Finally Good News!!!

This is my first blog of many in my advocacy efforts for those with chronic illness and chronic pain.  Because of the good news I received today I am going to get my application ready this week to switch to the Master of Human Services degree so that I will have the schooling to be the best advocate I can be.  Add this to the core program in Mental Health Counseling master's program and I hope that I can provide you with some great information and perspective.  But first, the good news:

I haven't wanted to say anything for fear of jinxing it but after talking to my pain management doctor/neurologist today he said I could feel confident sharing.

About two weeks ago, about as quickly as it began July 8th, 2014, my pain just vanished! With it came overwhelming nausea and fatigue as well as vertigo and some other minor issues. He is confident that this may be the absolute end to this last eight month horrible flare!!!! His opinion is that my body is getting used to NOT having pain so it is just making up for the time it took over complete control of my life.

While I will have occipital neuralgia for the rest of my life and this is not the end of my chronic pain associated with it he is certain that all the treatments I have gone through are FINALLY working!!! I will be starting physical therapy soon and will still be meeting with a neurosurgeon in Oshkosh (cross your fingers) to discuss the spinal cord stimulator just in case I should need to go that route in the future. We are not completely sure that this will be the end all so at least that will be done so surgery could be scheduled right away without waiting for an appointment to talk first (takes months).

I am on a lot of medications and supplements and will be for the rest of my life, for both the Interstitial Cystitis and the Occipital Neuralgia but I can tell you that it feels amazing to be pain free!

GOD IS GOOD!  I really want to thank you all for praying for me and keeping me in your thoughts the last year... and especially lately when it was almost unbearable. For those who have been through it with me I owe so much to you.... thank you for holding me up when I wasn't able to do it myself.

The next few weeks/months are going to be hard as I get back to the gym and physical therapy to build up the muscles that have taken a toll but Dr. B said to be optimistic because this is a great sign!!!!

I am so excited and hopeful and will be playing around with all the features of this blog experience soon... stay tuned!