Surgery Tuesday | Arthritis Information

Well, Tuesday is the big day for my next surgery. I'm having an excision of a huge bursal cyst on my left hip. The bursa just keeps filling with fluid and is now wrapped almost all the way around the top of the femur and through the muscle. Unfortunately it can't be done as an arthroscopy and I will have to have a 6-7 inch incision down the outside of my thigh. I'm seriously not looking forward to this. I'm hoping that it will be worth it in the end and I will not have the pain that I have had for the last couple of years.

I started my new job 6 weeks ago and am really enjoying it. I have taken 5 weeks off (I'm only working on a casual basis but have applied for a permanent position that is available) so when I return maybe I will have a permanent job. I hope this is long enough. I suppose if I feel better sooner I can go back sooner but I will just have to see how I go with my recovery. The doctor says I will be in for 2-3 days but again I guess it depends how fast I recover and get back on my feet. Fortunately the joint itself is in good condition but I think they will be doing a lot of digging around the try and get the whole cyst out. The last week has been hell as far as the pain goes because I've had to stop all my RA meds in preparation for the surgery. The swelling is getting worse and worse the longer I am off things. And to top it off the anti-inflammatories must have been masking problems with a couple of my teeth. I have a wicked toothache and have had to squeeze a dentist appointment in tomorrow (Monday) to see if I can get it at least under control for the short term so I don't have to deal with the hip AND the mouth at the same time.

I'll be on forearm crutches for at least a couple of weeks so I won't be getting out a lot. I'm invited to a bachelorette party on Saturday but for some reason I think I might be making a quick appearance and heading home again. Tomorrow I will have to do a final tidy up of the house so that I can get around on crutches without tripping on things and ending up on the floor. My bag is packed with treats (hard candy to suck on when my mouth gets to feeling like the Sahara), nice cookies to have with my cups of tea, and my jasmine tea. Oh yeah, and all the other boring stuff like toothbrush and pj's.

After I recover from this I have one more surgery to go....a spinal fusion at C4-5. That has to wait til after I'm back on my feet and fit.