38 and stressed

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dawnj0405

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Hello, I am 38 years old and about 5 years ago I started to get some pain on the side of my left leg, lower left back, and into my buttocks.

My doctor sent me to a sports doctor who did everything you can imagine for my lower back. Injections into my S1, Physical Therapy, medications, tens unit, and repeat. The pain was increasing and my doctor had the attitude that they don't know what else to do. I left to see another doctor and repeated the same saturation. At this point from the injections it was causing me to have chronic yeast infections for the next 2 years. Eventually that doctor would end up with the same attitude that they have done everything.

I left to see a third doctor and now, 4 years later the pain has increased and completely changed my daily life. I changed jobs to accommodate my pain, my old car has bucket seats and we changed our vehicle, I started to limp and favor my left side, physical therapy on left knee because it ached everyday, started to sit different, couldn't sit, stand, walk, my aerobic began to be unbearable, spent over $20,000 out of pocket on expenses, was diagnosed with 7 different things, started to get only 4 hourse of sleep per night, soaked in warm bath up to three times a day, stop doing activities I have done, and the list goes on.

At this point I am on my third doctor and this one was the worse. Treated me as if it was in my head. Said it was fibromyalgia and put me on Lyrica. When I stopped it, she acted as if it was my fault. The pain is so bad that I would cry and no one would help. All three doctors said it wouldn't be my hip because of my age and it would be a waste of time for all of us.

I am in the medical field myself and always tried to be the perfect patient. I finally demanded a specialist and was treated as "if that would make you feel better". I was sent to yet again to a back specialist. He looked at MRI and said it was great. Now the pain in my groin was so much that I would cry at times. I told him my story and symptoms. He was so nice and I think could see my frustration that he told me he was going to send me for a hip MRI with contrasts.

Fours days later, he calls me and said that I need to get into a hip specialist and have surgery. I was told I had a torn liberal, front and back displacement. I saw the hip doctor and was told he will do a hip arthroscopy but they didn't know how bad it would be or what they would do until they get in. I wake up from surgery and was told they couldn't do screws cause it's not fixable. I was told I have significant arthritis and nothing could be done. They couldn't fix labrum because of that. They cut off the tissue that was hanging, shaved some bone, and cleaned things up. I was taken out of work for 6 weeks, crutch, pain medications, and still out of 2nd job. I was told I will need a replacement but playing waiting game due to my age.

I am 6 weeks out now and nothing has changed. My pain has increased at times. I push through my day. I have three kids and all of them play hockey so we are a busy, busy family. I just push through. I still need pain medication and crutch if I know I will be out for hours. The pain in my groin is so sharp that it goes into my lower stomach and down thigh. I feel complete hopeless. Shouldn't I feel better by now? Even if they couldn't fix it, shouldn't cleaning things up work?

It's easy for other people to say they understand but unless you go though it, you don't. I wake up and push through my day but I am missing everything around me. It's not fair to me or my kids. To be there but not really there. I was told for 5 years that the pain was in my head to having surgery on my hip and told it's too late and I will need a replacement. Now I have to deal with I am to young for a replacement and how long I can deal with the pain. Really, where's the quality of life in this? I can do nothing without pain and I am just done. I plan on talking to my doctor and no longer playing the age game. Age doesn't matter when it comes to living........
 
You are absolutely right - age should not matter. And it doesn't - all you need to do is find the right hip surgeon. We've had any number of members in their 30s have hip replacements and even some in their 20s! Have a look at this one who was 24 at the time of her hip replacement. She has since gone on to have her first baby who is now about 18 months old!

2 shugaplum's lift 4m small-horz.jpg


In short, although you may well have had some labral issues, that surgeon was remiss in thinking that a 'tidy up and trim' would sort things out as you most likely had advanced arthritis then. And doing that work would advance it even more so you now had very advanced arthritis!

What you need to do is find a hip surgeon with more compassion and who will look at your xrays and history before he looks are your date of birth!

If you will be kind enough to tell us your location, I will get my colleague @Jamie to see if she knows of a surgeon in your area who would be more sympathetic.


BTW, I edited your post into paragraphs to make it easier to read. It would be very helpful to us all if you could do that in future. Thanks.
 
I agree with every word Josephine said! You have been through torment all because these doctors couldn't see past their egos! A hip xray costs peanuts and wastes a half hour of your time. Not 20K of your money and a third of your life! But it would have embarrassed them, and we can't have that!
Sorry for the soapbox!
You will find an OS who believes in quality of life, you will get a THR, and it will last you 30, or 40, or 50 years. And even if you do need a revision decades down the road, technology will have advanced as well!
And you will be skating too if you want to! :lol:
You have come to the best possible place for support, information, and camaraderie-- we are all here for one another :)


My phone sent this using BoneSmart Forum, clever phone!
 
Thank you just for these few words. I am not a complain person and in fact, my husband didn't even realize how far this was cause I am a mom and that will always come first. But when you push through pain and deal with it alone and the doctors ain't on your side either, it's the most hopeless and loneliness thing I have ever been through. Then they FINALLY find the cause and play games. Now days with insurance, it shouldn't be a issue.
 
Hi Dawn. I'm 43 and having a total hip replacement in 3 weeks. My primary care Dr didn't beat around the bush and was willing to send me to any and all specialists needed to figure out what was going on with my hip. Due to other circumstances (under my control) the process was delayed until this year when he again sent me to an OS who specializes in hips. The OS took a fresh x-ray and in literally minutes came in and told me I need a new hip. He didn't bother sending me to PT, injections, etc. He said right up front PT won't do anything about it and in my case would probably make it worse. The injections might help some for a couple of weeks but I'd be right back again after that and the deterioration would continue unabated. The only real option that would restore any sense of normal function was a THR.

I've been to good doctors and bad over my life, and I've had my current one for about 8 years now. I've stayed with this one because he treats what he knows and if there is the slightest doubt in his mind he's on the phone with a specialist or sending me to one. Doctors are not gods and don't know everything. If you find one who thinks they do or won't take the time to listen to you and work to solve the problem then you need to keep looking until you find a good one.
 
Dawn, I'm so sorry you are having problems. I hope you find the right doctor soon, like today!
 
@dawnj0405 I am in Sauk Prairie, Wisconsin, and I highly recommend you see my surgeon, Dr. Hebert at Sauk Prairie Orthopedics, if your insurance will allow.
I am 51, but I was initially diagnosed with fibro after months/years of complaining to my primary care dr that my legs hurt. My legs have hurt and my muscles have been screwed up in my lower half for my entire life. FINALLY, last August, my PA suggested a hip xray. We did that and an MRI on my back, and I had severe OA in both hips and stenosis in my lumbar spine. She was very upset that it had gone on that long (it's been at least a decade of pain), and I really believe they overlooked it because of my age at the time.
Anyway, Dr. Hebert did an anterior THR on my right side on December 17, and I'm scheduled for an anterior THR on the left side on April 24th. Sauk Prairie Memorial Hospital has a gold standard joint replacement program, dedicating 16 rooms to that in our small hospital to just that. My friend recently had his knee done by Dr. Rosenthal, but anyone here is excellent.
If you want to send me a private message, I'd be happy to tell you more. I understand your suffering, as do all of us here on Bonesmart. We'll hopefully help you find someone who will listen to you.

Lynn
 
Dawn,
Sorry to hear about your continuing pain. I have learned through this website that age for THR is not the issue, I wonder if it ever really was an issue (if one needed it because of genetics maybe and/or when implants only lasted 10 years (??)). It sounds like a lot of hokum from your drs. - saying you are too young for hip replacement when you are in agony!!!??? Putting you through what you have gone through is outrageous.

I also have fibromyalgia but live with it because I refuse to take pain killers that make me sleepy and fog my brain. No amount of PT is going to grow cartilage back in your hips or repair the labrum etc.. Also PT will not repair the hip either, I have learned through this site that walking is the best exercise to strengthen hips. Yet I was prescribed PT after a steroid shot and I believe I actually felt when some bone crumbled of the femur during those stupid exercises (I don't blame PT exercises, I think my hip was bad and would have gotten worse regardless, but PT gave me false hope and I just think it is mostly a waste of time and money for this particular issue; simple isometrics to refire the sore muscles are very doable after surgery, but again, walking seems to be the best and highest prescription in countries other than the US).

I could NOT live with that hip pain, I don't know how you have, and restructured your life around that as well. It is distressing to see people ignored by the medical community to some degree. I have also learned over the years that one has to be one's own advocate. Period. Being super nice with doctors or insurers in this situation will not get you what you need, even though that seems counterintuitive, right? I am older than you, but age should not be THE determining factor in your case with the amount of pain you say you are in!

BTW, I just had anterior THR this Tuesday, and am recovering now at home. I hope it is the beginning of a new era for me. I found a surgeon who has done over 10,000 anterior hip replacements and is an anterior expert, he has always done the operation this way because he started out his career with children/pediatrics and they have to do it this way on kids. (BTW, I am not advocating one form over the other, I do not know enough to be dangerous.) But find yourself the BEST surgeon you can, who has lots of experience and has a decent bedside manner to listen to what YOU have to say. My surgeon said my hip was really nasty looking, it was very bad, so I needed the surgery for sure, not that I doubted it myself. Good luck!
 
Dawn,
So sorry about all your pain. I'm 39 and scheduled for TRHR in 6 weeks. My OS is not concerned about my age at all. He said my new hip should last for 30 years and he believes by that time, there will be an outpatient procedure to go in and swap out any worn parts.
Btw, I found out this weekend that my husbands aunt had her hip replaced in high school (1949) and just had it replaced, again, 2 years ago. That's 64 years her first one lasted!
 
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