Pain Prior to Contemplating Surgery

[NCH]

I've been struggling with whether I'm ready for the surgery or not.  Day to day I do not have much pain.  Some discomfort, but no real pain.  I have, however, completely altered my athletic endeavors and am no longer playing squash as I can't move around the court due to pain/lack of mobility caused by my hip impingement/arthritis.  After I do play, I have pain/discomfort and often find myself limping.  Has anyone else experienced having "no real pain day to day", but once aggravated the pain/discomfort begins?  Is this normal or should I feel I need to be in constant pain/discomfort?  Thoughts?

[mari]

I was not in constant pain but did walk with a slight limp.  It was more of a nagging soreness, but the pain would set in when I tried to walk more than a block.  Occasionally it woke me up during the night, but I would change position and fall right back asleep.  Not being able to walk far brought me to an orthopedic surgeon who looked at my x-ray and said "this hip is shot".  He recommended a total hip when I was ready.  I was handed a brochure on the way out of the office and that brochure completely turned me off.  It showed elderly people with curly gray hair using a walker after surgery, and described the surgery.  That's when I started researching hip surgery on the internet and discovered this site.  My mother had had a total hip done and complained about pain in her thigh from the shank that goes into the femur, and also had a leg length discrepancy.  I didn't want those problems, so I sent my x-rays to Dr. Gross, and when he called me and said I was a good candidate for resurfacing I made the decision to have it done.  Now I can walk for miles again. 

[NCH]

Thanks for your feedback.  Appreciate the response and glad you're walking pain-free again.

[Juno]

NCH -- I am scheduled to have surgery with Dr. Gross this Wednesday. My story is much like the previous posters and yours. I don't have constant pain that cripples me, but when I walk too far (for me that is a mile or so), or "over do it" (again this may be different for me than someone else), I get a nagging ache in my hip, thigh, knee and shooting pain to my low back. It subsides with rest and Advil or diclofenac. BUT, I have altered my activities and my life significantly --- no more long hikes, no more aerobic classes, no squatting or bending and my ROM is significantly diminished.

So, terrible, constant pains? No.
Altering my life and activities significantly? Yes, and at 49 I refuse or live that way.

It's only going to get worse. We can't grow new cartilage.

I am hopeful that 3 months from now I'll be recovering well and be able to enjoy walking thru my Disney vacation in October!

[Lauren Lee]

Yes NCH! 30 years ago I had a snowmobile mishap and believe I tore the labrum. Every couple of years or so...I would do something to flare it up and I would wind up limping, limited, and in physical therapy. The more active I was, or tried to be, the more "flare ups" I would have. Two x rays one year apart showed first moderate  OA and then in march of this year "severe" OA. I could walk okay but getting out of a chair, driving, ROM was becoming awful. Sleeping was tough due to tightness in the IT band.  Forget about squatting to garden or play with grandson on the floor. I could not put socks on, polish my toenails, wash my right foot. I had started to practice yoga but that was pretty pointless.Two weeks before my surgery I felt so good that I thought I had received a divine healing at a womens retreat I went on. I was ready to cancel surgery. Went back to the doc...the xrays hadn't changed much to my disappointment and there was, of course, that stiffness in my hip that limited me so much. But unless I "did something" I didn't have a lot of acute pain, just chronic discomfort and stiffness. Tomorrow is 3 weeks and I know I made the best decision for me. I have zero pain. My ROM is better than it was, even with the restrictions. The recovery period is a real test for an active person but it is that personality that keeps us motivated to do what they tell us to do...no more, no less.   If I had waited much longer my options would have been a lifetime of pain or a total hip replacement. Best wishes to you.

[NCH]

Thanks Lauren Lee, Juno and Mari.  I appreciate the feedback!

[MikeF]

My surgery is scheduled for a week from today. I played in a team squash tournament in Boston two years ago. It was torture. I had hip arthroscopy done a month later to clean out bone spurs, smooth out joint surfaces and repair the labrum.  I never came back to normal and now I have trouble lifting myself off the couch. My lower back is weak and painful pretty much all the time. The hip goes back and forth from nagging to nasty. I got back on the squash court for awhile but afterward the pain was so bad I couldn't sleep.
Next Monday Dr. Chris Drinkwater here in Rochester, NY. will perform my surgery. He has done 700+ HR's and he's a very confident guy. Squash player too.....
I'd say if you think you are ready....you are ready. I'm sorry I waited so long. Start looking for good surgeons near you, who are experienced with this procedure.
My plan is to get back on the squash court in 8-12 months and get my life bcak to normal.
Keep us all posted.
Mike

[chuckm]

If there are any physical activities that you don't do and would like to return do doing - pain free - then you are ready. End of story.

Chuckm

[Boomer]

NCH,

As you noted in your first post, you have already started giving up some of the activities you enjoy. The longer you wait, the more things drop out of your life. The sooner you get your hip fixed, the sooner you can start picking the pieces up again.

I waited too long. I waited until I had dropped everything. I was a shadow of myself, but didn't recognize it for some reason. I lost a couple of years of my life that I can't get back.

I had each of my hips resurfaced in 2011 and 2012 and am so happy I did. It has taken a long time for me to recover completely, but I'm feeling pretty strong these days and enjoying my life immensely. I do anything I want these days without pain or hesitation. Life is very good.

Get your hip fixed! We Hippys are having a huge amount of fun on the other side. Join us.

Boomer

[NCH]

Thanks to all who responded. Surgery was performed by Edwin Su at Hospital for Special Surgery on July 16th. I'm on the road to recovery. thanks for all the feedback.

[hernanu]

How are you feeling?

[keepmovin]

NCH,

I'm in the same situation - not bone on bone but severe degeneration, labral tear that can't be mended and the things I used to do effortlessly with enjoyment are a thing of the past.  Funny, how you 'almost' get used to it!  Dr. Su is my surgeon as well (first one) so when he looked at the X-rays back in January, his first thought was I had a few years before I would need the resurfacing, until the MRI report came through and the report showed a different story.  I see him again next month and will be planning on just getting it done!

Good to see a similar story and you went ahead with the surgery.  Hope all is mending well!  Speedy recovery!

[Arrojo]

I was not in any pain before I had resurfacing surgery 15 months ago, except when I tried to run.  But I knew it was never going to get better on its own and I wanted to run.  I am so glad I had it done when I did.

One good reason is that the better shape you are in before surgery, the quicker your recovery will be.  I trained for my surgery as though it were a goal race, and my recovery went famously as a result.  Don't wait until you are in agony or even until you are limping.  Surgery is a good thing, not a bad thing.  There is no need to wait.

Indeed, in case you missed it, I have returned full force to everything, including masters sprinting:

http://surfacehippy.info/hiptalk/hip-resurfacing-topics/silver-medal-in-50-meter-dash-at-ct-senior-games/20/

Good luck!

[Tin Soldier]

I know this is late for NCH, but I was almost exactly the same for awhile probably a year prior to surgery.  Walking around fine, no pain, only wehn I played soccer and it lasted for a few days and there was obviously the labral tear issue that would come and go. 

Good job on surgery NCH - hope all is well and recovery is going good.  Lots of info here and lots of folks willing to answer you questions about recovery.

Arrojo - Sweet on the sprinting.  I overdid it busting back on defense when playing soccer a few times in outdoor last year, so I slowed it down.  I suspect if and when I get back into, I'll need to do some serious strengthening and other supportive work before jumping headlong into soccer.