Sunday, August 30, 2015

Post-surgery Week 1



Week  1:
Surgery day, post-surgery Day 0:  During my pre-surgery briefing from the anesthesiologist I expressed my tendency to be slow to wake up after anesthesia.  He assured me that he didn’t need to put me too deeply under and that I should wake quickly.  He wasn’t kidding, I came up pretty fast and left the clinic in pretty short order.  My sister was there waiting for me when the nurses wheeled me out, she offered to be my designated driver and my helper over the first several days of recovery.  She was bound and determined to ensure I wouldn't face this alone.  The surgery center sent us off with an instruction sheet, a pair of crutches, and a bandage on my hip the size of a diaper.  As you’d expect the anesthesia chemicals weren’t fully out of my system when we’d left: I had to ask my sister to stop the car after a short drive because the movement of the car and the flashing scenery in my periphery was beginning to make me dizzy and sick to my stomach. 
During the drive to get home and lunch, Charlene gave me the bad news she’d received from the doctor, that  I would not be allowed to run or walk any extended distances at all until he was sure my hip and femur were 100% healed.  That means I could not run, run/walk, or even walk the Avenger’s Half Marathon Weekend events I’d signed up for at the beginning of the year.  Charlene suggested I contact runDisney requesting a registration deferment from the 2015 events to 2016.  They answered quickly, I could submit the deferment application online begin September 29.
 We returned to my house after lunch, to begin a 30 minute on/off ice schedule listed in my post-op instruction sheet.  Later that night we tried a short “walk” to the housing complex’s main gate: to show sis the walking gate into my complex as well as to test myself on the crutches.  It didn’t even take 20 meters of using those things for me to know that they would wear me out and that they chafed.  We’d have to take care of that the next morning, that and a couple other necessities.  I also realized that standing up from the seated position was putting strain on my right knee, fortunately I have a patellar tendon strap to use to help with this.

Post-surgery Day 1:  I slept on the couch over night, I wasn’t about to try the stairs so soon.  It wasn’t a good night’s sleep, duration wise or comfort wise: I couldn’t get more than 1.5 hours of sleep at a time and my post-surgery aches never allowed me to achieve any level of comfort.  I had hoped sleeping on the couch, using one arm as a footrest, would be helpful for blood flow but all it did was lock my knees and cause more discomfort.  Next time I sleep on the couch I’ll have to have a pillow under my knees. 
My sister Charlene and I took advantage of the poor sleep to get an early start on the tasks we needed to accomplish: temporary handicap placard from DMV (plus a couple other personal wants), find a medical supply store to buy padding for the crutches, pick up some cleaning supplies (at Sis’s insistence of helping around the house while she helped me through this first weekend), and pick up some food stuffs.  I was completely exhausted by the time we got back home even though Charlene did all of the lifting.  I immediately got back to the icing routine and hovered around the precipice of napping.  Sis started cleaning around the house and taking care of anything I needed.  She even prepared dinner for us and didn’t raise an eyebrow when I asked for my part of dinner to be prepared to my taste.

Post-surgery Day 2:  This time I slept in my recliner, to a much greater effect: more comfortable and longer lasting.  My sister and I worked on the easiest and safest way(s) for me to ascend and descend the stairs after she got in her morning run and I iced.  Thankfully I’d gotten some strength and control back in my hip so it didn’t take a lot of practice to feel confident in my ability to go up and down (another part of getting up the stairs was that is where the showers are).  Per the post-surgery instruction sheet we were given at the surgical center I could remove the bandages and finally clean myself up, I didn't really need more incentive to navigate the stairs.  I wish they would have told me I’d have to learn new ways to shower but hey, it was such a huge relief I guess I'll just have to be inventive. 
My brother in-law Billy came over to take care of trimming a couple bushes in front of my house a little later in the morning.  I hated to ask him to come all the way over to take care of something that I'd neglected but he really wanted to help make my down time easier and it would be wrong of me to deny him when he'd let me help him in the past.  I returned to my icing routine while he and Charlene worked on my front yard.  I felt bad about them doing so much work for me but they are both adamant that I do everything I can to promote a fast and complete recovery, and so am I (I’m bound and determined to help myself heal ASAP). 
A little later in the afternoon Sis and I got out of the house to do some shopping and idea spawning, we were both getting a little stir crazy at home doing the same thing over and over.  I even used an electric shopping cart at one of the grocery stores for the first time; both of my my latissimus dorsi were still raw from a day and a half of crutch use.  As for how that went, let’s just say that I’m glad I drive my car better than that cart (shelves and displays were not safe around me in one of those things).

Post-surgery Day 3 – I slept in the recliner again, it was even more restful than the first time.  I accidentally put almost my full weight on my left leg during the early morning hours but thankfully I realized it quickly and backed off.  I’m lucky it didn’t hurt something though my left quad did complain a bit through the rest of the day.   My sister and I both got up around the same time, she for a run and me to begin icing.  After she returned and completed her post-run stretching and fueling we cleaned/rearranged my kitchen and dining room so that I could have easy access to everything and a comfortable place to eat.  I was exhausted after just an hour doing that even though my sister did the majority of the work.  It was difficult to believe the arthroscopic surgery could knock me down that far but I accepted it since I didn’t have a choice.
Later in the day we went grocery shopping, to prepare me for the coming work week.  I drove my manual transmission car for the first time since the surgery:  it was uncomfortable enough that I could only stand it for about 15 minutes.  To make things worse I had to use my crutches in the first grocery store we stopped at, their electric carts were all broken.  My hip/leg protested quite a bit during and after that stop.  Fortunately for my hip and I the next stores we visited all had electric carts available.
When my sister and I finally arrived back at my house later in the afternoon we tested my ability to get through the garage fire door.  I almost fell down during the first attempt and though we tried a few other methods we didn't quite figure a safe way for me to get in.  We realized a little later in the evening that I’d need some way to carry things in the house when I’m alone, too many things couldn't be carried while on crutches.  Charlene and I searched around the house and she ended up discovering that a race swag bag turned sideways would fulfill my needs.  It was perfect to hang around my neck, stuff with whatever I wanted to carry (within reason), and move around on my crutches unencumbered.

Post-surgery Day 4 – Another night in the recliner, this thing really is a rest saver.  If my downstairs bathroom were a full bath as opposed to a half bath I’d probably not go up the stairs again for the next 1 to 3 months. 
My house suddenly became empty a little later in the day: Sis went home.  We both needed to get ready for the week ahead and her immediate family needed her too.  
I took care of my typical Sunday chores, one tiny step at a time.  I was ready to call it a night and go to bed after just one hour of what are normally simple tasks:  even my right foot was aching for all of the time I needed to stay upright and balanced on it.  Making my own dinner was a new adventure too, especially trying to get the finished meal from the stove to the table.  If I stand right in between the stove and my breakfast island I can stretch out to reach each place with a small amount of leaning, then it's just a matter of passing things from one hand to the other.

Post-surgery Day 5 – I slept in my bed for the first time since the surgery; it was a deeper sleep but my hip protested a lot every time I woke up.  Much like my time on the couch I need to have a pillow under my knees as well as under my heels.
While getting my lunch and snacks put together for the work day I found another bag among my race item collection that has my company logo.  I will use it for carrying things at work like the first bag does at home.  I also found out, with a little trial and error while I loaded my car for the trip to work, that I may have figured out a way to get through the garage fire door by using my left foot as a door stop and then exit the house backwards.  It will take more testing.
I was very lucky today that my friend and carpool pal Jill Soper was agreeable to taking the wheel for the drive to and from work today, the short drive from home to her house made me very aware that my hip still wasn't ready for an extended drive.  Before my surgery I thought I'd be very ready to return to work after 5 days of recovery but it turned out to be more of a strain than I anticipated.  Some of the worst parts about returning to work after surgery and an extended weekend are leaving the comfort of my own cave and hearing a bunch of inane comments and questions from people I have barely even seen before.  I am grateful for how patient and accommodating my supervisors and coworkers are though, they make it easier to get through a long day.  There are limitations at work though, no matter how accommodating my boss and coworkers are: my icing time has to be modified, I’m on my crutches a lot more than at home, and sometimes I have to hop a lot more than normal.  I’ve found that my right (plant) foot fatigues very quickly during the work day too.
I ended up finding a way to back into my house, through the pesky fire door, that feels easy to do and control though the door handle did pull a nasty trick by catching my bag and almost tripping me.  There sure are a lot of menial tasks I have to figure out along the way.

Post-surgery Day 6 – Over the course of the last 6 days I believe the heel of my palms have taken almost as hard of a beating as my left hip did during surgery.  I have realized that they’ve been aching nonstop for days now and every time I get on the crutches I feel it even more.  When I look at my hands I always expect to see deep bruises though there aren't any.  Of course my hip ached the first thing in the morning but that is as much about not having the opportunity to ice after work last night because I was late getting home and then being too busy during the limited time I had before needing to go to bed.  I also noticed this morning that the method I’ve used to get out of the shower two times is actually causing me to dig the corner of my bathroom counter into my hip very near the sutures.  I can’t allow myself to do that. 
I seem to be engaging my core a lot when using my crutches and when I change from standing to sitting and vice versa, I can feel it pulling at both hips.  I don't know if this is good or bad but when I already ache it's not exactly comforting.  My lower abs ached throughout the day too:  while on the crutches, when I have to hop, or when I have to stand on my right leg for any length of time.  I don’t feel discouraged yet but new aches and pains sure put a damper on things.  This was definitely one of my down days, I should have stayed in bed.

Post-surgery Day 7 - I had a poor start to the day again: my left side ached from before I even got out of bed, it made sure I knew that it was not happy.  Later in the day I realized the ache had faded away and that even my lower abs were feeling somewhat better.  I don’t doubt that the pressure change and approaching storms were giving my remodeled body a lot of grief.
I thought my garage fire door was bad, these self-closing doors at work are real buggers:  they close heavier and faster than my doors at home.  I’ve tried the same tricks I’ve learned already at home but these aggressive doors don’t allow me the chance to apply them fully.  Sometimes each different thing I bump into decides it must be my new challenge:  how best to use the public restrooms, how accommodate myself when the restroom isn’t set up for the handicapped, how to clean up after everything is done and I’m ready to leave, even getting out of the room itself.  It's kind of amusing sometimes, picturing myself from the outside trying to figure out things that are normally thoughtless.

The first week is done now.  I'm getting as used to my temporary situation as I can, relearning things in a new way, but I'll be happy to be done with this phase and move onto walking unassisted again.

Thursday, August 20, 2015

Labrums and Femurs and Hips, Oh My

I have officially begun the first leg of my journey towards a healthier running future and long happy hip life.

During the week building up to Wednesday morning’s (08/19/15) procedure I tried to get as many things prepared for the surgery and the weekend following it as possible: telling friends and family, preparing the house for my Sister's company, stocking the fridge and pantry so my sister doesn't have to try shopping for me, and setting things up for some level of comfort and ease while I recuperate.  I also put my race travel kit of toiletries and clothing in the downstairs bathroom for obvious reasons.  Having these kinds of kits sure comes in handy, even beyond races.  To prepare myself physically for surgery I took 10 days off of running or anything beyond easy walking, took low doces of OTC Motrin for 5 days, and performed 5 days of an Ice/Heat routine.  I didn't want to risk the possibility of inflammation in my hips or legs to start the surgery off.  

I didn't have any pre-surgery nervousness or fear, despite knowing that all surgeries have the possibility of becoming life threatening (the primary reason I bothered with personally informing people about this).  Truth be told, I've felt more anxiety at race start lines.  The rewards of fixing my hips is well worth the risks, pains, and hard work.  My decision was made and I feel that it's the right one for me.  A great sign of how the day would go was that
Charlene and I actually had a pretty smooth and easy start to surgery morning:  we arrived a few minutes early, had a chance to make additional plans for her during my operation, even shared a few laughs at my anesthesiologist's comments during our pre-surgery interview.  Here's the gist of what amused me - I'm sitting in a big bulky recliner, in a hospital gown, hair net on my head, IV in my arm, legs covered by a blanket and this exchange happens: 
Him- "Your resting heart rate is pretty low."
Me- "I'm a runner, my cardio is in pretty good shape."
Him- "Yeah, you look like a runner."
He actually wondered why I chuckled at the absurdity of his observation.  Oh well.       

The procedure was fairly late in getting started but neither Charlene nor I were of a mind to get annoyed by something out of our control.
When I was finally wheeled out of pre-op into surgery we both were ready to have this part done and over with.

After the surgery was completed, and I began returning to the waking world, the doctor told my sister about the work he'd performed and about the restrictions he wanted me to adhere to over the next few days and months.  Charlene asked about my ability to participate in certain events this coming November to which he emphatically said "No".  He wants me to get back on the road too but he doesn't want me risking the newly repaired and reattached Labrum.  We were given an instruction sheet for post-surgery requirements:  Icing the hip at 30 minute on/off intervals through the day,  leg elevation throughout the day, total rest as much as possible,  slow cautious walking with crutches as necessary and to tolerance, no left turns (heh, just kidding).
As far as post-surgery pain levels go, I've felt greater levels of soreness after my first marathons although this is going to last a lot longer.  The best example I can give of how my hip feels now is that my leg/hip joint feels like someone beat on it while I was unconscious.  It's not enough to make me take pain pills but it is very uncomfortable to move, lift, and bend.

I definitely have to say,  "Thank God for my sister and her insistence on being my Big Sister this weekend".  I've already needed her help enough to realize I could not have been self-sufficient these next few days.  Not to mention all of the very kind things she's doing around my house just because she cares and wants to make my home life easier.      

I won't lie and claim that what I'm going through isn't very frustrating: dragons are meant to fly not sit cave - bound but this is short term.  I'll ride it all out, follow the doctor's orders, and curb my longing to run.  The doctor, Sis, and I all agree that my running future is far more important than any race coming up in the next few months.  I am well aware of my priorities and no amount of instant gratification will deter me from them.


Monday, August 17, 2015

Think "Square Peg in a Round Hole"



This dragon is grounded for a while; I have to get my “wings” fixed.


The fix has been a long time coming but the problem has been a lifetime building.  My last pain-free marathon was the 2013 Rock ‘n’ Roll Denver Marathon.  It was far from my best marathon but that was due to dietary mistakes not with what has plagued me to this point.  The first time I had post-race hip pain was after the 2013 Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon.  It calmed quickly enough and I chalked it up to a fast paced race, after all I’d only missed my PR by 2 minutes.  Over the course of the next 13 months I didn’t have hip pain during races under 13.1 miles or during training runs unless it was speed work that neared my upper limits even though I stepped up my training to achieve personal goals and continuing to maintain a multiyear running streak.  Half marathon and Marathon races always caused me discomfort to some level though, to the point that I started going to physical therapy during the summer and fall of 2014.  After the 2015 Rock ‘n’ Roll Arizona Marathon I moved straight passed “discomfort” to downright Pain.  No amount of stretching, self-massage, or rubbing in of Biofreeze could touch it despite trying for over an hour while I waited, and searched, for my sister.  I found her in the race medical area getting ice treatments and ended up finding out that the massage facility set up there was open to any racer needing help.  They spent at least 20 minutes working on my hips and legs though they were only supposed to spend 10 minutes with each person.  It worked like a charm, they were able to loosen my muscles up well enough to allow me to finish the race festivities, drive 4 hours back home, and continue my running streak the next day. 
The beginning of my being grounded happened on February 15, 2015 during a 15 mile long run my back and hips seized up to the point that I could barely walk.  Once again no amount of stretching, self-massage, icing, or other home treatments helped; In fact it took my physical therapist 5 one hour treatments over the course of 2 weeks just to enable me to walk properly again.  We (my physical therapist, my family and I) worried that I may have injured my back somehow during the run on the 15th but a set of x-rays and an MRI showed that I hadn’t.  I did some slight disk compression in the area of my lower back which we immediately began to treat aggressively but that seemed to be something I had actually had for a long time.  Still, once found we had to treat.  It took 35 days of professional and home physical therapy before I could run again.  Unfortunately it wasn’t the same anymore: my hips didn’t move properly or without pain and my knees began to take punishment as well.  We troubleshot and tested, pushed, pulled, and Grastoned but nothing yielded definitive or lasting results.  The doctor and I thought that I was structurally sound so that left some type soft tissue injury (sports hernia fit but no tell-tale bulging) so he referred me to an orthopedist to troubleshoot further.
The time I spend with the orthopedist was short, 2 visits only, but it lead to a surprising revelation by taking us down the wrong fork in the road (though it seemed the correct one at the time).  The orthopedist requested a new MRI, this time of my hip, during the first visit and then reviewed the findings with me during the second.  Again, no findings of hernia or other soft tissue injury but we did believe we’d found cysts and bone spurs on the top of my femur and the hip joint.  So then, off to see a surgeon armed with a definitive answer and a plan of attack.
Now at the surgeon’s office, he didn’t see the same things the orthopedist and I saw in the MRI or in the MRI report.  He orders x-rays which reveals the big surprise.  I didn’t have “bone spurs” though I did technically have excess bone.  The combination of new x-rays and existing MRI changed my diagnosis from bone spurs and cysts to genetically misshapen femur heads and torn labrums (and possibly benign cysts).  Like Lady Gaga sings, “Baby, I was born this way”.
See the drawing below:  I’ve added pink/purple lines to show basically how my bone is shaped currently vs the illustration's ideal.  


The misshapen femur head has not only torn the labrum but it has caused the labrum to separate from the hip socket.  The femur head and separated/torn labrum has also potentially torn and separated the internal cartilage but the doctor won't see that until he looks at it arthroscopically.  My surgeon will inspect the joint and cartilage, repair the torn labrum and secure it again to the hip bone, and shave the femur to it’s ideal shape.  After recovery the joint will move as intended and I may actually be protected from a worse fate later in life, one that my father has had to suffer recently.
The surgery will be outpatient arthroscopic on my left hip/femur only and will happen on the 19th.  I'll have to be on crutches for 4 weeks after the surgery and then I can walk unassisted but not run for 2 more months after that.  After the third month post-surgery I can begin to run again, easily and carefully at first.  The doctor expects I can begin to run hard at a competitive level again 6 months after surgery, just in time for Boston 2016 as long as I don't have setbacks.  It’s my intent to get the right hip/femur done immediately after the Boston Marathon, assuming I don't have setbacks or urgent need for unexpected surgery.

Saturday, August 8, 2015

Casting A Long Shadow

From the right perspective I may appear to cast a long shadow but it is merely an illusion.  Follow the shadow to its source and you will find that it starts from the same road you travel.

Between friends, family, and internet-based friends I hear a lot of "I wish I could be as fast as you" and "You are so much faster/better than I am, I'm jealous".  We hear a lot of people say similar things often (sometimes even say it ourselves), that they wish they could measure up to professional athletes or celebrities: people whom we perceive as being greater than ourselves.  The pros are like me and I am like you, we all are just trying to do the best we can at the moment and hopefully make some type of improvement for tomorrow.  

Draw inspiration from those who are currently ahead of you on this road: hard work put us here at this time and it will get you to the same place in your time.  Know in your heart that you too can go beyond the illusionary boundaries that pessimism has established.


Wednesday, August 5, 2015

Every Step Earned

I have been running for just 4 years now.  I started out fresh off the couch and having recently shedding roughly 50 pounds of excess weight.  I started with a Couch-to-5k running program (despite my strong desire to remain lazy), rediscovered my childhood love of running, and trained my way into being able to run marathons.  I have been fortunate enough to enjoy success at every measured distance between 5k and 51k.  To accomplish that I had to spend nearly 3 years in a constant state of training always refusing to recognize limits and always demanding that I strive for more speed and greater endurance.  Though I am far from being pro or even semi-pro I have worked hard enough to give observers the impression that what I do is easy or effortless.  Even at my peak that is never the case when I'm racing, no matter how it may appear.
I've been compared to a robot, I've been called freakish, I've even had people upset/angry with me for doing well and looking as if it were too easy.  I understand there is a level of praise beneath the various forms of expressions but I wish they would see what it takes to get to that level rather than the gratification of the accomplishment.

For those who wish I would show greater effort I am happy to present you this collage of my pictures from the recently completed 2015 LVTC Legends of Cross Country 5k.  I was tired after the first mile, drained after the 2nd, and exhausted after the 3rd.  Like many others, it took everything I had to finish the race.  I take pride in my effort level, it wasn't my best result ever but it was the best I could give that day and I'm pleased.  

-Kirk 

Monday, August 3, 2015

Welcome to My Den

Thank you for visiting my den.  I have decided to share my hoard with anyone, to open the dark recesses of my life to hopefully shine some light upon yours. 

First off I should share a little about myself:

I am a reader, runner, writer, and poet.  I dream, draw, postulate, and speculate. I'm a born troubleshooter but a horrible mechanic.  I am in no way perfect and I'm all the happier for it.  Oh, I absolutely love dragons (as I see them anyway).

Now that the introduction is out of the way, the reason behind starting a blog.

I've been sharing my run data for a couple years now, along with a  few of my thoughts, but I don't feel that people are truly picking up what I'm trying to share with them.  It's my hope that blogging about my running experiences will shine a brighter light upon what I am trying to show everyone: hard work and dedication will get you farther than you believed was possible for yourself.  I'm not an elite or an exceptionally gifted runner but I am willing to work very hard to reach my goals.