A Little Bit of Complaining

Around a year ago, I stopped by my Rheumatologist's office with what I thought was bursitis.  He gave me an injection.  I left and came back the next day.

"Did it help?" he asked.

"Sure, for the bursitis, but I have pain all the way around here."  I gestured from the font of my pelvis bone to the back.  Reluctantly, he injected the muscle with no idea what the problem was or if this would help.

His doubts were founded.  The pain wasn't really relieved.  I saw another Rheumatologist.

"What do you do for exercise?" she asked.

"Zumba," I answered.

Her eyes got big.  "Zumba is not a good exercise when you have hip problems."  She told me to stick with elliptical, bike or swimming.  She prescribed pain cream that I got from a compounding pharmacy in Denver.

Both rheumatologists recommended stretching.  I was diligent.  I stretched at home.  I tried Pilates. With Pilates, I could only handle one class a week and I spent most of the rest of the day with ice on my hip.   The day after I felt wonderful, but the day of, it was excruciating.

After several more weeks of pain, I wondered.  What if the stretching was hurting instead of helping?  What if the Rheumatologists had it all wrong?  I made an appointment with an orthopedist.

He could see a lump of calcification on top of my pelvis.  He ordered an MRI and a bone scan.

Turns out I have 4 things wrong with my hip. (How is that even possible?)

1. A muscle tear that was building calcium.  Ice, heat and rest is helping this.

2. Tendonitis that is presenting as bursitis.

3. A pinched nerve causing pain in my sciatica.

4. An impingement in my hip that is destroying the cartilage.

I now have to go to physical therapy which should help the tendonitis and the pinched nerve.  After 8 years of not being on any Disease Modifying Anti-Rheumatic Drugs (or DMARDs for short), I have to head into the rheumatologist again to get on the heavy stuff, hoping that this will easy the impingement and delay--for years, if it works--having to have surgery on my hip.

While it's a bummer to have so many things wrong with one part of my body.  I'm grateful I have a plan and praying that some of these things will help.

Session over.  Thanks for listening.