What's new?

It has been quite some time since I updated everyone on my health. The good news is that I haven't experienced a major sciatic attack in at least a couple of years. I do occasionally get some weakness in my big toe and a dull ache in my right hip, but they do go away (knock on wood!) The bad news is that I experienced something that was just as bad as a sciatic attack last year.

Here's my story...

In late April 2000, I woke up one morning and my back was automatically arched backward. I couldn't straighten my back at all. I had never experienced anything like this before. Sitting on the sofa helped a bit. However, after I decided to lie in bed over a heating pad for thirty minutes, I was able to sit and stand up straight, and everything seemed back to normal. Little did I know that this was the beginning of something serious.

A couple of days later, I woke up and my back really hurt. Nonetheless, I went to work, but was in some pain. I decided to rest my back once again over a heating pad after my twelve-hour shift at work.

The day I will never forget

On May 1st, 2000, I woke up, went to the bathroom, and noticed while sitting on the toilet seat (sorry about this part, but it's important) that my left foot fell asleep. I thought that if I put my foot down flat on the floor, that the numbness would go away. I did so, but the numbness never did until I was lying down. So, I missed work that day.

The numbness got worse, to the point where lying down would not make it go away. The numbness, within the next twenty-four hours, affected the mobility of all my toes (I couldn't wiggle them), the outer part of my left foot, and my entire left leg from the hip down. I was extremely scared.

Help!

I went to the chiropractor around the corner from where I lived. She tried to manipulate my spine, but it didn't help. Walking just got more difficult by the hour.

I was still covered by my health plan at work. (I had submitted my resignation letter before all this had happened and accepted a job down in Rochester, MN.) I called for an ambulance. At this point, practically any lying or sitting position made my leg numbness worse, except when lying on my left side, and placing my right leg over my left. So, I was lifted into the ambulance and was admitted to the emergency area of the hospital.

I had a number of activities occurring simultaneously when I got to the hospital. I had a blood pressure monitor on my left arm inflating and deflating every ten minutes. I had an IV stuck in a vein in my left hand after I had two tubes of blood taken out of me. The sugar level in my blood was fine. I was finally wheeled to the x-ray room where I had snapshots of my spine taken.

After all of this, it turns out that the bulging disc that had caused my sciatic pain down my right leg had shifted to the left. The doctor also said that there was another disc that was pinching my nerves. As a result, my left leg was completely numb. He prescribed Tylenol 3 with codeine (two tablets every four hours) and Naproxen (anti-inflammatory). He suggested that I use a cane to help me with my balance and walk, so I got a light silver one with a black sponge grip.

The numbness was a nuisance. Not only did it affect my balance and my ability to walk, but I felt like I had to go to the bathroom frequently, even though I didn't. The doctor basically told me to take it easy, but to try and walk around the apartment as must as I could.

Work

When I got home, I called my production manager at work (ISM) and gave him the update on my health. He called me back the following day and advised that I had to attend an exit interview in person. He told me that "it would only take five minutes to come into work" to sign some forms. I had to emphasize that I had a hard time walking from the bedroom to the bathroom (approximately ten feet away), let alone trying to get to work. He decided to get one of the shift managers to come to my apartment, collect my access card to the Air Canada building, and have me sign all the necessary papers. My exit interview was conducted over the phone. I also told the shift manager who visited me that I didn't know where my photo ID was, but that I'd look for it when I wasn't in so much pain.

So, I spent my final days at ISM at home. I didn't have the chance to say goodbye to anyone. The shift manager who came to my apartment gave me a goodbye/good luck card from everyone at work and a gift certificate to a local restaurant. It was a very nice gesture. Two good friends/co-workers also called me to find out how I was doing.

Unfortunately, I was rather worried about my future. I was to start my new position on May 8th, and there was no way that I could drive down to Rochester from Canada or even take a plane down. Keane, my then new employer, was very understanding. I had to push my start date three times, and didn't really know how much more Keane would wait for me. Even though I have always been good at saving money, my stash was rather low at this point. My biggest worry was whether or not I'd be able to walk without any pain.

My last day at ISM was May 5th. On May 8th, I got a call from my former production manager. He asked how many forms the shift manager had given me to sign. He proceeded to ask, "Did you sign one? two? three?" I basically told him that I signed everything that the shift manager had given me, and that he should take it up with the shift manager, and not me. Heck, it wasn't my responsibility. To top it off, the production manager had the nerve (no pun intended) to ask, "Oh, by the way, did you have a chance to look for your ISM picture ID yet?" I had had it with him at that point. I basically told him that the photo ID was the furthest thing from my mind. It was not like I could do a lot of damage with it, except get a 10% discount at the food court. I physically couldn't do anything with the badge without the ability to walk.

So, I wrote a rather nasty e-mail back to the production manager, and also sent it to the shift manager. I had always been a good employee, and felt that I didn't deserve to be treated that poorly.

First sign of improvement

During the month of May, my walking did improve gradually and the numbness slowly subsided. It was getting easier to shower and dress/undress myself. I could sit a bit longer on the sofa before I had to lie down to relieve some of the numbness in my left buttock and leg. Having ice and heat on my back helped immensely. With the help of a friend, by the end of the month, I started to take short walks down in the parking lot. It was great to be outside again.

Another idiot physician

I was strong and well enough to see my family physician the last week of May. (He is located next to the chiropractor that I mentioned earlier.) My physician was not in a good mood that day. To my face, he asked, "Why didn't you come in and see me when this first took place? All I get is a report from the hospital that you have numbness in your leg." It didn't occur to him that I took an ambulance to seek medical attention, as I couldn't walk.

I then made the mistake of asking him if he thought that I was well enough to fly on an airplane to the United States. He basically told me that I wasn't and that doctors in the U.S. would not admit me as a patient. I told him that my new employer would be providing all my benefits the first day that I started to work for the company. He shot back, "But, your health problems took place in Canada. The doctors won't look at you if your health problems didn't first take place in the U.S." I didn't buy a word that he was saying. However, I was in tears. I expected some help from him, and not the comments that he was making. I've never seen him again as a patient.

The big move

On June 1st, 2000, I took a first-class plane (paid for by Keane) to Rochester, MN. I had to stop at Minneapolis International Airport, and practically walked the entire airport to get to the proper gate in order to catch the plane that goes to Rochester. (The moving flat escalators were under construction then.) Unfortunately, it was a Northwest Airlink (tiny) plane, and I had to board and exit the aircraft by walking up and down a narrow set of steps.

The plane wasn't full. I had an empty seat next to me. I was holding onto my cane while seated, and the flight attendant came over to tell me that I had to put the cane in the overhead storage. I told her that I needed the cane to lift myself out of the seat. She insisted that the cane had to be put away, and she proceeded to put it in the storage compartment over my head. I thought that that was stupid.

After the twenty minutes, the plane landed. A male passenger opened the storage bin over me to collect his belongings, and the cane rolled out. The light metal cane hit the poor man's bald head, and fell on the floor. The man picked up the cane, and I thanked him for passing it to me. The best part about the incident was that the flight attendant who put the cane up there saw the whole thing, and I made eye contact with her, my glare hinting that her idea didn't work out as well as she had hoped. I think she was embarrassed, as she came over immediately, took my backpack out of the overhead bin and placed it at the bottom of the plane's stairs.

So, I made it to Rochester. I rented a car for two weeks. It was so tiny (I'm 5'11", and I'm in a Toyota Corolla), that getting in and out of the car hurt like hell! I soon leased a Nissan Altima with lots of leg room.

The first thing I did when I got the keys to my new apartment was just collapse on the wall-to-wall carpet, as I was in so much pain. (I'm on the third (top) floor of the apartment complex.) However, I felt that day that I had accomplished so much.

New job, new country, new doctors

I started my first day at Keane on June 5th. It was orientation day, and I was greeted warmly by everyone there. We talked about working at IBM as vendors, the benefits offered by Keane, the history of the company, etc. When it came down to the benefits, I filled it out quickly and made an appointment immediately to see a family physician. It's also nice that Rochester is home to the Mayo Clinic!

The doctors here have been great. My family physician did a number of tests, and sent me off to a neurologist. The neurologist ran a number of strength tests, and sent me to physical therapy. This all happened within two weeks of arriving in Rochester! I did traction for two months, where a machine stretches your spine gently to open up the areas between the discs and ligaments, and to supply nutrients.

My physical therapists were also very nice. One was a student doing his internship, and he was great. We had an interesting bond in that he was dating a Chinese woman, and she was calling him rather nasty names in Chinese. He had to ask me what she was saying, and he asked me to think of something nasty to say back to her. The other therapist was into the Survivor TV show. I had seen the last six episodes, so we would always talk about it. Both therapists have taught me strengthening exercises (a few new ones, too!) that I'm still doing on a daily basis.

I ditched my cane officially on July 17th, just half-way through my physical therapy sessions. At first, it was difficult to let go of using the cane, but it got easier as time passed. The cane is now in the backseat of my Altima. It's now a defence mechanism!

What did I first do when I no longer needed to walk with the cane? I went to the Mall of America! I was so happy and proud that day, not because I loved and missed shopping, but because I walked three out of the four floors of the mall. I felt so good that I even washed my car after the trip by hand.

All that ends well...

To date, all that remains from my pinched nerve problem is some tightness in my left foot's toes. Other than that, I'm doing just fine. I cycle on my exercise bike every day for twenty-six minutes, I can move just as well as I did before all this happened, and I'm a stronger person.

Work is going well. My bosses are happy with my work, and I share an office with another Canadian. As a result, we're both not as homesick!

Though I haven't gone back to my daily one-hour walks these days, I plan on getting back to that when it's warmer. I bought a yoga video last week, and am starting to go through it slowly. I'll let you know how I'm doing with it!