cripple, and there isn’t much you can do about it”. I cried like a little baby.
Yep, that was the lowest moment. And guess what? The highest moment came, even surpassing how great I feel now, was when I found this website, and was advised that perhaps my path was not set in stone, and that many people have encountered the exact same headwinds that I have. And then adding to that, getting to view so many fine examples of real people with their personal stories of great outcomes, and returning to sports that provide them with a quality of life they once enjoyed. It was like finding an oasis in the desert.
I’m sure Pat gets tired of hearing this, but we are all so blessed and thankful for what you do. And thanks to all who share here, and who have helped me.
Joe