Patient Stories

Katie

I’d like to share my story and share awareness. For the past 12 years I’ve been too uncomfortable with my scars and lost my confidence when I was aged 12. Over the last 12 years, I’ve had 4 operations and I’m only 16, and that’s all because of a doctor that didn’t go their job properly. As parents know, doctors are suppose to check your child’s hips and keep on checking them further through their life as a child. When my parents kept taking me and saying there was something wrong, my parents got told they were paranoid and I was just lazy and didn’t want to walk. My parents never gave up and kept taking me to the doctor demanding that there’s something wrong. Eventually when I turned age 4, my parents took me to a doctor that wasn’t my original doctor and he knew there was something wrong with me straight away and sent me to a hospital in Stoke-on-Trent. Doctors spent 8 hours operating on me, they broke my leg to remove some bone and put a metal plate and rods into my leg and I was in a full body cast for months. I couldn’t move unless people picked me up and moved me around, at age 4 I couldn’t even run around like all other kids could. Eventually, when I was taken out of a full body cast, I had another operation to remove the rods in my leg but the metal plate stayed in and they put me in a half cast and I had to learn to walk and run all over again. I eventually did it, it was hard believe me but I did it. I can’t go on really long walks as my leg aches and gives in. I don’t walk like many people do, my leg and foot are twisted and my hip isn’t a normal shape like the other one. Then in October 2018, aged 15, I had an injection operation at a hospital in Wolverhampton, where they injected something into the bone of my hip to see if the pain would go away as I was getting chronic pain. Unfortunately that didn’t help much. Then in March 2019, still aged 15, I had an operation to cut open my leg again to remove the metal plate that was in there for 11 and a half years. I spent a night in hospital and was on crutches for a week and luckily managed to start walking and running quickly again after about 2/3 weeks but it was hardest when I just come out of hospital as it took me ages to put clothes on, put socks and shoes on, take showers and go down or up the stairs. I went through hell. Yes I’m different, my hip is different to others and I walk different to others, but that doesn’t make me any less human. I’ve been bullied and had many nasty comments about myself but also had supportive and caring ones. People have got to realise scars are beautiful and they’re not unusual. Yes, I do admit, I do have my bad days, but then I remember… I have hip dysplasia and I’m a warrior for what I’ve been through and so is everybody else who has hip dysplasia. I would’ve only had to go through one small operation when a baby and then that would’ve been it but because I had a lazy doctor I’ve had to go through all this and will have to go through further operations and even a hip replacement. All I want to say is, to all parents, please please please make sure you and your doctor checks your child’s hips, I cannot stress it enough! You and your doctor could save your child having to go through what me and my family have had to go through. The pain, the suffering, the upset etc. I’m sharing my story out of confidence and sharing awareness because after 12, nearly 13 years, I’ve realised my importance, I’m only human and I’m strong for what I’ve been through! That takes a lot of guts for me to say. To everyone who has this condition I’m proud of you for who you are and what you’ve been through and remember, never forget your importance and your beautiful! Our scars are beautiful! Don’t be afraid to show them off! Thank you for taking your time to read this, it means the world to me. #hipdysplasia #congenitalhipdislocation #hipdysplasiaawareness 💓💙