A New Pair of Pants

Now that you have the medical terminology and definitions behind my conditions, it may be easier to understand some of what I go through.   I know that people only understand and perceive what they want too at times, which has made some relationships very difficult for me, even with medical personnel.  I think we all perceive pain and suffering differently.  I have been living with chronic pain now for over 8 years (when this all began).  My tolerance for pain may be a lot higher than someone who is acutely injured.  I live with pain on a day to day basis.  I have used pharmaceuticals very cautiously and non-pharmocological interventions in my desperate journey to defeat this horrible illness.  When I decided to write this blog, I had to think about my intent/purpose.  Well, I have a couple... the biggest one is to educate people on my rare conditions which are becoming more prevalent. As a Social Worker, and Master level Therapist, I am also qualified to discuss substance abuse iss

As time goes on, I am learning to adjust physically and emotionally to my conditions.  With one of those adjustments has come learning how to talk about it.  I have had to think deeply about how best to write this blog.  It seems as though going back chronologically through the series of events might be the most helpful to others reading it.  You have to understand, it has now been over 4 years, so some it has slipped my mind (either poor memory or as a protective instinct). Lets go back to happened...  The orthopedic surgeon damaged the nerves in the Cauda Equina.  I had an MRI a couple days prior to surgery to read "nerve roots free flowing in the thecal sac".  After surgery the MRI read "nerve roots clumped in the thecal sac representative of Arachnoiditis".   I had a Myelogram this year that clearly showed I had Cauda Equina Syndrome.  If that would have been noticed immediately (it is a medical emergency) the damage could have been reversed within the first 2