Bone-on-bone hip OA and TMS?

Hello

I just joined this site after lurking for a while and I guess I am looking for some hope and encouragement.

I am 58 and have been struggling with pain in my right hip for about 10 years now. The diagnosis is osteoarthritis. I will do anything to avoid surgery, and have been looking into the TMS route and neuroscientific principles for pain management for a few years, and it has helped me to a point. I still walk 6 - 8 miles several times a week, and although I pay for it afterwards with stiffness and pain for a few days, I still do it. The only other thing I can't do is sit cross-legged. I very rarely take any painkillers.

Every professional I have been to says I need a hip replacement, and today I went to the hospital hoping to discuss other options with the surgeon, but he was insistent I needed surgery and sooner rather than later, telling me it was a really bad X-ray and bone on bone. (a negative evaluation which is a major danger signal to my nervous system, or Major DIM if you're into Explain Pain and DIMs and SIMS!!)

The waiting list is 1-2 years and I put myself on it, but I am quite honestly terrified of major surgery for a number of reasons, not least being on my own and not having anyone to look after me when I get out, and a fear of going mad with not being to get out of the house and out and about for weeks on end.

I am wondering if anyone else has experience of being told this, of refusing it, of applying TMS or similar principes and of being OK without surgery in the end?

 

If you are in the UK, I believe the Red Cross has a 'Support at home" service for this purpose. Someone I know had an operation on her foot and wasn't allowed to put her weight on it at all for a long time, and she used the Red Cross service until she was mobile again.

I'm afraid I can't help with the aspect of having been in your situation and avoided surgery. I guess though the good thing in having to wait 1 to 2 years to be offered an operation, is that you can use the time to experiment with various mind/body/TMS techniques before having to make a decision and, as you've been a 'lurker' on the forums for a while, I expect you'll already know what those methods are.