Spinal cord stimulator

[Velodromed]

Crossing my fingers, Mrs. Doom has been laid up for four days with extreme back pain. When she screams and there is nothing I can do for her is the worst feeling. I can't even imagine what you have been going through.

Aww man… when your love hurts like that it’s far worse then anything you go through yourself. I know this from my wife’s cancer fight last year. Sorry buddy. PM me details. 10 years I’ve been dealing with this and have come up with creative ways of easing the pain that I’m more then happy to share with you.

 

[Velodromed]

So I got the results of my full spinal MRI yesterday. It’s part of the process of getting the spinal stimulator implant. They have to make sure that there is a pathway to run the wires up my spine. I’ve never had an MRI of my lumbar region because insurance wouldn’t allow it. I’ve also never thought that I had pain or issues with my lower back. I always thought the pain was coming from my thoracic spine right below my cervical fusion.

I was wrong. My thoracic spine is fine. The top of my lumbar is not. The progression of my pain over this last year is scary, now I understand why. I’m used to being shut down from doing too much for a day or two, but lately I’ve been shut down for a week or longer from just doing a little bit. Last week was one of the worst pain surges I’ve had. The neuropathy is taking a new turn and now I will have what feels like severe sunburn underneath my skin from my waist up and my knees down accompanied by extreme weakness.

So now, while I am trying to fast track the spinal stimulator I am also having to start the process of consulting with an orthopedic surgeon to see what I can do about my lower back. I don’t want another surgery. My neck surgery was over 12 hours long, a double front and back surgery that was done at a surgery center not a hospital and…and…

Okay…this is really hard to discuss...really hard man…When the surgery was done they put me in a room and I was accidentally entered as ‘ready to be released’. So I was put in a room, door closed, with no IVs, no painkillers no monitoring machines no emergency push button… when I eventually woke up i was alone in the dark and I felt everything. I had been ripped open 8” in front of my neck, 12” back and my spine had been fused. I laid there hours over night in a nightmare world of pain I had never even imagined before my mom came in to check on me early in the morning and discovered what had happened.

At that point I had to be put on emergency plasma. I was surrounded by staff and doctors with ivs and machines. I think I had been starting to fade at that point. I ended up having to stay there for 6 days. I’ll never forget (though I try) where my mind went during that time of deep pain and I have never wanted to have a surgery or go under anesthesia again. Just the thought scares the hell out of me. I’m shaking as I type this.

So yesterdays revelation was extremely discombobulating. Sorry to talk about this but I’ve got to deal with it. I don’t talk about it but I’ve gotta deal with it so that I can go under the knife again. I was already a nervous wreck about getting a spinal stimulator, which is a relatively simple surgery. Now I feel like I want to freak the fiddlestick out.

All I know is my surgery is definitely not going to be at a surgery center. It’s going to be at a hospital. And if I have to stay overnight my wife’s going to be there with me no matter what. I will never be left alone again at a hospital or wherever I am. Just like with all my wife’s surgeries through the cancer ordeal, I never left her alone. Even during Covid I never left her alone. They tried to make me leave one time and I told them they would have to arrest me, so they backed off.

OK I’m gonna go work on my car now and calm down. Thank you guys, I appreciate you lending me your ear for these few moments. Peace.

 

[Smilinbri]

So I got the results of my full spinal MRI yesterday. It’s part of the process of getting the spinal stimulator implant. They have to make sure that there is a pathway to run the wires up my spine. I’ve never had an MRI of my lumbar region because insurance wouldn’t allow it. I’ve also never thought that I had pain or issues with my lower back. I always thought the pain was coming from my thoracic spine right below my cervical fusion.

I was wrong. My thoracic spine is fine. The top of my lumbar is not. The progression of my pain over this last year is scary, now I understand why. I’m used to being shut down from doing too much for a day or two, but lately I’ve been shut down for a week or longer from just doing a little bit. Last week was one of the worst pain surges I’ve had. The neuropathy is taking a new turn and now I will have what feels like severe sunburn underneath my skin from my waist up and my knees down accompanied by extreme weakness.

So now, while I am trying to fast track the spinal stimulator I am also having to start the process of consulting with an orthopedic surgeon to see what I can do about my lower back. I don’t want another surgery. My neck surgery was over 12 hours long, a double front and back surgery that was done at a surgery center not a hospital and…and…

Okay…this is really hard to discuss...really hard man…When the surgery was done they put me in a room and I was accidentally entered as ‘ready to be released’. So I was put in a room, door closed, with no IVs, no painkillers no monitoring machines no emergency push button… when I eventually woke up i was alone in the dark and I felt everything. I had been ripped open 8” in front of my neck, 12” back and my spine had been fused. I laid there hours over night in a nightmare world of pain I had never even imagined before my mom came in to check on me early in the morning and discovered what had happened.

At that point I had to be put on emergency plasma. I was surrounded by staff and doctors with ivs and machines. I think I had been starting to fade at that point. I ended up having to stay there for 6 days. I’ll never forget (though I try) where my mind went during that time of deep pain and I have never wanted to have a surgery or go under anesthesia again. Just the thought scares the hell out of me. I’m shaking as I type this.

So yesterdays revelation was extremely discombobulating. Sorry to talk about this but I’ve got to deal with it. I don’t talk about it but I’ve gotta deal with it so that I can go under the knife again. I was already a nervous wreck about getting a spinal stimulator, which is a relatively simple surgery. Now I feel like I want to freak the fiddlestick out.

All I know is my surgery is definitely not going to be at a surgery center. It’s going to be at a hospital. And if I have to stay overnight my wife’s going to be there with me no matter what. I will never be left alone again at a hospital or wherever I am. Just like with all my wife’s surgeries through the cancer ordeal, I never left her alone. Even during Covid I never left her alone. They tried to make me leave one time and I told them they would have to arrest me, so they backed off.

OK I’m gonna go work on my car now and calm down. Thank you guys, I appreciate you lending me your ear for these few moments. Peace.

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Damn man......so sorry. That's crazy about the 1st surgery. I've never been under anesthesia and don't want to ever be. Just stay strong and as positive as you can. I know it's tough, but it sounds like you've been through tough times and survived.......you will get through this one day and obtain the peace you seek.

Hang in there bud!

 

[Velodromed]

Damn man......so sorry. That's crazy about the 1st surgery. I've never been under anesthesia and don't want to ever be. Just stay strong and as positive as you can. I know it's tough, but it sounds like you've been through tough times and survived.......you will get through this one day and obtain the peace you seek.

Hang in there bud!

Thanks man. I’m just a bit of a whirlwind in my mind right now and had to get it out. I know I’ve got degenerative disease throughout my entire spine but had no idea my lumber was so bad. It does explain a lot at least. That last time was my 12th major surgery. Here’s to lucky 13

 

[Doom!]

Hang tough man, there is nothing scarier than not being in control and trusting strangers to do what's needed. Just remember you made it through the first ordeal which was a fluke, there is no way anyone will let something like that happen again. This one will be a breeze in comparison. We are here if you need us but you'll be fine. Sending positive vibes your way.

I understand the uneasiness, Mrs. Doom's Surgery is coming up on July 12th, I will be a nervous wreck until it's over, but I know it's going to be fine. It's just the helpless feeling that sets your nervousness into overdrive.

 

[Velodromed]

Hang tough man, there is nothing scarier than not being in control and trusting strangers to do what's needed. Just remember you made it through the first ordeal which was a fluke, there is no way anyone will let something like that happen again. This one will be a breeze in comparison. We are here if you need us but you'll be fine. Sending positive vibes your way.

I understand the uneasiness, Mrs. Doom's Surgery is coming up on July 12th, I will be a nervous wreck until it's over, but I know it's going to be fine. It's just the helpless feeling that sets your nervousness into overdrive.

Man… things will go well with her and both of our prayers are with you guys. Seriously buddy you have our thoughts at heart. I’ve been through this more than once so I know I’ll get through it. I’m just a bit shook up right now but will get over it. I always do. Mrs. Doom will come through this beautifully. You know that you can hit me up anytime. Seriously, anytime. Reach out. Hang in there man

 

[Velodromed]

Finished up all the appointments last week and now I’m just waiting for insurance clearance. Once I get that they will implant the leads and do a weeklong test run to see if I respond. Should all go well they will surgically implant the advice n my hip and run the wires up my spine.

Good news is it could take care of as much as 80% of my pain. Bad news is they won’t be able to get the wire leads high enough. The base of the cervical fusion (c7) is as high as they can go. I was pretty bummed about that but considering I have no idea what percentage of pain is coming from lower versus high… it’s worth a try. Any relief is better than none.

Meanwhile more steroid epidurals are needed. I have several swollen disks in my lumbar religion and a disk ‘protrusion’ left of T4 also have to do more testing to see why my vision is wacking out and balance is so compromised lately.

 

[Doom!]

The most important question to ask your doctors is, will the implant change the waist size on your pants?, if so will your insurance cover a new wardrobe?

You know we are pulling for you, I really hope everything goes smooth.

 

[Velodromed]

The most important question to ask your doctors is, will the implant change the waist size on your pants?, if so will your insurance cover a new wardrobe?

You know we are pulling for you, I really hope everything goes smooth.

that’s funny. But yeah…I lost 8lbs (160 to 152lbs) with this last several week long pain surge. Managed to get a couple back on over the last few days but it’s so dang hard to eat (and keep it down) when I go through these episodes.

Thanks brother, I appreciate all of y’all very much!

 

[Smilinbri]

Hang in there bud!! Relief is on its way!! Stay Arrma strong!!

 

[Doom!]

Before I got treated for my anxiety, I lost 35 pounds in a couple of months, I know what you mean about it being hard to eat. Sure as heck wish I could lose that weight without it being caused by problems!

 

[Velodromed]

Before I got treated for my anxiety, I lost 35 pounds in a couple of months, I know what you mean about it being hard to eat. Sure as heck wish I could lose that weight without it being caused by problems!

Dang that’s a lot to lose at once, been there. Yeah that’s a big part of it. Anxiety and stress from never ending pain has gotten pretty severe over the 10 years I’ve been dealing with it. It’s as hard for me to keep weight on as it is for others to lose it. In 2018-19 I dropped to 125lbs during a 6 month long episode. I was doing really good 18 months after my cervical fusion so got back on my mountain bike and into the gym. Huge dumbass mistake. Lasted around 5 months before collapsing and been going down hill ever since.

Just don’t stop trying to lose if that’s what you need to do. My wife’s struggling with losing weight and we’re always working on it. It’s a struggle for us both, keeping me from losing and her from gaining. Frustrating yes but the main thing is to not give up or overly stress about it.

 

[Diem Turner]

Dang that’s a lot to lose at once, been there. Yeah that’s a big part of it. Anxiety and stress from never ending pain has gotten pretty severe over the 10 years I’ve been dealing with it. It’s as hard for me to keep weight on as it is for others to lose it. In 2018-19 I dropped to 125lbs during a 6 month long episode. I was doing really good 18 months after my cervical fusion so got back on my mountain bike and into the gym. Huge dumbass mistake. Lasted around 5 months before collapsing and been going down hill ever since.

Just don’t stop trying to lose if that’s what you need to do. My wife’s struggling with losing weight and we’re always working on it. It’s a struggle for us both, keeping me from losing and her from gaining. Frustrating yes but the main thing is to not give up or overly stress about it.

125lbs? Damn bro. That's like Machinist weight.

I finally started the process of losing weight 4 weeks ago as I'm rather, uhm...squishy around the mid section. At 5'8" I was clocking in at a little over 200lbs. I started by just reducing my portions and simplifying my food intake to mostly rice with chili con carne (a bowl that I would break up into several smaller portions I'd eat over the waking hours of the day) and trail mix, cutting out all sweetened drinks, essentially drinking only water for fluid intake.

I hit a bit of a plateau after three weeks and embarked on a water only fast (I would add a teaspoon of salt and a ground up magnesium/potassium supplement to a liter of water to make sure I got all my electrolytes and also to bind the water in my body so it wouldn't just run straight through). I drank two of these per day (not supposed to exceed) and just plain tap water if I found myself thirsty. I was amazed at how well the mineralized water mitigated any sense of hunger. I didn't eat anything except water for a little over three days to push my body into nutritional ketosis. I lost about 1.5lbs on the first day, 4.4lbs on the second day and another 2.3lbs on the third. The higher weight loss on day two is probably down to having gone on an hour and a half vigorous walk with intermittent one minute jogs in the forest. I think I may have overdone it a little as I was feeling a bit drained on day three. I started eating again today by eating two hard boiled eggs...they were probably the most delicious eggs I've ever eaten in my life. I'm going to stick to a protein/fat only diet cutting out (almost) all carbs in an attempt to remain in ketosis for the time being. So all I've been eating is the occasional slice of deli meat, slice of cheese and soft boiled eggs and the drained feeling is gone. My muscles are still sore (they haven't been used to getting proper use for a little too long), but nothing serious.

Overall result so far has been a loss of 18lbs over the last four weeks. My goal is to get back down to around 150lbs, give or take a few. I don't know if this is something that might help your wife, but might be worth consulting with her PCP about (forgive me if this is something you've already considered, just trying to offer up what (so far) has worked for me; I know that not all diets do well for all people and that there is no "on size fits all" approach).

Godspeed to you and your wife brother. I'm with you in spirit. Velo tough baby!!

 

[Velodromed]

125lbs? Damn bro. That's like Machinist weight.

I finally started the process of losing weight 4 weeks ago as I'm rather, uhm...squishy around the mid section. At 5'8" I was clocking in at a little over 200lbs. I started by just reducing my portions and simplifying my food intake to mostly rice with chili con carne (a bowl that I would break up into several smaller portions I'd eat over the waking hours of the day) and trail mix, cutting out all sweetened drinks, essentially drinking only water for fluid intake.

I hit a bit of a plateau after three weeks and embarked on a water only fast (I would add a teaspoon of salt and a ground up magnesium/potassium supplement to a liter of water to make sure I got all my electrolytes and also to bind the water in my body so it wouldn't just run straight through). I drank two of these per day (not supposed to exceed) and just plain tap water if I found myself thirsty. I was amazed at how well the mineralized water mitigated any sense of hunger. I didn't eat anything except water for a little over three days to push my body into nutritional ketosis. I lost about 1.5lbs on the first day, 4.4lbs on the second day and another 2.3lbs on the third. The higher weight loss on day two is probably down to having gone on an hour and a half vigorous walk with intermittent one minute jogs in the forest. I think I may have overdone it a little as I was feeling a bit drained on day three. I started eating again today by eating two hard boiled eggs...they were probably the most delicious eggs I've ever eaten in my life. I'm going to stick to a protein/fat only diet cutting out (almost) all carbs in an attempt to remain in ketosis for the time being. So all I've been eating is the occasional slice of deli meat, slice of cheese and soft boiled eggs and the drained feeling is gone. My muscles are still sore (they haven't been used to getting proper use for a little too long), but nothing serious.

Overall result so far has been a loss of 18lbs over the last four weeks. My goal is to get back down to around 150lbs, give or take a few. I don't know if this is something that might help your wife, but might be worth consulting with her PCP about (forgive me if this is something you've already considered, just trying to offer up what (so far) has worked for me; I know that not all diets do well for all people and that there is no "on size fits all" approach).

Godspeed to you and your wife brother. I'm with you in spirit. Velo tough baby!!

Be careful about fast weight loss processes such as that. The body is designed to burn muscle first when it goes in a starvation mode. when I rode and raced mountain bikes and track bikes at the velodrome for so many years I preferred to keep my weight between 140 and 145 (I was 5’7” but shrunk to 5 foot six after my neck fusion).

The best way I found was to jack up metabolism twice daily by aerobic exercising first thing in the morning (before eating) and late afternoon after dinner. For meals it’s best to keep all four basic food groups and divide them into 5 to 6 small meals. Tracking what you eat is a very good idea. Keep a food journal. Doing this helps show you what exactly you’re putting in your body. *Also make 6 PM your final meal. Doing this alone helps lose weight. Don’t eat anything after six. Around 7 o’clock down a class of psyllium fiber (metemusal). I know you’re on a bit different schedule so adjust accordingly. The main thing is do not eat 2 to 3 hours before you go to bed.

The fact that you’re losing so much weight just in the first three weeks is a little bit concerning. You shouldn’t even begin losing noticeable weight until the third-fourth week. I got a feeling your body was burning more muscle over fat. So be careful man. You don’t wanna drive yourself into deep fatigue. That weird feeling that was hitting you is an indication of what could happen on a much larger scale. You also don’t want to frustrate yourself by hitting extended plateaus and giving up. It takes a while to put on weight and takes three times longer to get it off. And if you’re exercising and increasing muscle, muscle is heavier than fat so sometimes the weight loss will offset with muscle gain. But that’s not a bad thing. That’s actually a very good thing. Oh, don’t weigh yourself daily. Every 10-14 days is good and note your weight in your journal.

My wife’s situation is a bit more complicated considering she fought cancer for 18 months. We’ve also been hit with Covid three times this year so far. So it’s been a poop show. We’re slowly getting back on track now though It’ll still be a bit until we can start exercising more. I need to be able to join and push her because she is simply not geared like that. But I have been so laid up lately that I can’t do my part.

Thanks for your kind words buddy and please be careful. Weight loss is not something that you do over a set period of time. It’s the lengthy process of setting new lifelong habits by eating healthy and exercising.

 

[Doom!]

My problem is that I like food. I need to get some real exercise back into the mix, but between bad knees an Plantar Fasciitis, it pretty much limits me to my exercise bike or swimming.

 

[Velodromed]

My problem is that I like food. I need to get some real exercise back into the mix, but between bad knees an Plantar Fasciitis, it pretty much limits me to my exercise bike or swimming.

Yeah, That’s exactly what my wife says. She just loves food. Cycling and swimming are the two best exercise activities to be honest. Especially swimming. Just try to get your heart rate up between 130-150bpm for at least 20 minutes twice a day. Start off slow though…120bpm for at least 20 min twice a day. Once you jack your metabolism up it tends to stay up for close to 12 hours, hence the twice a day thing.

Just got a call from the doctor and the first surgical procedure is scheduled for the 15th. They only put the leads in first. The wires and device will be taped to my back for a week while we see if it works on me. Then will be the longer procedure where they run the wires up inside my spine and implant the device in my butt cheek. The thing will have to be charged and I keep wondering if it’s done with one of those little magnetic charge pads I put my iPhone on.

I see a long-running joke with my family about how I have to charge my butt every day or so The device is also programmable via an iPhone app. I’ll be able to feel tingling or not feel tingling and adjust the areas affected. Getting a bit excited now and really hope it works. Even if it just cuts out half my pain and neuropathy that’ll be enough for me to start the long process of rehabilitating my atrophied muscles. Figuring 6 months alone to just build a decent base. Man I hope it works.

 

[Doom!]

Maybe you'll just have an XT60 connector sticking out. Good that they are getting you in sooner rather than later.

 

[Smilinbri]

Yeah, That’s exactly what my wife says. She just loves food. Cycling and swimming are the two best exercise activities to be honest. Especially swimming. Just try to get your heart rate up between 130-150bpm for at least 20 minutes twice a day. Start off slow though…120bpm for at least 20 min twice a day. Once you jack your metabolism up it tends to stay up for close to 12 hours, hence the twice a day thing.

Just got a call from the doctor and the first surgical procedure is scheduled for the 15th. They only put the leads in first. The wires and device will be taped to my back for a week while we see if it works on me. Then will be the longer procedure where they run the wires up inside my spine and implant the device in my butt cheek. The thing will have to be charged and I keep wondering if it’s done with one of those little magnetic charge pads I put my iPhone on.

I see a long-running joke with my family about how I have to charge my butt every day or so The device is also programmable via an iPhone app. I’ll be able to feel tingling or not feel tingling and adjust the areas affected. Getting a bit excited now and really hope it works. Even if it just cuts out half my pain and neuropathy that’ll be enough for me to start the long process of rehabilitating my atrophied muscles. Figuring 6 months alone to just build a decent base. Man I hope it works.

That's awesome you got the 1st date! Good luck brother!

 

[Velodromed]

That's awesome you got the 1st date! Good luck brother!

Thanks brother!

 

[Velodromed]

Wow… The procedure was quick the anesthesia great because I feel high as a kite and some of my main pain is gone! Mostly what I’m feeling is where the giant needle thing went up my spine…like got kicked by a mule in the back kinda feelin’ thing