I am so pleased to find a chat site where people are going through the same thing as me.
I was diagnosed 5 years ago. I have a lot of pain/swelling in my right arm/shoulder, constant headaches at the base/back of my head, memory issues, speaking issues and pain numbness with my right leg and right arm.
I have met with Dr Heffez in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He was fantastic. Answered every single question for me. Explained to me how I wasn't crazy, talked to me about surgery and my goals. Now, I am set for surgery this coming August.
I am deciding if I will push off the surgery because I might be getting a very big promotion... wonder if that is smart or not since the arm pain is getting worse.
Any advice for me before/after surgery? I am very anxious as I am the breadwinner for the family.
Nice to meet you! I am newly diagnosed too. So I don’t have a lot of info to share, only a shoulder to lean on. Hugs…and I hope you find an answer to your surgery date that suits your life perfectly.
Hello and welcome to the site. I think if you are having problems and they are bad that you should have surgery. If you don’t and get the promotion you still are going to be out of work for a while so think about that.
Tradee30 - you are right. I think I am going to up my surgery date just to get it over with. The pain is starting to effect my every day life to the point that I cannot do things like I used to. Thank you!
tashaheart4u - I have a lot of information from the internet and the neurosurgeon I have answered every single question and even gave me more answers to questions that I had not thought about. Let me know if I can help you!
Abby - My surgery date is set for August 25th but I am thinking about changing it to August 4th or August 11nth. Thank you as well because I will need all the prayers I can get!
Tinabrat, wish you lots of best wishes on your decision. Being the breadwinner is a tough one. I do hope you can get your surgery done sooner than later. The sooner you do it, the sooner you can win that bread and feel good again!! :) Please keep us posted.
I will be having the decompression surgery. I was told I will be in the hospital for 5 days and then back to work in a month. I am praying that this is true! :)
Decompression surgery is a very serious surgery. At a month after surgery I was still dizzy from surgery and in pain so I hope you are able to go back to work that early.
Yikes! How long before you felt able to move about and feel better? When did you have your surgery? Did your neurosurgeon follow through with you when you needed her/him?
I am going to try and move the surgery up to August 4th or 11nth. MY pain levels are out of control and not sure what else to do since nothing seems to help.
I am glad that you are feeling much better Joelene Hossack. Thank you for taking the time to share this with me I feel a lot better!! Keep me updated!
tinabrat, everyone is different. I had an amazing recovery,was released to go back to work part-time at 3 weeks, and full-time at 4. After reading about many peoples experiences, it sounds like my amazing recovery happens a good bit, but mostly what I read is that they don't. I don't know how bad your herniation is (mine was relatively mild), but whether or not your cerebellar tonsils are blocking your CSF flow should be a consideration. For me, if I was up for a promotion, I'd probably wait until promoted, honestly. It depends on how far out that is. However, you should ask your NS to do a CINE (see-nay) MRI, which is a flow study that shows the flow into the brain and back out. If it shows you're almost completely blocked, like I was, then that might be something to take into consideration. Ask the doctor if you can wait, he'll tell you. My doctor told me that I could wait a bit if needed, but that I might get worse. In other words, your NS should be able to tell you if you can wait X period of time.
I am praying for a quick and healthy recovery. I was told that this is not life threatening but that my symptoms would get worse. When I asked about waiting 6 months or so, he said that I would be there to see him soon there after. I do not have blockage of fluid. He was more concerned that my symptoms were as bad, herniation is 10/12mm and that the head and spine MRI showed a lot of crowding.
The promotion could take weeks to get. I doubt that they would be thrilled with me taking time off right after. Plus, if all goes well, then I would be fine before the offer :) You made me a bit more at ease so thank you!
