Ripanco

Hi Everyone!

Hope you all had a great 4th of July! Wigs would have still been in school however (hi Wigs). It was perfect weather here for the first time in a while.

I had my first post op appointment with my OS yesterday! I really wanted to share my visit with all my hippie friends here. However, I have been reading all the new posts here and the new and old people with so many aches and pains so I am a little quilty feeling about posting. I am still at the euphoric point of my recovery. Please bear with me!

I was surprisingly nervous on the 1 1/2 hr drive to Dartmouth Medical Center. Even tho I feel so good I was worried that maybe X-rays would show something not good. However, X-rays were great! OS was very happy with how the bone has grown and attached to the new parts! He gave me a copy of the picture, it is really neat.

OS checked me standing, lying, walking and is very pleased with my recovery!! He said I am definatly way ahead of the curve, but at the same time he wants me to not get too cocky and overdue.

I should explain to everyone in case you haven't already noticed, that I am totally in love with this doctor Not only is he a very skilled surgeon, he is great at listening, spends all the time needed with you, and on top of it all he is very boyishly goodlooking, not egotistical, and blushes easily. Tooooo cute!

He has figured out that I am a very motivated (ok, impatient) person and he always turns to DH, who always comes with me, for info or instructions. He said he can tell that Jerry is my common sense.

At any rate, here is the low down: I still have to be somewhat cautious for another 6 weeks about dislocation, especially since I am bilateral. But I can start to do more as my body lets me. He wants me to wait for 6 weeks before trying rollerblading only because Jerry told him I don't stop too well, but I am cleared to start biking, kayaking, gym work, grooming dogs ect. The biggy is that he says I can show one of my dogs next weekend!!!

This is such a huge thing for me! The show is put on by my kennel club so I have always worked the show as well as shown my dogs. When I first realized I was having my surgery in May, at that time, I had hoped I would just be able to attend and watch my kids show the dogs. As my recovery continued so well, I slowly started thinking that just maybe my new goal would not be to just attend, but actually show. I knew that would be a long shot, but it gave me a goal to work on. I have been practicing tho, and think I can do it. It does entail some slow running but only for about 20-30 seconds 2-3 times. Dr Tomek said to practice and if it felt bad at all to give it up.

Yesterday, after the appointment, Jerry and I went to a flat field on Dartmouth campus and for the first time, I actually tried a very short jog! I am so very excited about this!!! It did not hurt!!! My hips are still stiff and I could not run for long, but it felt good. And Jerry carefully watched my gait. He was amazed!! He said my stride looked better than he has ever seen before! And today I feel fine, no sorness.

Next week I start back with my own PT who is a running specialist. I am hoping to actually relearn how to walk more correctly and eventually run better.

This whole experience is so overwhelming to me. It truly has given me a new lease on life! I realize how bad I was before. My whole body is feeling the effects of my new hips too. I walk more upright now, so there is a fair amount of mid to low back muscle pain which I know is from using different muscles. My knees are a little tweeked as they learn to work with the new hips. My iliotibial band is extremely tight and my periformis is being bad (that is the butt pain). I know I still have a long way to go, but that gives me more hope of what I eventually will be able to do again.

A funny little diddy from our appointment- at the end of the appoinment, Dr Tomek left the room to get paper work. He comes back with a handful of stuff which he hads to me including a pamphet entiled "Sex After Joint Replacement". He obviously was somewhat uncomfortable on the subject and mutter something like "I have to give you this". Jerry and I just looked at each other and cracked up laughing. I told Doc that we really didn't need the booklet since we were already way past that. Poor Dr Tomek's face got all red as I handed it back to him. He says "You sure you don't want to just have it?" He was just so cute about it, it just made us almost hysterical which made him blush even more. But he was laughing too and said he never knew which way people would take it.

At any rate, it was a good checkup and I am feeling very postive. I apologize for this very long rant, but I just am so full of happiness and hope I had to share. And I need to thank all the wonderful folks on this board who helped me to get here. As someone else pointed out, there is nothing better than hearing actual experiences.

Take care my hippie friends!!