Not a good day. I spend a lot of time in doctors offices with clients. The "house of pain" that the waiting rooms are can be pretty oppressive. When I'm there with clients, I usually feel pretty good about the service I'm able to provide. Today, I returned to the house of pain... step 1, MRI... step 2, I already have the referral to pain managment doc. (Good news, I know him and like him. Read
Marissa's story here.) I cannot express how depressing it is to be looking into pain management again.
I guess it's a bad news / good news story. I was asking for a referral to pain management to give it one last good try to avoid surgery. I want to return to PT and see what the PM doc might offer for managing the chronic pain in a more serious way. I take Voltaren and a occasional hydrocodone... no regular opiates... typically just a few a month... recently about 1/3 of the days or more.
The good news is that I don't think I'll be seeing the PM on a regular basis. The bad news is why. I don't have the radiologist's report yet, but there is much here that is obvious.
BIG SURPRISE... this is new. My last MRI 1.5 years ago shows a minor defect at Th1-Th2. Now I have this substantial herniation:
The C3-4 pathology looks substantial. lateral disc herniation is right side, neuro symptoms on left face and neck don't seem to correspond to the herniation, but discography showed huge annular tear with rapid extravasation of the contrast into the canal area. Injection at this level did fire up symptoms. Chemical irritation of left nerve root?
The following two images represent the worst level that I believe is my interscapular pain and symptoms in L arm. First I show the slice below the defect to demonstrate what the CSF (cerebrospinal fluid) layer should look like around the spinal cord. The next image is actually the slice ABOVE the first image. The cord compression is not severe, but it's wors than it has been and it's substantial.
OK... so it's back to the house of pain, but I think I'll be having the surgery... hopefully in May??? Anyone want to go with me?