[Cynlite]

Wow, those are amazing goals! I'm so incredibly happy for you. It's just amazing. It's people like you that are giving me hope that I might be able to reclaim some of my life back. To be active and athletic again would just be a dream come true. I know it may not be in my future because I've been suffering for nine years but, I can hope!

I am going to speak to Dr. Bierstedt in Germany this afternoon. I'm pretty excited to get the ball rolling. After that, I'm trying to decide if it makes sense to contact Dr. Clavel. Did you have any PT as part of your recovery process in Spain? That is how they are handling it in Germany so, the total time in the hospital will be 6 days and then I would be moved to a rehab facility for a week. I kind of like the set up because it makes me feel more confident that the surgeons will be there in case something goes wrong after the implant surgery.

I had an ACL reconstruction on my knee 25 years ago. The proper muscle development after the surgery impacted the pain and healing process. PT didn't cut it for me then but, the surgeon kept telling me everything was fine. I was still in pain. I took Tai Chi a year after the surgery (for six weeks) and suffered through it having to ice afterwards every time but, damn if it didn't get all the muscles in my leg and around my knee firing again. I skied a lot on that leg until my neck gave out! Keep Tai Chi in mind for your hip.

I'm going to see the U.S. surgeon on the 23rd but, I'm just not holding my breath that the insurance company will play nice. (Loved your comment BTW.) I'd like to speak to at least two surgeons to get their opinions on what they think needs to be done.

Any feedback you can give me about Dr. Clavel would be greatly appreciated! Getting opinions from three surgeons might be better. Hopefully, they will all agree on what's going on....hahahahhaha