So it took my rheumatologist A WEEK to get back to me with my MRI results… Any test in the health system I use (and now work at, so I know what’s up too) is supposed to be processed and presented to the patient within three days. Not that it ever happens with this doc…
That’s beside the point (kind of at least).
Anyway, I do NOT have avascular necrosis (AVN). Hooray!
I do, though, have a tear in my labrum.
This explains why wearing underwear hurts like a bitttcchhhhh.
She gave me the choice between PT and surgery. Seeing as I work with a couple of sports med docs over here in peds, I opted to ask for the surgical consult and talk it over with one of them… who suggested that surgery is THE way to go… as have the handful of other patients that contacted me yesterday. One reason for that is that there could be outlying issues with my hip that have caused the tear (as is very common with autoimmune arthritis patients) and they can see that when they go in.
My rheumy was not happy with my decision, but it’s also not her body. And, given the fact that they have my diagnosis listed incorrectly in the computer among other issues, I don’t necessarily care as much what she thinks.
This surgery is a lot less frightening than the AVN one for a lot of reasons, but one being that it is really minimally invasive. It’ll probably be a while before I can get in, but I think this is the way to go. My left hip has always been a problem joint for me and I really believe that this can help clear up a lot of those problems. At the very least, it’ll help me eventually get off these narcotics I’ve been taking. I have to say, though, Zohydro is amazing. I can function on them mentally, whereas when I’ve been on the oxy drugs in the past, I just want to sleep and throw up. I’m back to feeling like an intelligent person, and that at least has been very helpful.
I probably would not have gotten Zohydro if it weren’t for a very kind doctor that I saw at urgent care the Sunday after this pain started (Dec 21). He really paid attention to my allergies and wanted to give me something I would have a lower chance of reacting poorly to. He really took the time to go through everything with me, came over to the pharmacy with us, etc. And he was a newer doc! Younger docs tend to be more afraid of prescribing pain pills, so I was glad to see that he wasn’t. Getting them filled at Walgreens was extremely easy as well and that was great because I was in so much pain and so tired. I honestly feel very blessed for how things went down that day.
When my rheumy refilled my Zohydro, though, the pharmacist at Walgreens was a total bitch. She asked questions in a way that didn’t make sense to me, blew off my questions – even interrupting me as I was asking them, and had me stand up at the counter for 15 minutes with my cane while I was visibly in pain. She treated me like a pill seeker, and I remembered why I normally don’t go to Walgreens. However, my insurance doesn’t cover this medication and Walgreens has a discount program, so… I was kind of stuck… though next time, I may not go to the one by our apartment.
Want to learn more about the surgery? Check out Joan’s blog, Life with a Flare, or Kenzie’s blog, Life According to Kenz. They’ve been so helpful!