About a month ago, I started having pain in my neck, and then my left shoulder. My muscles were really stiff, so I assumed that was the issue. After about a week, the pain was so bad that I went to the ER. They did an x-ray and just said it was arthritis in my neck. I called my RA doc and she gave me some gabapentin and an order for PT.
I went to PT, and in the process of evaluating me, she tore my *right* rotator cuff. Unbelievable. Then I had screaming pain in my neck and left shoulder, and my right shoulder.
I went to an ortho doc and he did x-rays on my right shoulder, neck and left shoulder. He told me I needed MRIs of neck and both shoulders. I showed the MRI reports to a friend who's a surgeon and he said was going to need surgery on my neck and right shoulder, but the neck was the priority. He sugarcoated it a little, but got me in to see a neurosurgeon the next day.
I saw the surgeon and I need a laminectomy and fusion on C2-T1. I'm getting a catscan on Monday and seeing the surgeon again on Wednesday to setup the surgery. He said I'll need to wait until sometime next year to fix the right shoulder. In the meantime, my spinal column is pushed against bone so closely at C2-C3, he told to be very careful. A trip and fall or car accident would be, in his words, catastrophic. I told my wife to drive safely on the way home, or she might be be wiping my ass for the next 20 years
On top of that, we had a family ski trip to Canada planned (and paid for). I'm trying to talk my daughter into going with my wife's family. I hate to ruin it for everyone.
And I know this is rididulous, but I just put together a new rifle and bought a bunch of reloading gear over Black Friday. I realize that it's not important, but it's just irritating that I don't even know when I'll be able to get behind a rifle again. If at all.
And the pain is so bad that I can't sleep. Which means my wife can't sleep. And on top of that, she's having to work and pick up the slack for me. I don't really have the personality to be waited on or to ask for help. I feel miserable for everyone.
TL;dR I'm screwed
I went to PT, and in the process of evaluating me, she tore my *right* rotator cuff. Unbelievable. Then I had screaming pain in my neck and left shoulder, and my right shoulder.
I went to an ortho doc and he did x-rays on my right shoulder, neck and left shoulder. He told me I needed MRIs of neck and both shoulders. I showed the MRI reports to a friend who's a surgeon and he said was going to need surgery on my neck and right shoulder, but the neck was the priority. He sugarcoated it a little, but got me in to see a neurosurgeon the next day.
I saw the surgeon and I need a laminectomy and fusion on C2-T1. I'm getting a catscan on Monday and seeing the surgeon again on Wednesday to setup the surgery. He said I'll need to wait until sometime next year to fix the right shoulder. In the meantime, my spinal column is pushed against bone so closely at C2-C3, he told to be very careful. A trip and fall or car accident would be, in his words, catastrophic. I told my wife to drive safely on the way home, or she might be be wiping my ass for the next 20 years
On top of that, we had a family ski trip to Canada planned (and paid for). I'm trying to talk my daughter into going with my wife's family. I hate to ruin it for everyone.
And I know this is rididulous, but I just put together a new rifle and bought a bunch of reloading gear over Black Friday. I realize that it's not important, but it's just irritating that I don't even know when I'll be able to get behind a rifle again. If at all.
And the pain is so bad that I can't sleep. Which means my wife can't sleep. And on top of that, she's having to work and pick up the slack for me. I don't really have the personality to be waited on or to ask for help. I feel miserable for everyone.
TL;dR I'm screwed
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