I was wondering...if you saw a NS and decompression surgery was an option given to you, if you didn't have the surgery:
why not?
and if you did have the surgery,
what was the outcome with the surgical procedure and relief of symptoms?
DD had decompression surgery April 23 for 10 mm chiari and extensive syrinx causing neck and arm pain. MRI shows syrinx is already smaller. She was home in 2 days and developed aseptic meningitis and a pseudomeningocele. Recovery has been a roller coaster but we had no choice…surgery was necessary to prevent further spinal cord damage. A little over 3 months post op she is doing much better. We were aware of the possible complications and the painful recovery associated with this surgery. Not sure we would have had the surgery if given the choice but of course we had no choice and she needed it immediately. If her syrinx resolves then it is all worth it. Good luck!
My NS has offered surgery. But I have decided against surgery for the time being.
i was only diagnosed in June and I want to minimise stress in my life first… to make sure its not just anxiety that makes my symptoms so bad.
I had my appendix out last october.
Also my c-section last february got infected and re-opened. i was so poorly… i really cant cope with the recovery from any surgery right now… let alone brain surgery.
This is very much a personal decision. i have a 12mm chiari but thankfully no syrinx. surgery will always be an option if i decide to have it. The surgery itself doesnt scare me… but i know i couldnt mentally deal with the recovery right now. i also think having 2 surgeries in the last 18 months is plenty for me… haha 
I was given the choice to have the surgery by my NS also. I have a 13 mm herniation. I waited 10 months before I had the surgery and the deciding factor was when I was told that my brain fluid was 100% blocked. By the time I went into the hospital for the surgery I would have crawled there to have it done, I was in such incredible pain. I would suggest that you ask the NS about your fluid and what percent is blocked, consider how much pain you can tolerate and how much the Chiari is affecting your life. I have 5 kids and 3 have special needs. We went to the hospital before the surgery and talked with therapist about the surgery and how it was going to affect me and what my recovery might look like. I think it really helped the kids understand what was going on and why I was gone for 5 days, had my hairg shaved and why they couldn't jump on mommy! It has been almost two years since my decompression and I have healed well. I was up and about in a week and driving again after 3 weeks. Unfortunately, it has not stopped the progression of the symptoms but I am still glad that I had it done. I think I would be in worse shape now if I didn't do it. It's a major decision so trust what your body is telling you. Many people can have Chiari and not even know they have it!
Wow..thank you for your responses. The experiences obviously are as varied as our symptoms are. I will say that reading your personal experiences really shed some reality to this whole situation. I have an appt at Dr. Oro's office this Thursday and am going into it with both fear and anticipation. I have been to so many doctors over this last year with no solid answers....until my MRI. Since my Chiari is 4.5 mm, I asked my GP if she thought it is diagnosable Chiari ( I just want answers). She said "Well, you meet all the criteria with your symptoms."
If it is even fair to compare to other's stories, I don't think I am near as sick as some. I feel like I am running on 2 out of 8 cylinders, can't function very effectively, and my work hours have dropped to almost nill, but I don't have the non-stop excruciating headaches ~ the rest of the symptoms I have and they are getting worse. If I am a "candidate" for surgery (which maybe I am not), part of me thinks I would jump at it in a way....don't the symptoms and the condition just get worse if they aren't treated as soon as possible? I don't know how much worse I can experience. I already feel like I am functioning at the level of a 4th grader vs. someone who is college educated.
And, Terri, how come the progression of your symptoms hasn't stopped??? Was the surgery done correctly?? why wouldn't the progression stop? That just kind of freaks me out.