Hello

[Christina_in_NC]

Thanks Christine!
I am trying to lay out all the costs now to compare with travel, etc. I know it can't totally come out to the dollars to make a decision, but I have information overload and feel like I am at the end of my rope for knowing who to turn to next to help make this decision.
Thanks!
Christina

[Jen-jen]

Hi Christina in NC, you talk of PT and SpineCor. What are they? I've never heard of that before - is it something special to a certain country because my doctors in England have never said anything about them!

x x

[Robbie]

Doctors note? I hadn't thought of that! Oh my God how stupid can i get? I really am a blonde! lol. I really should do that because I don't think they have it down on their records. I'll see if that can give me some preference for a locker maybe?
Yeah, the whole hip thing, that is what I'm on about. Ah, I feel relieved it isn't just me!
You picked a great day to fly to England - guess what? It's raining! Typical! Welcome back Robbie! lol.

x x

Well, I landed in England safely. Just before I was about to get on my first plane to New York, my brother sent me a text message saying, "A plane has hit a building in NY." You can imagine what was going through my head after hearing that! lol. I didn't know that it was a small private jet. I was half-tempted to not even get on the plane.

My actual flight to England was delayed for five hours and it was tipping it down in New York. We ended up sitting on the plane for three hours before we could take off. When we got to England, it was sunny and warm. Weird for October. The weather always seems to go strange when I travel - it was all stormy in NC when I went there, and now it's warm and pleasant in England. What is the world coming to? lol.

Now I've got three days of lazing around doing nothing before going to see the doctor on Monday. It feels so strange to be in England again.

I hope the school can give you something to make it easier on you. They really should do something to accommodate you. My old school installed a lift for a couple of disabled students. We already had one in the older building, but it was one of those hand operated ones.. lol. A bit old-fashioned, huh?

[Christina_in_NC]

Hi Jen-Jen,
Pt is just physical therapy. We go for pain management (although her pain is not much more than an ache at bedtime) and to increase flexibility in her back as that should help bracing or surgery work better. It may also help hold the curve, but of course no guarantees there.
SpineCor is a flexible brace which you will see a long thread on in this message board. It has not had rigorous clinical trials and many doctors are not using it because of that. But for those who fall in the "ideal" candidate profile it may help.
Christina in NC

[Jen-jen]

Your brother told you that?! Oh my god, that is so mean! I would have freaked out too! And a 5 hour delay sounds such fun - I bet you used your time wisely and didnt just fall asleep in the airport. lol.
It was warm and sunny? Where the hell was that? I think I missed it.
What are you gonna do for 3 days? Go exploring and hiking in our beautiful countryside, check out the heritage? ...... or just grab a loada fish and chips and chill? lol. I would go with the second option!
The college probably can do something but I just don't know who to go and see at the mo. I could ask if I can have a locker but that would mean kicking somebody else out of it and that would be mean. They have lifts everywhere but thankfully things aren't that bad yet. I am finding that doing stretches in the morning for my back helps slightly so I am less grumpy in the mornings now. ( Well, not that I'm ever grumpy. As you know I am a ray of sunshine! lol)
Hope everything goes OK on Monday but I'll probably talk to you again before.


P.S To Cristina, thanks for filling me in on that, I'll check the threads out now.

x x

[gerbo]

go to http://www.spinecorporation.com/English/index.htm for more info, althoughit is a canadian invention, it is actually now being manufactured in the UK. Sheffield children's hospital uses it for all their idiopatic scoliosis in young people

[Jen-jen]

Thanks Gerbo, I've never seen a bracing system like that before and it was definitely informative. Unfortunately though, I saw that the SpineCor is usually used in the early stages of diagnosis. I was diagnosed about 18months ago now so i think it probably isn't for me. Besides, it is apparently mainly for people younger than 16 and the only girl I saw that came close was a 14year old who had to spend 6 years in it. I'm not sure I could cope with it for 6 years but once again thanks for opening my eyes to what is out there.

x x

[Robbie]

Your brother told you that?! Oh my god, that is so mean! I would have freaked out too! And a 5 hour delay sounds such fun - I bet you used your time wisely and didnt just fall asleep in the airport. lol.
It was warm and sunny? Where the hell was that? I think I missed it.
What are you gonna do for 3 days? Go exploring and hiking in our beautiful countryside, check out the heritage? ...... or just grab a loada fish and chips and chill? lol. I would go with the second option!
The college probably can do something but I just don't know who to go and see at the mo. I could ask if I can have a locker but that would mean kicking somebody else out of it and that would be mean. They have lifts everywhere but thankfully things aren't that bad yet. I am finding that doing stretches in the morning for my back helps slightly so I am less grumpy in the mornings now. ( Well, not that I'm ever grumpy. As you know I am a ray of sunshine! lol)
Hope everything goes OK on Monday but I'll probably talk to you again before.


P.S To Cristina, thanks for filling me in on that, I'll check the threads out now.

x x

It was warm and sunny in London at Heathrow airport. Not bad where I live, either, but it's only an hour and a half away from Heathrow. I spent three hours of the delay on the plane waiting to take off, and the other two talking to my friends on the phone. Thank goodness for cellphones. lol.

I'm just going to laze around. I've seen all the countryside around here in the past and it's nothing special. lol.

You care too much about other people, lol. So what if you're taking a locker away from somebody else? You're the one with the back condition. If they've got a perfectly healthy back, you're the one who needs the locker. I know that sounds mean, but if you're really in pain, you should have all the support you can get.

[Jen-jen]

I know, I wouldn't survive without my phone either! lol.
Nothing special?! How dare you! Our muddy fields full of cows and sheep are absolutely fabulous! lol.
I'm not too nice - they got the lockers first, end of story. I am in pain but not a lot. It's just constant... that's all. lol. It's coming upto the end of the first term though so work is gonna get easier so hopefully I won't have as many books to carry.

x x

[Robbie]

Well, that's good. Would the teachers let you keep your books in the classroom when you don't need them? They let us at sixth form. We had to carry around huge folders for Business Studies and they got a right pain to carry with all of the other books.

Mm, yes.. wonderful muddy fields. lol. I'll give England one thing though - its countryside is more interesting than the American countryside. England is more hilly - America is just flat. Where I was born in New Mexico is just desert. How exciting. lol.

I was looking at old pictures of myself today (I was very tempted to burn the lot) and I noticed that I do lean over to the side in them. I still can't understand why nobody noticed it before. I knew myself that there was something up, but I think I said in a post earlier that I just put it down to using the computer too much and not getting enough exercise. Ah well. At least we know now. I'm so nervous about my appointment tomorrow. I'm too shy.

It's probably a good thing that you're getting your back sorted out before you start driving. When I was taking driving lessons (before I found out about my scoliosis. I still haven't got my licence yet.. I'm a slacker. lol.) my back started to hurt a lot near to the end of the lesson, especially when we were practicing reversing where I had to constantly turn around in my seat and stuff.

I say "lol" too much. I don't laugh that often in real life. I'm a moody git.

[Jen-jen]

Nah I cant leave my books in the room - there is no room and I already asked. Besides, they would probably get lost or chucked out the nearest window!
You were born in New Mexico? Oh wow! What was it like? Compared to here it sounds so... exotic!
Don't burn all the pictures of you! Actually, I can't really talk cos I wanna do the same with mine. I hate having pictures taken - I stand out compared to everyone else as I am so tall. lol.
Don't be worried about your appointment, things will be fine. I promise.

x x

[Robbie]

My appointment went well on Monday. We talked for a while about having the operation done, and I probably am going to have it. He sent me over to another hospital, which was about a ten minute walk away, to have a second set of x-rays taken so he could compare them with the old set. The hospital he's based at is a children's hospital, so the facilities there aren't suitable for taking my x-rays. He said he's going to get back to us within the next week. Hopefully the dumb hospital I had the x-rays done at won't take a month to get them to him this time.

[Jen-jen]

Heya, glad it went well. I was sent to different buildings within the hospital which took 5 mins but I've never been sent to a completely different hospital before! The X-ray room was busy when I was there so they put me in the children's one. I wasn't complaining - it had flowers all over the room! But I did have to use the other room for some of the X-rays like the one where they stretched me around a wedge. Did you have that one?
I am still as certain as ever about having this operation; true, I doubt I'll like it afterwards and I'll probably be stressin for a month (or 4) beforehand but I know that it will be better having a straight back and even hips and shoulders.

x x

[Robbie]

Stretched you round a wedge? Doesn't sound like much fun. lol. I just had two - one of me standing to the side, and one of my back. The guy who did them was a trainiee I think, but there was someone else supervising him - she was the same lady who did my previous ones, and she remembered me. Last time I just had to take off my trousers for the x-rays, but this time they made me put on an oh-so-sexy hospital gown. lol.

I'm pretty certain I want to have the operation. I really do want my back to be straighter than it is now. My doctor said that the first couple of days I'll be pretty much out of it, and the third I'll be all "Why did I do this?!". He said it gets better after that, though. I'm not too worried about it - it'll all be worth it in the end. From what he was saying, he's looking for me to have it done before Christmas! Seems really soon, but I don't know if that's set in stone or anything. My mum has to have an operation on her bladder at the end of October, and my gran just had a hip replacement in August. lol. We're all going into hospital.

[Jen-jen]

lol. Being bent around a wedge DEFINITELY wasn't funny! they slid a wedge slightly under the area of my curve then one doctor grabbed hold of my arms and another got my feet.... then they literally pulled me around this wedge so that my arms and feet nearly touched!! If it wasn't so uncomfortable it would've been hysterical! Apparently, it was to see how much flexibility my spine had. This was also in the oh-so-sexy hospital gown. lol.
Before Christmas! Woah, they are efficient at your place aren't they?! My doctor said the same thing about being completely out of it. But I dont mind, that is a good thing as far as I'm concerned! lol. I know that I'll probably end up wishing I hadn't had it done after - it will be a pretty big lifestyle change to go from a totally-active-never-sit-down-always-climbing-something person to a lets-sit-here-for-five-thousand-hours-and-check-out-every-single-channel-on-the-telly person. (Good description isn't it? lol).
My family is all of into hospital too - my Mum wants her feet fixed as she has bent bones or something, Dad might be having something done on his knee and I'm having my back done. We're gonna make a happy (and very able lol) bunch arent we?

x x