Lois, This group is such a pain in the neck, butt.... I am a mere child next to you. Thank you for that. Am very happy there is hope and that you let us know. Hugs.
You are so right, John. I also have had a problem periodically with a nerve in the neck area. My discs in my spine are all a mess though.
I had a friend whose had spinal issues starting in her 30s. She had been highly active...used to do a lot of water skiing. All that ended. Lots of surgeries and rods & such. A friend here eventually had some nerves surgically severed so he would not be in so much pain all the time. He had degenerative disc disease, and there was nothing that could be done about it, so the pain signals were doing no good...so the doctors put an end to them.
I knew of a teenage boy with spinal cancer and they put a device into his spine. When the pain became unbearable for him, he could push a button and the pain instantly went away. I don't know if those devices are suitable for other conditions though. A special surgeon was flown up here from (I think) Los Angeles to do the implant.
The kids died a few months after the implant, but at least he was nearly pain free during his last few months.
Finally, today, my pain management doctor gave me a shot in the hip. So far, so good. But, I may need an injection in the spine as well. My back is a total mess.
They didn't help me. I must be a hypochondriac. Or at least I have just stopped looking for the answer. Glad they helped you!
I had my 1st injection into the hip yesterday, Beth. For the past 2 weeks I've had a relapse and could barely walk with a cane into the Doctor's office. We once again reviewed my back x-rays and they are awful. He's absolutely amazed that I am able to stand straight up. He said to me, that part and parcel of my problem lied in the fact, that I am chronologically 90 years old, but my mind is not. Ergo, I refuse to accept that I am unable to simple treat this disgusting pain and get on with it. Luckily, my cardiologist was able to diagnose my cardiomyopathy and begin treating that at one with great result as ordered. My back has several areas of spinal stenosis, along with several bulging discs, one with a large cyst on a disc, So after going over a few finer points, he stated that the problem is coming from the back and not the hip. However,we decided to try the easy way first and the spinal shot is an epidural and done in the hospital. As the day dwindled int evening yesterday, I could feel the pain ebbing away. When I arose this AM I cautiously got out of bed pain free. I walked around the room a few times and thanked god with each step. Took a shower. Got the dog out for a long walk.I was in heaven. He said it will last about 3 months and when it starts up again, we just may go for the spinal injection. No walker, or cane for me today. I descended our sweeping stair case for the 1st time in 6 months. I walked over 2.5 miles today. I am ecstatic over all this as you can well imagine.
Wow! That is absolutely WONDERFUL news, Lois. I'm so happy for you; I can imagine how thrilled you are to be pain free, and to not have to have the spinal injection. And on top of the successful cardiomyopathy treatment... hooray!
You Go Girl!!! How will you impress us for your 100th? Lots of folks take up running. But that would not be my goal.
I'm not so sure about the 100th, Mary, but no running with my heart. Lots of walking, however. Hey, I never in my wildest dreams imagined I'd live to be the age I am.
Yeah? When people scold and tell us to act our age, we can come back with We don't know how! We've never been this age before.