Grayle Howlett

I first met with Dr. Nawabi in July 2016 following an MRI that indicated I had a severely torn left hip labrum. Prior to having the MRI, I spent several months receiving treatment for what I thought was a lingering and painful groin injury related to playing soccer. In hindsight, I should have followed their advice and signed up for an MRI earlier as it would have clearly indicated the hip labrum tear and my bone-on-bone condition. Lessons learned...a hip injury often presents as a groin injury, and always get an MRI sooner rather than later!

Upon meeting with Dr. Nawabi and having him review my MRI and X-rays, he concluded that I was a good candidate for hip resurfacing surgery. I was hoping to return 100% to running, playing soccer, and playing golf and the hip resurfacing procedure would make that possible. I also learned that I had to immediately stop running to avoid more chronic pain and injury, and from that day forward, I immersed myself into spinning as a substitute. The longest I'd ever gone without running was two stints of six weeks when I broke my ankle and foot playing soccer therefore being off the roads/treadmill for a full year was very difficult psychologically.

Fast forward to my surgery on December 21, 2016. Every element of the experience at HSS from the pre-surgery consult, to the pre-surgery prep, to the surgery itself, to the 36 hour recovery period at HSS was fantastic. EVERY person associated with HSS was a caring and knowledgeable professional which left me with zero anxiety going into the procedure...and coming out of it. Dr. Nawabi greeted me in recovery and was always available when I had follow up questions. I always felt like I was in great hands with him and his wonderful team. From my release date on 12/22/16 moving forward, I was diligent regarding my recovery and followed all the advice that was given to me. I have to give special props to Josh Hammann. I feel incredibly grateful to have found Josh who guided my PT from Feb-Sept 2017 and with whom I had 30+ sessions. Josh constantly pushed me yet made coming to PT a very enjoyable and rewarding experience. Josh's support team were also top-notch and I'd highly recommend them for quality PT care.

I started running again in early September, and playing soccer in October. My cardio was solid due to the spinning classes, however I'm still getting my ball skills/agility back since I essentially went 18 months without playing soccer. Most important, I am pain-free in my left hip and can do all the mundane things such as briskly walking across the streets of Manhattan, stepping over curbs, and bending down to tie my shoes with zero discomfort. I highly recommend Dr. Nawabi and his entire HSS team for anyone looking into hip resurfacing surgery. Even though he's a Man Utd supporter, and I supports Chelsea, I know we'll be friends for life!