[Southern Bell]

I want to start by apologizing for this vent, but as all of you know this illness will change your life forever. I have been diagnosed with both MG and SPS and my main "marker" of MG is ocular muscle weakness. So I have been on a daily dose of prednisone since January 2010. Starting at 60 mg per day for around 6 months (I don't remember exactly the time frame) then we have been slowly reducing the dosage (thanks to a change in neurologists) to 10 mg every other day. That will now be my maintenance level.

Well I learned earlier this year after a bone scan that I now have osteoporisis and over the past several months my back has been hurting more and more. I knew that my back has taken a beating over many years starting with a bad fall down of flight of steps 24 years ago to about a dozen falls over the past 3 years due to the SPS. So I went to the orthopedic doctor last week to see what was going on and he told me that I now have a compression fracture in two vertebre in my lower back.

Nothing can be done about it but live with the pain and if the pain gets too bad they can inject a substance much like cement into those vertebre which my doctor does not like to do.

I'm so very tired of living with this illness and the new problems it is causing me. I just want to crawl in a hole and never come out. I'm so afraid of what will be the next problem - will I fall again, what physical things can I do without causing another bone fracture.

Thanks for letting me vent.

Becky
Southern Bell

[Anacrusis]

Originally Posted by Southern Bell

Becky
Southern Bell

You should not be apologizing for anything and instead be writing more often if it helps!
It sounds like life should be apologizing to you at this time.

(For you)
(For the steps!)

Wishing you better times asap.....

Anacrusis

[StephC]

Becky

Sorry things are so bad. All my best that You get some relief, improvement soon
Steph

[alice md]

We all need to vent from time to time.

It's not fun being ill and you can't be expected to be happy and positive about it all the time.

There are actually pretty amazing, minimally invasive procedures to correct vertebral fractures.

http://www.wallawallaspine.com/servi...ashington.html

[Southern Bell]

I want to thank everyone for the words of encouragement. Sometimes I feel guilty complaining when there are so many people with more serious health issues. I saw so many people while I spent several weeks in the rehab facility after my initial diagnosis and surgery.

Alice - I appreciate the information about the procedure to stablize the vertebre. I think that this may be the procedure that my orthopedic doctor said he wouldn't recommend but if it would help I may consider it (of course I'd want the input from my neuro about his thoughts/concerns). Time will tell.

You are truly a group of caring people that I feel so fortunate to have discovered.

Becky
Southern Bell