Post surgery Hip Reconstruction
Imagine driving a car with the tires aligned improperly. This was a surgery I accomplished over the past year with a correction of with my hips aligned improperly. In a nutshell hip dysplasia is congenital and results in your femur being seated incorrectly on the outside of your pelvis giving whats called a “shallow socket” . PAO (periacetabular osteotomy) was the surgery I underwent with cutting my pelvis to reshaping it, and screwing it back together to properly cover the femoral head. Some say it can be a rear surgery because most people back out and may choose to wait being lame until a hip replacement is needed. I say sign me up and fix me, I'm ready to get rid of this pain so I can get on with my life!
With a epidural pierced in my back, 8 hours unconsciously asleep under the influence of anesthesia, 4 - 5 days in the hospital, under a great amount of narcotics for the first 2 weeks, 1 month on a walker, 3 months on a crutch and 3 more months fighting a limp, but I endured! That was just for one side of my hip in-between a 7 month break I had to do the surgery again. The first occurring November 2015 and second August 2016.
Through this experience as an athlete, fitness trainer and overall a very active person I had to sustain my health and mind somehow. A few things I want to share on how I did so was the following:
Wrote my workout plans and/or had a clear game plan- For a while, it was way to frightening for me to use stairs to leave my home so I became a temporarily house bound. When possible I would use the facility within my complex, crutching my way over. Writing a work out may seem like common sense although I had to strategize to train around not using my hips. With a step-by-step plan this allowed me to by pass my frustrations at the gym and or at home which allowed my endorphins to flow and have a productive workout. Eventually I got to the point where I got the confidence to use my crutches in the gym and with a clear workout plan it allowed me to become laser focused to be set on my tasks of training.
Picked up a hobby that allowed me to creatively “Release” – I was unable to sprint or maximize my VO2max. This has been a stress reliever for me since childhood and being unable to do it had me feeling quite “stir crazy.” I then picked up a past-time I always admired - making music. More particularly electric guitar. Learning this new instrument has helped me feel limitless in my creativity which became a rock to sustain me until my hips would heel back together again. I learned how to play some licks to Jimmy Hendrix, Red Hot Chilli peppers, and strumchords to songs such as Lauren Hill – Killing Me Softly.
Read a book with someone that I can relate to and inspired me. I read the book called On My Two Feet by Amy Purdy a snowboarding athlete who survived a vicious disease called Meningococcal Meningitis. Her book was so inspiring on how she stayed mentally tough and came out stronger with two amputated legs. She met Madonna, was on Dancing with the Stars, received a bronze medal in the 2014 Sochi Paralympic and more. You can learn about her on and find her book I highly recommend on http://amypurdy.com/about/
Never gave up hope – Many people ask if I will come back the same physically and athletically as I was previous to the surgeries. Still to this day I am in recovery and may not be fully healed until I year from my second surgery. Slowly but surely I know I am improving everyday. I know like Anderson Silva, Terry Fox, Amy Purdy, and the chick from Kill Bill- “I will be back” stronger than ever. I refuse to let a doubt in my mind take that away.
I hope sharing this personal experience will inspire you through hardships in your life and set an example of the motto “If there is a will there is a way.”
