my experience with your recommended surgery (fwd)

[Noelle <http://dummy.us.eu.org/noelleg>]

excoworker at  wrote me about this

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Fri, 29 Feb 2008 08:30:31 -0800 (PST)
From: Leda <http://www.sbcglobal.net/~led>
To: http://dummy.us.eu.org/noelleg
Subject: my experience with your recommended surgery

Hi Noelle....Susan told me of your neck problem, and I wanted to share with you 
my experience with same.  I suffered for years with this, unfortunately during 
the years I only saw orthopods and neurologists...who did nothing but give me 
Valium and put me in traction.  Then, one day I couldn't lift my right arm.  No 
pain this time, but it wouldn't function very well.  In the past the times when 
my neck would "go out" the pain was nearly unbearable.  I suffered terribly for 
years.  Then, when the arm thing happened, my internist referred me to a young 
neurosurgeon who had just opened a practice in Mt. View.  He collected all my 
x-rays over the years, put them up for me to see.  He pointed out that it had 
gotten worse all these years...but he said "this is what I do best"
.....surgery.  At that time they weren't doing MRI's or CT's, so I had a 
myelogram.  I was terrified, but he was so slick I never felt any pain.  He 
showed me on the screen that the disk was out, and I also
had osteophytes (bone spurs).  So, I had an anterior cervical diskectomy.  
Piece of cake Noelle, the recovery time is fast, as they go in from the front,
so no cutting through the big muscles, etc., in the back.  I didn't have a 
fusion.  I have never had a problem since, and I'm so glad I had the 
surgery....as the problem will just become worse and worse as time goes by if 
surgery isn't done.  My doctor developed cancer in his late 40's, so he isn't 
there any longer.  He was wonderful.  I know that Dr. Andrews has a great 
reputation...and he'll do a good job for you.  So please, have it done and 
don't suffer any more!

Leda
Used to be in transcription.

Leda