Conditions + Treatments
Hip Dysplasia
Hip Impingement
Hip Labral Tear
As I was entering my senior year of high school, I started to experience some hip pain. I wasn’t sure what it was. I was never really an active child growing up. I didn’t realize my hip pain until I started working 9-hour shifts on the weekends and participating in gym classes so I could graduate. My hip gradually started to click and catch. It would hurt so bad that I could barely walk on it.
I went to the doctor for the first time about my right hip on January 22, 2019. My doctor was very confused about how I was having hip problems when I was a seemingly healthy 18-year-old. He said I had FAI and a bone spur. He asked me what doctor I would like to go to and I told him I wanted to go to Andrews Sports Medicine because my friend had hip problems and she recommended Andrews to me.
I had my first appointment at Andrews Sports Medicine a couple of weeks later. I had X-rays done and I was told by Dr. Michael Ryan that I had hip dysplasia, hip impingement, and a bone spur. Luckily for me, the people who are most likely to have hip dysplasia are firstborn girls. Also, most people don’t have hip dysplasia AND hip impingement. When I had an MRI done, I also found out that I had a labral tear.
Dr. Ryan went over many options with me. First, he wanted me to do physical therapy. I tried that, but it didn’t work. Then, I had a cortisone injection in February of 2019, but that just made the pain worse. After exhausting conservative treatment, my last resort was surgery. Dr. Ryan recommended hip preservation surgery instead of hip replacement since they have to be replaced every ten years or so.
It wasn’t until after my last regular visit on March 27, 2019, that I realized how invasive this surgery was. I was really nervous, but Dr. Ryan and his athletic trainer, Kirby, took such good care of me every step of the way. They made sure to make me as comfortable as I possibly could be. They answered all questions I had and made sure my family and I understood everything.
April 9, 2019, was the day I had my surgery. I was scared the whole time. I barely slept the night before. My family and I left that morning at 3:30 AM. I went into surgery around 7 AM and was done around 2 PM. Everything went as smoothly as it possibly could have. My grandma and I stayed in the hospital for four days. It was a lot for me considering I had never had such a major surgery before, but Dr. Ryan would come check on me every morning to see how I was feeling.
I went through a lot to get where I am today. Basically learning how to walk again was very challenging. However, I was determined. I went to therapy 2-3 times per week. Eventually, I started to get back to normal. I was perfectly fine to go back to school in August. I was supposed to go to UAB but with the recovery process, I had to change to Faulkner University since it’s a smaller campus.
I ended up getting in a motor vehicle accident on August 21, 2019. I was sitting in the backseat so I got most of the impact. It did cause a slight setback in my recovery. It has been a year and two months since my surgery. Overall, my hip feels much better than it did before but I still do have some pain. I believe that comes from my hardware since I am petite, which is common.
I couldn’t be more thankful to have been taken care of by the staff of Andrews Sports Medicine. They helped me every step of the way. I have never felt so welcome and understood. I would like to give a special thank you to Dr. Ryan and Kirby for everything!
