Grumpa Joe's Place

After suffering for three months with a torn muscle in my hip, I have finally resorted to using a painkiller and an anti-inflammatory. Even in minimal doses, my body responds positively. A couple of hours after taking a pill, I can walk without a limp and pain. It gets so good that I begin to believe that I might be curing the problem. Then the effect of the pill begins to wear off, and I am reminded about an upcoming appointment with the orthopedic surgeon.

The MRI I took last week showed a tear in one of the components surrounding the hip joint. I have to believe it will take some surgery to correct the problem. I have strained my memory to recall what caused this injury, and am beginning to conclude it happened during a specific exercise while doing physical therapy to build up my leg strength. Now, I conclude that all the benefit of eight weeks of PT has been erased by my desire to do things like tie my shoes, pick things up from the floor, and to walk distances again.

Looking back seventy-two years points me to the polio that I had as a teenager. The muscle that is currently giving me problems happens to be one that was affected by the polio virus. My right hip was severely paralyzed and required primary therapy and exercise to build up. I used crutches for a year before my leg was strong enough to let me walk without a gimp. Well, the gimp is back and the pain at times will shoot up though my hip into my shoulder and down to my knee. I have self diagnosed myself with Post Polio Syndrome. It happens to people who had polio as a teen and after forty years of using affected nerves and muscles. I look upon this as a positive thing because I didn’t recognize the problem until this year which is thirty-two years after many polio-people first experience the phenomenon.

I see this as a problem I successfully dealt with once before, and I can do it again, but it will take much more effort.

Filed under: Biography, Memories, Seniors | Tagged: Post Polio Syndrome |