Recommencing...

A lot has transpired since my last post way back in mid July...enough to overwhelm me to the point of saying let's leave it at that and start from here.

It was a super busy summer. Yes, we went to the zoo. Come on...it was vacation. Of course we went to the zoo! No elephant penis this time, but.... the alpha male baboon was extremely happy to be alive. The kids giggled but it wasn't particularly noteworthy. The baby baboon, on the other hand, was adorable.

Family-friendly photo.

My kids are still super amazing and beautiful. Yes, they FINALLY all started school this week. I now have a kid in high school, one in middle school, one in elementary school and one in preschool.

Lest you think I now have tons of time to live a life of leisurely manicures and pedicures (which I've never been inclined to get anyway) or fun shopping excursions to places other than the grocery store or daily yoga/pilates/whatever classes now that everyone is out of the house for the better part of the day, think again. We are in the midst of a moving fiasco. Most of you know that moving in and of itself is a pain in the ass, right? Okay, now throw the word "fiasco" in there. It super sucks. I'll explain more later. Maybe. If I remember.

Bottom line on family life: All's well. Yay.

Today I met with awesome singing injection doctor for the seventh time since February. There have been some ups and downs regarding my overall health and my hip, but things seem to return to a level place eventually. I've done precious little in the way of exercise, and that's still been okay with me. But...

After conferring with my physical therapist, my chiropractor, my massage therapist, my awesome singing injection doctor and MYSELF, it has been determined that it is not unrealistic to start a little running again at the end of the month and additionally not unrealistic to possibly run 5K on Thanksgiving (yay, Sonoma Turkey Trot...of course it won't be to defend my title...lol).

I'm hoping to post more frequently now that the kids are back in school, but that most likely won't really happen until the moving situation is sorted out.

Nonetheless, here I am :)

Hi!  *smiles and waves*

Hope you all are doing well and hope we can get reacquainted.




If you want to see some photos from our summer adventures, I've been posting on Instagram...xlmic.

Not Pimp Rock Palace (photo warning for the squeamish)

Yesterday I experienced PRP for the first time.

And that doesn't stand for Pimp Rock Palace.

In this case, PRP stands for Platelet-Rich Plasma. My own platelet-rich plasma was injected into my hip joint as part of a treatment series attempting to regenerate cartilage in there. You can read about it here.

In case you're new here, I was recently diagnosed with severe osteoarthritis and told that my hip joint has degenerated to being a bone-on-bone situation.

I'm following the ranks of A-Rod, Tiger Woods, and Kobe Bryant...as one reader said, "Without the hookers." (Cant' remember who gave me that gem...speak up because I love it and want to thank you). These pro athletes (and others) have had success with this form of treatment.

The top yellowish part is the plasma. The next whitish layer contains the platelets.

These two layers are what he injected into my hip joint.

I went to see the cute doctor. I filled out a bunch of paperwork and then went into the inner sanctum. After chatting a bit about my hip's history and filling my husband in on what was about to happen and how it worked, we got down to the real business. After drawing my blood, he numbed my hip with two injections of something. This was the most painful part of the procedure, and it was more a stinging pressure than pain. The first one was more superficial while the second went deep.

This is the third time I've used "singing" as a coping mechanism when undergoing an 'uncomfortable' medical event. I've found this way of distracting myself to be extremely effective and recommend it highly. I began during the first numbing injection with a sort of humming with my mouth open and so was kind of loud. It changed in volume and pitch as the injection proceeded. Then with the second one, I sang an actual song.

I'm singing....

I'm in a doctor's office and I'm singing....
I'm in a doctor's office and I'm SINNNGINNNNGGGG!!!!

The doctor started laughing and joined in.

And you're my dad... and guess what?
I love you!
I LOVE you!
I LOVE YOUUUUUU!!!!!

I am completely and entirely serious. I now know with absolute certainty that I picked the right doctor for ME. Unfortunately, my husband had not yet begun filming when the musical portion of the procedure happened :(  The film he did take isn't all that interesting...just me getting a shot with the needle shown below...

Yes, that's my hip.

And now you've seen my underwear.

Another angle that makes the needle look even longer.

Now just imagine that above vial of PRP hooked onto the needle 

and being injected into my hip.

It didn't hurt really. A huge pressure sensation more than anything. It made my hip feel "juicy" inside. It made things feel different right away...but of course, my hip was numbed so there was that :P The doctor and my husband stood on either side of me as I tried to take my first step. Thank GOD because it felt like there was a huge THING missing...oh, yeah...that would be my numb hip! And I almost went down. But within moments, I was able to sort of shuffle with help.

It got sore about 30 minutes later, just an achy, beat-up feeling. This lasted for several hours. I was able to walk around the house slowly and go up and down stairs holding onto the railing. I'm probably more mobile than I think, but I am being paranoid and allowing the treatment to "settle in" and do it's thing. Sleeping was no problem.

This morning I feel fine. It's a little sore but not bad at all. I admit that I am afraid to even slightly test it. I'm going to spend the day alternating between shuffling and lying around. I go back in a month to do it again. The doctor feels we're looking at 5-6 treatments...maybe more, but he is optimistic that this will help a lot. I'm in Running Moratorium for at least that long, and no elliptical for 2-3 treatments. I can bike, row on the rowing machine, yoga, do some easy weights, perform rehabby exercises, and walk around. We don't want to disturb any possible cartilage regeneration process!

I'll be taking a fistful of joint supplements...MSM, glucosamine, and chondroitin. Additionally, I'll continue my anti-inflammatory way of eating and doing my meditative work. It's time to make the healing, restorative work a major priority.

If you have any questions about this, feel free to ask! I am completely fascinated by this process.

Still smiling ...

Today I go and maybe get a giant needle stuck into my hip and have stuff injected in there. But I might not. It depends on what the doctor says. I hope he says,

LET'S DO IT!!!!

because I am eager to get the show on the road even though it's needles and needles freak the crap out of me. If it works, if it doesn't work...at least it's a starting point. So I'm smiling even though I haven't run since I can't even remember. 

Thanks, everyone, for your shared excitement about the rowing. It was really fun. I did it twice last week, and that will be all...for now. Deciding to proceed with the prolotherapy course of treatment (which is not covered by insurance) will be a financial commitment that will already stretch us. Rowing is way more expensive than I had imagined. I had a hard time keeping a straight face when I was given the cost breakdown. What the WHAT? LOL! And, dude, 4:40 a.m. is sooooooo f*cking early!!! 

For now the energy will be focused on healing or treating or whatevering my sweet little hurting hip :) I will not curse it. I will be loving it and nurturing it and promising to do right by it.

As I ponder what lies ahead, I've been spending time hanging with one of my favorite girls...

Can't catch me!

Yeah, right now I can't...but wait until I get this hip sorted ;-)

We know who runs the show around here...

...and clearly, it isn't me!

Alrighty, time to go be a mom. Because guess what? My kids are ON VACATION!!!! Might be a good time to take a trip to the zoo ;-)

I'll be sure to report back about how the doctor appointment goes!

What would you want to do if you were a kid on vacation? Don't say Disneyland...think local :)

Ever tried a course of treatment that seemed experimental? How'd it go?


p.s. Jingle Bell Hellers...i have NOT forgotten about you! 

grrrrind grrrrind grrrrrrriiinnnndddddd...

Every time I take a step now, I see this in my mind...

My hip doesn't hurt any more than it ever has...in fact, it feels a whole ton better than it did when it felt its worst several years ago, but after hearing "bone-on-bone"... my mind goes to the mental image of a rough-hewn mortar and pestle...grriinnddding away. I'll bet you're cringing in sympathy pain right about now ;-)

The big question now is what to do.

Here's what I KNOW helps ME feel better:

• good, deep tissue massage
• chiropractic adjustments – that leg yank always is amazing
• exercise – I actually feel more pain now than when I was running and doing more in general
• the fact that I've pretty much eaten an anti-inflammatory diet for about 5 years now (yeah, some wiggle room there like I do eat sugary stuff sometimes...I wonder how good I'd feel if I cut that out? think I might try it...)
• stretching, foam rolling, rolling on a tennis ball or lacrosse ball
• destressing and meditation, this includes getting good rest/sleep

I started doing research last week and read each and every comment and email and message regarding surgeries and treatment/management ideas and workout alternatives and here is what I've come to realize:

• I'm not ready for surgery emotionally.
• I'm very good at hearing what my body is telling me, so I will continue to listen closely to it. It tells me "you don't need surgery yet, but you've got to do something"
• I'm possibly in denial (don't say to me out loud "yes, you are" because eventually I will figure that out) but I am hanging onto a hope that my body has amazing healing abilities and so want to pursue ideas that embrace and utilize that hope.
• I'm not really interested in running much or at all if it's going to hurt, but if it doesn't hurt...
• I've really missed rowing.
• Rowing is really f*cking expensive!
• I tend to think outside the conventional box.

Decision #1...

I'm going for my first prolotherapy consultation on Wednesday. 

The worst that can happen (or so it seems) is that it won't do anything for me. I can live with that. If that turns out to be the case, then I look at other options. Easy.

The hardest part of this hip deal is realizing that, unlike a broken foot or torn hamstring, this is not going to get "better." I am not going to take 8 weeks off, doing pilates and swimming and biking or nothing, and then it will knit itself back together and be good as new. It's done. It's gone. I have to work with this forever...whether as a surgeried-on joint or other. 

The next time you're sitting out with an illness that will end or an injury that will heal, yes, it will be frustrating and hard, but remember how much worse it could be. Take time to take care of your body. If you're sick or hurting...give that awesome body a break. Don't curse it. Don't ignore it. You really don't want to have to deal with something like this. Trust me.

 **This recent series is important for me. It's really helpful to write these things out and look at them. Bear with me as I go through this process! Who knows? You might learn something useful :) **