I’ve been absent from blogging for a good long time. Somehow this year seems to have drained my creative energies and left me adrift in a sea of lethargy. I hope this is my first step out of those energy sapping waters.
The past nine months have seen a lot of change in my life,
and that can be draining. My
current challenge has inspired me to get back to blogging in the hopes that it
might help someone who’s going thru the same thing.
One of several big changes in the last few months is a new
house. After living in the same house for
36 years we stopped at an open house on a lark, fell in love with the place and
bought it on the spot. My husband and I
are not snap decision makers, so this was totally out of character for us. Somehow, even though we’ve had longer
discussions about where to go for lunch, we jumped in with both feet.
And so it was that we found ourselves in our new home surrounded by boxes of
belongings we had forgotten we owned, too much furniture, and each of us in too
much pain to do much of anything.
Filling and lifting boxes had wrecked my husband’s back the day before
the movers arrived. Trying to pick up
the slack I discovered my right hip became more painful every day; by the time
we were actually in the new house I could hardly walk. With the help of family and friends who have
now reached ‘sainted’ status we managed to get moved into the new house. With their continued efforts (and that of
some folks we hired to help us out) we got the old house ready for the market
and listed. At first the new house had
all the charm of a jumbled unit at a Store and Lock It, but slowly it has
become home. There is still a lot to be
done…but some things will just have to wait.
After trips to half a dozen doctors, prescriptions and pain
injections, x-rays and therapy, we are now informed medical consumers. All this accumulated knowledge has told us
what we knew at the start: Larry has a
bad back and I have a bad hip. He seems
to have come through the worst of it for right now, but I am not going to get
any better unless I have joint replacement surgery.
It’s sobering to think that a doctor (think Doogie Howser)
is going to cut into my body, amputate the ball at the top of the femur and
replace it with a shiny silver knob, put a new piece into the hip socket, then
glue it all back together. It’s a
thought that sent me to the internet to do some research. I checked out the surgeons in the area, spoke
with some people I know who have had joint replacement, and plunged ahead. First I checked on therapies that might
extend the life of my own hip. When I
settled on a doctor I’d want to know about those options; maybe I just need a
little WD-40?
My choice of doctor was somewhat influenced by proximity. In my particular case I only have relief from
this maddening pain when I lie flat out; sitting upright for any length of time
becomes excruciating. Having already
made a few trips stretched out in the back of our van I decided trips for
tests, exams and whatever else they might require of me meant I needed to be
able to get there in a short amount of time.
Fortunately we have some excellent joint replacement surgeons right
here, so I don’t feel I am sacrificing quality for convenience.
Finally the day arrived for my first appointment with the
surgeon. His staff was excellent, and he
took a great deal of time to explain things and answer my long list of
questions. It soon became apparent my
WD-40 treatment was not an option. In fact
there were only two: I could continue to
struggle through my daily life using a cane and/or walker with this permanent
grimace on my face OR I could get on with the joint replacement surgery. I have
opted for the latter.
So far I’ve been through tests to determine if I’m healthy
enough for surgery (I am), and a meeting to answer questions, discuss services
and simply allay fears of the procedure (I am more than ready). I’ve asked my questions and settled the
answers in my mind. Let’s roll.
I hope by letting you in on my experience it might help
someone who’s facing the same type of surgery feel just a little more
comfortable when the time comes. I will
be completely honest about the pain level and recovery. I’m curious about how it will feel to have a
foreign object doing the job of the original equipment. Will it feel “natural”? How many of the people I see striding around
have artificial joints? I know one thing
for sure, after four months of living in bed, in a recliner, or struggling to
walk on a cane, I am ready to reclaim my quality of life. I do not want to live from one pain pill to
the next and modify my life to accommodate my deteriorating hip any longer.
Having always been an active person it’s difficult to
confine your shopping excursions to stores that have the electric carts or
wheel chairs to make your trip even possible.
Constant pain not only alters your life, but the life of your
spouse. My husband’s patience and
thoughtfulness are amazing, but I don’t want my problem to dictate his
life as well. I am grateful that my
surgery may restore both our independence and my semi-good humor!
So….one week from today (Monday, July 27th) I
will be taking the plunge. I will keep
you posted on the experience, and if you should talk to God today please
mention my name.
Life is Good
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