March 21st, 2023.

 Last week I went in to see my orthopedic doctor in Lee’s Summit. He did an EMG on my neck (checking nerve responses and also using needles, ouch!). I’ve been having pain and tingling for years in my neck. This has also caused me to have restricted movement. When I sleep on my sides, at times it feels near impossible to get comfortable without pain starting at my neck, my shoulders, then all the way down my arms to my fingertips with numbness.

I learned that the last four years, since I had the EMG done, that my carpal tunnel in both wrists is now so severe that I will need to see a hand specialist, for outpatient surgery.

Of course I am waiting until after I get my new walking brace for my drop foot, as to not do any new damage to my wrists after surgery. My brace appointment has also been delayed due to it not arriving a month after my custom mold was done.

By the time I finally get my walking brace, so long that it actually arrives on time, it will be about two months of waiting. And I’ve needed this new brace, called an Arizona Brace; since last fall. Technically I’ve needed it since one year ago, however I exhausted all other steps beforehand.

It’s frustrating watching my body degenerate, flare up so often, swell, have constant pain, continued problems in my joints, and being what many practitioners have called me, a medical mystery. However I’m determined to find answers this year.

Thankfully the trade off, since later in January, has been mental, spiritual, and emotional clarity. I feel more stable now, and able to express myself better, than I ever have before in my life. I like to compare this time to that of college, and that was decades ago.

Finding what I need to help me, has been comforting. It’s allowing me to find the peace I’ve been searching for.

Thank you all for being here! It’s been a journey and I don’t always share what’s happening, however I appreciate each and every one of you!