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As someone with scoliosis (surgically untreated), pain management has become an issue as I age. Last year the pain was so sever (from the moment I would get out of bed in the morning) that I consulted with an SRS surgeon about possible surgery. I was told that my spine could be straightened and that it would take two, possibly three operations to do this. And that if I elected surgery, that I should prepare for the possibility of going on disability. I struggled with that information and decided to give Spinecor a try first, in April of this year. I'm very glad I did, I no longer wake up in pain. I've been able to cut my pain medication in half - and often don't need it at all - as long as I can pretty much move throughout the day at my own pace. At the same time - while I can do more physically, in the course of doing more, I will still sometimes experience pain - albeit the pain is localized in just one area as opposed to my entire back .. hence I still see another surgeon in the same practice as my SRS surgeon, for pain management.
I adore the specialist that I see for this. He's from Egypt - fantastic looking :-) patient with all the questions I have and very informative. I've been feeling some fatigue. A urinalysis was ordered to make sure I'm metabolizing the medication ok - seems fatigue can be a sign of not doing so because the liver is compromised.
Anyway, in the course of today's visit, I was told I had a really really really bad back. Love it when I'm talked to in lay terms I can understand :-) He said my back is so bad that if I did have surgery that I would probably end up in a wheelchair (he said shrugging his shoulders). Ironically I was told 40 years ago, that if I didn't have surgery I would end up in a wheelchair by age 50. He also said that even though I can do more before feeling pain - that I shouldn't because I could cause damage to my spine. No more washing my own car he said - and that I should find a way to have others do anything possible, like laundry and grocery shopping. He said this is how he would advise his own sister (was happy he didn't say grandmother).
My cobb angles are not all that bad - started with the largest of two at 52 degrees left (46 out of brace last Spinecor xray). And fortunately my heart and lungs are not compromised. A LOT of thoracolumbar rotation though. And of course all the things that come with being well seasoned - degenerative disc disease, some arthritis and a few other things I don't know how to spell. I find it curiously odd that even with the vastly improved instrumentation of today, that surgery is not my best option, given my condition.
I find myself pondering tonight. What if I had surgery 40 years ago, with near antiquated instrumentation by now - I would still have had the degenerative disc disease and all the rest of the fun aging stuff by now. Where would I be? Back to square one with pain management? I don't know.
Brace adjustment tomorrow - returning to my specialist in three months for the yearly xray check.
Here's my present for you Sharon - I remember you saying that you would pay to see two independent people measure the same xray and come up with the same cobb angles. I asked my specialist to pull out the xrays from a few days before being fitted with my brace. As you know my spinecor provider took before brace xrays ... both measurements, that of the surgeon and my spinecor provider are: the same! The office visit today was not all that uplifting until that point - Is this close enough to put the check in the mail?
I adore the specialist that I see for this. He's from Egypt - fantastic looking :-) patient with all the questions I have and very informative. I've been feeling some fatigue. A urinalysis was ordered to make sure I'm metabolizing the medication ok - seems fatigue can be a sign of not doing so because the liver is compromised.
Anyway, in the course of today's visit, I was told I had a really really really bad back. Love it when I'm talked to in lay terms I can understand :-) He said my back is so bad that if I did have surgery that I would probably end up in a wheelchair (he said shrugging his shoulders). Ironically I was told 40 years ago, that if I didn't have surgery I would end up in a wheelchair by age 50. He also said that even though I can do more before feeling pain - that I shouldn't because I could cause damage to my spine. No more washing my own car he said - and that I should find a way to have others do anything possible, like laundry and grocery shopping. He said this is how he would advise his own sister (was happy he didn't say grandmother).
My cobb angles are not all that bad - started with the largest of two at 52 degrees left (46 out of brace last Spinecor xray). And fortunately my heart and lungs are not compromised. A LOT of thoracolumbar rotation though. And of course all the things that come with being well seasoned - degenerative disc disease, some arthritis and a few other things I don't know how to spell. I find it curiously odd that even with the vastly improved instrumentation of today, that surgery is not my best option, given my condition.
I find myself pondering tonight. What if I had surgery 40 years ago, with near antiquated instrumentation by now - I would still have had the degenerative disc disease and all the rest of the fun aging stuff by now. Where would I be? Back to square one with pain management? I don't know.
Brace adjustment tomorrow - returning to my specialist in three months for the yearly xray check.
Here's my present for you Sharon - I remember you saying that you would pay to see two independent people measure the same xray and come up with the same cobb angles. I asked my specialist to pull out the xrays from a few days before being fitted with my brace. As you know my spinecor provider took before brace xrays ... both measurements, that of the surgeon and my spinecor provider are: the same! The office visit today was not all that uplifting until that point - Is this close enough to put the check in the mail?
Thankfully some of the people I know with curves of this magnitude have had successful surgery in recent years, which has kept them from needing oxygen and has definitely preserved their quality of life.
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