here we go again

Gosh, things have been super busy! My husband and I have been trying to get our new Etsy shop up and running, promoted, and filled up! Lots of work, very time consuming, but fun! My most recent visit to my orthopedic doc for my hip surgery/iliopsoas check up took a different turn (again!). So, my knee has been hurting...my family doc did a McMurphy test on it and thought I had a meniscus tear. Those types of test serve best as a way to rule out things. Orthopedic doc doesn't think it is a meniscus tear, which is good. Except what he says it is is a lot harder to remember and pronounce!
The appointment went like this: He walks in, says hey and asks "You're still better right? Things are good?"... well doc....so I tell him about my knee...that it had been 2 months and so I was starting to worry. He kinda chuckles, tells me I'm a mess (in a funny way-hey-at least he can count on me to keep his office running!) and tells me to stand up straight.
"Ahhhh..", he said.
" Now touch your thumb to your forearm."

So I did, in which he "Ahhh-ed" again and said, "You shouldn't be able to touch your thumb to your forearm."
Huh. I mean, I used to do it to freak people out when I was younger....
So he did some more things..moved my knee around, talked more about how I wasn't normal (duh.) He then says that I have Joint Hypermobility Syndrome. Which isn't necessarily a big deal, until you take into consideration that in my case, my loose joints + hip surgery + protecting my right (surgery) side + overuse while exercising + a weak inner thigh muscle which most women have not pulling evenly on my knee since my outer thigh muscle is strong+over-pronation = (are you ready?) 'left patellofemeral syndrom secondary to a weal gluteus medius (I rehabed my right surgery side stronger than my left side..oopsie), joint hypermobility syndrome with an underdeveloped VMO and recent overuse.
Now, no treadmill, no long walks, and definitely no jogging. No elliptical. Doc said that unless it is in my heart that I must become a runner and I'm willing to endure pain and extensive training, then I need to know that I was not born a runner and to stick to the bike. Only have to tell me once...no more running.
I am allowed to use the stationary bike, but no more interval training for 2 months and I have to keep it at level 1 with no resistance. He showed me exercises to do to strengthen the muscles around my knee. Why does it always seem like 2 steps forwards, 5 steps back?
Moral of the story? Anyone having hip surgery needs to be sure to evenly build muscle on both sides of the body. Don't overdo it and take it slow. Just because you're told it will take 3-4 months of intense healing doesn't mean at month 4 or 5  you can do whatever you want. Check yourself for hypermobility of the joints and know if you have it, you may be prone to injuries.
Doc says I can't fix my iliopsoas pain until I fix this...because the knee exercises aggravate the iliopsoas..ugh.

"shortest shower of my life"

Our water heater went out sometime early yesterday. I was kinda confused when my shower was lukewarm even though no one had used hot water for hours. Later on, I couldn't get any hot water when I was washing my hands. It wasn't until it was too late that I finally realized something was wrong. The water had been scalding hot for the past few days. My husband mentioned it, too. And now...cold. Now I know that's a sign that the thermometer is going out. I told my husband he should take a shower at work in the morning so he wouldn't have to take a freezing cold shower. Which brings me to a whole other story from a few weeks ago after some bad storms. Friends of ours have a well, and their power was out for awhile. One of them posted something on Facebook about taking a shower at work since there wasn't any running water at her house. That actually could lead me to a third story, one which is both hilarious and sad, but it would be at said friend's expense. Anyway, I said something to my husband about how I thought it was weird she had a shower at her job (she doesn't work at a gym, pool, or truck-stop). Then my husband told me he had showers at his work, too (he also doesn't work at a gym, pool, or truck-stop). And he thought it was weird that I though it was weird to have showers at work. Is it not weird to other people that these people have showers at their workplace? Do all of you have showers at your workplace?? Okay, so back to the point. He wasn't going to his office in the morning, but instead straight to a meeting in a different town. A meeting place where presumably there are not showers (like normal places). But all of my attempts to try to get hot water during the day had used whatever was left in the tank, leaving it ice cold. I heard him as he woke up and went in the bathroom. The only thing separating me from his shower is a thin wall, so I always hear him turn it on. The shower may have been on for a total of 30 seconds. I asked him about it...he said 'that was the worst shower ever!! I washed my face and my important parts and jumped out as fast as I could!' Good news-the water heater is officially fixed now. Poor guy.

Mother's Day weekend was a lot of fun. It included INSANE disc golf where you needed a pulley and harness just to make it to the next basket. It also included family and the best dog ever (who doesn't understand why he isn't allowed to fetch the frisbees.)

 

 

this was one of the short baskets...

 

 

you don't wanna lose your frisbee on this course...full of poison ivy and thorns

FRISBEE!

Mine!!

Finally got to a doctor to have my knee checked out. After a McMurray Test, he thinks I could have a Meniscus tear. I went to the gym today and iced really well before and after. There's a lot of fluid behind both  kneecaps. Ugh. Moral of the story? Never, ever jog again. Ever.

say 'no' more often.

This has been blogged and tumblr-ed and reposted so many times
I don't even know who to give credit to...

day 3

Day 3 of 'resting'. My version of resting, at least. That along with ice and Advil seem to have helped my knee some. I want to get back to the gym tomorrow and just go really easy on my knees. Hope that works out. We have plans for disc golf this weekend, well, actually, my parents and husband do, my sis and Sam and I will just spectate. So I need to be able to walk!

The downstairs neighbors, affectionately referred to as Cheech and Chong, moved out! My husband keeps reminding me not to celebrate until we see who moves in...which in my experience is super true. Now I just wish that creeper upstairs would refrain from playing musical chairs on his porch every single day-which I haven't quit figured out yet. I haven't moved the furniture on our porch since I swept it at the beginning of Spring. Maybe he has OCD. I'm also gonna need whoever that is to stop blaring awful music. The music that's booming right now. The new next door neighbor plays really loud rap..but I can only hear it from my bathroom, so no biggie. But, it's nothing I've ever heard before. My husband doesn't ever know what it is either, and he is a virtual library of hardcore rap (yes-I'm super serious about this, but shhhh). He's left the state for work, so Sam and I are chillin' and excited about having full control over the remote. Actually, Sammy's pouting. I keep asking him to make his happy face...but I get nothing.

happy faces!

time to get out the ol' ice pack.

So, I'm not going to say anything about Osama except this: way to go military, way to go pres, and I'm glad that the family and friends of people who died in 9/11or fighting the war possibly feel some peace now. On the flip side, it is kinda weird to me to celebrate anyone's death. Maybe I would feel different if I had been directly impacted by 9/11, but right now I kinda feel awkward about everyone's celebration of death. Ok, I'm done.

I was having major pain issues this weekend. I don't understand why. I worked out Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday at the gym and took Sam for a walk at the park Friday. Friday night through Saturday I was in crazy pain. I think it's my iliopsoas.This is what I, Dr. Michelle, have decided. The iliopsoas is always active in everyone, unless you are somehow in a position where your hips and legs are perfectly straight. Otherwise, any leg or hip movement moves the iliopsoas. I still think that because of my hip and my scar tissue and stomach muscle tear, it was way overworked. I think that since it was in an active position working overtime, it possibly caused it to shorten (think of what happens in the arch of your foot or calf when you get a tight muscle that won't give). It's connected both to my (well, and your) pelvic bone and thigh. So, the front pelvic pain and thigh ache could be because the iliopsoas is tight, tilting my pelvic bone forward, and pulling on my thigh muscle. I still haven't received a reply to the email I sent the surgeon (which is weird)...but I am going to my local sports medicine doctor in a few weeks and share my thoughts. I also want to know if there is a type of imaging that can help us see the iliopsoas clearer and give us answers instead of guesses. Any image other than a CT scan, because I've had enough of those that the world radiation map probably shows excess activity coming from my apartment.
On top of that, I can explain my right knee pain with my hip. A combination of my over pronation, bad shoes, and my hip not being quite strong yet could have caused excess stress on that knee. Now I just need an explanation for why my left knee is worse than my right knee. Kinda super frustrated about that. I mean, one issue at a time would be nice! It's been 3-4 weeks since I hurt my knees, and they're both better, but my left seems to have stopped improving and refuses to be normal. I also sent a text to my PT. Sorry for the boring update. This blog has really helped me keep up with my progress.
Wow. PT just called me and boy, when you restate my actions back to me, I can see why people call me stubborn. Basically I would go to the gym, lift weights and do cardio, leg press the same weight I was doing before I hurt my knee, come home and do stuff around here, grocery shop, and wonder why my knee wasn't all the way better. Duh, Michelle. Good thing I have her to get me back on track and point out my stupidity! If you live near me and ever need a good PT, let me know. Now, I'm gonna go ice and not go to the gym (yes, I was about to go to the gym. I really am an idiot).