Updates

I had hoped to be a little more active in blogging but time gets away from me. I just wanted to post a few new things.
1. Just started some physical therapy for my hips, I have 8 sessions approved. I had pool therapy yesterday and that felt great, I definitely had less pain all day yesterday. The downside is I have to be at PT place twice a week for 4 weeks at 7am (there's a couple of 7:45am slots, but most of them are at 7am). That means getting up at 5am instead of 6am, but I decided I'd rather do the PT before work rather than after, as I know I am usually pretty tired by the end of the work day. It is good that the PT place is only 15 minutes or a little less from my house and they have a really nice warm pool. I think I will be doing some pool therapy and I am not sure what else. The first therapist I met with last week for my consultation (and she is also the owner) said "Don't look daggers at me when I tell you this, but have you thought about using a cane?"...since I am limping a lot on my right side, and having pain radiating down the side of my right leg, front of thigh, inner knee, groin area, she thought a cane on my left side could help. Of course the daggers comment comes from being only almost 52 and I am sure she thought vanity will trump using a cane at that age! It is something to consider though, when I am mall walking or walking outside...maybe I could find a beautiful jeweled one on or get a bedazzler (no not really!) and decorate my own...actually, I was looking at the local drugstore I go to for prescriptions, and they did have a cool pink swirled cane there.........
2. The second ortho surgeon I saw last month for an opinion on my hip arthritis told me he would prescribe hip cortisone shots and they have been approved by our medical insurance. The radiology place where they would be done called twice to set the appointment up, but I have been nervous about doing it. However, they called again this morning, and I need to call them back and tell them that I will do it. I have been doing a lot of reading on the internet about other peoples' experiences with the hip shots, and also talked to some people at work who have had cortisone shots, not in the hips, but back, shoulders, etc. and they were glad they did them, it bought them some relief for varying periods of time. My husband has had a few cortisone injections in his back and benefitted for a few months of being pain free....I don't like the thought of the needle going into my hip joint, but I think the doctor doing the shot is guided with dye/xray technology that gets it right into the proper location and prayerfully (I will find out when I call them back today) they numb/deaded you with pain sedative stuff first! I think though I should try it, try PT and the shots, to do everything I can to put off hip replacement surgery for the time. The ortho surgeon told me I still have joint space so am not 'bone on bone' and that the bone spurs I have weren't 'too bad'. My main pain is stiffness, right leg pain, walking when I first get up from sitting or laying down, pain radiating in my butt, front of right thigh and inner right knee. The hardest thing for me is bending over to pick something up or get into a bottom cupboard, etc.
3. I hired a friend of mine's 17 year old daughter who needs money for her car insurance to clean house for me a couple hours every other week...vaccum, dust, clean the downstairs bathroom, etc. -- $10 an hour, and she is happy and I am happy as it has become increasingly difficult to keep housework up....just going to work and doing my job during the work week, and PT now stretching it for me....I try to do some housework on Saturdays, but it's hard to bend down, get down on the floor, etc.
4. My same friend who has the daughter helping me also came over last week and helped me declutter my upstairs which has two bedrooms and three closets...I want to declutter and streamline stuff, but sometimes it is hard for me to bite the bullet and really get rid of stuff....my friend is organized and not emotionally attached so she was really helpful, asking me "Do you love this?" "Do you use this?" "Have you worn this in the last year?" etc....I got rid of eight big bags of stuff, and she took it away to the Good will for me so I wouldn't be tempted to rifle through the bags....clothes, old purses, housewares....I gave her eight year old daughter some Barbies and a tea set that she just loved, and I felt good about someone enjoying things that were just gathering dust!