So, Christmas has come and gone in a rather uneventful manner. I suppose that’s a good thing though. Got to talk to the parents, brother and sis on the phone yesterday. They’re all doing the traditional thing. Matt and me? We decided to escape the white Christmas in Albuquerque and become beach bums in Santa Monica, CA. The real reason we’re out here is because I needed to get those 3 knarly screws removed from my hip. But we figured, if we’re gonna take the time to get out to SoCal for the surgery, might as well stick around. After all, what are we gonna do at home?!? The screws aren’t as long as they looked in my x-rays, about the length of my cell phone…
Matt’s been getting in lots of riding and has been able to hook up with some friends. He did a ride with the LA Wheelmen yesterday, and today he got to meet and ride with Mario. wish I could have done both, but I’m still down with the recovery. Of course I’m just fooling myself about riding with Matt & Mario…unless they’re on a recovery ride and are pedaling with only 1 leg. 
Me? I’ve been getting in a lot of walking, which is nice exercise. I get sore a bit as I walk, but nothing too bad. The worst is the rubbing on my incision. I have to walk pulling my waistband away from the cut. I tried extra padding around the area, but that doesn’t help. Guess I just need to wait for the area to heal. Today I managed to make it into the hotel gym. I went yesterday as well and got in 30 min cardio. Today I got in some weight lifting and 70 min of cardio. I switched machines so that I would be in different positions since it seems that I really start aggravating my incision if I stick to one position on a machine for more than 30 min. Well, the weight lifting was stupid. I ended up opening up my incision. I knew something was wrong when I was doing some hamstring curls (lying on my belly). I felt the wound open up a tad and decided to stop. Duh! I’m an idiot. I didn’t think weight lifting would hurt as long as I didn’t do something like squats that could injure my healing bone. I didn’t think that weight lifting might stretch my skin and rip open the wound. Oh well, I cleaned things up and it should be fine. It was minor since I caught myself before doing too much damage.
Dude, take – it – easy!!! Don called you “Janie Impatient.”
I hope you guys have fun out there!
Haha, Don’s probably right, I am impatient.
Hey girl!! Rest girlfriend! Kick your feet up and have some vino!
)
Enjoy the beach and welcome winter when you get back to alb.
happy new year!
carrie
Hey Carrie! I did rest and kick back some, really, I swear! We’re back now. Matt and I got to go cross country skiing from our house to the Foothills. That’s a first!! It was really fun, but boy are my legs sore now!!
The screws won’t be holding you back now so maybe when you guys are out in Cali for a century or double century we can go for a ride.
Hey Mario! A ride next time we’re back in Cali will be great!!
I am 44 and had hip surgery as a teen for dysplasia. Now I’m starting to have problems again. I’m looking for alternatives to full hip replacement for many reasons, but the two main reasons, are I’m extremly active & my ball joint is OK, it’s my socket that isn’t. I would really like to talk to you to learn more about why you chose Periacetabular Osteotomy and what the down sides are. My email is wcsar406 at hotmail dot com. Thanks for sharing your experience, you’ve already helped me.
thanks for sharing ur journey experience. i’m 24 and been told that PAO is the best option for me. done lots of research, and i am a nurse in surgery so i have a wealth of info. how did insurance work for u? any problems? is it costly? i’ve been in pretty intense pain lately and was told its now or never. any good advice?
–i was a big marathon runner, soccer player- any hopes of returning to those ativities? now i do alot of biking and yoga…
thanks and good luck in your continued recovery in ’08
Hey Shanna, best of luck to you on the PAO. My insurance at the time was excellent, so it did not cost much out of pocket for me 3 years ago. Now? It would cost much more. Biking and yoga you’ll be able to do, maybe even the soccer, but marathon running may be out, depending upon your conditions. I was told that I couldn’t do any more running.
But the lack of pain and return to real activities more than pays for itself!!
Hi. I am in dire need of a PAO, but they doctors have been putting me off for seven years now. Actually only about three. Before that they wouldn’t admit that I had a problem. Kept telling me I just had tendonitis, I was too young to have serious hip problems. I was 19 when the pain started to take over my life. I just turned 26 last month. I guess that’s what I get for dealing with the military doctors.
Anyways, I stumbled on to your site and was impressed by the log you kept. I think that they are finally going to schedule surgery in the next three months or so with a Doctor Downer is Seattle.
I guess I was just wondering if you could tell me what to expect after surgery.
I used to play ten hours of volleyball a day, extensive jogging and dancing. Now it seems if I even think about dancing my hips start to hurt.
Will I ever be normal again?
Franklin,
Sorry to hear you’ve been through such a long, drawn out process…being a military brat, I do recall military doctors tending to opt for the “wait and see” approach more often than not. I’ll shoot you an email for more info. Good luck with your surgery!
Hello Ojulius,
The PAO has been recommended to me as well, but I’m having a hard time deciding if I should have it done. I am wondering if it will be worth it and if I will be worse off after the surgery. You described this surgery as “ridiculous”, and after what I have read about it and its recovery, I agree with you. I am your age and have some questions for you regarding your Arthroscopy, PAO surgery, recovery, and your surgeon. I was wondering if you could send me your e-mail address; I would really appreciate it.
Hi there. My niece (14 years) has been having horrible hip pain and after a number of test, xrays and mri’s was told she needed a scope to see if there was a labral tear in her hip. I asked a few docs to check here mri’s and they also saw no signs of a tear but looking at the Xray diagnosed Right Hip Displasia. This is definately a bigger surgery than the first, and once my sister reads what all is entailed, I am sure the stress will rise as will the concern. I haven’t read all the info you’ve presented, but I’ll share this with my sis. Thanks for posting. It all just seems so scary, especially when you think about it happening to such a young kid.
Hi. I am a 26 year old super active gal and a PT. My orthopedist suggested to me 2 days ago now that I seriously consider having bilateral PAO surgery. I didn’t realize how severe my hip dysplasia was, but with that and a labral tear, my activity level is declining fast. I am scared of the surgery, but more scared that I won’t be able to return to my active lifestyle if I don’t do it. Your blog is great, and it seems like you are doing really well. What are your thoughts about the PAO surgery. What questions did you ask? Are you happy you did it?….you definitely seem to be. Glad to see you are able to be so active again! Let me know what you think if you get a chance. Thanks!
Hi I’m a 19 year old extremely active female that was diagnosed with severe acetabular hip displasia on my right hip. I have a PAO set for July of this year. I am not so nervous about the surgery as I am about the recovery what that includes, how long, and what I will be able to do afterwards. I am excited to not be in agonizing pain everyday but the road to get there seems rough. Any advice? I also found out after my arthroscopy that I have a labral tear which has made even sitting for a while painful. I have been having hip pains starting my sophomore yr. Of highschool, went to seeany many doctors and it wasn’t until this past 6 mo that I was diagnosed. I hope this is the right thing to do.
Hey Akmtco, I’ll respond to you via email rather than my blog.
HI im alex
I visited your website and its so amazing and informative.
can I get your email.
good luck to your activities. Nice that you were able to get back to sports.
Hi I’m in Phoenix and facing this same surgery in a couple months. I’m super active on the bike and hiking, and keen to come back even stronger. I have a couple questions regarding rehab, prehab, and physical therapists. It would be great if you could contact me by email. Thanks!