Healing Hips and an Unhappy Snow Baby

Over the past ten weeks, every time I rolled over in bed I would get an excruciating sharp pain in my lower back, with pain shooting down both legs. This only happened at night. I would lie still for a moment until the pain subsided, then hobble to the bathroom. By the time I crawled back into bed the pain would be gone, at least until I rolled over again.

I am not one to rush to a doctor unless there is blood involved, so I tried all the home remedies first. Each one gave me temporary relief, and during the day I could move about with no pain at all. But nighttime was a different story.

Right before Thanksgiving, I finally decided enough was enough and made an appointment with a chiropractor. Today was the earliest they could get me in. The exam was thorough, and it turns out the range of motion in my hips and lower back has been locking up when I am not moving. There is quite a bit of soft tissue trauma. When I am sleeping, everything stays still, and that is when the pain kicks in. It is more complicated than that, but that is the short version.

This limited range of motion explains why even walking to a neighbor’s house left me stopping to stretch. Treatment over the next several weeks should help loosen my hips and hopefully improve my ability to walk longer distances without resting.

After today’s treatment I felt like a new person. I came home and got a lot of chores done that I normally dread because I have to stop and “rest.” Today I didn’t need to stop until I had been working about 45 minutes. That is a huge improvement. I also went up and down the stairs with much less effort, which felt amazing.

Thank goodness for the NuStep, the stretches, and the daily chair yoga I have been doing. The chiropractor said all of that movement likely kept the pain from becoming constant. I will take that as encouragement. Kudos to movement!

Lesson learned: do not wait to see a professional when you are in pain.

In other news, our solar panels were 90 percent installed today. The foreperson told me that if it were summer, they would have been finished by 2:00 pm. With all the snow on the roof and ground, they were here from 7:15 in the morning until after 4:00. I’m not sure when they’ll be back to finish, but I’ll follow up tomorrow with the project manager if I don’t hear from them.

Megan sent me a photo of Oliver all bundled up, sitting in a pile of snow. He had on a snowsuit, boots, mittens, a hat, and a hood. It is the first time I have ever seen a look of sadness on his little face. He did not look like he was enjoying this snow stuff. The more I thought about it, I realized he was probably frustrated because he could not crawl. This kid is always on the move.

Today started with pain but ended with relief, progress, and even a little laughter at that sweet, bundled-up baby. For now, I am grateful for movement, medical help, and a warm house to come home to.