My Hip Blog » Physio

My Aching Feet!

Jess — Wed, 19 May 2010 21:09:21 +0000

That's It? Another microscope moment brought to you by Jess's radiology

Went to the podiatrist last week. She couldn’t get in to see my xrays but managed to have a look during the week. Said she could see the area of the stress fx and had a yak to one of the sports docs who agreed that treatment should just involve taking the load off of the bone. So now I have some fancy pants orthotics in my shoes to do that job. It seems to be working as my forefoot isn’t sore, but oh my god, who would have known orthotics could be so uncomfortable! I hope it’s just a matter of getting used to them as I’ve already had them adjusted to make the arch more comfortable (feels like it’s digging into my heel or walking on a rock all day), but a trial walk around an office and a day on your feet are totally different things!

Hip is doing great. Had my trial ‘last’ acupuncture session on Tuesday, she must have wanted to go out with a bang as I ended up with a huge bruise from one of the needles lol I got a new exercise to do to activate my glutes and take the load off my hip flexors. Have to report back next week on how things are so we can decide whether I need to go back.

Off for a bike ride now while there is a gap in the rain. It’s so cold here now! Glad for my new wind/waterproof booties

Six Month Blues

Jess — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 05:19:44 +0000

My physio appointment could not have been timed better. I had the day from HELL yesterday. From the time I woke up I had nagging hip pain and an ache that ran the length of my thigh. All I was thinking was oh my god, please don’t let this be happening AGAIN! I just couldn’t handle it if things went pear shaped again. Thankfully after taking some painkillers it did come right and today I am back to normal. I have no idea what caused the random flare up. I biked 50km in the weekend but it is too far out for it to be caused by that. In fact, lately, cycling seems to make things better!

Had my physio appointment this afternoon. She is still too scared to do anything aggressive given my history and seems afraid she’ll make things worse. She thinks the latest snapping and tenderness might just be some inflammation from overdoing it at the gym a few weeks ago. The plan of action is to avoid the hip machine at the gym for the time being, stretch the TFL/ITB at least 3 times a day and do some ultrasound treatments then reassess. If this doesn’t help, last resort is back to the surgeon for possible steroid injection/scans/xrays. B L A HHHHH for goodness sakes I thought I was done with all this crap. I REALLY don’t want a steroid injection. I have worked so hard at getting off all medications and had been successful for the past couple of months until yesterday’s little hiccup. Feeling like life is once again on hold until good old leftie starts behaving…

Back To Physio

Jess — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 23:41:40 +0000

I have finally given in and made an appointment to see my physio next week.
I don’t know what is going on down there, whether it is scar tissue, muscle, tendon or something else but it’s finally got to the point where I’m sick and tired of it!
It is tight when walking and still have snapping at the Greater Trochanter, especially when straightening from a bent over position. I have also discovered a ‘tender spot’ at the outside/front of the hip underneath the iliac crest which I guess could just be where the labrum was debrided. Has anyone else had pain here or sensitivity to palpation, kind of like a deep bruise?

Good news? Still no groin/joint pain I’m sure the snapping issues can be sorted with physio and the bruised feeling will disappear with time. Funnily after the first couple of settling in minutes riding my bike, I have no trouble with the hip at all. I did my first hill ride last Friday, up to the top of the Port Hills for a great view of Christchurch! Didn’t think I’d make it all the way, felt a bit of protest from my glutes but otherwise it was fantastic!

4 Months Post Op

Jess — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:19:01 +0000

All things coming to an end. I had my four month post op check yesterday and I’ve had the handshake and see ya later from my surgeon He doesn’t think he’ll need to see me again now that I’m getting back to my normal activites and is pleased with how I’m doing. He told me I can still make an appointment further down the track if I feel I need to but I’m hoping he’s right and I won’t need to!

Been having a lot of snapping laterally when straightening up after bending over and even when just plain walking (post exercise). It is apparently my TFL and seems to be a common complaint. I was told it’s nothing to worry about, is more annoying than anything and usually only causes problems if you want to play sports, hmmm…..need to stretch lots, strengthen the glutes and do some resisted abduction at the gym. Might call my physio next week and see if she can give me some more specific exercises for it because it is SUPER annoying.
Also have been getting little clicks in the groin again, though the huge ‘pops’ have completely disappeared and the ache is still gone!

I have been told that I’m still fairly early on in recovery and to expect things to continue to improve for a further year, whoopee!

So I’m pretty much on my own now and am glad to be turning my back on the hip rubbish and looking forward to a future with pain-free hips!

I’m Free!

Jess — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 06:32:37 +0000

Next week I will be four months post op, my how time flies! I have been doing really well. No long term negatives from the run on Sunday, just some achy muscles that got a rude awakening! I went for a 45 minute bike ride with a friend on Tuesday that included one short but rather steep hill that was a little challenge for the glutes. Then on Wednesday I had my FINAL physio session WAHOOOOO.

The final physio session was a repeat of the physical assessment I had 3 or 4 weeks ago to compare the results. Everything has improved fairly significantly in that short time! My flexion is equal to, if not more than my non-op side although still has a ‘pinchy’ end feel at the moment. I have more internal rotation than external rotation which is totally bizarre and muscle tone and balance have improved too. I’ve been left with my gym exercises (I will scan these and upload shortly) and will just gradually increase cycling/jogging distances.

I will be support crew for my friend at the Graperide this year as I won’t be able to compete, but it will still be an awesome weekend! Just three weeks to go. I have also got a holiday weekend booked at the beginning of May to visit Mum and Mike. My best friend will be coming with me and we have a snowboarding lesson/day organised as well as Mum and I participating in a duathlon! I have heaps to look forward to at the moment so I am just buzzing

Phew!

Jess — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 08:09:29 +0000

Ooops, so I’ve neglected you guys a wee bit! It has been a pretty busy week for me so here’s a rundown.

Monday: morning physio at the gym, then the relaxation class which was really quite good, I will be going again tomorrow. Worked 4 hours.

Tuesday: I worked a 9-hour split shift at work, went for a swim at lunch time and then a bike ride after dinner (the same route as Sunday). Then I remembered that I was supposed to do a gym session on my own before I met my physio next, which I thought was Thursday but upon checking discovered it was Wednesday, so didn’t have time to fit that in unless I wanted to do two sessions on Wednesday!

Wednesday: Physio was very happy with me doing a swim and bike ride on Tuesday so not worried about skipping the gym and we made some changes to my program, mainly just adding in some extra sets where things were a bit easy. Told me to try a longer bike ride on the weekend. Worked a 9-hour split shift.

Thursday: I slept in and had a day off exercise. Worked 6 hours.

Friday: I had an appointment with the psychologist who was very pleased with how things are going. It’s amazing what a difference diminished pain levels coupled with a feeling of well deserved normalcy and harmony among peers can make to ones mood! Worked 6 hours. Went to a fund-raising silent auction for my cousin’s rowing team. Managed to buy myself a pair of awsome Roxy snowboarding boots…ummm, never been snowboarding in my life but they were a BARGAIN, winning bid of $80 and they are worth $350! One guess at what I am going to do this winter…and if I don’t like it I can sell the boots lol.

Saturday: I biked to Nanna and Grandy’s for scones and coffee then back home, a 22km round trip. It was good having the break in between. Came home and did some gardening/loading garden waste onto a trailer to take to the dump and felt pretty good afterwards.

Sunday (today): Sleep in, took half an hour to find clothes that fit, argh! Glad to be able to exercise again and ready to put in the hard yards! Sushi for lunch at the mall, grocery shopping then off to the gym with hubby for an hour and a bit. Managed to jog for my warm-up today (first time since surgery) with the treadmill set to intervals for 10 minutes. NO pain on impact, a nice and very welcome surprise! Did all my exercises then 5 minutes on the bike to finish off.
Yummy home-made Balinese curry for dinner at my inlaw’s and now a nice hot cuppa as I recline on the couch and blog

I am really pleased with the way things are going at the moment. I feel like I’m finally getting somewhere. The hardest part of my physical activity is the flexion exercise on the hip machine at the gym which still causes a reasonable amount of discomfort but I’m sure it will just take a little time to sort this out.
I am nearly off all medications. Pain killers are stored in the cupboard (except for the emergency ones in my bag) and haven’t been touched at all during the week.

Life is good

Hip Scope Recovery Week 13

Jess — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 07:37:25 +0000

Pain levels this week have been pretty minimal. Have been having some issues with my IT band when walking but hoping that will settle as I get stronger. I think it’s just because I’m spending longer on my feet now. Cycling is up to 10 minutes…I tend to get bored and puffed before sore though so I might go for a short ride on the road in the weekend. Swimming is up to 500m 3 times a week.

This morning I had an assessment with my physio to start my gym program. I had my weight, pulse, BP and all ROM +strength measurements taken for a baseline. I also did a 10 minute test on the exercycle to determine my fitness level and to compare to later results. Of course with ACC covering the gym programme, there was another mountain of paperwork to do so a good 10-15 minutes was spent ticking boxes to give me certain numbers for pain and ability to do every-day tasks. I always find these questionnaires always have questions that just don’t apply to your situation or the answer you want to give isn’t an option, so it makes me wonder if these numbers they give you are actually a good representation of your current situation. Ah well, it keeps them happy.

So after all the testing, making short and long-term goals and discovering I’m quite weak in the glutes (something to work on) we went for a drive to the gym and I got signed up. I am meeting my physio at the gym on Monday to sort out a programme and have a few more appointments over the next couple of weeks both at the gym and the pool.

In the next six weeks I hope to be back up to full cycle and swim training and some jogging (interval type with walking thrown in). So it will be a busy few weeks but I am SOOO ready to get fit again and to get out in the summer sunshine before it runs away!

Hip Scope Recovery ~ 12 Weeks!

Jess — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 01:16:18 +0000

Well….I am FINALLY feeling like I am getting somewhere! Everything seems to be easier this week. I’ve been busy on my feet, swimming like a little fishy, even managed 500m in the pool today plus my exercises, that’s half of what my usual regular training session was before hand! I have barely touched my ‘lollies’ in the last week and when I did it was precautionary. Work is going great and I will back to my normal hours + a few extra next week.

My physiotherapist is super impressed with how far I’ve come in the past couple of weeks. My ROM is almost the same as my non-op side, not much in it at all…just got to work on it a little bit to get it feeling a bit more comfy. I have next to no pain with driving now and lifting my leg to get into the passenger seat is also a lot easier. My next appointment with her will hopefully be next week at the gym to sort out a new gym programme, yay! I am hoping to really start to work on the bike now as I’m itching to get outside and do some real cycling before the summer is over!

Starting to feel ‘normal’ again and it’s had a great impact on my mood too

Also wishing Kat all the best for her THR tomorrow! You’ll be racing me in the pool in no time! xxx

11 Week Exercise Progression

Jess — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 01:09:05 +0000

Hip Scope Recovery ~ 11 Weeks

Jess — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 22:16:46 +0000

Another successful physio session this morning. My strength and ROM continue to improve.
My back continues to give me problems and was pretty sore for a couple of days following my last visit and massage. Have been told this is quite normal. On checking it today it is rather stiff. My whole pelvis wants to move when stretching rather than the back arching so we have added in some stretches to help loosen things up.

I am allowed to slowly increase my cycling, using comfort as a guide, but starting with about a minute, YAY! I have some more exercise progressions which I will scan onto here later.

My six (11) week post op appointment is on Wednesday at 3pm. I have been trying to call to get an earlier appointment as I start work at 4, but the office is still closed for their Christmas holiday! I have a list of questions from my physio and we are hoping to get the go-ahead for a gym/pool based program.

Work is going well. Nothing tricky so far. I am still part time this week, am working the weekend then am back to almost normal hours next week.

Also have stopped taking anti inflammatories again and have not taken any pain ‘lollies’ this week