"What doesn't kill you makes you stronger..."

Hi All,
I know, I know...the blogging is sparse-I do apologize! Please visit us over on FB (Jazzercise Chelmsford).
Practically every week I do something that reminds me that, had I let fear rule my life, I never would have had my two THRs and then become well and whole again.
I never imagined that I would be able to allow someone to cut into me and that it would result in me being able to be 'back to my old self'. I mean, they used POWER tools (ok, medical ones, but still there was a drill involved). Now that both surgeries are well over and I'm healed...it's still amazing to me.
I mean, I can walk Lilly (and we're contemplating getting another fur baby!) without pain (I do still bring my one crutch, just to remind her that she can't bolt away from Momma), I can stand up for the 45 minutes it takes to get my hair completely straightened from 'scratch' and not be exhausted, I can teach 3 classes back to back to back-again without being exhausted. I can go to the mall and walk around without so much advance planning it's almost not worth it. I can do errands all day, multiple stops...in and out of the car and store; I can cook an entire meal, even one with lots of prep...I could go on but you get the gist.
I know it might sound simple and silly to some but when you live with intense pain, 24/7, for a decade, it's the little things that matter...like getting up from sitting down to a dinner out with my husband and not feeling like the 'tin man' in Wizard of Oz and needing a minute to get moving.
I'm still learning to 'remember' that I can do things I wasn't able to do before and to not automatically think I can't.
We're planning a pretty great vacation for a few months from now and a vow renewal and Hubs says we need to celebrate how much I've been through the last 2 years and that it's over.
I really don't think of it that way...it doesn't seem like that much but when I type it out and look at it, I guess it is...
So...
In 2009 I found out that I had bilateral hip dysplasia, a condition I had since birth. I never knew what was wrong with my hips, I just knew the past 10 years were very painful and, given that I workout for a living, it was becoming a problem. Actually, it was already a problem, restricting my life in ways I'm still learning about. My surgeon told me he'd do the surgery when I wanted and to try and get to age 50.
I didn't make it. In 2010, at age 46, I had my first THR. No, I did not watch the movie or go to the class. Why? Because I didn't want to KNOW exactly how much sawing, drilling, cutting, hammering and G-d knows what else they were going to do. I just wanted it DONE and me out of pain.
I was terrified-never had a surgery before, not even a tooth extraction. Anesthesia? Um, no. Novocaine was it. I'd had blood drawn once a year for my physical and NEVER had an IV. Last time I was in hospital I was born-literally.
I knew I needed two THRs, one on each side but decided I would wait a few years until my 2nd, and final, one.
Um, no.
I felt so good being back to work, full force, 6 weeks after my first one, I decided with only a month or two notice, to have my 2nd one. My staff pulled together, covered my classes and off I went in August 2011.
In hospital time for both THRs-5 days
Time off teaching for both THRs-10 weeks
Worth it?
1million%
I thought that having hip dysplasia would kill me, the pain was so bad...but it didn't.
I thought there was a chance that 2 surgeries, 13 months apart might too. Uh, no. I am one of the healthiest people that my world class OS has ever seen. How? The big J, that's how.
What doesn't kill you makes you stronger...if that's even possible. Because, I can say with confidence and pride that I am one of the strongest people I know and I do my best to use that for good.
And, for all my clients-I'm going to help YOU be stronger too-you just need to LET me do it. Our program saved my life in more ways than I can ever tell you. It made me strong in EXACTLY the places in my body that helped me make what is a freakishly fast recovery from 2 major surgeries.
I went from wondering if would be able to continue to teach, to contemplating teaching MORE because I feel THAT good and I know I can do it...safely.
You want some strength-we got your strength right here...COME ON DOWN!
See you on the dancefloor!