Things I wish they had told me

BruceT

In 2007 I was 39 and told I would need hip replacements within 10 years. 7 Years on my OA is hardly an impediment at all. Here is a list of things I wish I had known 7 years ago. Please note this is a highly personal list , and has no medical evidence behind it

1 Excerise . I am lucky in that my daily commute gets me on a bicycle every day. I am convinced i would be in a worse place without it

2 You can't make it worse. OA will progress at its own pace. Live according to your pain threshhold, dont worry about what long term damage you are doing , because you are not doing any

3 Pilates. Wish I had done it 10 years ago. Yoga I am sure is just as good

4 Dont define yourself by your limitations. I gave up running the day I was diagnosed and missed it terribly for 4 years. It felt ( as other people have described on this site ) like a mourning process for my past life. 2 weeks ago i purchased some running shoes. It might leave me in a bit of discomfort but I am going to give it another go

5 Glucosomine does nothing - a personal opinion and i do not denigrate the view of those who have found it helpful . (I am currently taking cod liver oil, so I am still hopeful of finding relief in a bottle of pills)

6 Lose weight. I am still at my pre arthritis weight. I have been moderately successful here , but another 5 kg would help a lot!

7 Hold out for as long as possible for a hip operation. Any operation is serious and should be avoided if possible . Medical knowledge increases all the time . If I had had a procedure 4 years ago it would have been metal on metal, and that has caused some horrific problems for some recipients of this treatment

8 Sometimes OA ruins my outlook of my future, but in reality it has over the past 7 years never ruined my enjoyment of a single actual day . My negativity is mostly in the mind and not supported by my experiences

That is all I can think of for now. If I was to put one piece of advice above all the others it would be PILATES

I hope others of you can add to this list for the benefit of all new sufferers

celebrationb

Thank you for that post, I have oa which i was told last year. Going through a rough time at the moment but reading your post and the replies am getting on my post is just what i needed to try and put me back to the way being positive about whats happening to me.

barbara12

Hello
That is very interesting, I do love to read people slant on things, I agree with the limitation things you dont know till you try ..I like to think I can do it rather than cant ..not that it always works.
I am 8 month post THR ..I did hold off for 2 years..now my other hip is has bad so wont be long..I do agree about the holding off its a big decision to go through surgery its goes well for some and not so well for others..I really do wish you well and carry on enjoying your life...