1/18/2012 – See Dr. Hey and hear that the icyball has allowed me a significant quality of life until this point. Phrases like “worst stenosis of the year, but its only January” “If we didn’t see you we would have thought you were much older from your X-rays” “If you were my younger brother, I’d had the surgery” Post pics later:
$50 Copay NCBCBS Blue advantage B
$250 against $3500 deductible for back brace
What is an epidural?
1/20/2012 – First Epidural – I almost passed out. The pain became excruciating as my leg nerve blocks were “pressing in”. I said”I don’t feel well, it hurtssssss…and then the pain became a tingle. Then the right leg started to hurt excurciatingly. I didn’t think I was going to make it. The pain was so intense that I felt nausea and started sweating and had to be carted into a room and observed. Within a few minutes my BP was back to normal, but I have never felt so much pain. My nurse intimated that I was a wimp. It hurt, way more than the MRI in Dec. Humbled by the pain of the injection makes me feel like I don’t know real pain. Numb sciatic nerve and burning foot from injection lasted several hours.
$50 Copay NCBCBS Blue advantage B
1/21/2012 – Spend the day helping my son do a brake and rotor replacement on a Saab. Feeling OK without the brace. Went to church with it under a sweater and was un-noticeable. CC would regularly bring 2 blue icyballs cold in a sack inside her purse and bring them out at just the right time. In church, after we have been standing. Got bill for surgery Posterior T12 or L1-illiac wing instrumentation fusion with laminectomies. possible TLIF. Bone autograft and allograft
1/22/2012 – Finished the brake job with my son and daughter. She had her first date. Pain is minimal, although wearing brace. Horrible night sweats!
1/23/2012 – Localized pain due to the injection. Otherwise feeling good. Went a few hours without backbrace. Went swimming.
1/24/2012 – Up early, localized pain. Feeling a bit better.
2/13/2012 – Twinge, but abated with a swim, phew!
3/5/2012 – Struggling to get up stairs, hurts in the morning – hoping to swim later tonight.
3/7/2012 – Call for another injection. Try Naproxen Sodium and hold out for total 3 months between
3/9/2012 – Remarkably better on Naproxen Sodium. I swam 30 laps today (continuous for cardio) – kept up with Catherine only because we were on a time crunch.
3/30/2012 – BCBSNC won’t pay for a lidoderm patch.
4/2/2012 – Still doing remarkably well even after mowing the lawn. Yes, up hills to the point where my legs went numb from muscle pain, not nerve pain.
3/30/2012 Noticed 2 weeks of swimming ~ 1 mile 3xweek – weight is 205
5/1/2012 Swam 40 laps over a mile today.
5/7/2012 Swimming miles a week. Hope it keeps up.
5/10/2012 Wow, Took two heavy gracery bags back to our room in Atlanta (the “W”) Reverse descrimination is nice. I
5/11/2012 Walked several miles today on a treasure hunt for my wife. What fun, but the clinical trial is a NO. I do not have a disc tear, so no injections of Fiberin. Oh. Well. Not my plan. God’s plan. I walked another 20 Atlanta blocks to prove I can do whatever it takes.
5/14/2012 Having difficulty walking – loosing my breath (even after swimming 3 days in a row). Seems I may have injured abdominus rectus muscles “six-pack” and its causing smaller lung capacity.
5/22/2012 2 ESI (epidural steroidal injection) with lydocaine. Felt initially better due to the lydocaineand had cold sweats like the first in January on the first night after.
