Hmm well I don't have date as such just the news that "despite issues when I was younger" they had decided to put me on the list for a trial. She said at the moment they are doing them every other week and you're not being sent home in between trial and imPlant but doing them after a few days getting the stim right in hospital.

I think she was phoning round telling people whether it was a yes or no as she said she knew she'd get a good reaction from this call. I feel for those who obviously got a no go. l

I phone my surgeon's secretary this morning. She couldn't give me an exact date but said it will be April maybe early May ... However, they are hoping to take on another surgeon who is able to do this procedure, and if this is the case, then it could be earlier.

April .. May .. I can live with that ! Yay !:grouphug:

Glad Tidings
 

Saffy, so glad to learn of your possible calendaring and that you feel positive about it. May the practice add the surgeon, thus opening up more and sooner opportunities for those such as you.

Caring,
Mark56:hug:

Saffy that doesnt sound too bad does it ;) something to really look forward to......Im so glad you phoned and maybe with a new surgeon you could even be sooner!!! Well done

Jackie:hug:

Am in a grumbly mood today. I have been awarded high rate mobility so I have the opportunity of getting an automatic car for my needs .. only my husband says if we get one, he'll have it .. so I'd be back where I started .. stuck at home with no car. Super! :(

I would like to say Oh, Good Grief!
 

So, where in the deal are you going to have mobility if the car is put to other use? I feel your frustration. Hope he will see your needs, too.
Sorry.
Mark56

Mark .. this car is definitely going to be my baby. :grouphug: I am so happy as there is no way we would be able to afford to have a car any other way and this at least means I can get out of the car.

Am ordering her on FRIDAY .. which means she will arrive possibly in the middle of all the hoo harr of the stim, but at least I can go and sit in her.

Well ALLRIGHT then
 

Good to know you will have mobility.... truly good! Hoping and praying for an earlier date for your implant!

Mark56:hug:

Saffy!
 

I can feel your excitement! :p ..... Kind of like a kid at Christmas! yes?

This will certainly be a year you'll look back on and see that some wonderful changes have come your way!

Yayy for you!!
Rae
:hug::grouphug::hug:

Saffy I got a Toyota Rav 4 Automatic and I must say the DIFFERENCE in driving compared to the manual car I had is AMAZING!!! I can literally sit back and relax and let the car do the work. As I had awful trouble trying to change the gears with my left leg or sitting in traffic too. A nightmare....

Good luck with your new car, it looks fabulous btw.....and happy driving when you get it too.....

Take care

Jackie:hug:

Ohhhhhh and definitely go for the Seat Heaters
 

YES- have seat heaters in our cars and it feels good to a cranky body to get in a cold vehicle, start it up, turn on the seat heater, and soon feel the Ahhhhh of having a bit of warmth below.

Yes,
Mark56:winky:

Well I phoned the Surgeon's secretary yesterday and she wasnt there so left a message for her to call as the one who answered last week told me if they hadn't told me that day (Monday) then I wouldn't be going in that week. I was initially told I would have plenty of notice, which I would need for Mike to arrange work off of work as he's a Manager for IKEA and can't just say he's not going in the following week.

Not heard a thing .. I rang my specialist nurse Debbie, and left a message for her to call .. zilch ..

It's my 50th in May and the family want to plan a party as I've never had one before .. but that's pointless as I might be in Hospital. (The surgeon's Nurse initially said April early May for the Op as he only does one every other week and he is the only surgeon in Sheffield to do this oepration) ..

I'm frustrated .. I know I should be bloomin grateful I'm getting it but I just want a date ... even if it's months away !!

Saffy I feel your frustration. I had to wait four months from my trial to get my permanent one done. Keep phoning until you get an answer.

It will come
 

I, too, kept phoning until I had the date. Jackie gives good advice. Then you can plan that 50th and maybe have a dual celebration!!

Prayin,
Mark56:hug:

Well .. today's the day for my pre op .. I've taken a notebook in me to jot down exactly what happens and when .. who I talk to, what I talk about .. and I'll get it up and posted as soon as I can so that anyone else near to their trial can have some idea of what's going on.

Excited - nervous !

Have a Doctor coming to see me tomorrow at home as I'm currently claiming Employment Support Allowance in a Back To Work Group - they need to see where you're at, how you are, and if you are able to work. Not looking forward to that although I do understand it, as there are so many people out there claiming benefits who shouldn't be. (Did you know you can get Disability Allowance here if you're an alcoholic? And the Taxpayer is the one paying to keep them in alcohol)

Ah well .. let the day begin.

I know you'll all be thinking of me ... I can feel it like a warm hug !

God bless .. see you all later! xxx

WARM Hugs for SAFFY!!!!
 

Hoping and Praying the best for you while sending BIG WARM :hug::hug::hug::hug::hug::hug::hug::hug:ZZZZZZZ
Mark56:grouphug:

Pre-Op Follow Up
 

Hi Saffy- Any surgery pre-op is gong to be of such rapid screening of your physiological well being. This aids in ultimate determination whether there is any issue which could prevent surgery [presence of untreated infection], which could impact the selection of anesthetic, and the clarity whether you have any allergies, among other things, to latex. Such individuals are not prepared to answer a single question you may have because they are detailed to the single simple "healthy patient" inquiry.

On Day of Surgery check in, the prep nurse, anesthesiologist, and surgeon, all of whom you should see will give you ample opportunity for last minute questions. DO DRINK PLENTY OF WATER the day before surgery, even if it causes more than customary visits to the WC, because in this maneuver you will plump those veins and avoid the game of "Find a Vein." You will receive an IV the day of surgery for administration of any necessary fluids, saline solution, anesthesia so administered and medicines such as antibiotic to help prevent surgical infection. Prep yourself that day before with LOTS OF WATER. Coffee and Soda drinks do not count.... WATER. Plump the Veins. Yep.

Prayin and pullin for ya,
Mark56:hug::hug:ZZ

Oh and remember
 

NO ASPIRIN OR ASPIRIN CONTAINING products pre-surgery!!!:grouphug:

Mark56:hug:

Keep yer 'coool' :)
 

You are well on your way Saffy! HoooYah!

Mark has given you the best of best advice :hug:

I'll be thinkin of ya! And anxious to hear the next update!
It's great of you to give this chronicled event! Lots of folks will benefit from this!

Best Wishes!
Rae
:hug::grouphug::hug:

Visit with the Doctor went well today .. She really wasn't that bothered and just said "Can you do this?" "Do you feel this?" "Where is the pain?" and so on .. almost as though she wanted to be elsewhere. Very nice and chatty - she told me she was going to an emoroidery place after my visit. lol

Extraordinary
 

Wow Saffy- Well, that is one of the more cursuroy final pre-surgery doc visits I have known, and to be told she was going off to an embroidery place, almost, like.... way out there; however, she knows your file, your needs, and must be prepared. Did you get to ask any last minute questions? You know, such as "WHY AM I DOING THIS TO MYSELF?!?" Just kidding.

It truly appears as though you are on the right and ready to go list.

May all be well with you my friend,
Prayin,
Mark56:hug:ZZ

Hi Mark ... No this Doctor came because I am claiming state benefit called ESA (Employment Support Allowance) and you either get £70 a week or £90 a week if you are in the so called "Limited Capacity for Work" group which I am being "tested" for.

The more I thought about her visit last night the more uncomfortable I felt, because when I told her I had been on Oxycodone she laughingly called me a junkie. I laughed at the time, but now I think that wasn't really a professional thing to say and I feel quite weepy and ashamed when I think about it.

Anyways ... what's done is done .. I SHALL tell my own Doctor what she said, but other than that, I'll leave it .. I don't need the stress of having to complain to ATOS Healthcare who arranged this home visit, at this time. (I guess too, to be honest, I DID feel like a junkie on the Saturday afternoon when I looked at the Oxynorm and thought "one spoonful will get rid of all these horrible withdrawal feelings" but that's beside the point - she shouldn't have said what she did, no matter if it were in jest).

Line drawn under ...

xx

Crossed the Line
 

Dear Saffy- The state sent "so called" Dr should be held to a standard of ethics which would prevent such injurious quips and quotes, ESPECIALLY in the case of a chronic pain patient who approaches a serious surgery for implant. You ran across a person of little to no heart and who spreads injury rather than enabling healing. I ran across one like that in my Social Security appeal hearing very recently [a program very much like your program] where he opined despite my meeting all of the criteria for the classification that "in his opinion" I did not meet the criterion. Now this sounds rahther like an oxymoron presented by one acknowledged by all within hearing distance to have been far below the medical credibility of an expert. The judge sided with us, indicated desire to award benefits, asked for a legal brief of an issue otherwise related. Now it is in his hands to decide.

Try not to worry about the crass remark of a below standard physician and steel yourself for the upcoming surgery..... besides it is people just like you who hold Great Hope that the surgery will work in you much success so that you may reduce or eliminate altogether the need for such meds!!:grouphug:

Prayin for healin,
Mark56:hug::hug::hug::hug::circlelove:

Ok my SCS family .. I went to see the Physio today and what a wonderful guy he was !! He asked me all about my pain .. where it went, when it was worse and so on. He says my posture is all to pot .. though I know that, as I lean to the right to counteract the pain in my left leg and is going to send me some gently exercises I can start to do. He says the back problem is STILL going to be a problem for me, which I knew really already, but I guess I thought the stim would help to some extent.

He answered all our questions ... and guess what .. I CAN wash my hair, so long as I don't put my hand well above my head, just up to my head, and to be gentle. Of course, I've got to get the incisions to heal before I can get in the shower but hey, I'm a good healer. I'm going to type out the information sheet he sent me home with and post on here. (Will prob do that tomorrow)

He's organising hydrotherapy at a nearer hospital to me than Sheffield .. and any physio appointments with him he is going to arrange around my tweaking ones. Am thrilled to bits with the care.

On the sheet it says 12 weeks recovery time .. though he said the first 4 are the most critical ... they say 12, just to cover themselves.

They get you up and about as soon as possible and encourage you to play about with your trial stim controller. He says, depending on what mood my surgeon is in, he may put the permanent one (under general anasthetic) in on the Friday, or leave it till after the weekend and see how I go on. I guess it all depends on me and how I feel.

I'll be getting the leads, not the paddles and a non rechargeable battery.

And .. I've just picked up some holiday brochures for next January .. to the Maldives !!

Hurrah Saffy
 

Physio is a great means to overcome the lack of body strength due to pre-surgery pain and post-surgery tendencies to protect..... hydrotherapy in a warm therapy pool can do wonders for both strengthening and aiding posture.
I do have a thought regarding your leaning to one side which prompted posture problems. I'll PM you regarding this thought.

All of the best to you in this my friend,
Mark56:grouphug:

Hi Saffy,
I'm Sophie a newbie of this forum. I've just been reading through your thread and in some parts you had me laughing and at other parts completely sympathising with you. I had my SCS implanted during Christmas week Dec 2010.
I guess it took me about 6weeks to recover from the surgery but I still took over 4mths to get back to work, my body was so exhausted and tired from years of chronic pain and depression that it decided it wasn't ready so I finally got back to work after Easter, half time.
I've always had a bad back but it wasn't until I was about 16-17 that it got out of hand, I had a discectomy when I was 21, for years afterwards I was great, there wasn't anything I didn't do, 5 years ago the back pain along with the horrid sciatica and muscle spasms in my left side returned. After many Dr's many epidural steroid injections, rhizotomy's and all sorts I finally found a doctor that not only believed me but one that could help me. I had many doctors throughout this period and one of them even told me it was in my head - stupid idiot!
The hydrotheraphy your physio is organising sounds absolutely wonderful, I seriously doubt the HSE in Ireland would have anything like this!
Please God you'll get a date soon and you'll be back in action in no time at all. Do you know where they are treating? Mine was the left leg and left back, i haven't had the results I was hoping for in my back but my leg is very good, my consultant is now considering the Navro system for the other side, I have the medtronic implant at the moment.
Which system are you getting?
During the surgery I have to say that all the doctors, nurses even the porters were fantastic, i think they know you're nervous and anxious and are prepared for this.

the very best of luck,

Sophie xxx :)

Thinking of you Saffy....
 

Just wanted you to know that I'm thinkin of you and that I hope you aren't getting too nervous about the upcoming

You've been so wonderful to all of us. I agree with Sophie, you bring the right mixture of laughs and hugs

Good things are headin your way I do believe!

Rae
:hug::grouphug::hug:

My step dad Arthur's funeral today .. i's been a long time coming ... 3 weeks since he died. (Funny how both my Dad and step Dad were called Arthur) ...

Our two daughters missed my Dad's funeral as we thought they were too young .. so this will be their first "close family member" funeral .. I feel for them.

As we feel for all of you
 

Our daughter, Em, was 6 when her step granddad Fred passed, and from that moment on, when she drew pictures something..... something was missing. You see, she love Fred as though her real granddad for he was and our whole family loved him.

She had always drawn pictures with rainbows in the sky, thereafter, the rainbow was missing. We asked her, and her reply "God took the rainbow away [meaning Granddad Fred]."

Since she has matured into a wonderful young lady and her "rainbows" have returned as she now understands better that cycle of life. We are with you all in prayers as your family goes through Arthur's passing, Saffy.

CARING LOTS,
Mark56:grouphug::grouphug::grouphug:

Hi Saffy,

Sorry to hear about your step dads death,

Thinking of you and your girls, funerals are always tough going no matter how old you are.

Take care,

Sinéad (Sophie)

Arthur had a lovely send off ...

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_P...1052011102.jpg

He was a keen gardener and we wanted every colour flower possible ..

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/_P...1052011099.jpg

I went back into church last night to take a rose from the wreath above that was on his coffin.

We had a commital at the crematorium .. family only .. then went to the village church where he had lived for 60 years. Needless to say, the church packed full with people from the village.

I am immensely proud of my daughter Hannah, who wrote about Arthur and how he had enriched my Mum's life after the loss of her first husband after 56 years. Arthur and Mum were together for 15 years .. a blessing.

Mum is fine .. she is off to The Tuesday Club .. where a lot of the older members of the village go every other week; meeting to chat and have tea or coffee .. and indeed, she is going on holiday with them in September.

Night Night Arthur .. pain is no more.

What a wonderful send off indeed!
 

It surely appears that your family was well and truly blessed by Arthur. What a great smile, and the flowers..... beautiful. Certainly your daugher's remembrance of Arthur was special indeed. May your Mum heal from this second parting in a way that propels her forward as one who has been doubly Arthur blessed. I especially draw to mind the photo of she and this Arthur with such beautiful smiles, truly a couple who took pleasure in their times together.

Hoping all the best for the family,
Mark56:grouphug:

Dear Saffy,
I think that Mark has summed up exactly what I was just thinking, Arthur obviously had a very nice send off. He had a lovely smile and he seemed like a very happy man,
God bless him, you and your family, I hope your Mam is coping ok.

Sinéad

Saffy,
Thank you SO much for sharing those pictures! You have such a wonderful way of bringing your little world right here to us! :hug:

Arthur has so much life in his eyes! I bet he brought much joy to your family.
Those flowers are absolutely gorgeous!
I'm glad your mum is doin well, and you too dear Saffy :hug:

Rae
:hug::grouphug::hug:

Thank you all for your thoughts .. they're very comforting and my Mum just cannot believe that "strangers" from around the world are thinking of her and wishing her well. :grouphug:

Well .. not long now till my Hospital appointment. I bet I wont get signal in Hospital, but I'll ask my daughter Hollie, to pop on and let you know how I am and what they've been doing to me. :p

I'm not as anxious now I've seen the Hospital. I got frightened after I'd been to visit Arthur at Chesterfield Royal .. he was in a bay with really old men who were obviously very poorly and it was really distressing to see.

Although The Hallamshire is a massive teaching hospital attached to Sheffield University, it's smack bang in the middle of the city and I have a feeling I will be on the 12th Floor - just hope I get a window bed so I have a fantastic view ! :D (I'll sneak my camera in!)

No idea what is going to happen .. I could be back home on Wednesday evening, having the trial leads put in and sent away to try .. or I could be in there and having the permanent one in on the Friday .. or the following week .. apparently, it all depends on Mr. Roe's mood. :D Nice to know he's human!

I never imagined I would be spending my 50th birthday on an operating table :D but if it relieves just SOME of the leg pain, it will be well worth it.

They have said my back is in a bad way .. and because I've not been able to do any physio, is very weak. My physio is very keen on getting me back together again .. haha ! He's lovely .. and is arranging hydrotherapy sessions at Chesterfield Hospital, which is only about 10 miles from us. I'm really looking forward to that I can tell you!

Not planning much this weekend .. just taking it easy .. checking on my Mum, and reading my book ! (I've already read 69 on my I Pod since I got it!)

Mike is getting me an I Pad 2 for my birthday .. would be interested to know if any of you have one?

Keep smiley .. x x x

Hi Saffy,
Best wishes for your surgery, is it Mon for the first bit and when for the 2nd part. My Dr kept me in after this because my leads needed to be moved and it was snowing terribly. The first surgery where they put the leads and was done under sedation. The second bit was general anathesia.
If you're feeling a bit anxiuos ask for a premed and the anthesiast shld definitely give you something.
The Theatre staff are great and look after you so well, you've nothing to worry or get anxious over,
Best of luck with everything and if Hollie can update us great, I was ok to go online myself after my surgery with my laptop and dongle yokey!
You'll be fine and after a few weeks you wont know yourself.

Love & Gobless

Sinéad xxx :)

Hey Sinead, I'm in tomorrow for the first part and hopefully, Friday for the 2nd, depending on how Mr. Roe is feeling. :)

Taking it easy today as I've been dashing around to the vets with a poorly bunny and checking on Mum. Need some ME time now !

Well .. today's the day! Just enjoying a cup of tea before my ban. See you all on the other side .... x x x x and huge thanks to everyone for their love and support. Will keep you informed.

*Smiles*

Saff
 

By now you are wired and hopefully the electrician got it right:D. All seriousness aside, I so hope and pray that your Trial goes WELL and that you are able to proceed with the permanent implant Friday as planned!!

Prayin positive here,
Yep,
Mark56:grouphug: