I absolutely understand the financial hardship. I don't know specifically how bad off your faily will be without your income, but I can guarantee that they would be even worse off without your income and having you bedridden with them having to care for you and paying for someone else to watch your kids. It really is sinful that our governments can't find a way to get aid quickly when people need it. In the US....when your SSI finally gets approved, you get a nice retroactive check to cover back to the original time of disability. Doesn't help much if you have already lost your house though You have my sympathies.....what a crappy situation to be in (which adds more stress which adds more muscle tightness and more compression, so more pain......ugh !)

I just wanted to add that in the US.......on the social security application you have to write (and will get an automatic rejection) if you are currently working. Basically, if you are killing yourself by continuing to work, they figure you must be able to work, so they don't have to help out. You might need to have already gotten paid help to oversee the daycare or have shut it down to even qualify. Check out the laws in your area.......and please find a good lawyer to help with this process.

I have a great lawyer, he is helping me with everything. We have decided to close the daycare effective January 31, 2008. It is going to be financially difficult, but I must do it. I am getting worse day by day. Nothing seems to help anymore.
I am seeing a rehab doctor in Feb. and having a vocational assessment the next day. I am hoping to see my surgeon in February as well to see if he has any ideas.
Does anyone know what the next step might be surgically if the rib resection doesn't work?

I didn't know that you already have a lawyer....that's awesome.

I know the end of the month will be difficult for you......it's not just the financial (although that is a huge factor, I understand), but working with kids is what you do.....it's hard to give up a vocation, not just a job. I do think, in the long run, that this is a good move to help with mgt of your TOS.

Regarding your vocational assessment.....you know how we all have good pain days and bad pain days ? You don't want to rest up, so that the day you will be better able to handle the day out. You want to do the laundry (lots of folding) and type a lot here so that they see what you look like after just trying to manage your household.

Do you take narcotics ? Make sure to mention that. Does driving make the pain worse ? Have someone drive you to that appointment and make sure they are aware that you can't drive, or can't drive if you've taken narcotics. Yes, I know a lot of people here do it.....and I know that we are probably safer driving when our pain is controlled than not controlled, but God forbid you are ever in an accident, I don't think the cops will understand as well

My situation is a little different....I'm in the US and it's WC. My WC has to pay for a cab to come and get me and take me to IME exams. My state requires a state voc assess in WC cases that go on over 6 months. When I asked the WC people for a ride to that (over 30 miles into Boston), my voc assess was canceled.

Good luck with all of this. They certainly don't make it easy on us.

and now, I'm all typed out. I might look into the voice recog thing