Went in to have the Medtronic guy tweak the temp - my hope being with this final tweak I'm being thoroughly blessed with a 98%-100% relief. Unbelievable after so many years. I seriously don't know what I'll do without this bondage!

Okay..back to the subject at hand. I am 50 years old and in relatively good health. I am a PC Technician by trade - as in if you break it, I fix it - physical, hardware/software/infrastructure techie (I love one of my tee's that says, "G E E K" On the front then a dictionary definition on the back...and Microsoft on the arm! Fits me to a TEE! (tee-hee)). Nice thing is I'm the senior guy and my boss has told me I have as many as 50 strappin guys at my disposal to help if I need assistance with moving ANYTHING. What a blessing to be so appreciated by one's employer...just another one of those "pour out the blessings on this fella" that the Father loves to do. Any-who, we're now shooting for August 17 for the implant since my response to the trial is so awesome. Meds? Yeah, I've been 'physically dependant' for many years as I gave up "just dealing with it" some years ago and decided to break down and have meds to help me live my life. Don't know how many are famliar with Nucenta but that's what she's had me on most recently. It's a next-gen cousin to the old Oxycodone molecule - slightly stronger in some people, not as strong in others. I am NOT on 24-hour control as I can deal with the pain at night when I'm at rest. I've been kinda determined not to do 24x7 as I knew that would make even more dependant.

So, doc says, "Oh, you'll be a little sore" to which I laughed and said, "Yeah, 'a little sore'...you doctors LOVE to down-play procedures" to which she and the receptionist started laughing. Sorry, I digressed there a bit.

Bottom line, I can't really get much of a feel from her on how disabled I'll be following this thing. What will I need for my general care?

As for what you said about work, Mark, I hear ya...problem is, sure, I can get a ride to work but once I'm there...I'm there. Very little opportunity to duck out and head back home. You make an excellent point of not trying to jump back in full time after just a week. I think I need to chat w/my boss and see about maybe taking 2 weeks off and see if she'll let me do some work remotely from home. I now have all the tools necessary to do anything remotely to any computer on the network...only thing I can handle from home, of course, would be a physical replace of a piece of hardware and I do have a backup that has the keys/access to the hardware lab. Sorry I'm really rambling here but writing it out is helping me think it through.

Thanks for sharing a Readers Digest version of your story...I also have a bit of a 'curse' in that I have ADD and find it very difficult to make it through an extremely lengthy thread...I pretty much read no books at all except the Bible and commentaries on such. School was extremely difficult for me especially since back then they had no idea ADD even existed much less how to teach a kid with it.

*whew* I went all over, there ... sorry!

More than anything, Mark, I appreciate your committment to say a prayer for me. God alone has gotten me to this part of my life...that's for sure. I should be dead or in jail...but He had a better plan for me.