Oh Snap!

Frequently with hip issues there are all manner of sounds and creaks that occur. I have been 'popping' my hips in and out of the joint for years, never suspecting it was anything more than the tendons moving over the bones (that's what makes that snap/crackle/pop sound). I have been doing this with just about any and all of my joints, including my neck, since I was little. I just thought it was normal. None of what has ever happened with my joints was ever bad enough to be evaluated when I was young (er), so nothing was ever noticed.

Now that I have reached old (er) age, the effects are presenting themselves. That old wives tale about cracking your knuckles causing arthritis? Well, there's no medical evidence that that's true. But I can tell you that the more you do it, the more wear you put on your joints. IF you have dysplasia or some other as yet undetected condition, that CAN then lead to degeneration of a given joint. I'm no doctor, but I do see it now, decades later.

In addition to my right hip, and possibly my left hip (which will be addressed post op and recovery), I have three discs in my neck that are indeed arthritic and displaced. Not badly enough for surgery, but painful nonetheless. When they 'pop' I feel relief, but the pain goes into my shoulder most of the time.

I always smile in photos.

It seems that I am just one big mess, although I really just feel big, courtesy of steroid injections that fueled my appetite. I just want to know when they will make one that makes you NOT hungry. Until then, I will walk around sounding like a box of Rice Krispies.