Not what I thought - 88 days post-op

I saw Simon Ellis at Lake Physio today to get my ‘final’ rehab program. I was really hoping for a plan that Amir Takla assured me would be coming my way. Something I could get stuck into for the next 6 months or something like that. I didn't get that.

My 'plan' for the next 3 weeks.

After asking me a series of questions regarding my surgery and history Simon got me to show him what I'd been instructed to do by Amir. I showed him a couple of the 'QF' exercises I'd been doing and explained I'd been riding the stationary bike and doing a little pool work. We chatted for a while while he rubbed away at my left quad/groin.

He did seem surprised when I explained that Amir had asked me to back off a bit. I was quite self conscious of the fact I've just floated along for the past 4-5 weeks in regard to rehab.

I was hoping for a definitive long term strategy that I could adhere to. It didn't come. He wants to see me again in 3 weeks and get some massage in the meantime. I found myself quite frustrated that Amir had led me down the garden path regarding what I could expect. To be honest, I just want someone to cut through the crap and tell me what I need to do long term.

Anyway, I'll get stuck into the stuff he has given me. Hell of a nice bloke, Simon, and it's not his fault but I'll go back to Clarkey and try to get some information/instructions directly from Amir. Too far to travel from Buninyong over to Wendouree.

If you are reading this blog and have any thoughts or comments, good or bad, I would really appreciate it if you could add your comments after any of my posts. I feel like I am on my own with this and would love to hear from people in the same boat.

MRI Results (or lack thereof) - 81 days post-op

Well the results are in from my MRI and I got ‘donuts’!

Before I start I must say my MRI referral was from my GP and therefore I was out of pocket around $300 for the scan. Bloody expensive but my thinking was I’ve come this far……

Anyway, they were looking into ‘lumbar pain radiating to the buttocks and left posterior thigh, discogenic or facet. Is this amenable to CT guided intervention?’

Discogenic. Sounds like the sort of pissed dancing I might have trotted out in the wee hours of a sticky-floored nightclub circa 1994.

The conclusions of the findings were ‘minor disc changes only with a small discogenic bar extending L4/5 postero-right laterally without causing nerve root displacement or compression. This does not appear to correspond to the left-sided nature of the patient’s symptoms and is of unlikely clinical concern.’

Bugger. The old night-time aches and pains of the lower back and pelvis/hips are well and truly back and I was hoping it was something they could treat in my lower back. Unfortunately this does not appear to be the case.

I have pretty much resigned myself to the fact that these aches will be with me for the foreseeable so the sooner I get my head around that and accept it the better.

As it is, the weekend just gone was a monstrous 3-day golf trip to Yarrawonga where, in between lengthy sessions at the bar, I played, and walked, two rounds of golf. The hips weren’t completely niggle free but they were good enough.

I am booked in to see Simon at Lake Physio to get my ‘final’ rehab program for the long term future on July 29. Should be interesting to see what he has in store for me.

This is my MRI report.


If you are reading this blog and have any thoughts or comments, good or bad, I would really appreciate it if you could add your comments after any of my posts. I feel like I am on my own with this and would love to hear from people in the same boat.

We was hitchhikin' down a long and lonesome road.....

All of a sudden, there shined a shiny demon... in the middle... of the road.
 

And he said.....

It is difficult for many people to look at you after a hip op and see that there is much wrong with you, especially if you don't have a limp. And if you aren't much of a whinger they'll never know about the aches, pains and burning going on inside your groins, hips, pelvis, lower back and legs along with the poor sleeping and inability to get comfortable in bed or sitting or standing for any length of time.

If you are reading this blog and have any thoughts or comments, good or bad, I would really appreciate it if you could add your comments after any of my posts. I feel like I am on my own with this and would love to hear from people in the same boat.

A bit more activity and a little less pain

Yesterday I walked the kids and the dog down to the shops which is probably a 2km or so round trip. I found I couldn't really stride out but took it easy nonetheless. I did 15 minutes on the exercise bike and the isometric quadratus muscle exercises and felt quite good.

Today I led an excursion with my colleagues around the region looking at the local geology. It involved some walking and climbing the steps of the fire tower on Mt Buninyong. I am feeling ok now but can tell I've done a bit as the hips have that old familiar burning feeling.

In saying that, I had a crack at air drums using my kids' limbs as drum sticks to Iron Maiden's 2 Minutes to Midnight. It's lots of fun and the kids think it's hilarious. Hips survived! Ha!

I reckon sitting on a hard wooden chair, such as the one I am on now, is when I start to feel at my worst. Note to self: I recommend looking after your hips with a pillow when sitting on hard chairs.

Be careful not to sit around after physio

Had an appointment with my physio today who worked on my back and upper gluteals while we chewed the fat about footy and the Adam Goodes racism issue. I enjoy my chats with Matt.

I was sitting and driving in the car for about an hour after the appointment and started to feel very sore with that old familiar burning pain in my right hip and groin. I did mention to Matt that I was feeling soreness in the hip/groin while he was working on my back but I didn't expect it to flare up so much.

Posture is everything but it can be difficult when you need to keep your hip angle greater than 90 degrees. I might get the ice onto it.

On an entirely different topic, I'm not a religious man and probably refer to myself as an agnostic atheist with a Catholic death bed Golden ticket. But as a father and a husband this got to me. Thanks for the heads up, Matt. I'm not sure if I look forward to continuing to read this or not.

http://howthelightgetsin.net/2011/11/06/in-defense-of-daddy/

Very sore today

I’ve pulled up very sore in the left leg today after yesterday’s driving. I also sat around at the computer for a fair while when I got home which was not ideal. The pain concerns me as it is identical to that which I had pre-op.

The lesson from all this is you must ice, ice, ice. Even if you think it is past the time you’d tradionally ice a soft tissue injury you should keep icing your hips. If anything it offers lovely relief.

Surgeon and specialist physio visit - 24 days post-op

Drove down to Melbourne with my son Tom for my post-op appointment with my surgeon, John O'Donnell. An hour each way in the car leaves me sore, especially in the left hip and groin. 

Fortunately, we were driving past the Collingwood footy club's training facility in Swan Street, Melbourne and got to stop in for 10 minutes to see them training.

Both the surgeon and physio were very happy with my hips. John believes I will make an excellent recovery while the physio, Amir Takla, is happy where I am at this stage. He checked my mobility and showed me some simple quadratus muscle isometric exercises.

Seems the surgery was well timed and got to me before arthritis took hold. I look like I'll be sore for 6-8 weeks post-op and John is optimistic of recovery in 3 months. However the physio is not so confident.

He said he didn't know how I played cricket with it for so long. The major concern is the micro fracture work done in the right hip where loose cartilage was removed and tiny fractures were made in the underlying bone. This causes new cartilage to develop from a so-called super-clot.

The physio urged me to not squat, pivot or lift from ground for 6 more weeks. He wants me to slow up as he thinks I am doing too much. He believes I am very sore in my left hip as I am unconsciously compensating for my right leg.

He asked me to continue my anti-inflammatories (Meloxicam) until the course is completed and to not miss any days. He also said to take Panadol Osteo (a larger dose paracetamol) every day and ice the hip. I had discontinued the pain relief and icing but will get back onto it now.

I’ll be doing 4 of the simple quadratus muscle exercises for a minute each day for the next 4 weeks, stationary bike riding 3 times a week for 15 minutes with a high seat and minimal resistance, and I’ll continue to get my back loosened up by my local physio.

I feel like I am in great hands. John O’Donnell is an internationally renowned guru and Amir Takla is very experienced with the management of arthroscopic hip surgery patients.

I am to see Amir in 4 weeks for a final check from him where he will give me a long-term program.

Here are the physio's notes.

Here are the surgery photos from my left hip.

And the surgery photos from my right hip.

On the way home I discovered that Tom likes Mudhoney and Metallica. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree!

Physio appointment - 22 days post-op

I had treatment on my groins today. I discussed my concerns about my hip feeling like it “popped out” when I put my foot down last week. Clarky assured me that hips don't just dislocate. People do that sort of thing in car crashes. There was talk of “muscle flicking” to explain it.