A little bit more every day

Yesterday, I had an important  conversation with Jimmy LaSage, the owner of New Life. When I registered to come here to Vermont I was up-front about my orthopedic problems and inability to walk more than a mile or so. Knowing this, he invited me anyway. I tried, though not hard enough, to increase my endurance at home.

What now allows me to build up my endurance is the levels of hiking offered by New Life. There are, depending on the group of guests (you can stay for as little as two days or as long as a month or more,) 4 or 5 levels of hiking, each about 5 miles long: advanced, advanced intermediate, intermediate, nature walk, and what is euphemistically the "alternate morning program." 

In the alternate morning program walkers and guides agree to the length of a walk, and the kind of terrain we cover. Walking on the alternate morning program is how I could have a girl-friend talk with my guide Courtney on Friday. 

Sunday morning, it was back to walking (I hesitate to call it hiking  because we were on a gravel road.) Vermont is in the middle of a very unusual heat wave with temperatures forecast for around 90 F. So, I had company: three extraordinary and interesting women, ranging in age from 51-72. We were: a psychiatrist born in Russia, a lawyer born in Jamaica, and a business woman born in  Hong Kong! Our current residences are California, Maryland, and Minnesota, and Maine. The best part: these wonderful women  looked out for each other. "Do you have enough water?" "Do you want to walk down that hill because then you have to walk back up?" 

That I can do any distance without being felled with low back pain is based on two things, The first is stretching. Every morning begins with an optional 30 minute stretching class. The morning stretching class begins at 7 AM, which is too early for this old night owl. I've had mixed success with doing my own stretching in my hotel room. Ultimately, I have to be able to translate this into something I can do without too much difficulty when I get home.If there is one thing I will appreciate when I get home Thursday evening it will be not having to set an alarm for 0640!

Using hiking poles continues to be part of improving my ability to walk a little longer every day. I walked with them through-out most of the Seacoast Community Chorus's Scandinavia tour. Most of the time I go walking in our neighborhood I use my poles, even if my neighbors tease me. My poles come apart so I can pack them in my suitcase when I travel.

I don't know how many sets of poles I've gone through over the years. I do know it is more than one, because my son Brian permanently borrowed my hiking poles when his first pair wore out midway though his thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail in 2007. My current poles are from The Kittery Trading Post in nearby Kittery. If I remember correctly they cost about $75. But in the 10 years since I bought them the use of hiking poles has become more common;  the price has come down. You can buy a reasonably decent pair for $20 at Walmart. I know because I have at least one Walmart pole in the back of my car.

If you feel like you are losing your ability to walk long distance because of back, leg, or foot pain, get a pair of poles. If you happen to live near York, ME you can take lessons in Nordic walking from Lauren DeLong, a certified teacher of Nordic walking. (You can find her by googling her name or going to her website, www.nordicwalking.com.) It's great whole body exercise, burns a lot of calories, and Lauren sells some beautiful poles.

Before I end this post I must tell a story on myself. Two years ago Jim and I joined my sister Laura and her husband Larry for some hiking and biking in Acadia National Park (one of my favorite places in the world.) A few days after she went home Laura called me: had she left a pole in my car? I went and looked. Yep, there was a pretty flowered pole on the back seat. I boxed it up and sent it to her. A couple of days later Laura called me, laughing. "You sent me one of Mom's canes!"

Following is a picture from this morning'd hike, (I can't seem to upload all of them.)

STICKS

There are two types of sticks in my life: hiking poles and knitting needle. I’ve devoted most of this last week to the first kind because I am spending ten days in Killington, Vermont at New Life Hiking Spa. The owner, Jimmy LaSage calls it “Summer Camp for Grown-ups.” Having been to a well-respected (and more expensive) Spa as well as having been a camp nurse for eight summers, I would agree.

            New Life’s philosophy centers around a morning hike then activities like water aerobics, yoga, and stretching in the afternoon. The food is very good, with lots of veggies and salad. Last night was “steak night.” The portion wasn’t especially large, but enough for me. The corn in the corn on the cob last night was picked at just the right time.

            I found New Life when I was asked to rate another Spa where I stayed several years ago. I wanted to see what the competition was, found New Life and was so intrigued by its focus on outdoor activity I immediately decided to come for a 10 day stay. That I could drive here was a real bonus!

            Four years ago I bicycled 1500 miles or so on a cross-the-US biking trip. Then I came home and had my knees replaced. In the following two years I had joint replacement surgery on my left hip and both shoulders.

In the summer of 2012 I rode lots of miles over the back roads of Maine to get ready for my biking odyssey, then in the winter of 2012-2013 I spent a couple of hours a day in the gym riding a stationary bike and lifting weights. When the bike trip was over I had the hemoglobin and hematocrit of a man! My legs were that strong.

            But a not-so-funny thing happened on my way in and out of the O.R.: I lost my exercise “mojo.”

            I needed to be able to walk and stand for an hour or so when Seacoast Community Chorus went to Scandinavia this past summer, and I wanted to be able to go on a three mile hike.  I tried, but not hard enough, to strengthen my core (and that includes my back) so I could do so without difficulty. But I failed. Oh, I stood for most concerts, but the 45 minutes were often excruciating. I kept finding excuses not to walk as much as I should both before and after the trip. I reminded myself way too much of my mother, who hated to walk because she hurt so much.

           Motion is lotion and the number 1 cure for low back pain. I know from MRIs and CT scans that my back pain is not from a slipped disc, but wear and tear, and thus mostly from weak muscles. There are other concerts to sing and other trips to make before I am ready to be put out to pasture, so finding a way, any way, to improve my back pain is critical. Even so, I still could easily find excuses not to routinely walk at home. Being at a Spa where the focus is on walking has been terrific. I feel much better. But for now, some pictures of beautiful Vermont with the leaves in transition from late summer, to now, early autumn.

     

"Somebody ought to write a book..."

In January of this year I flew to Chicago to visit a friend from my days in Vietnam. I have created some "rules" for myself about flying. At the top of the list is to consider the length of the flight (from Boston.). If it is over three hours I ask for more legroom. Under three hours, to Washington, D.C. for example, I don't care. The flight is just over an hour. And, when possible, I travel to Europe, where I have family, I fly on Icelandair. Its business/first class is a mere thousand dollars more than an economy seat. That seems expensive until you start comparing the cost of a Saga class flight to a business or first class flight on a non-stop international carrier like Air France or Lufthanza.

I also prefer to fly non-stop if I can. Getting stuck at an unfamiliar airport can become a real challenge.

The flight time from Boston Logan Airport to O'Hare is just about three hours. Despite the fact I had had my right shoulder replaced six weeks earlier I opted to fly economy class, and requested an aisle seat. My seat was on the left side of the plane. What a mistake it was not to purchase the upgrade. And to choose the left side of the plane. I was squished. And there is a lot of me to squish. I was using a fanny pack instead of a purse because of the shoulder surgery. Between the fanny pack, which I chose not to take off, and my girth I had to ask for a seat belt extender:embarrassing. Oh well.

The real problem came with trying to get up to use the bathroom. There really wasn't enough room to stand between the seat in front of me and my seat. I had to push up with my newly replaced shoulder. I knew I would not dislocate it, but it did hurt. As I struggled to sit down and buckle myself back into the seat I thought, "Somebody ought to write about the pitfalls of traveling with replaced joints." Then I realized that with six replaced joints I was the perfect "somebody." And thus the catalyst for this blog.

THE LESSON LEARNED: Choose the seat with the larges pitch (the distance between your seat and the one in front of you) whenever you can.

Here is a website that describes the seat pitch for all major airlines in the US and abroad. The list is by the size and the type of plane (i.e. a Boeing versus and Airbus), the class (economy versus "upper classes"), and the airline. www.seatguru.com.

Travels with Sticks and Spokes: Why Six?

Travels with Sticks and Spokes: Why Six?: Last year a good friend from high school learned I was going to have shoulder replacement surgery. He had just finished rehab following his ...

Why Six?

Last year a good friend from high school learned I was going to have shoulder replacement surgery. He had just finished rehab following his shoulder surgery and wanted to offer his support. When he learned that I am somewhat an old hand at joint replacement surgery we both got a good laugh.

At the root of all six of my replaced joints is osteoarthritis, the kind of arthritis people get as they age, and often can be traced to repetitive motion, such as running or jogging. Those are two activities I just could not master.

Eventually, I learned why. In the summer of 2000 I began to have intermittent pain in my right hip. Several x-rays showed no obvious reason why my right hip hurt. There were hints: after long drives to visit family in Pennsylvania and Virginia I would have a throbbing kind of discomfort in that hip. I would ask my children to "just pull on it."  It felt as if they could pull "just so" the pain would go away. But it never worked.

That August, Jim, our son Brian and I went to San Diego to visit our oldest daughter Kirsten. The morning before we were to leave I had excruciating hip pain, saw 2 doctors, and when no reason for my pain was apparent one of the doctors suggested I use a cane during our trip. It was love at first limp! The cane helped immeasurably, and when the cane immediately bumped us to the front of the line at every attraction at Universal Studios Kirsten and Brian instructed me to keep using the dreaded thing.

Using the cane that August seemed to cure whatever was the problem for over a year. But then, in the fall of 2001 the pain came back with a vengeance. A series of fortunate encounters led me to Dr Thomas King, an orthopedic surgeon in Portsmouth, NH. During my first visit to Dr King's office he took an x-ray and promptly made an unexpected diagnosis: I had a dislocated hip. And it looked as though as I have had it since birth. From the x-ray Dr King could tell I had significant damage to my right hip joint and was walking "bone on bone." I needed a total hip replacement.

Receiving the diagnosis was liking being a contestant on The Price is Right winning at the game Plinko. You know the game where the contestant climbs above a large Plinko game board and drops chips into slots; each slot has a cash reward; the goal is to earn as much money as possible. In MY Plinko, hearing I had a dislocated hip was like winning the game. The pieces of my life related to my hip pain finally fell in place.

And so, in January 2002, at age 54 and a half, I had my first joint replacement surgery. Because it was a "traditional" posterior replacement I was required to spend about 6 weeks in bed, or sitting in a chair with my right hip at at 90 degree angle--or less. I knit a sweater, watched the Patriots win their first Super Bowl, and read countless books during that time. But it was worth it. I have no hip pain.  There are some maneuvers I can't make with my right hip, or make weirdly, such as getting behind the driver's seat. It is the only time I remember that parts of my hip are not my own. And for this I am very grateful.

I suspect that both my knee replacements are collateral damage from however I swam around in my mother's womb that caused me to have the hip dysplasia in the first place. But I also inherited my mother's ability to make osteoarthritis.

So to sum up:
January 2002--right hip replacement
May 2013--right knee replacement
August 2013-left knee replacement
October 2014--left shoulder (reverse)  replacement
August 2015--left hip replacement (anterior procedure)
December 2016--right shoulder (reverse) replacement

I am grateful that each surgery worked so well, and grateful to the surgeons at Atlantic Orthopedics and Sports Medicine (Portsmouth NH), the physical therapists at York (Maine) Hospital and Saco Bay Sports Physical Therapy. And I am really grateful to my family for their love and care through it all.

And now that that is out of the way I can focus on the rest of my stories! 

Travels with Sticks and Spokes: A new blog, why now?

Travels with Sticks and Spokes: A new blog, why now?: I recently read an article discussing how old is “old.” People in their early 20s think “old” is 50. People in their 50s and 60s think 70 i...

A new blog, why now?

I recently read an article discussing how old is “old.” People in their early 20s think “old” is 50. People in their 50s and 60s think 70 is “old,” even elderly. Having recently celebrated my 70^th birthday I do not consider myself elderly, or even “old.” To be sure I have had more than my share of orthopedic issues—so many my husband likes to kid me about having subscriptions. None of my six major joints are the ones I was born with. But I certainly am not frail—a condition I associate with be elderly.

There are several reasons why I wanted to write a new blog. At the top of the list are my love of travel and my success in remaining active following six major joint replacement surgeries. And while I’m at it, I’ve decided to write about some of my other passions: biking, hiking, knitting, and singing. I have been on biking and singing tours, I am about to go hiking in Vermont, and I usually have some knitting with me. That could easily be the reason why I have four or five major knitting projects in various stages of completion. Find me a person who loves knitting and doesn’t have multiple projects in the works.

And so, I invite you to come along with me as I continue to explore the world with my sticks (hiking poles and knitting needles) and spokes (the kind on a bicycle, or alternatively what comes out of my mouth!)