Thank you so much Mark for letting me know about the "Log Roll" I know exactly what your talking about and that will help a lot! Yes, I LOVE to dance and I have danced all of my life until the pain hit me at the age of 20. I was heartbroken to say the least. However, I have high hopes that all will go well for me during the trial run I think it's fantastic that you took classes with your wife so you could enjoy dancing with her. Hearing that pulls at my heart strings Mark bravo to you!!!

I was able to talk to my rep today and found out that he is not from Medtronic but St. Jude..lol...I had thought this whole time that I would be dealing with Medtronic because that is the information packet that my doctor gave me at the time to read up on the subject of SCS. So come to find out the only reason she gave me the Medtronic information packet was because that was all she had at the time. So if all goes well with the trail I will have a ANS EON mini device for permanent implant. We also decided that the device will be implant at my right hip/fanny area..lol since that would be the best choice for me. I was able to see and touch the trial unit and I was also able to see and touch the permanent unit that I will get if the trial is a success. My rep is soooo very nice and has made me feel like I am his top priority. I feel like I am in very good hands with this gentleman and I couldn't be happier. He was able to answer all of my questions and he made it very clear that he is here for me whenever I need him. He told me point blank that during trial or permanent implant that if I needed anything or needed to be reprogrammed that he would meet me anywhere at any time of my choosing. I was shocked with how dedicated he is to helping me. It just made me feel so good because you guys know how hard it is to find good doctors in the pain management field that give us a hard time and are not on our side. So it was really very nice to find another individual like my doctor that actually cares about my well being.

I'll keep you guys posted as we get closer to the trial date Jan 25th. I go in at 1:30 to start my vitals and prep for the procedure and should have the procedure start at 2pm. I'm excited and nervous all at once...eek!

Hope everyone has a wonderful evening!

Hugs,
Treca

Also, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR KEEPING ME IN YOUR PRAYERS!! IT MEANS SO MUCH TO ME

hello my dear and good luck with your trial and per unit! I am currently on my 3rd(YES) unit.
1. keep incision clean and DRY, remember the leads go into your epidural space and infection there is NOT GOOD
2. Do not raise your arms above your shoulders, so go through the house and move things you will have to use in the next 6-12 weeks down.
3. No bend, twist. If something falls on the floor, unless you have one of Rraes reachers it stays there until later.
4. Weight limits, some docs will give you a specific limit, mine was 10lbs (about a gallon of milk)
5. To was my hair with all of the above restrictions, I sat on a stool in the tub, wraped an old shower curtain around me an someone would wash my hair with the shower hose (purchase at any store)
6. If you can find out what your doc wants for a bandage over your incisions.
7. Reuseable ice pacs helps the incisional pain. Can make your own need about 3 ziploc bags, put aboyt a dozen large ice cubes into a bag, pour rubbing alcohol about 1 cup over ice, then zip it shut, zip this bag into the next one and zip the 2 into the 3rd, it will eventually leak ,but then pretty cheap to make.
8, get your pain meds filled and stay ahead of the pain (take the darn pills routinely) for the first 3-4 days, set your alarm. If you dont hurt as much you will move more= less chance of pnemonia
9. Now as a personal thing, I flatly refuse to allow them to staple me. I have found sutures to be much more comfortable then all those sharp pointy ends poking at (in) me
z

Hi Treca-

EVERYTHING Pooh wrote was clearly on point, especially from her medical background [and that knowledge adds a lot from her perspective]. Especially bear #1 in mind. From reading my thread, you know I wound up with an ugly infection at one of the suture points, and you DO NOT want infection, either from the risk it poses or the definite delay in your timing for permanent implant if it turns out you all agree you are the right candidate for implant after trial.

Additionally, it is kinda strange how we have a parallel path on the switch up deal. I was originally given information on ANS by St Judes, studied the material, talked to the patient ambassadors, and on the day of trial was greeted by my Boston Sci rep. Go figure.....

Prayin,
Mark56

Thank you pooh and Mark!

After talking with my rep we went over the restrictions that I would have and like you pooh I can not lift anything heavier then a gallon of milk

I'll make sure to ask about the staples and what kind of bandages they will use pooh. Does it make a difference? Or is one better then the other? I do know they will be giving me extra tape and stuff when I go home just in case anything comes loose.

Thats a very good idea about how to wash my hair!I'll make sure I'll get shower hose thing. I also have dry shampoo in hand just in case I'm feeling to bad to sit that long to have my hubby wash my hair..that stuff is a life saver! I've made sure that my meds are all filled and ready. I have one that I'll be getting after procedure but it's just for sleep and my husband will pick that up after he gets me tucked in bed..lol I've been writing down all the stuff you guys have suggested so I can go this weekend and pick it all up. So far I have the following:

A hand grabber thingy~ Thanks Rrea
body pillow~ Thank you Mark for reminding me about these!
cane
ice packs~ per pooh's instructions! GREAT idea!


Mark~ When I finally met my rep and I asked him how long he had worked for Medtronic and how long he had been doing his job. That's when he let me know "Uh, I don't work for Medtronic I'm St. Jude." My first thought was Oh good grief I'm reliving Marks' story...lol I just hope that when the time comes they don't do another switcheroo on me!

I hope everyone has a wonderful morning. I know most of us aren't morning people so instead of morning I hope everyone has a wonderful DAY! LOL

Hugs,
Treca

Hi, I am going in Feb. 8th for a scs trial. I have crps in my hand. I'm reading as much as possible. Scared yet excited at the same time. I have dogs that I show , train, breed etc. I want to be able to get back to running in agility again and showing them again. I found your posts very helpful!

Patty

Hey Patty!
I'm scared and nervous too! I've been reading like crazy on the forum as well and I've been able to find tons of information and everyone is so very helpful! I think it's fantastic you show, train , and breed dogs. I've always found that stuff very interesting. It's actually the way I found out that I wanted a West Highland White Terrier through watching dog shows and lots of episodes on animal planet and the discovery channel. I did lots of research before hand and we got one 10 years ago and she is still even after all this time a very active and happy go lucky dog. She is our first baby :-)


I wish you the best of luck in your trial and hopefully you can get back to your training and agility running and I can get back to my dancing!!

Treca

Not unusual at all to feel some trepidation and downright fear when it comes to mounting hardware inside you which interacts with your nervous system. For this reason, I put off consideration of the prospect of implant for a while, and at my wife's prodding due to her research finally asked my Physiatrist about the product, process, advantages, disadvantages, success statistics and all of that. He replied that his appraisal of my was I fit his perception of THE right candidate if anyone ever did in his practice, and he had numerous patients previous to me who had taken hold of implant as a viable pain controller.

My fear gave way to the possibility and hope of life without pain meds which along with the pain had pretty much restricted my life to bed far too long. I felt imprisoned. I wanted out. SCS was the ticket IF the trial worked, so in May 2010 we did the trial and finally the remaining permanent implant of my Boston Scientific unit on June 30. I was "activated and programmed" mid- July, and was SO happy to have back the refreshing masking of the overwhelming pain signals through my stim unit. I will admit when it came time for them to pull out my trial leads I feared return to pain. It returned full force and remained with me until the mid-July restoration of control over pain through my permanent unit. I have been thrilled with this blessing ever since and have withdrawn from all pain meds.

Hear is heaps of hope your fear melts away as did mine!

Mark56

Treca, I am very excited for you! As you can see, you'll have PLENTY of support and encouragement along the way!

Pooh, thank you for that great idea for a home made ice pack! I never knew that! Awesome!

Patty! Welcome! I love dogs too (Boxers!)..... and if memory serves me correctly, I think Jackie also has a West Highland White Terrier, Treca. Jackie is from Ireland and she is such a wonderful part of this forum. We're all like family here.

Hugs all around!
I have a feeling this is going to be a very good year for many of us!
Rae

Well guys I've got everything on my list that I needed and that was recommended. I'll be doing the "girlie" things today because who the heck knows how I'll feel afterwards... So doing the nails and getting my roots done!! lol. I've stocked up on tons of books that I've been avoiding to read like the plaque even though it's killed me not to read them I wanted to make sure I had a good stack to read during my recovery. I'm a very fast reader and can read a book a day if I want to if I'm really bored or if the book grabs me and of course if I actually have the TIME and the pain doesn't grab in a choke hold..;-)

I'm nervous and REALLY excited and just wish the days would hurry up and get here already!! I know it's a little optimistic of me but, I've read everyones post that have had this done and I want that void/absence of feeling or the nice tingle that replaces that pain so much I can almost feel it myself. I'm all a flutter by the prospect of that!!

I just want to say thank you to everyone that has answered my questions and that has made me feel so welcome on this forum. I feel really comfortable here and it is my intention to stay on and talk about my journey since there doesn't seem to be to many post about just the Cervical SCS trial/permamant implant. Does everyone think that would be OK if I start my own thread about my journey with this? Let me know your thoughts.


Ok, off to do the "girlie" stuff while I can. I'll be in touch as much as I can since time will be spent getting ready for Tuesday!!! Can't hardly wait!!


Lots of 's
Treca

Oh how WONDERFUL it would be for you to start a thread documenting your journey!
I wish more people would do this!! I've seen so many come and go and I am ever so grateful to the ones who do stick around for the sake of newcomers with questions and apprehensions!

We remember how 'nervous' we were and for newcomers, it's SO important to get this support. Not only that, but as most of us have found out, the SCS isn't a 'onetime fix'...... it's a 'commitment' which requires maintenance on a regular basis.....and yes, problems can and do arise.

Thank you Treca! Once in a while, a 'one in a million' happens upon this forum....and YOU are it!!
You have officially been locked in to 'Hotel California' ......"you can check in any time you like, but you can NEVER leeeeeave"........ quoting the haunting melody from the Eagles.....