Ortho Options

No you didn't take a time machine back to this time last year it seems the cycle has begun again. A few things have changed though:

• I no longer have a breastfeeding infant
• I have better insurance
• The spinal fusion is behind me
• There's more than one Ortho on the case
• I have one hell of a motivation to do this and recover in the next 201 days

So, that's the bright side. See, I led with the positive. Is it better to have a two year old at home during all this? Sure she's more independent, but she's also completely aware of what's going on. I can safely say the spinal fusion was (bear in mind I'm about to hit 20 surgeries) the worst and it is behind me (sort of). I'm not fully healed, but nothing that comes after could be anywhere near as bad. It's not possible. Now having more than one Ortho on the case has to do with having better insurance.

For those of you who joined the blog later here's the ordeal of my Ortho in a nutshell: He was the only guy for 3 counties who would see me. He is not a people person, his office staff is not the most competent and he's changed the procedure (ex: hip replacement to spinal fusion) literally the day before. You get the picture. Now, he's sent me for a second opinion because he doesn't know what to do now. He's worried about doing a total hip replacement on a 29yr old he wants me to get another opinion. In fact he insists I get one before he can do anything else.

I went to a place that wouldn't see me on my old insurance. I sat in their waiting room painted a cheerful color in their comfy chairs and thought "the other place is such a sh*thole." I watched the front office staff move like a well oiled machine checking people in and out. I watched people move through the office, it reminded me of the star belly machine from the Sneetches. Was this place just better funded? Did it just attract a higher caliber employee? The patients were very similar to my Ortho's office except there were more non-eldery folks. I wasn't even the youngest one there. Although, I haven't a clue what that indicates.

The new Ortho's nurse took me back and really listened to me as I described my hip saga. She smiled at the mention of a toddler at home and sympathized when I told her I needed to be able to walk around at my wedding. The new Ortho was handsome and composed. He was unabashedly astounded by my "interesting hip." He looked at me like I was a puzzle to solve (in a good way). He conducted a more through exam the old Ortho ever did and showed me my X-rays which old Ortho never does.

The bottom line, I'm in bad shape. The pain is probably caused by the socket bones grinding together. He is sure the answer is surgical, but thinks they can work with my own biology to relieve the pain as opposed to going a full hip replacement. He ordered a 3-D CT so we can get a 360 of the socket and asked me to bring the film from my last MRI since they only sent the report. At which point he can make a surgical recommendation.

Phew? Sigh? Just pray, that everything happens faster than last year. All the test results are timely and decisions are well founded. Above all that I can have a successful procedure and be fully healed in 6mos! I hate that my body is crumbling before the age of 30. I never got to count on my body and now it's betraying me at every turn.

NO (new Ortho) is optimistic and confident. OO (old Ortho) is who he is. I'm dreading wrangling the films from his office tomorrow. I wonder what the ethics are on getting a second opinion and then just switching physicians. It's probably frowned upon...