Friday, August 8, 2008

A bad day and a good day

Yesterday I experienced the worst hip pain yet. At work, I couldn’t sit down, so I stood up. However, if I stood too long my back started to hurt, so then I sat down. After about 10 minutes of sitting my hips ached. I kept putting my heat pack on but the pain was all over so it was hard to do anything useful. I stood up, then I sat down, all day long. It was frustrating and unproductive.

I went to a friend’s dinner party in the evening and again, couldn’t sit for long and couldn’t really stand, so I “mingled.” I walked around and around and talked to everyone several times. Walking helped my pain if not my social life.

Sleeping was a major problem for the first time ever. I have been sleeping OK, although I can’t lie on my right side for long (the right hip is more painful than the left). Last night I couldn't lie on my back or on either side, and I can never sleep on my stomach. So I really got about 4 hours of intermittent sleep, tossing and turning. When the alarm went off at 5:30 I was ready to go directly to the hospital and sign up for the earliest possible THR surgery.

Instead I went to the rink for practice, figuring it was a lost cause due to yesterday’s pain and my lack of sleep. However, nothing hurt from the time I got in the car. I had an almost pain-free practice despite one fall on my butt (which I’m sure I’ll feel tomorrow in my lower back) and now I’m sitting here in my chair at work with not a single problem. While yesterday the only thing I could think about was how painful everything was, today I am able to go about my activities without giving my hips a second thought.

If I were an optimist I’d say perhaps I’m cured, but unfortunately I know better. For now though I plan to enjoy this, and maybe even get some sleep tonight.

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