For those of you who don’t know, my husband found out in the middle of last year that he has a condition in both of his hips that causes the bone to die due to lack of blood flow. The disease is very advanced in his right hip especially. It’s an extremely painful condition because it causes a deep, aching bone pain, similar to cancer of the bone. If left alone, eventually his hips will collapse.

Since he’s so young, and hip replacements don’t last forever, we’ve tried a different procedure to help prolong the need for them. What they do is drill holes in his hips to clear out some of the dead bone and relieve the pressure. He had the surgery done on his left hip first, since there was more of a chance of it working. Yesterday he had it done on his right one.

The doctor’s very words were that the procedure is a “Hail Mary” for his right hip, and if this doesn’t work he will have to get it replaced. Obviously we want to avoid that.

Anyway, he came through the surgery alright, and I was able to get a really cute picture of him with his surgical gear on lying in the stretcher, but sorry ladies, that one’s for me to enjoy!

Unfortunately, this recovery so far has been a lot harder on him because this hip was so much worse to begin with. He really should be staying in a hospital for a few days, but they just gave him a bunch of pain medicine after surgery and then sent him home within 45 minutes. Well, that medicine wore off in about 3 hours and what he has to take now isn’t covering it. I took today off work to be with him, and I’m doing all I can to make him comfortable. It’s so hard to see him like this.

So right now, this is what is consuming our lives. That, and cleaning my house, which I needed to do for my own sanity. It’s not easy for either of us to be going through this. Him in miserable pain, unable to be of much help around the house and practically immobile, and me helpless to make his pain go away, with all the duties of the house and dogs and work on my back.

There are times when I start to feel myself get irritable – not at David, but just at the situation. But all I do for him is worth it when he compliments me. He’s the best patient I’ve ever had, and taking care of him is definitely the most fulfilling.