A Long Road to Surgery

It started off as leg pain a year and a half ago.  Liam came to me and said his leg was hurting.  I noticed him limping and thought he had sore muscles.  After all, he runs, jumps, walks a lot, and overall plays hard and for long periods of time.  I just told him to rest, but being the kind of kid you can't keep inside, he insisted going back out and playing some more.  I proceeded to tell him that if he doesn't rest and take care of himself, he won't heal, and the pain can worsen.  Being the stubborn teen that he was, of course it went in one ear and out the other.  As the days/weeks passed, he was still in pain.  I was still convinced that he was doing too much and needed to rest.  After some time, I started to feel like something was amiss.  We made an appointment to see his pediatrician to see if he had any insight as to what this could be.  His doctor suggested we leave his office and go straight to Norton's Children's Hospital to get an x-ray or further testing done there.  He also mentioned that we could make an appointment with Cincinnati Children's Hospital since they were the best. The doctor told us he was sending over the necessary info, and we should go there immediately.  So we did.  

We arrived and got right in. They asked Liam a series of questions and then proceeded to send him off for imaging.  We found out that he had Hip Dysplasia.  I was shocked because he had a surgery for Hip Dysplasia and Hip Dislocation when he was two.  My heart sunk.  I just knew what was in store when they uttered those words.  I kept calm and followed directions from the doctors and nurses.  They had also mentioned Cincinnati Children's Hospital for his care going forward.  So, we decided that was the next plan.

First, we saw an orthopedic doctor by the name Dr. Mehlman in Cincy.  He was quite the character. He showed up in a blazer, jean shirt, jeans, cowboy boots and a cowboy hat.  I knew instantly that this guy was either a Texas native or very eccentric.  Either way, he was really cool.  Since Louisville and Cincinnati doctors aren't synced, they had a problem getting the x-ray from NCH.  So, Dr. Mehlman requested that we get another one at his office to see what exactly is going on.  After reviewing the x-ray, he showed us that his right hip socket was in the shape of a half-moon while the other was a "c" shape and normal.  We were shocked.  The next thing he suggested is to contact another orthopedic doctor for further care because he didn't feel comfortable with giving a young child a hip replacement and he didn't see any other solution to fix the problem at that time.  Okay, cool.  Next.

Our next trip was to see an orthopedic doctor by the name of Dr. Whitlock.  He had plans to assess him physically and then inject dye into his hip to get a better read as to what kind of damage he had.  We scheduled that appointment, but it didn't go very well at all.  Liam freaked out about the needle going into his hip.  We made several attempts, but the techs recommended that he go under anesthesia.  They scheduled that appointment five hours later.  Since the wery well under anesthesia, and Dr. Whitlock was able to get the read that he needed.  He called us and told us that he was finished with the testing and everything went perfectly.  He then told us that he was going to talk with his group of surgeons to get their input and he would get back with us another day.  That, my friends, was a very, VERY long and exhausting day.  

Dr. Whitlock called and told us that another doctor was going to take over.  His name was Dr. Sorger.  Aaron and I were confused as to why we were bouncing from doctor to doctor at this point, but we did hear that he was the very best for this type of care.  We made another appointment to go back to Cincy to meet the new doctor.  But we found that he didn't seem very prepared. He didn't know who Liam was or why we were there.  He pulled up the x-ray and said he will need to speak to his vendors and engineers about making a hip mold for Liam.  We waited a long time to hear back from the office.  Aaron and I called a few times in a three plus month period to check on the status.  We were growing impatient.  Liam was still in pain and struggling to get around.  My main concern at that point was putting pressure on his knee because his gait was off.  The last thing I wanted was for him to damage another part of his body before we had the original problem corrected.  Before scheduling surgery, they called to have us see the hip mold they made and to answer any questions we had.  That thing was terrifying.  And they said it's a new model so they weren't sure how long it would last.  Most hips last 15-20 years.  I guess we'll just have to see when that time comes.  Poor kid.  We did hear back, and a date was set for surgery, almost a year and a half later.  Little did we know at the time; our appointments would be moved a few times before actually having the surgery.  Again, frustration was setting in.  

And then it happened.  The date was set for November 14th.  We were making plans and reservations for an overnight stay.  It was finally happening, and we were stoked.  Like I mentioned before, it took us about a year and a half (probably longer) from start to finish.  We were all ready.  We arrived at the hospital early.  I think the surgery took about two hours or so.  The doctor called us and said he did fantastic and everything looks great.  We were relieved.  We were escorted into the recovery area to see Liam, but my heart sank as any mother's heart would.  I knew we were in for a long recovery and his pain level would be high.  The nurse said he was doing great, and she showed us his incision.  My heart sank again.  Poor baby.  That was a rough day.  He was released to go home after he woke up.  From there, we were given a shower seat, crutches, a walker and a wheelchair to go home.  He was still pretty loopy from the anesthesia, so he slept a majority of the way home, which was two hours away.  

Once we arrived home, he slept some more.  We had to make adjustments and learn how to manage his recovery.  He slept in the recliner in our living room for a good while before transitioning to his bed.  He couldn't take showers right away or move like he normally did.  We had to assist with getting him in and out of the recliner and wheelchair, adjusting pillows, and basically waiting on him hand and foot.  But he was home.  He was doing amazing.  And we were all relieved that the surgery was finally over.  Now, the healing was to begin.  He did his schoolwork at home for several months.  The school was so understanding, compassionate, and so incredibly helpful during the transition.  I can't praise them enough for all that they did.  Also, Aaron lost his job at this time.  Emotions were high and our stress was through the roof with everything happening at once.  I told Aaron that I felt this was a blessing for many reasons, but the biggest blessing is that he was able to stay at home with Liam while I worked.  It was a complete game-changer.  I truly felt that someone was looking out for us during that time because I really don't know how we would have done it if he was still working.  There are silver linings out there, you just have to look for them.  And I do believe that everything happens for a reason.  We may not know what those reasonings are, but there is always a reason.  I keep telling him that we have to look at the positives and move forward.  This was definitely one of those positives, especially being able to spend quality time with his boys that he didn't have the luxury of doing when he was working so much.  Again, always a positive.  

Liam attended PT for a couple of months and has fully recovered and planning to go back to school full-time for the remainer of his freshman year and then this coming sophomore year.  He is walking without assistance, climbs stairs, and now cleared to ride his electric scooter again.  He just can't run or jump until the doctor clears him of that activity.  He is also back to managing the football team and loving it.  It was a very long road to surgery, but we are so thankful for the medical professionals for helping him get back to a better, pain-free life.  We're over-the-moon excited for Liam, but so glad it is over.  He is doing awesome!  He said he feels like a brand-new man. 

Our appointments have been moved to once a year now.  That drive every month, three months, etc. was getting really old and tiresome.  However, I am thankful that it is only a two-hour drive, instead of a 10-hour drive that some folks had to endure.  We met people from all over the country while at the hospital.  We hopefully only go up from here now that the problem has been found and corrected.  I'm proud of my sweet, brave boy for getting through such an awful challenge in his life and being so patient!