I got a call from my doctor's office in Colorado this afternoon, and the nurse--she's so sweet, I just love her--told me that she was calling to let me know that the doctor had looked at my MRI today and said....that it looks like I've torn my hip capsule back open! :(
They said this keeps happening because of my Ehlers Danlos, and he doesn't want to keep going in and doing surgery every time it tears back open to close it back up. (I've already had surgery on that one hip twice within the last year.) So, they want me to stay in my brace (it's so lovely...I'll have to post a pic...haha...it's black and goes from my ribs, around my waist, and down to my ankle) for at least the next 6 weeks, use my crutch still--mostly for support (and only one because I can't really use the other one due to my recent shoulder reconstruction)--and we'll do another MRI in 6 weeks.
I can take my brace off and get in a pool and just walk around--carefully--but no extension (beyond 0 degrees--so straight with my body) or external rotation.
So, let's cross our fingers and hope it calms down!!!
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Friday, July 24, 2009
Not until Monday...
So, I said that I'd be giving updates on what's going on with my health and stuff, so here's the start....First off, I'll kind of go back and give an explanation on some things to help explain to anyone who may not know. Here it goes...
Last August I was diagnosed with a rare collagen disease called Ehlers Danlos. There are many different types of this disease, and the geneticist that I was sent to said that I have type 3--the hypermobility type--and I'm more on the severe end of the spectrum. So, what this is/causes is your collagen is all throughout your body--in your joints, skin, organs, intestines, etc... (although mine is mostly effected in my joints and some in my intestines and things)--and where most people joints only go so far (staying within a certain range of motion and then your joints stop), mine don't. My joints stretch and don't stop--one of my doctor's calls me Gumby and another type of name that can go with people that has this would be like Elastic-girl/boy. Thus, my joints may go until they sublux (go part way out of socket and then usually back in on their own), dislocate, and/or tear ligaments, tendons, cartilage, etc... So, I have had numerous surgeries (I've had 19 surgeries to date), casts, braces, splints, crutches, wheelchair, etc...
So, getting more up to date...In March of this year I had surgery on my left hip (my second on that hip), this surgery took place in Vail, Colorado, and repaired my hip capsule which tore back open, debrided my labrum, shaved the bones to form them correctly, released my IT band and my iliopsoas (my hip flexor), and heated the capsule to form it tighter.
In April of this year I had surgery on my right shoulder (the third on that joint) down at LDS Hospital in Salt Lake, and for this surgery I had to have a metal cap placed in my shoulder--it's called a hemi arthro-cap. To do this, they had to shave the head of my humerous (the bone in my upper arm) back, place a metal cap over that and screw it down into the bone; so now I get to set off metal detectors. ;)
Anyways...For my hip, I was in a brace, that goes up to my ribs (around my waist) and down my left leg to my ankle, until around the second week in June (it was on for about 3 months) and then I've been on crutches since (so for about 6 weeks). Although, I've only been able to use one crutch due to the surgery on my shoulder.
Well, this past Sunday night, after I'd come home from the fireworks up at Weber State and was laying in bed trying to fall asleep, I was laying in bed on my side and when I went to move my leg my hip obviously didn't want me to move, because my hip popped!!! My hand was along side of me so I could feel it with my hand, and it felt like it actually subluxed--not a very pleasant feeling! So, I talked to my doctor's office in Colorado first thing Monday morning and I am now back in my brace and still using my crutch. Yesterday I had to go have an arthrogram--an MRI with contrast--done, so they injected contrast/a dye into my hip (not the most pleasant feeling to have an injection clear down into your hip socket while you're trying to lay still), did the MRI, and then we sent the MRI and report to the doctor's office.
I talked to the doctor's office today and they recieved all of the information, but the doctor won't be able to look at it until Monday. So, hopefully Monday I will get a phone call from them and find out what the MRI said. I'm crossing my fingers that all is well and nothing tore open again! I'll find out, and then I'm sure there will be another post! Now, Monday just needs to come so I can find out and hopefully get this brace back off!
Last August I was diagnosed with a rare collagen disease called Ehlers Danlos. There are many different types of this disease, and the geneticist that I was sent to said that I have type 3--the hypermobility type--and I'm more on the severe end of the spectrum. So, what this is/causes is your collagen is all throughout your body--in your joints, skin, organs, intestines, etc... (although mine is mostly effected in my joints and some in my intestines and things)--and where most people joints only go so far (staying within a certain range of motion and then your joints stop), mine don't. My joints stretch and don't stop--one of my doctor's calls me Gumby and another type of name that can go with people that has this would be like Elastic-girl/boy. Thus, my joints may go until they sublux (go part way out of socket and then usually back in on their own), dislocate, and/or tear ligaments, tendons, cartilage, etc... So, I have had numerous surgeries (I've had 19 surgeries to date), casts, braces, splints, crutches, wheelchair, etc...
So, getting more up to date...In March of this year I had surgery on my left hip (my second on that hip), this surgery took place in Vail, Colorado, and repaired my hip capsule which tore back open, debrided my labrum, shaved the bones to form them correctly, released my IT band and my iliopsoas (my hip flexor), and heated the capsule to form it tighter.
In April of this year I had surgery on my right shoulder (the third on that joint) down at LDS Hospital in Salt Lake, and for this surgery I had to have a metal cap placed in my shoulder--it's called a hemi arthro-cap. To do this, they had to shave the head of my humerous (the bone in my upper arm) back, place a metal cap over that and screw it down into the bone; so now I get to set off metal detectors. ;)
Anyways...For my hip, I was in a brace, that goes up to my ribs (around my waist) and down my left leg to my ankle, until around the second week in June (it was on for about 3 months) and then I've been on crutches since (so for about 6 weeks). Although, I've only been able to use one crutch due to the surgery on my shoulder.
Well, this past Sunday night, after I'd come home from the fireworks up at Weber State and was laying in bed trying to fall asleep, I was laying in bed on my side and when I went to move my leg my hip obviously didn't want me to move, because my hip popped!!! My hand was along side of me so I could feel it with my hand, and it felt like it actually subluxed--not a very pleasant feeling! So, I talked to my doctor's office in Colorado first thing Monday morning and I am now back in my brace and still using my crutch. Yesterday I had to go have an arthrogram--an MRI with contrast--done, so they injected contrast/a dye into my hip (not the most pleasant feeling to have an injection clear down into your hip socket while you're trying to lay still), did the MRI, and then we sent the MRI and report to the doctor's office.
I talked to the doctor's office today and they recieved all of the information, but the doctor won't be able to look at it until Monday. So, hopefully Monday I will get a phone call from them and find out what the MRI said. I'm crossing my fingers that all is well and nothing tore open again! I'll find out, and then I'm sure there will be another post! Now, Monday just needs to come so I can find out and hopefully get this brace back off!
Saturday, July 18, 2009
My blog...
So I've been thinking--while I've been playing around trying to figure stuff out on here--about what I'd put on here; I mean, I'm not married, I don't have kids, or anything like that--my life's just pretty simple...school, friends, and family. Then, I thought...I'm going to use my blog to kind of keep an update on everything going on in my life--from school, to family and friends, to my health stuff.
This blog, therefore, will be a big mixture of everything going on in my life. Lots of things will probably be update things from doctors, how I'm feeling, and that stuff (hopefully none of you mind because I'm thinking this will be a nice little "out" for me to write things), but then I'll also get to post lots of fun stuff from exciting things with my family, friends, and the ever exciting life of a college student! :)
Let the blogging begin....
This blog, therefore, will be a big mixture of everything going on in my life. Lots of things will probably be update things from doctors, how I'm feeling, and that stuff (hopefully none of you mind because I'm thinking this will be a nice little "out" for me to write things), but then I'll also get to post lots of fun stuff from exciting things with my family, friends, and the ever exciting life of a college student! :)
Let the blogging begin....
I gave in....
So my best friend Jenna got into the whole "blogging " thing and she was like 'you should get a blog too,' so as you can tell, I gave in! It seems pretty fun, but I'm still trying to figure it all out. So, we shall see how it goes!
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