It's Only 23 Steps to the Top

I have psoriatic arthritis. I take an injection of Tremfya every 8 weeks to control the pain and inflammation, as well as the psoriasis. My psoriasis is mostly in my scalp, but I also have breakouts of plaque spots, all over my body. They itch and are not very attractive. The arthritis part of my condition has effected my hands and feet. Shooting, electrical type of pain and starting to get some deformity. I guess I'm sort of vain because I'm always trying to fix me. Anyway more about that later. So for years I've suffered with hip and shoulder pain for which the internal medicine doctor at Kaiser gave me many, many steroid shots in each hip and in my right shoulder and chocked it up to the arthritis. Since we've been trying to sell the condo and know we're leaving the state, I decided to go with a PPO at Open Enrollment.

My GP sent me to an Orthopedist who refused to give me anymore injections without having a MRI - meanwhile my hip pain is getting out of control - hard to walk - climbing stairs is a real PAIN. The MRI showed that I have bursitis in my hips and shoulders - lots of inflammation, but no arthritis there. Arthritis in my hands, feet, and back. It also showed an extremely tight ligament and a torn tendon.

So yesterday I had surgery to remove the inflamed bursa, loosen the ligament and repair the tendon. No weight bearing for four weeks and an eight week recovery time.

Just a bit tense about this surgery.

Arriving at the surgical center

MaryLou, pre-op nurse

My legs preop

We arrived home from the hospital. There are approximately 23 stair steps from our garage up to our condo. I was still under the influence of the anesthesia - I don't know how to use crutches, and they have numbed my entire leg to control the pain (which, BTW did not control the pain, it just rendered my leg useless and still painful). Bob is a strong man, but I'm not a petite lady - more of the Swedish Inga type. :0)

Oh and did I mention that it was raining? Realizing that I was not going up the stairs with crutches, Bob pulled out the wheelchair he had in the garage from his father and then attempted to pull me bonk, bonk, bonk up the 23 stair steps. We almost made it. It was so, very, very scary. I felt like I was going to get dumped down the stairs and would then have to go back to the hospital with a broken neck. (I'm not dramatic, you're dramatic.) The top step for whatever reason, no one knows is about 3 inches higher than the other steps. So, Bob, who is completely out of breath by now, lays me in the wheelchair on my back at the top of the stairs - in a puddle. Sweet. I slide my butt back off the chair and continue this way all the way through the condo door where Bob has placed a beach towel and is now pulling me into the bedroom. I'm soaking wet and my pants are falling down. I make my way, with great effort, up on the bench at the foot of our bed and then another twelve inches or so from there onto the bed. "May I just stay right here in my soaking wet clothes and take a nap?" Bob says, "No." My abs and my arms were fully pumped. Kayla, my niece would be proud. After Bob got me out of my wet things and into a nightgown, I took an oxycodone and went directly to sleep.

My 5-6 inch incision (just another scar for my collection)

My leg post-op

Today my leg is still numb, my abs and arms are sore from my stair workout. I think I could make a video and post it as the latest ab/arm toner. Nothing to buy. After you've seen the video, your abs will be thoroughly toned from laughing. Take yourself up your stairs backwards using just arms - no legs - ta dah, workout complete.

In the past three years these are the surgeries that I have had:

- hiatal hernia repair

- bracheoplasty - arm reduction (my grandmother passed her arms down to me and I didn't want them - jewelry would have been nice, instead :0)

- abdominoplasty - tummy tuck (three pregnancies and two abdominal surgeries for a hysterectomy and six weeks later to clean out the infection from the hysterectomy)

- reduction mammaplasty - breast reduction (best thing I ever did - my boobies are so pretty)

- bursectomy - bursa removal and tendon repair of left hip

In six months I'll probably have to have the other hip repaired, possibly my right shoulder, as well. I'll feel like Lindsey Wagner (just dated myself - you remember the bionic woman).

I don't enjoy having surgery, but once I've healed and I do heal quickly, I will be able to get back to exercising and more mobility with less pain. Less pain means I will be more likely to exercise and move. More exercise and movement means I will live a healthier lifestyle. A healthier lifestyle means that I may live a longer life. Longevity is my goal. I want to outlive my father's age. He is now 91. That means approximately 30 more years. That's a long time and I want to be in good shape to enjoy all those years.