That's rough about doctors being dropped. I don't understand why they are doing that. What difference does it make, which doctor you choose to see? Is it an economic decision or ??

Thanks for the well wishes everyone.
I am confident that all will go well. I've had this surgeon before (for GI stuff)and have a good feeling about him and his abilities.

Yes, a friend will be driving me and will keep tabs on how things are going; then will check in on me and bring me home when I am ready. I'm hoping that I'll be back home again later today, but don't know. It all depends on how the biopsy goes.

That same friend will look after Willy and Ziggy while I am in because there has been too much snow to take Willy to the trainers, and my friend will need to come to my house to feed and clean Ziggy's litter box anyway.

Willy knows and likes her, and she has cared for him before. Ziggy also likes her and he has been on her lap for pats when she has visited over the past couple of weeks, so I feel good about that.

Meanwhile, I'm having another night of spasticity that has kept me from sleeping restfully, but don't want to take anything other than my usual 20 mg of Baclofen and LDN, as I might need a general anesthetic in hospital.

The surgeon said that the those were OK to take, and after talking to my PCP on the phone yesterday, I did skip the Cymbalta. I'll be seeing my PCP before the biopsy and possible surgery, so hopefully he will prescribe something else to try, that doesn't have these side effects...and that controls the pain.

Will let you know how things go as soon as I can.

With love, Erika

Good luck today, Erika!!! Said some prayers for you this morning.

Thinking of you today Erika..

I hope everything went well Erika!!

Erika they dropped our PCP because they said the office was run inefficiently because he did simple surgeries and cortisone injections himself. I am beginning to not like this $0/premium insurance. The provider book is to thin and they are very restrictive.

I'd like to know why they dropped my doctors. My doctors, except for the neuro, who is affiliated with everyone in town, are all affiliated with the major hospital group in Omaha, which is now out of network for me. Now if I want to stay in network, I have to go way downtown to do anything. Not a bad hospital, but it's way downtown, in the not-so-nice-and-crime-ridden-part-of-Omaha. I'd have to pass four hospitals in better parts of town, that are just as good as the in-network hospital is to get to it for anything.

I still have no idea where any of their family doctors might have their offices out here in the outer reaches of Omaha. I'm going to continue to go to my regular doctor for the basic stuff. Hopefully my regular doctor's office won't charge arms and legs for stuff. I'll run out of arms and legs pretty quickly.

I got out of the hospital last night and everything went quite well with the biopsy and surgery. It turned out to be a “benign juxtafacet amyloid pseudo-cyst” that was attached to a joint capsule of T10, in the thoracic spine.

Some of it was imbedded in the ligament that runs along the spine and it apparently got squeezed in there and then grew out through the muscle to the surface…sort of a tear dropped shape with the narrow end being the part that was attached to the joint capsule.

The surgeon said that these sort of cysts usually arise because of trauma to the joint, and although they are more common in the lumbar area where the joints are more mobile, and are relatively rare in the thoracic spine because there isn’t much movement of the joints in that area, mine probably got going because of falls and the spasms that I get.
I have several prolapsed discs throughout the spine, with one at T10, and have had three disc herniations in the lumbar spine; all due to falls and the HUG over the years.

So now I’m in recovery mode. There is some post surgical pain but it isn’t too bad and I’m taking Tylenol to control it. Going from laying to sitting and from sitting to standing is the worst bit. I’m able to move around OK otherwise, so I’m sure that I’ll be fine in a few days.

My friend will be checking in on me and lives 10 minutes drive from me, so if I need help, she said that she will come over when/if I call her. I'm keeping my cell phone in my pocket in case I fall or get stuck in the bathroom or something.

Its really good to be home again with Willy and Ziggy, both of whom apparently missed me

Thanks for the prayers and well wishes. You guys are the best!

With love, Erika

I think I might have a cold.

Not cool.

(((((((Erika)))))), so glad you are home and so are Willie and Ziggy.
Happy to hear the little bugger was benign, even though it was,
obviously, causing you a lot of discomfort..

You take it easy now and heal. I hope someone can help you take
care of your furry friends for awhile. You shouldn't be doing any
heavy lifting for awhile.

Sending my love and good wishes for a speedy full recovery.

Thanks Sally,

Yes, my friends are being absolutely fantastic support.

She and I took a little walk from my house to the park to watch the children play, while he took my plow truck and Willy to do the snow plowing rounds.

Willy loves that because he gets out at every stop and visits with the people and their dogs if they have them.
They were gone for 3 hours and just got back. Apparently a couple of folks were still snowed in (both are physically disabled), and hadn't had anyone check in on them, so my friend's husband made a grocery run for one of them because she needed a few things.

When he came in from the outing, Willy went straight to his bed for a nap after saying hello and having a drink. He's pooped from playing in the snow while out and about, so he'll be fine until tomorrow

Now the house is quiet again and I'm in R & R mode for the rest of the day & evening.
I really need to take a bath, so am getting ready to do that. What is it about hospitals that makes you feel so yucky on the outside, that you can gross yourself out just thinking about it ?
I'll keep the surgical wound dry by just sitting in the water and sponge bathing the upper body, because the incision is quite high up.

With love, Erika