No Insurance & In Pain All the Time! Need Hip Replacemen Posted: 05-10-06 16:19pm
:cry: i’m 25 years old, female, & my
whole freaking life has sucked because of
the slipped capital femoral epiphysis on
my right hip. :cry:
i had the screw put in when I was about 11
& then a year or so later they took it
out & botched the surgery! :evil:
the screw snapped & so they had to
gouge out a bigger hole to get the
equipment in to remove the rest of it.
I’m a red-head & so I have a really
high pain tolerance & was always told
to not complain so I have not been
considered a candidate for a hip
replacement until last year.
Every doctor in arizona (where I lived
from age 8 to 23) said I was too young for
the surgery & that my life will follow
these steps:
i would be using crutches for all long
walks by age 25.
I would be in a wheelchair by age 35.
I would not be a candidate for a hip
replacement until age 40-45+.
So he then gave me a prescription for pain
killers, a pair of crutches, & an
application for a permanent handicap
sticker.
After moving back to chicago I went to my
family’s doctor for a general checkup
with my x-ray’s & the doctor held it
to the light, stared at it for about 2
minuets, looked me in the eye, & said
(and I quote) “holy caca! How can you
walk?? Were you in a car accident??”
& that I should have had my hip
replaced at around the age of 16!!
The only problem now is that I have no
health insurance because I can’t hold a
job with the pain & the depression it
(& a bunch of other stuff…) has
caused so I can’t get fixed & be a
productive member of society.
The vicious circle… can’t hold a job
cuz of the pain, can’t get fixed so I
can hold a job…
i’m technically working for my father
but his company is small…really small…
with only him, his business partner, &
1 employee so I can’t get insurance from
him… sigh…
i can’t sleep because of the pain, I
can’t sit for long periods because of
the pain, I can’t stand for long periods
because of the pain, I can’t walk more
then a block without crutches & still
hurt the next day!
I have weather sensitive arthritis too
because of it so I hurt all spring &
fall…
i have been to free clinics in the
chicago-land area & they say that
there are just too many people looking for
help for depression/ptsd so they can’t
help me & I would have to go to county
for the surgery. I don’t trust
county…i mean, if I had a gun shot wound
or a stab wound then they are the guys to
call but for a hip replacement? &
what about the post surgery rehab??
I just don’t know what to do!
Does anyone have any advice?
Does anyone know how to work the
system??
Should I just go to the hospital’s
payment/accounting people & demand
that they help me find a government
program that can get me fixed??
Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
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sandyallen
Extremely EHEALTHy
Joined: 02 Feb 2004 Posts: 4580
Thanks: 1
Thanked:0
Posted: 05-10-06 17:14pm
Have you tried to apply for your
disability or some legal assistance until
you can get back on your feet. Is it too
late to sue the dr that botched your
surgery? I realize that we cannot always
get what we want but their are times that
something is better than nothing.
Good luck to you!
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AvatarOfUrDreams
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 10 May 2006 Posts: 67 Location: Chicago
Can't Sue... Posted: 05-13-06 13:12pm
Yeah, I can't sue...The statute of
limitations is only 7 years and I didn't
know any of this until about a year ago.
I expected my mother to keep track of all
of this...She used to be a nurce so I
assumed that she would know what she was
doing. I didn't take the drug/booze abuse
into account...She was my mom! I thought
that she would care enough to pay
attention. Boy was I wrong.
After hearing the story of the x-wife of a
friend of the family's i'm gonna go to
rush hospital and scream and cry until
they help me fill out the paperwork to get
fixed like they did for that, literally,
crack/coke prostitute.
At least if I milk the state/fed's for a
new hip I will pay them back in the long
run once I am healthy enough to be a
productive member of society.
I'm feeling a lot of self pitty right
now...I know it is a bad trait...But it's
been raining for a week and I am in a lot
of pain right now.
I did get a wireless mouse/keyboard to
help my wrist. (it's hurting) and even a
brace for it so I can type and use the
mouse without it hurting!! Woot!
Ok, I gotta go. Work to be done and miles
to go before I sleep!
Thanks for responding!
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JasonAnthony
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 18 Mar 2004 Posts: 42 Location: California
Re: Can't Sue... Posted: 05-16-06 00:46am
avatarofurdreams
wrote:
yeah, I can't sue...The
statute of limitations is only 7 years and
I didn't know any of this until about a
year ago.
I expected my mother to keep track of all
of this...She used to be a nurce so I
assumed that she would know what she was
doing. I didn't take the drug/booze
abuse into account...She was my mom! I
thought that she would care enough to pay
attention. Boy was I wrong.
After hearing the story of the x-wife of a
friend of the family's i'm gonna go to
rush hospital and scream and cry until
they help me fill out the paperwork to get
fixed like they did for that, literally,
crack/coke prostitute.
At least if I milk the state/fed's for a
new hip I will pay them back in the long
run once I am healthy enough to be a
productive member of society.
I'm feeling a lot of self pitty right
now...I know it is a bad trait...But it's
been raining for a week and I am in a lot
of pain right now.
I did get a wireless mouse/keyboard to
help my wrist. (it's hurting) and even a
brace for it so I can type and use the
mouse without it hurting!! Woot!
Ok, I gotta go. Work to be done and
miles to go before I sleep!
Thanks for
responding!
hey avatar,
welcome to the site and I can tell you
that I really can identify with alot of
what you say.......My situation with my
hip is not as bad as yours is, but I can
relate to alot of what you say
anyways.....I had a scfe of both my hips
at age 13. The right hip was a pretty
severe slip; the left hip was a mild slip.
I had pins inserted in both hips. I am
now 31 years old and my right hip/leg
bother me all the time! I mean, I am
basically fully functional: I can walk, I
can run, I can climb stairs, I go to the
gym, e.T.C....But I am almost always in
significant pain. My range of motion in
both of my hips is significantly reduced,
and my feet and ankles hurt alot of times
due to the abnormal stresses placed upon
them because of my hips....Actually, my
hips don't hurt all that much, but I hurt
everywhere else: my thigh, my knee, my
shins, my ankles, e.T.C....This is an
everyday thing and I am getting sooooo
very tired of putting up with all of
this.....I spend many hours of each day
just feeling sad because of the fact that
I had to put up with so much pain,
awkwardness, self-consciousness,
stiffness, e.T.C for so many years.....I
am an athletic person at heart. Even with
all the hip problems and pain I was able
to lead a very active, strenuous lifestyle
for most of my life so far...However, my
pain and stiffness have gotten worse, and
I find myself working out less and less
simply because my legs hurt so
much.......I feel sorry myself alot of
times, and I often think what I wouldn't
give to have a normal set of hips......I
think about how much better my day to day
life would be if I wasn't in so much pain
and if I didn't feel so awkward and feel
so clumsy and uncoordinated........This
condition really sucks!
Also, without getting to graphic or
inappropriate, I find myself worrying
about my ability to perform sexually with
my hips the way they are....I mean, I am
only 31 years old; i'm a young guy....I'm
single and I have never been married and I
have no kids.....I plan on getting married
someday and would love to start a
family....But my hips make me feel really
really bad. I know there are certain
sexual positions that I just cannot
perform due to range of motion
restrictions, and this makes me feel very
self-conscious and very
un-alluring........I just had a second
opinion done by another hip specialist
about two weeks ago, and this doctor
basically said the same thing as the first
doctor: your hips aren't bad enough to
replace! My joint spaces are still in
good shape with only very minor narrowing
or osteoarthritis....But it's the
deformity of the hip joint itself that's
causing the problems for me, not the joint
space.......I really don't know what to
do.....Each day I find myself getting more
and more depressed and getting more and
more hopeless.........Thanks for letting
me vent here!
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AvatarOfUrDreams
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 10 May 2006 Posts: 67 Location: Chicago
No, Thank You! Posted: 05-16-06 22:21pm
I know this may sound weird but it is
really good to hear that others are in the
same boat I am!
I'm a 25 year old female and I also know
exactly what you mean about the sex.
There is nothing worse then having to
start yelling "muscle spasms!! Muscle
spasms!!! Oh my god!"
that really kills the mood!!!
My real goal in getting the new hip is to
be able to exercise and get totally
healthy! I am pretty damned sure that
once I am not in pain all the time and can
go out without feeling awkward a lot of
the depression will go away.
I do not expect to be able to drop the
antidepressants the day of the hip
replacement but I am hoping that once I am
physically healthy my mental state will
improve at the same rate!
I’m meeting more and more people that
can be fixed but doctors say that they are
too young. My best friend’s husband
should have back surgery but he can’t
get it done in america…too many
liabilities. Not that it won’t fix him
but because he could sue if it doesn’t
make him 100% better. He’s like me, we
don’t expect to be back to “normal”
and able to leap tall buildings in a
single bound, we just want to be able to
function.
I still have no idea what I did to my
right wrist or left shoulder…
the worst part about the right wrist is
that now it hurts my hand to use the
crutch!!!
It has been raining here in chi-town for
like two weeks straight so I can barely
move and my father’s company has been
practically shut down. (weather sensitive
arthritis on my part, weather sensitive
contracting on his. He has a small fleet
of trucks.) so we are both pretty blue
right now. According to the weather
report it is supposed to rain for the rest
of the week.
Sigh…
i am so glad I found this site!!
I am saddened by all of your stories but
heartened by the fact that I am not
alone!
I should crash before i’m up all night
typing! Lol!
Thanks for the support and the stories!
It helps more then you could ever know!
