John Orthopedic Story
Patient Overcomes Denial to Find Freedom from Pain After Surgery
After experiencing a 14-foot fall from a ladder, John Wainscott thought he would just deal with the debilitating pain until it got better. But the active grandfather soon found himself irritable and struggling to do the things he loves — playing with his grandchildren, riding his motorcycle, and doing his job in heating and air conditioning sales and service.
“I could put hardly any weight on my hip at all, but over time, I just learned to deal with it,” he said.
John was hoping to avoid the hospital — not because of a bad experience, but because he had been through a lot in recent years. He had not only survived a heart attack and a near-death COVID-19 experience but had healed from broken bones and a knee replacement.
For two months, John tried to carry on as normal, but he began walking with a cane, needed help getting in and out of cars, and was uncomfortable even sitting on the couch. Worst of all, he became irritable with the people he loves most — his five granddaughters.
After a particularly tough day, his partner urged him to make an appointment with Baptist Health Medical Group Orthopedics in La Grange, the practice that did his knee replacement.
John met with orthopedic surgeon Jonathon Lindner, MD, and learned he had been walking on a broken hip and needed a hip replacement. Within five days of surgery, he said he was pain-free.
“I felt different after I woke up from that surgery, literally different with the way my bones felt,” John said. “I went from not being able to do a flight of steps to being able to crawl under a house.”
Now, he’s taking walks with his grandchildren around the lake by his home, riding his motorcycle again, and performing his job with ease.
“It’s everything from spending time with my family...to doing my job better than I’ve ever been able to do it,” he said. “I didn’t think I’d be normal again and now I am. I’m the happy-go-lucky guy I’ve always been.”