Hooray for Saffy!!!
 

And allof the others too!:grouphug::circlelove::yahoo::You-Rock::Bow::winner_first_h4h:

Yup,
Mark56:grouphug:

I need a rant .. and I dont want to rant on my little SCS bit, even though it is SCS related ... but perhaps this could be a place where we can have a rant about random things.

My Doctor prescribed me Bu Trans Patches last Tuesday .. saying they were to be replaced every three days.

Got to the chemist and they only had two patches in stock but promised the further two at some point during the week.

I put the first patch on on the Tuesday, and together with Oramorph, kept my pain at an ok level. Sadly, the patch came off after my Thursday morning shower, so I put the other one on.

I got a missed call from the chemist on Friday and rang Saturday morning to return their call. No answer. Now they have two branches of Manor Pharmacy in Matlock, so I called their other branch and unfortunately they can't access the other branch's computer system. So I explained my situation ... but they were unable to give me the further two patches as they are controlled drugs.

The Pharmasict came on and said .. "Oh no, these are 7 day patches" .. and I looked at the little patch holder and sure enough it said .. replace after 7 days .. then I looked at the typed prescribed dose and it said change after 3 days ..

CONFUSED?!

I'd taken the patch off asuming that the other two would be delivered on the Saturday morning ... andi t was coming off from showering.

Now it's Monday .. I get a call from the original pharmacy saying that they are seven day patches .. so I asked why the Doctor had put three day .. there has been some mix up .. I think its the chemist who gave me the wrong patches to be honest.

The Doctor is calling me tomorrow anyway .. but I'm not happy as I'm feeling emotional, in pain and grumpy.

I've had to go back to the Tramadol, and topped up with 20mg Diazepam today because of back spasms .. plus pain is going down both legs now instead of just the one. (But the Doctor thinks it's because of the three 500 miles journeys I have driven in less than 6 weeks and that it should settle down)

Rant over. Patches due tomorrow.

Rant Two: I phoned my Neuro Surgeon's secretary today and told her that I was extremely sorry for bothering her but that Mr. Roe had said he would put me on one of his free theatre lists for October and when would I hear something as because of Mike having to have time off for his Dad's death and burial, he has things to arrange at work.

Still waiting to hear!

Should I call back tomorrow .. or wait a few days?

BuTrans patches
 

Hi Karen,

I guess we all need a rant every now and then it keeps us sane and this is a good a place as any. I've used those patches and they are definitely 7 day patches unless they've changed recently. I was very allergic to them, they irritated my skin so much that the drug burned my skin, what made it worse was the fact that they were on for 7 days, at least with the Matrifen patches they are every 3 days, which is less likely to cause irritation, this patch is much smaller too than the BuTrans. I'd say that's where they're getting mixed up too. I've no problem with the Matrifen patches except that I came out in a rash the first day I used them but I stuck with it and they're fine.
You can also get this plaster type stuff to put over them so they don't fall off in the shower, I got a small roll of it for .20 cents. I'll route out the name of it you want me to. It's the very same as the plaster they use after surgery. It's hard to keep them on for for a few days without falling off in the shower.

I'd ring the Secretary again tomorrow or Wed, the one that shouts the loudest gets heard the quickest! I seriously doubt they'll care though! It's awful like that and you just want a date so Mike can arrange time off, it sure does suck, my consultant put me off so many times, he kept telling me next week but he couldn't fit me in. I had a rant over that here too!

I'm scheduled for Fri 28 Oct for more revision surgery finally, I thought it would never come around. I hope he can actually get me some relief this time.

Night night hun and take care,

Sinéad xxx:hug:

Ranting makes a squeaky wheel
 

and, as they say.... sometimes the squeaky wheel gets the grease. So.... I would hazard a call... not one every minute mind you:eek:, but a call to see to the situation. No harm in that.... I did it....

Also, one might want to get ahold of some of those hyper strong bandage products or a bit of waterproof tape and secure the patch before a shower... especially if the thing has to last seven days. Either that or avoid showering for seven days, go to the chemist to let them know what that is like [EEeeeewwwww, oh and avoid the hair combing, the deodorant, all of the usually toiletry things, maybe even get a couple of those real looking like earthworm things and put some in your hair and hang one out of your mouth. Chemist might take notice.... or pass out :eek:], then go home, shower enjoyably and apply the next patch.

Multiple ways to overcome a problem, there usually are.... sorta like skinning a cat, or a chemist as they say in some places.....

Yup,
Home, home on the range [cowboys didn't bathe very often either in the
19th century wild west where I live,
Mark56 [dang, there aren't any cowboy smilies]

Hullo my little fruitbats!

Well .. the patches have gone as they caused blistering of the skin ... I am now on Tramadol and Paracetamol again .. with Oramorph for breakthrough pain. I'm beginning to realise that medication that allows you to drive, be awake, be aware, talk sensibly ... does hardly anything for the pain. At night I can dose myself up and the pain is topped by freaky dreams and interrupted sleep. I give in. I have worked out a plan !!

Tramadol and Paracetamol before I get out of bed .. makes me feel smiley and makes me feel I can cope with the pain .. carry this on every 4 - 6 hours till the afternoon when I add 10ml of Oramorph and have a sleep and rest ... then carry on with the Tramadol and Paracetamol till bed time ... then add 60ml Amitryptilline aswell as the Tramadol/Paracetamol and add 10ml Oramorph ... when waking in the night, take 5ml Oramorph whenever I wake up.

Had my Pre Op last Thursday and saw surgeon who explained the laminectomy and paddle leads and said .. "Now I will send you for a pre op" ...

Yayy .. already done ... I really think communication is lacking there.

Am now awaiting news of when I go into Hospital again.

Am still smili

Hi Karen,

I'm so happy you've finally got the plan right for your meds, those patches totally burned my skin too.

Later alligator

Sinéad xxxx

Progress!
 

So glad they are moving you right along finally!
Seems like whenever I had something important like this coming up, I'd always get pushed up til after the new year.
Hopefully not in your case!

GITTER DONE!! :cool:

Will Wonders Never Cease?
 

You've got it? Good to go? A date? And the pre-Op was actually done?

Well......

What're you waitin for??? As Rae writes, let's gitter DONE..... We're burnin daylight!!

This is exciting... you probably couldn't tell....... :Deliberate: [I always wanted to use that one].
Mark56:D:D:D:D:D

No date .. in fact the new surgeon hadn't even been told I'd had a pre op that morning .. he was going to send me for one.

I'm going to call them next week as it's been a week since the pre op and I would have thought I would have heard something.

Baseball Bat
 

Do you have baseball bats over there? I'm about to suborn baseball batitis, meaning go in like a cranky lady and shake a bat around to catch attention... but then you would need a bondsman to bail you out of jail... so I guess that won't work. How about we do like the 60s college kids and arrange a sit in? Patients on Strike, after all, professional athletes go on strike to get higher pay..... as if they did not have enough already........

I just wanna rant! Can't rant? Get a can of Mark's Rant Alot.... spray it in the face of whomever is causing you grief anesthetizing them for a moment so you can RANT and let in all hang out right there without them taking one more telephone call. That's the spirit. We need cans of Rant Alot for all of us. Rae, do you have any in your left pocket? My navel is all empty......

:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:
Mark56:Soapbox::Soapbox::Soapbox::Soapbox:

Well, SHUCKS!
I had a ton of canned rant, but I used it all last night on my teenage sons

BUT! Here's the next best canned artillary! http://dl9.glitter-graphics.net/pub/...bnqs1clhvr.jpg

SPAMINATE THE LOT OF THEM!! :eek:

Wow
 

Severe coolness, way severe coolness!!!!

Spaminating spamination spaminable spam targets.
Yup,
Mark56:grouphug:

Spam, spam, spam, spam, spam spam ,spam spam ....

Ah! Don't EVEN get me started on Monty Python! :D

She's a witch - may we BURRRRN HER! :Crazy 2:

ARRRRTHURRR

Well how about the Wicked Witch of the West
 

You know from what??? 1933 OZ? Bucket of water, gone.........

Yeah,
Mark56:eek:

Monty Python movie
 

a crazy Monty Python movie may be something to look for this weekend. :D Silliness and flying flesh eating rabbits and shrubbery.

I AGREE with Vivster!
We could ALL use a good dose of Monty Python!
http://dl8.glitter-graphics.net/pub/...jhefs2lz2t.gif RUN AWAYYY!

http://dl7.glitter-graphics.net/pub/...kzkrqubqvf.jpg Killer RABBIT on the Loose :eek:

Big Smile
 

These words are for the 10 character threshold:

Then


: o)

Yup,
Mark56:grouphug:

Hello my little fruitbats!

Well, a bad night last night, but solidering on, like we all do. I've found that sleeping in the spare room with lots of pillows under me until I get comfy, helps me get to sleep. My back, rather than my leg has been awful this last couple of days .. from waist from to tail bone, just like I've been kicked by that proverbial donkey. (Mary has a lot to answer for, she should have got a good tempered one at this time of year!)

I have a provisional date for my laminectomy and new lead .. 18th January. So, not long to wait. Not heard officially, but I did call the Neuro Unit and they say they have me down on that date.

JOY !

Hope you are all ok and looking forward to spending the holiday season with friends and loved ones.

5th Jan....
 

Hi Karen,

That's great news to finally have a date, I know this might seem like a stupid question but what exactly are they gonna do for you.
I haven't been on much lately and I feel like I'm missing out.

Not doing so good myself, I think I might have over done the walking last week and I still have so much Christmas shopping to do but that's gonna be tough when I can't even stand!

Love to all

Néadi xxx

For Karen and Néadi
 

Hey you two! Here is a post from one deeply concerned friend who hopes and prays that all will be well with you.

Prayin,
Mark56:grouphug:

Hurray for a date! Seems like there are a lot of dates scheduled for January 2012.
With the holidays upon us time will go faster than you think.
I hope you can find some comfort in the days ahead.
Wishing you a 2012 that bring relief from pain and worry.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Sandy Kay

Gnashing of teeth. Husband said this morning, and quite rightly. Well, looks like it won't be 1st of feb as they haven't even sent you for a pre op.

Shoot me now. Lol

What on earth!!
 

What is the DEAL with these people! :eek:
Why would they keep putting you off like this.
BLAST these people!! http://dl5.glitter-graphics.net/pub/...cyx9mmvc9s.gif

Ok, time to gather up the SCS lynch mob....
We'll set them straight by golly :mad:

I am applying for my passport
 

Do you reckon TIA would confiscate 50 feet of nylon rope from my bag? No sharp edges, but real effective.

Moi

And as some backup, I'll bring 6 horse muzzles, 2 rolls of electrical tape, my ex-mother in law (she has some very good intimidation tactics) and a good pair of very pointy cowboy boots....
Surely this wouldn't trip the airline's suspicions?

Yeah not one bit
 

Come to think of it I have a pair of said boots.... a real effective kick $#% approach Rae, thanks for reminding me.

Mark56,

Now where were we, oh, yeah heading east to the isles to raise a ruckus, a righteous ruckus.:mf_argue::mf_swordfight::Demonstration::So apbox::Soapbox::Soapbox::Soapbox::Soapbox::Soapbox ::Soapbox:

Haha .. Aye, it's so frustrating. Surgeon should be back next week so hopefully the pencilled in bit will be INKED IN .. Who knows.

.... And .... Still waiting.

Passports
 

Ya know, dear Saf, had we put in out applications for passports on the day you first brought this up........... we would have them by now, and it takes a LONG time [you know for terrorism abatement reasons we are told] for US citizens to obtain a passport to break free from the protection of our Homeland Security [read this "jail"] so we may travel elsewhere. Kinda like those wonderful TIA things which went into effect to prevent US citizens from wreaking terrorism on our own country.....

If Doc Smith were here posting he would write something like "time..... oh the time we waste."

Prayin for you Saffy, to achieve an eyeball to eyeball with your caregivers,
Mark56:hug:

Letter with provisional day 1st feb arrived today. Got to be at the Admissions Ward at 10.30 .. Scared now.

What will they do if this fails? Will they take everything out and what happens to the laminectomy site if they do take the paddle leads out??

Amazing!
 

You finally have a date! of course we feel nervous as the date approaches.
Try not to think in terms of 'what ifs' and failures, Karen. This brings on much more anxiety and it's easy to visualize this not working out. Believe me I'm one to know!
The laminectomy seems to prove more secure than the percutaneous.
Please try to change the 'what ifs' into things like: what if this works! What if I can get my quality of life back! What if my depression improves because of this..... I'm certainly not trying to pack you full of false hope or anything, but if we actually picture this thing succeeding and put all of our Faith together, you can go into this feeling much more confident.

Even 'if' you don't feel very much improvement right away, remember to give it time so the surgical pain can go away.
I know you are pinning your hope on this, and so are we! When they plug you in for the first time, be very precise, no matter how long it takes. This time around you know where you DON'T want the stimulation.

One thing I do when negative thoughts start up, I immediately take my mind to a place of serenity, or a good memory, or even something funny - like the surgeon wearing his nickers over his head :p

We're all here for you. You can picture all of us sitting in the waiting room
because that's the next best thing to what we do here. You know we would be if we could!

Keepin the Faith,
Rae
:grouphug:

Xxxxxxxx how lovely you all are

It doesn't help that one of my friends on Facebook keeps saying .. They keep putting it off, I think someone up there is trying to tell you you shouldn't have it.

Oh my LORD! This sounds like something we should put on the "Lets tell them what NOT to say" thread!

Good Grief!
:Soapbox:

Hello there
 

Hi Karen,
It's been a long time since we spoke/texted. I'm delighted you got a date and please God it won't change. I think you are worrying unnescerarily about things you shouldn't have to worry about, the Doctors and nurses look after you so well that you won't have to worry about anything, thankfully they dont expect us to walk back our beds.
I think Rae is right hun, you shouldn't worry about what ifs, it's time to think lobpositvely, this will work and why shouldnt it.your Dr isqualified could probably odo these in his sleep.
You'll be fine the nurses especially are great and they have a good way of moving you from bed to bed and you don't even feel it.

I'm sure you'll let us know how things went when you can and don't rush yourself getting better.

Lots of love and God and get better.

Sinéad xxxx:grouphug::grouphug::hug::hug:

Saffy Karen
 

You go and you wonder about tryin
because you have known so much pain
if not for us here you'd be cryin
for someone out there has no brain

Encouragement comes through these threads writ
with love and affection for you
and even though this one's a half wit
I pray for you constantly too

So let loose the fears, they go flyin
along out the window with pain
let go, and do not be a tryin
to hold fears which energy drain

Just log on and tell those who doubt you
to bugger up and get on with life
you so much of good all along through
these times you just don't need their strife

So figurin how to respond then
to someone who negatively speaks
just copy these words for their readin
and they can keep them for e'er no light leaks.


You know, I have been wondering HOW to respond to the nay sayers.... and Karen, you blessed soul, it just came flooding onto your thread. I hope this is OK. I among all of these who embrace you in forum wide embraces of love, send my prayers that all will be well with you.

AND, feel welcome to give a limerick to someone, or anyone who tries to dampen your hope. Hope carries us forward through the dark times, the times of hard dealing with pain and only we who here dwell have a fix on it.

Hoping and Praying for you, you STRONG BEAUTIFUL SOUL,
Mark56:grouphug:

Right folks .. That's it .. This time next week I will have my new lead. I go in at 10.30 on wednesday 1st February for a week to ten days.

For keeping me going .. My thanks and love to all of you!!

Well .. here we go again! This time tomorrow I will be getting my back sorted for the Hospital.

More nervous this time .. I think perhaps because people keep asking if I'm sure I want to go through with it? No, I'm not sure, but if I don't I'll always wonder .. so come what may, fate has delivered me to this point in time and yes, I could turn back .. but I believe in going forward.

Op will probably be in the afternoon. Will try and keep in touch via Sinead as I have her text so will let her know how things are going.

My love to you all .. I feel you all there for me .. and I know your care is covering me like a big blanket.

Thank you xxx