And it’s my Birthday!!
Been a bit of a lazy ole week since last week’s post. I’ve had too. Mainly due to recovering from camping and the leg cramps I’ve had took some time to ease off too. The cramps themselves have really hindered things, as they not only hurt for the few minutes while it’s contracted, but they were also tender and weak for the next 24-48 hours afterwards too. I must ask Micats if I should be worried about them when I see her next week.
We’ve also assisted our eldest in some of the house move journeys, and a dose of babysitting too. Which is like a workout I tell you, kids run you ragged. My body can barely keep up.
Quad Stretch 30 sec hold each day, both sides.
The tightness is unreal, perhaps this has been my main problem overall the whole time. I find I can’t do it standing up as most can. So lying down on my side helps.
Child pose, I enjoy this quad and back stretch, 30 sec hold each day.
Counting down the days until I get my steroid injections into my thumbs, looking forward to it while dreading it at the same time. Bloody hurts, but hoping it will take me up to Christmas time, and hopefully surgery time then. Not long now to wait only a week from now.
Rang the ROH for some guidance on when appointments will be and it seems for my 1year appointment and post steroid injection check up will be mid Sept so quite late really. And for the Hand Surgeon I’m already overdue in appointment but the waiting list to be seen is quite long too, but at least I’m on the list. Shame as I was hoping for a winter surgery, that may not be possible.
double hippie
Find out all that’s going on Here complete with new low mobility exercises to try and a steroid injection planned next week. Let’s do this…..
After such a busy week with hospitals and lots of early mornings, we ditched the idea of a big walk, as it requires a lot of planning and driving. So sun shining we head out for just down the road from us.
Straight away we spot the deers having some lunch, and feeling at ease. We drive slowly to admire them, and then off to park up and go for an amble.
Lots of landscape changes being made for wildlife, and lots of bushcraft huts that the kids have made over the years.
The river is crystal clear and the skies are blue, what a beautiful spring day, that shows us the Equinox is nearly here (Sunday 20th March) and tonight is a full moon. It’s been great to get out and clear the cobwebs away.
We stop for donuts and cider and get catching to the local Robin. We met a lovely couple and got chatting, so nice to come across young couples that are full of beans for the place. It is a stunning place.
We finish off our day with a trip to the chippie, for a mixed meat kebab chips and salad. It’s so big we only buy 1 to share, yet have a plate full each which we never finish, so save it for the next day, so technically we get 4 meals out of 1 Kebab.
I can’t believe it’s been 5 weeks since I was last here!! That’s crazy, time really does seem to be whizzing by, and other things seem to taking my attention more than the hip. Which is good in a way, as it means I’m naturally moving on from being acutely affected day to day.
However it’s also bad as it means I’m not truly focusing on healing and improving this nagging psoas issue. But that’s the devil of having more than 1 health issue, going on in your life. Sometimes you have to choose to rest when you don’t want too, and to focus on other joints as they hurt worse. And that’s definitely been me lately.
On demonstrating my ability to hip hitch lying down, it was decided it’s too weak to progress to standing version. I showed my knee to chest, requiring to use my hands to fetch the leg. This is a massive set back, so we’ve discussed hydrotherapy while land physio is causing such pain. But there’s a heck of a wait for that yet. So in the meantime I’m to go back to hip hitching lying down, and knee to chest stretch on the bed.
I showed them how the Right hip that’s 3yrs old is also suffering, so I’ve been given the stretch above to try and help ease the pains off.
So it felt a little disappointing, but the plan is for him to devise me a full physio routine and he will post it to me, and do that for 4 weeks, then go back to see if any improvement has been made. And then do the checklist for hydro at that appointment.
Functionally I feel ok, but to do steps, stairs or lift the leg I am struggling a lot, so I will do exactly as I’m told and hope it helps.
Physio just isn’t feeling good or easy right now, but it’s not really a hip replacement issue. More it’s an overall Ehlers Danlos Syndrome issue, as it’s affecting my elbows, shoulders and hands. However the walk I shared previously felt great in the newest hip, but I weirdly overdid the older one??
I’ve decided to avoid the knee to chest, while it’s so angry, swollen and irritated.
Hopefully little but often will help, but my main focus is on walking and keeping form. I’m only noticing my leg length difference when I’m tired and the Trendelenburg gait comes out. I looked back at my original hip at this stage and whoa they are wildly different. Check it out Here
We’ve all struggled over the anxiety and stress of covid the last 2years, having restrictions, rules and lockdowns. And now as they was easing, and hope was returning, we are now plunged into another crisis with the prospect of full on war between Russia and the world due to their invasion of Ukraine.
And while I don’t want to dismiss it, I don’t have any desire to focus on it either, in order to protect my own mental health. So it’s good to step away from the news, and from social media, and breathe in nature, nice and deeply.
This week is a particularly tough week emotionally with grief ever present, and physically as I’ve had some of the worst pain and flares to deal with, barely sleeping due to pain in my hands. It’s hard to look after yourself when you feel so low and exhausted, and I’m sure pain feels worse when you are emotional, and fatigued.
So be gentle with yourselves and step back from things that stress you out, of you feel anxiety creeping, take time to listen to podcasts of guided meditations, or asmr videos if they relax you. Run a bubble bath and have a pamper session with a sheet mask. I’ve been watching some guilty pleasure TV A Discovery of Witches, a way to escape into something whimsical. Sometimes even an afternoon murder mystery film and a coffee with biscuits is all I need to help re-centre myself and allow the mind to be more present.
This last week has been a massive struggle. Flaring up psoas pains all the time, along with hands I’d gladly amputate most days. I’ve not been sleeping well either.
As the psoas has flared up again, I have opted for more passive gentle stretches and movements.
I am finding this knee to chest incredibly difficult, and it hurts too. So slow and steady and nursed with ibuprofen gel and hot water bottles
We’ve not been out for a walk for 2 weeks and I can certainly tell, as it does help us mentally. So I hope we can change that this week, now the weather has improved a bit.
Not been walking for 12 days in total, the storms have put a stop to them, it was ultimately too muddy for us earlier, but add in high winds and it’s too dangerous to go out.
We had some family things that needed to be done anyways, and plenty of travelling to do too. So we felt it would be better to stay in on the other days, as bodily I wouldn’t of been able to do both a walk and travel for family.
I had hoped after Storm Dudley, and Storm Eunice we’d get to walk this week, but nooooo Storm Franklin is here for a play. So it’s time to get the bosu ball out.
Hoping these will be ok, it gets very boring fast doing the same Clams and Hip Flexion exercises, but obviously they are the main ones to do religiously.
Here to mark my first true hike being a double hippie. We’d done some short walks, but nothing that involved the technical terrain like the Peak District.
Opting for a old haunt, and favourite place to walk (no river walks allowed as weather has swelled them too much) So off to Ramshaw Rocks.
We set off in gloomy foggy weather, but as we progressed into the clouds lifting, and revealing some glorious blue skies.
Some of the walk I needed to take bigger strides to avoid streams, and boggy water. Or scrambled to climb to rocks. I really put the hips to the test. I took 3 tramadol and 6 paracetamol over the entire day and night. I used a hard insole to 1cm to help leg. And used a walking pole for stability.
It wasn’t a long walk by normal standards, but HUGE for me, and it did take nearly 5 hours. But I am overjoyed with this victory. First time in 20 weeks I’ve felt such an accomplishment. I am in such pain now (home and resting with hot water bottles) but it was so worth it. Especially for the mind.
There so long we almost saw a full sunset, only fear of it being too dark to come down, made me leave earlier. I did suffer a lot of knee pain in operated leg, swelling at top of thigh (but I seem to get this at home too, whenever I lift leg) and lower back pain. All expected pains to be honest, though the level of knee pain took me by surprise.
The next day (New Year’s Day) I simply could not move or get dressed 😜 my body is so so broken. Already mentally planning the next one.
20 weeks already, and I’ve not officially had physio since maybe 10 weeks? But no matter, we plod along and I have a couple of appointments in January, even one with the consultant.
December has been a hard month for physio activities, As so many visits,and traveling taking over our time. So instead the latter part of December has been the exercise of getting on and off the floor when wrapping presents. Almost burpies right??
We’ve also had the exercise of sleeping on various things that aren’t a high solid bed. Which is great, and it’s making me want to go camping. But it does add extra pressure on joints and does wear me out faster. At least with this I feel some progress, as I’m not bolt upright every night anymore. I’m managing to sleep in more normal positions.
However I’m still having a lot of swelling in the thigh, at the top, which is so frustrating and definitely it’s holding me back in recovery. Not only does it swell a lot, but the pain then to try and lift it is unbearable.
But Christmas is now over, most visits and stays away are over, so it’s now time to get planning some walks, and some workouts. Fresh year, fresh start.
debbiehipster 