Re: Not-so new member to the group-just changed email address...telling my story.

[Guest guest]

Hi, Michele, and welcome to active participation in the group.

Thank you for sharing your amazing story, though of course I'm sorry

that it is yours to tell. It was surely a lot of work to summarize

such a complex history. I'm sure you weren't looking for any awards,

but goodness, girl, I don't think I've come across a more frightening

scoliosis story. Certainly no one can blame you for being leery of

spine surgeons after all you have been through.

I always cringe when someone mentions that their surgeon was one of the

"top 3" or other small number "in the world". Top 3 WHAT?! I think

that when a surgeon promotes himself as superior to the vast majority

of his fellows, one of the anointed few at the pinnacle of the

orthopedic pantheon, it should be a signal to RUN, or at the very least

check his credentials with a fine-toothed comb. Was this surgeon in

Florida? Can you tell us who he is? Lots of "top" surgeons are

willing to attempt a scoliosis revision, but only a few specialize in

it and have a proven positive track record.

So this guy had already screwed you up once, then went ahead and tried

to undo the mess he'd made, performed MAJOR orthopedic spine surgery on

a patient who had just been exposed to chicken pox, learned you had

contracted encephalitis and failed to inform you or to treat you while

the infection was acute, then avoided you like the plague while you

were recuperating from the surgery. Enough to make a malpractice

attorney drool, not that I'm necessarily recommending a lawsuit. (In

fairness I should mention that flatback revision was still a fairly new

field in '90 and in '95, and even the best surgeons were just

developing the techniques.)

The last surgeon sounds like a beaut, too. I guess it's easier to

cover one's ass than it is to improve one's skill.

I'm really sorry all this has happened to you, and I'm sorry I don't

have the answers to your problems, except to say that to find the best

doctors for your current condition you will probably need to look

beyond Florida. There's a Dr. O'Brien in Florida who assisted in

's big revision. She thinks a lot of him as a revision surgeon,

but it sounds to me like you're not exactly a revision case any more.

It certainly wouldn't hurt to find out what he has to say, though.

Drs. Ondra and Koski, in Chicago, are a team of neurosurgeons who do

scoliosis revision surgery. Perhaps their neuro background would make

them worth a consult.

But the great thing about this group is the diversity and the

collective experience and knowledge. Hopefully others in the group

will have more helpful comments, but as long as I was approving your

post I wanted to acknowledge it and to say, "we're here for you!"

Sharon

shelgrl43 wrote:

Hello all! I have been a member of this group, but unfortunately

had

to change all my info (couldn't sign in) because doesn't seem

to have my information correct, even though I was getting your

postings. Anyways, this will be the first time I've posted, however,

with my story, as I usually just observe, as my story is rather long.

I had my first surgery (T7-L5)back in Dec 1981 when I was 15 for a

MILD thoracolumbar curvature (30 degrees) of the spine. I had two

Harrington rods with Luque wires, etc. The surgery technically should

have never been done in the first place, but my surgeon lead us to

believe this had to be done or I would be crippled over for the rest

of my later years. I was also told the rods could never break unless

you were to fall out of a tall building, however, in 1989 after

having my second daughter, I went to bend to put her into her carseat

and one of the rods snapped. Previous to this I couldn't stand to

hold my first or second daughter while standing because it was so

uncomfortable and it bent my back forward. I also noticed that my

back was starting to go forward and pretty much stay in that

position. I went back to my surgeon for xrays, which showed one of

the rods had broken near the top and one of the Luque wires at the

bottom. During the several years prior I was always told that my

fusion was solid, however, after having these xrays, he told me it

happened because there was a non-fusion at L4 and L5 along with a

flatback deformity.

In Sept 1990 (my second daughter's 1st birthday)I had a second

surgery to remove the Harrington-Luque hardware, an osteotomy, fusion

into the sacrum, Cotrel-Dubousett instrumentation. That surgery was

never performed correctly, as I noticed from day one I could still

not stand in the erect position. I couldn't stand up against a wall

and could not lay on my back, as my hips were now locked in a

position that didn't allow me to relax them when laying down. I was

told that this was happening because *I was still in pain and

adjusting*. It never got better and finally 10 mths later he admitted

I needed another surgery, that it wasn't done correctly. I asked if

he could guarantee that the next surgery would work and he wouldn't

even look me in the eye and said he didn't know. (mind you, he was

the top 3 in the world). I had severe flatback deformity and kyphosis

now with crankshaft phenomenon.

I searched all over Florida and went to several doctors to get their

help and all said they couldn't do anything for me, that I would have

to go back to him, that noone else would touch me because I was too

messed up internally and it was too complicated. My search went on

for 5 years to no avail. I could no longer stand for more than 5

minutes at a time, as I had to stand with my knees bent and I had

shrunk from 5'9" down to 5'2". I literally had to look at the ground

and I was in my 20's! I was made fun of wherever I went, I was

starting to pass out, as my heart and lungs could no longer take the

stress, the metals that were in the Cotrel hardware were making me

break out with sores on my back, I was now allergic to the sun, my

neck was now killing me as well (and knees), etc. I gave in and went

back to my surgeon for surgery. However, 2 wks before my 3rd surgery,

my daughters came down with chicken pox, of which I never had. I

informed the nurse of the situation and told them I had never had

chicken pox. She and the doctor assured me all would be ok and I

would still be having the surgery as scheduled. One of my daughter's

came down with chicken pox on Xmas day (2 days before surgery).

On Dec 27, 1995 I underwent a 3-stage (same day)

anterior/posterior/anterior total reconstructive surgery

(T5-sacrum)

to remove hardware, insert Moss-Miami instrumentation, along with

several osteotomies, thorocoplasty, 8 titanium cages through lumbar,

etc. However, during surgery my family was told there were

complications, that I was coming down with chicken pox during surgery

(trauma of the surgery made the pox come out, severe fever, etc) and

nothing more was mentioned or recorded from that point on. The

monitors went crazy and doctors were running into the operating room

that I was in, but noone said what had happened other than the

chicken pox, nor what complications could occur because of them while

undergoing surgery. The surgery lasted 14 hrs. When I woke up, I

could not open my eyes, I was unrecognizable, as my entire body was

huge. Mind you, I was a shrunken down 5'9" person with a 125 pd

frame. I could not see during my entire stay at the hospital, so I

could not do any therapy, nor would anyone, even my doctor, come to

treat me because of the chicken pox I was told.

When I got out in Jan 1996, I had pox all over my body, had lost 20

pds. and was a mess. When I tried to walk, I fell over into walls and

was seeing *stars*, etc. I WAS, however, standing straight. Went to a

neurologist and did EEG's which showed I now had a seizure disorder

as well. Went through years of treatment and medications, which only

made things worse and my seizures worse. I later found out this was

all caused because of the chicken pox during surgery, which ended up

with encephalitis and brain damage from that. This had all been kept

a secret to me at the hospital and the encephalitis could have been

treated at the hospital at the time. I lost my short term memory,

part of my long term, difficulty with speech, verbalizing, emotions,

problems with sight, severe pressure in brain and stiffness in brain

and neck. The medications only made my brain register everything the

wrong way and created more seizures. The seizure activity was

throughout the entire EEG's.

After this, I basically gave up on any doctors, as no spine doctor

would treat me and I just didn't care after this point on. However,

in June 2005 all that changed. Someone hit my car from behind,

totaling it. I later found out the hit caused my rods to shove into

my spinal cord at around T5 and was now compressing my spinal cord. I

started losing feeling in my right leg, lost feeling in the right

side of my torso, bowel/bladder incontinence, etc. Went in for a 4th

surgery with an entirely different doctor who would take my car

insurance and he removed my hardware, with the exception of the

titanium cages. My previous spine surgeon refused to see me, saying

they *didn't do car accidents* even though I was his patient, he

wouldn't see me so I had to start over. Other doctors wanted to do a

myelegram, but since I was fused they said they would have to go into

my cervical spine, however, this doctor said it couldn't be done

because it might reactivate the encephalitis, as it always lies

dormant. He also assured me everything would be fine, but during the

day of the surgery I was told that there was a good chance I wouldn't

make it because of the anesthesia with my seizure disorder and the

prior encephalitis, however, if I didn't have the surgery I would go

paralyzed. With the surgery I could become paralyzed or the problem

could get worse.

After the surgery (Nov 2005), my problems of course didn't go away,

they did get worse, but I was still alive and walking. I also had

hernia surgery at the same time from the accident. I ended up going

back to work 2 wks after surgery, as I am a single mom and couldn't

afford to stay out of work without pay, even though I was supposed to

be out for 2 mths.

Today, 3 years later I am JUST NOW getting ready to have a follow-up,

as after the surgery, they wouldn't treat me either, so I never got a

follow-up. They tried to say it was because they didn't take my

health insurance and that I would have to pay it myself. I am now

worse than 3 yrs ago, have lost all feeling in my lower torso, top of

right leg, lost feeling in half of my left leg, weakness in legs,

severe problems from the encephalitis in my head and neck,

bowel/bladder incontinence/restriction, organs do not work

correctly,

etc. I found a neurologist that found I have severe stenosis in my

cervical spine and lumbar spine and am now finally getting to see a

neurosurgeon this Thursday. I am told I will eventually go paralyzed

if this is left as well, as it is progressing. I lost my job this

year while on intermittent FMLA for my condition, am now back on

permanent disability and FINALLY have insurance as of this month. I

am told I will have to spend the rest of my life going in and out of

hospitals and I've been doing this now for over 28 years! I wish I

would have known what a REAL life was like, as so many out there tend

to take for granted. It would also be nice to know what it's like to

not be discriminated against (whether at work, doctors or people in

general) BECAUSE of your disabilities or go to a doctor that could

help you in some way. It has not been a life at all and never would I

EVER recommend spine surgery to anyone else UNLESS they were at risk

of being paralyzed. I have NO faith in these *ortho doctors* and

found out later just how crooked this practice is. Has anyone else

had this type of experience?

I'm truly sorry for the long-winded story, as this was the reason I

never shared it because it IS so complicated. I don't even know where

to start when I have to start over explaining my situation to a new

doctor or even which symptom is associated with what. When they ask

you to just tell them one area that you have a question on in your

body, which one do you choose when it is your entire body? Where do

you start? When it comes to pain issues, I seriously don't know what

level of pain I'm having, as I've always dealt with it for so many

years and really you just are so used to it that you no longer notice

it or think about it anymore, only the areas that no longer work. I

haven't ever been given meds FOR pain (in the hospital they never

worked anyways) or therapy and was always ignored because I was the

younger person. In Florida (FL stinks when it comes to healthcare),

they tend to only want to help the senior citizens with pain issues

or not deal with it. When I sought help and had emergencies at the

hospital, I have always been told they don't know what they are

looking at and that I'm too complicated, so there wasn't even any

place to go in that respect. You basically just give up after awhile

and just *live with it* like they tell you to do. Is there any hope

out there? Sorry for being so depressing.

I wish you all the best!

Michele

[Guest guest]

Ouch Michele, What an absolutely frightening story. It ranks right up

there with ie Bush who went through a series of tragic surgeries

and neglect. I really cringe with the injustice of some of the medical

profession but yet, I find myself admiring your tenacity as I do so

many other women on this site. I had surgery at 15 for scoliosis, with

a Harrington rod in place, relatively uneventful years until my 30's

then a slow progression down hill until I had a child in my 40's. Then

my lumbar collapsed, found the flatback and had revision in 06 with Dr.

Glazer in Boston. I spent the last two years trying to gain back all of

my mobility. I had a successful outcome. Depression however is a common

malady on this road and I wouldn't be surprised if you were

experiencing some of that. It is very hard not to feel sorry, hurt,

angry and regretful of all that we go through. I surely hope if you do

suffer from it that you have it treated. As for surgeons, there are few

qualified revision specialist and I am sure some will chime in with the

ones in your area. I wish you God speed, Michele and welcome aboard.

C

[Guest guest]

Michele,

Thank you for sharing your very difficult story. It is amazing that

you have managed to get through this medical nightmare at all. I too

am astonished that you had the ability to trust this surgeon the 2nd

and 3rd time....and he will now not treat you. He is probably trying

to put enough distance between you and a malpractice charge. What was

his name?

If you use our search engine you cant type in " florida " and perhaps

find some names that might be worth your consideration if you are

going to try to find a surgical intervention. I suspect that you are

probably going to have to work hard to find a doctor that has both

the skill to help and the guts to go into a very complicated case.

There are such doctors...but the chance of finding one who also has

the specialized experience you need right in your immediate

geographic area seems somewhat remote. Right now it would just be

helpful for you to find a doctor who would be willing to help you

clarify what your situation is exactly help you to look at all your

health informnation in a unified way. I think orthos, or neauros,

tend to look at just their piece of the puzzle.

Looking forward to your visit Thursday I would say that it would be

important for you to spend time writing down all the key points about

your health that this doctor will need to know, and also for you to

write your own specific questions about what your problems and

prognosis is. Being treated dismissively is not an option...you

deserve better. Lets hope this doctor has more compassion than your

last.

Also, I think it would be a good idea to bring some other adult to

the appointment with you if possible. Sometimes it can help to have

another set of ears hearing the technical information that my come

forth. It helps also because then you will have someone to talk over

the pros and cons of whatever the doctor suggests.

You have had a horrible run of doctoring. I don't know why you should

feel that any doctor is trustworthy, but I do think they are out

there. I hope that you are about to find that your situation is not

futile, but even if this doctor is not " the one " there are certainly

other highly specialized spine care centers in the US, just not in

Florida. I don't think I would rest until I had heard that there was

not more that could be safely done until I had heard it from one of

them.

I suspect that it is a requirement that a surgeons ego gives him/her

a high assessment of their skills...and thus when they actually are

in over their heads, there is a chance that they are saying there is

nothing more to be done....because there is nothing THEY can do. It

protects theri ego. Thats just one potential explanation....please

take it for what its worth. There is, of course, the possibility that

with your history it actually would be unsafe to consider more

surgery.

Please let us know how things go on Thursay. We will be thinking

about you.

Take Care, Cam

[Guest guest]

The post-doc fellow who assisted Dr Bridwell with my surgery was

planning to practice in Florida. I am not sure which city, but his

name is Geoffrey Cronen.

-- In , Sharon Green

<sharon.green18@...> wrote:

>

> Hi, Michele, and welcome to active participation in the group.

>

> Thank you for sharing your amazing story, though of course I'm

sorry

> that it is yours to tell. It was surely a lot of work to summarize

such

> a complex history. I'm sure you weren't looking for any awards,

but

> goodness, girl, I don't think I've come across a more frightening

> scoliosis story. Certainly no one can blame you for being leery of

> spine surgeons after all you have been through.

>

> I always cringe when someone mentions that their surgeon was one of

the

> " top 3 " or other small number " in the world " . Top 3 WHAT?! I

think

> that when a surgeon promotes himself as superior to the vast

majority of

> his fellows, one of the anointed few at the pinnacle of the

orthopedic

> pantheon, it should be a signal to RUN, or at the very least check

his

> credentials with a fine-toothed comb. Was this surgeon in

Florida? Can

> you tell us who he is? Lots of " top " surgeons are willing to

attempt a

> scoliosis revision, but only a few specialize in it and have a

proven

> positive track record.

>

> So this guy had already screwed you up once, then went ahead and

tried

> to undo the mess he'd made, performed MAJOR orthopedic spine

surgery on

> a patient who had just been exposed to chicken pox, learned you had

> contracted encephalitis and failed to inform you or to treat you

while

> the infection was acute, then avoided you like the plague while you

were

> recuperating from the surgery. Enough to make a malpractice

attorney

> drool, not that I'm necessarily recommending a lawsuit. (In

fairness I

> should mention that flatback revision was still a fairly new field

in

> '90 and in '95, and even the best surgeons were just developing the

> techniques.)

>

> The last surgeon sounds like a beaut, too. I guess it's easier to

cover

> one's ass than it is to improve one's skill.

>

> I'm really sorry all this has happened to you, and I'm sorry I

don't

> have the answers to your problems, except to say that to find the

best

> doctors for your current condition you will probably need to look

beyond

> Florida. There's a Dr. O'Brien in Florida who assisted in 's

big

> revision. She thinks a lot of him as a revision surgeon, but it

sounds

> to me like you're not exactly a revision case any more. It

certainly

> wouldn't hurt to find out what he has to say, though. Drs. Ondra

and

> Koski, in Chicago, are a team of neurosurgeons who do scoliosis

revision

> surgery. Perhaps their neuro background would make them worth a

consult.

>

> But the great thing about this group is the diversity and the

collective

> experience and knowledge. Hopefully others in the group will have

more

> helpful comments, but as long as I was approving your post I wanted

to

> acknowledge it and to say, " we're here for you! "

>

> Sharon

>

>

>

> shelgrl43 wrote:

> >

> > Hello all! I have been a member of this group, but unfortunately

had

> > to change all my info (couldn't sign in) because doesn't

seem

> > to have my information correct, even though I was getting your

> > postings. Anyways, this will be the first time I've posted,

however,

> > with my story, as I usually just observe, as my story is rather

long.

> >

> > I had my first surgery (T7-L5)back in Dec 1981 when I was 15 for a

> > MILD thoracolumbar curvature (30 degrees) of the spine. I had two

> > Harrington rods with Luque wires, etc. The surgery technically

should

> > have never been done in the first place, but my surgeon lead us to

> > believe this had to be done or I would be crippled over for the

rest

> > of my later years. I was also told the rods could never break

unless

> > you were to fall out of a tall building, however, in 1989 after

> > having my second daughter, I went to bend to put her into her

carseat

> > and one of the rods snapped. Previous to this I couldn't stand to

> > hold my first or second daughter while standing because it was so

> > uncomfortable and it bent my back forward. I also noticed that my

> > back was starting to go forward and pretty much stay in that

> > position. I went back to my surgeon for xrays, which showed one of

> > the rods had broken near the top and one of the Luque wires at the

> > bottom. During the several years prior I was always told that my

> > fusion was solid, however, after having these xrays, he told me it

> > happened because there was a non-fusion at L4 and L5 along with a

> > flatback deformity.

> >

> > In Sept 1990 (my second daughter's 1st birthday)I had a second

> > surgery to remove the Harrington-Luque hardware, an osteotomy,

fusion

> > into the sacrum, Cotrel-Dubousett instrumentation. That surgery

was

> > never performed correctly, as I noticed from day one I could still

> > not stand in the erect position. I couldn't stand up against a

wall

> > and could not lay on my back, as my hips were now locked in a

> > position that didn't allow me to relax them when laying down. I

was

> > told that this was happening because *I was still in pain and

> > adjusting*. It never got better and finally 10 mths later he

admitted

> > I needed another surgery, that it wasn't done correctly. I asked

if

> > he could guarantee that the next surgery would work and he

wouldn't

> > even look me in the eye and said he didn't know. (mind you, he was

> > the top 3 in the world). I had severe flatback deformity and

kyphosis

> > now with crankshaft phenomenon.

> >

> > I searched all over Florida and went to several doctors to get

their

> > help and all said they couldn't do anything for me, that I would

have

> > to go back to him, that noone else would touch me because I was

too

> > messed up internally and it was too complicated. My search went on

> > for 5 years to no avail. I could no longer stand for more than 5

> > minutes at a time, as I had to stand with my knees bent and I had

> > shrunk from 5'9 " down to 5'2 " . I literally had to look at the

ground

> > and I was in my 20's! I was made fun of wherever I went, I was

> > starting to pass out, as my heart and lungs could no longer take

the

> > stress, the metals that were in the Cotrel hardware were making me

> > break out with sores on my back, I was now allergic to the sun, my

> > neck was now killing me as well (and knees), etc. I gave in and

went

> > back to my surgeon for surgery. However, 2 wks before my 3rd

surgery,

> > my daughters came down with chicken pox, of which I never had. I

> > informed the nurse of the situation and told them I had never had

> > chicken pox. She and the doctor assured me all would be ok and I

> > would still be having the surgery as scheduled. One of my

daughter's

> > came down with chicken pox on Xmas day (2 days before surgery).

> >

> > On Dec 27, 1995 I underwent a 3-stage (same day)

> > anterior/posterior/anterior total reconstructive surgery (T5-

sacrum)

> > to remove hardware, insert Moss-Miami instrumentation, along with

> > several osteotomies, thorocoplasty, 8 titanium cages through

lumbar,

> > etc. However, during surgery my family was told there were

> > complications, that I was coming down with chicken pox during

surgery

> > (trauma of the surgery made the pox come out, severe fever, etc)

and

> > nothing more was mentioned or recorded from that point on. The

> > monitors went crazy and doctors were running into the operating

room

> > that I was in, but noone said what had happened other than the

> > chicken pox, nor what complications could occur because of them

while

> > undergoing surgery. The surgery lasted 14 hrs. When I woke up, I

> > could not open my eyes, I was unrecognizable, as my entire body

was

> > huge. Mind you, I was a shrunken down 5'9 " person with a 125 pd

> > frame. I could not see during my entire stay at the hospital, so I

> > could not do any therapy, nor would anyone, even my doctor, come

to

> > treat me because of the chicken pox I was told.

> >

> > When I got out in Jan 1996, I had pox all over my body, had lost

20

> > pds. and was a mess. When I tried to walk, I fell over into walls

and

> > was seeing *stars*, etc. I WAS, however, standing straight. Went

to a

> > neurologist and did EEG's which showed I now had a seizure

disorder

> > as well. Went through years of treatment and medications, which

only

> > made things worse and my seizures worse. I later found out this

was

> > all caused because of the chicken pox during surgery, which ended

up

> > with encephalitis and brain damage from that. This had all been

kept

> > a secret to me at the hospital and the encephalitis could have

been

> > treated at the hospital at the time. I lost my short term memory,

> > part of my long term, difficulty with speech, verbalizing,

emotions,

> > problems with sight, severe pressure in brain and stiffness in

brain

> > and neck. The medications only made my brain register everything

the

> > wrong way and created more seizures. The seizure activity was

> > throughout the entire EEG's.

> >

> > After this, I basically gave up on any doctors, as no spine doctor

> > would treat me and I just didn't care after this point on.

However,

> > in June 2005 all that changed. Someone hit my car from behind,

> > totaling it. I later found out the hit caused my rods to shove

into

> > my spinal cord at around T5 and was now compressing my spinal

cord. I

> > started losing feeling in my right leg, lost feeling in the right

> > side of my torso, bowel/bladder incontinence, etc. Went in for a

4th

> > surgery with an entirely different doctor who would take my car

> > insurance and he removed my hardware, with the exception of the

> > titanium cages. My previous spine surgeon refused to see me,

saying

> > they *didn't do car accidents* even though I was his patient, he

> > wouldn't see me so I had to start over. Other doctors wanted to

do a

> > myelegram, but since I was fused they said they would have to go

into

> > my cervical spine, however, this doctor said it couldn't be done

> > because it might reactivate the encephalitis, as it always lies

> > dormant. He also assured me everything would be fine, but during

the

> > day of the surgery I was told that there was a good chance I

wouldn't

> > make it because of the anesthesia with my seizure disorder and the

> > prior encephalitis, however, if I didn't have the surgery I would

go

> > paralyzed. With the surgery I could become paralyzed or the

problem

> > could get worse.

> >

> > After the surgery (Nov 2005), my problems of course didn't go

away,

> > they did get worse, but I was still alive and walking. I also had

> > hernia surgery at the same time from the accident. I ended up

going

> > back to work 2 wks after surgery, as I am a single mom and

couldn't

> > afford to stay out of work without pay, even though I was

supposed to

> > be out for 2 mths.

> >

> > Today, 3 years later I am JUST NOW getting ready to have a follow-

up,

> > as after the surgery, they wouldn't treat me either, so I never

got a

> > follow-up. They tried to say it was because they didn't take my

> > health insurance and that I would have to pay it myself. I am now

> > worse than 3 yrs ago, have lost all feeling in my lower torso,

top of

> > right leg, lost feeling in half of my left leg, weakness in legs,

> > severe problems from the encephalitis in my head and neck,

> > bowel/bladder incontinence/restriction, organs do not work

correctly,

> > etc. I found a neurologist that found I have severe stenosis in my

> > cervical spine and lumbar spine and am now finally getting to see

a

> > neurosurgeon this Thursday. I am told I will eventually go

paralyzed

> > if this is left as well, as it is progressing. I lost my job this

> > year while on intermittent FMLA for my condition, am now back on

> > permanent disability and FINALLY have insurance as of this month.

I

> > am told I will have to spend the rest of my life going in and out

of

> > hospitals and I've been doing this now for over 28 years! I wish I

> > would have known what a REAL life was like, as so many out there

tend

> > to take for granted. It would also be nice to know what it's like

to

> > not be discriminated against (whether at work, doctors or people

in

> > general) BECAUSE of your disabilities or go to a doctor that could

> > help you in some way. It has not been a life at all and never

would I

> > EVER recommend spine surgery to anyone else UNLESS they were at

risk

> > of being paralyzed. I have NO faith in these *ortho doctors* and

> > found out later just how crooked this practice is. Has anyone else

> > had this type of experience?

> >

> > I'm truly sorry for the long-winded story, as this was the reason

I

> > never shared it because it IS so complicated. I don't even know

where

> > to start when I have to start over explaining my situation to a

new

> > doctor or even which symptom is associated with what. When they

ask

> > you to just tell them one area that you have a question on in your

> > body, which one do you choose when it is your entire body? Where

do

> > you start? When it comes to pain issues, I seriously don't know

what

> > level of pain I'm having, as I've always dealt with it for so many

> > years and really you just are so used to it that you no longer

notice

> > it or think about it anymore, only the areas that no longer work.

I

> > haven't ever been given meds FOR pain (in the hospital they never

> > worked anyways) or therapy and was always ignored because I was

the

> > younger person. In Florida (FL stinks when it comes to

healthcare),

> > they tend to only want to help the senior citizens with pain

issues

> > or not deal with it. When I sought help and had emergencies at the

> > hospital, I have always been told they don't know what they are

> > looking at and that I'm too complicated, so there wasn't even any

> > place to go in that respect. You basically just give up after

awhile

> > and just *live with it* like they tell you to do. Is there any

hope

> > out there? Sorry for being so depressing.

> >

> > I wish you all the best!

> >

> > Michele

> >

> >

>