Hello All,
Today marks my seven month anniversary since having both hips resurfaced by Dr. Thomas Gross in Columbia, S.C. I haven't been on this forum much in the last month because it's Summer and I'm usually outside doing something since the weather is nice. When you live in the Northeast, you take the good weather when you get it.
Everything has gone amazingly well since my surgeries. At the six month point, I started riding my mountain bike again after almost two years of not being able to even get on or off of it. It was kind of weird getting on at first because it's been so long since I rode and that awful pain I used to feel is something I can't forget. My riding has not been anything crazy, just good rides on some mild trails and some road riding. The only pain I felt at first was the pain in the behind because I'm not used to riding. I tried some light jogging, not very far but just enough to test out the new hardware. No problems at all. Both the bike riding and the light jogging were a little scary at first, but once I got going the scariness went away.
The biggest joy is just being able to walk normally and comfortably again. I can glide along at a rapid pace and it is just amazing. My range of motion is at least what it used to be before my hips really got bad. No more leaning on a shopping cart at a store or having to stop and wait until the pain goes away. I go on walks with my wife which is an activity I totally stopped doing before my surgery. When I sit down at a picnic table, I can even step into it normally! I no longer stub my toes on the edge of my bathtub when getting in and out of it. I no longer wake up 20 times a night trying to get comfortable from the lousy aching pain. There were times when the pain was excruciating and it didn't seem like it would go away. Just a few examples of how my life is so much better now. I guess only a Surface Hippy can appreciate stuff like that. Oh yeah, I almost forgot, kayaking! I can get in and out like in the old days. No problem.
Again, this has been said a thousand or more times, "If you are on the fence about getting this surgery done, don't wait any longer. You'll be glad you did it".
A ton of thanks to everyone who provided support and valuable information on this wild and crazy journey. I can't even imagine where I would be today without this site and the great people on it. Thanks to Vicky Marlow also. It was her website that I first came across when I was searching for something, anything to help end the misery that I was in. That's where I first heard about this "hip resurfacing" thing. Huh? Must be some kind of scam or something. LOL!
A special thanks to you Pat Walter. This website is just so valuable to all of us. Where would we be without it?
Seven months, I just can't believe it!
Steve