PAO Surgery 3 Years Later FAQ
PAO Surgery 3 Years Later FAQ | 3 Years Post Op
I can’t believe it has been 3 years since my PAO surgery on my right hip! If you aren’t sure what I’m talking about, you can read the original posts here, here, here, here, here and here.
The last few years I’ve been hit pretty hard with lots of emotions on the anniversary of my surgery, but mostly gratitude. For all of the amazing people that helped our little family get through a tough period. For the amazing medical team that cared for me. And for our incredible families that did so much to sustain us.
PAO Surgery 3 Years Later FAQ | Frequently Asked Questions
I receive messages every few months asking about my surgery. Mostly from people who are about to have the surgery themselves and they have found my blog posts through Google or Pinterest. I happily respond to every single message because this is truly a terrifying surgery. There are so many unknowns going in and recovery is very dependent on how the surgery goes. Every person’s surgery is different so therefore every recovery is different. But I do want to answer some questions I get frequently here that will hopefully help someone else in their journey of getting this surgery.
PAO Surgery 3 Years Later FAQ | Which doctor did you go to?
There are only a handful of doctors that can do this surgery well. They are truly experts in their field and if you need this surgery it is worth traveling to have the proper professionals take care of you. I traveled from the Washington DC area to Durham, NC to have Dr Olsen at Duke do my surgery. I could not recommend Dr Olsen and his team enough. They prepped me physically and emotionally for this surgery and ensured I was ready for the recovery.
PAO Surgery 3 Years Later FAQ | How did your surgery go?
My surgery went better than expected. It was 6.5 hours long. The doctor expected to find a severely torn Labrum based on my scans and pain level. However, that was not the case. The labrum was still torn but not as severely as expected and only required a few staples.
The rest of my surgery went fairly smoothly, just as expected. I have heard of others having this surgery who have had their pelvis broken as part of their surgery because it was the only way to do what was necessary to fix the hip issues. Every patient is different so you will need to talk to your doctor about what the worst case scenarios are for your surgery. I had expected to have a tough first month of recovery and including not even being able to hold Jackie on my lap for that first month. Due to the lack of damage to my labrum, my recovery moved faster than expected.
PAO Surgery 3 Years Later FAQ | How long was your recovery?
My doctor told me that it would take 6 months to a year to recover fully from this surgery. I feel like there are two different parts of recovery when it comes to having a PAO. The first part of recovery is getting back to normal. Being able to walk without a walker/crutches/cane, being cleared by physical therapy and generally getting back to a normal routine. This took me 4 months. After 3 weeks, I started intense physical therapy. I saw my doctors after 6 weeks for a check in. My doctor kept me on a walker for 9 weeks and then I was on crutches for 2 weeks and a cane for another 3-4 weeks. I had a handicap pass for my car for 6 months post op. After 4 months, I was able to pick up my almost 1 year old daughter (almost 30 pounds) and get around on my own. I wasn’t 100% myself at this point but I was doing better.
Then there was the second phase of recovery. Waiting for the swelling to go all the way down, getting screws removed and getting back to normal activities. This took about another year. Mostly because I waited until 18 months post op to get my screws out.
PAO Surgery 3 Years Later FAQ | Did you have your screws removed?
I had three large screws placed into my hip to keep everything in place. The medical team told me that I could have them removed one year post op if the screws bothered me. THEY BOTHERED ME! One of the screws stuck out enough from my hip that you could see it, even through my clothes. My grandmother joked she could hang her purse on it. I could feel the Phillips head of the screw through my skin. I caught this screw on counter tops, door frames, even the oven door. It was painful. I had my screws removed 18 months post op, it was an outpatient surgery. I was on crutches for a week and after that I really started to feel like myself again!
PAO Surgery 3 Years Later FAQ | Can you do more now than you could before your surgery?
Yes, yes, YES!!! This is one of the questions I am asked the most. I think because people want to know that this scary surgery is worth it.
Before my surgery, I had been told to stop doing the things I loved: dance & basketball. I couldn’t really hike, do outdoor activities or anything that was high impact. Carrying Jackie was hard. Sleeping at night was painful. Walking, standing, sitting down, laying down, were all painful.
Now, I can do more than I did before. I can carry my almost 4 year old (45+ pounds) on a hike. I can race her down the street. I can walk for miles, run, dance, play basketball, sleep without pain, sit for hours. I can do anything I did before my surgery and more. I can do things now I wasn’t able to do for years before my surgery.
PAO Surgery 3 Years Later FAQ | How is your pain level 3 years post op?
I will not say that I have zero pain because that’s not true. I do still have some muscle tension on occasion which can be a little painful. But nothing that a heating pad doesn’t fix. I can also do some stretches and work on strengthening positions to help with my hip muscles. But other than that, I don’t have pain. I don’t have the joint pain I had before my surgery. I don’t have the pain shooting up my back and down my legs. All of that is gone.
PAO Surgery 3 Years Later FAQ | Did you have both hips done?
No. I only had my right hip done. It is common to have both hips done but I thankfully only needed the right one done.
PAO Surgery 3 Years Later FAQ | I’m X years old and I’m scared of getting this surgery. Should I wait?
DO NOT WAIT. I was 26 when I had my hip done. I wish I had done it sooner. I didn’t actually qualify for the surgery until after I had Jackie, my hip wasn’t considered bad enough until then.
The younger you are, the faster you heal. The sooner you can get back to the things you love. It’s better for having babies (if that’s something you want). Do not wait.
PAO Surgery 3 Years Later FAQ | Would you do it again?
Yes. And again and again and again. Looking back, I can’t believe I lived with the pain I lived with. I did so many things and suffered through them because of my hip. The first conference I ever organized was in 2013 in Abu Dhabi. After 14 hour flights, a week walking around on marble floors and chasing down speakers & attendees, I came home and stayed in bed for 2 weeks. Because my hip hurt so bad. If only it hadn’t been that way. And now it’s not. I’m healthy. I sleep well. I can carry my baby on hikes in the mountains. I can run, jump, dance. I can do anything. So yes, I would do it again.
Hopefully answering these questions can help some of you who are prepping for this surgery but I am always open to answering questions if you still have any! Please reach out to me if you need someone to talk to about having a PAO done!