I have radiculopathy, pressure on the spinal nerves, caused by stenosis. Except my symptoms, weakness in the calves and feet, do not match the evidence seen on the MRI. Calf weakness should be driven by the nerves that exit from the L5/S1 area, and there is no stenosis there. So the surgeon sent me to a neurologist. The neurologist says, “Yep. Weakness in the calves. That’s unusual. But it’s gotta be the stenosis, I mean, what else could it be?” So he recommended surgery. But the surgeon wants me to get more epidurals because the last ones were totally ineffective. Maybe these, in a different location, will be effective. And maybe Trump will resign.
Yes, my cynicism is rearing its ugly head. So it drags on. The doctors are experimenting on me. Every appointment takes a month. I could have had these shots a month ago instead of a month from now. I’m doing what I can to fix myself. Work with my wonderful chiropractor Lance von Stade is aimed directly at my defensive postures, the unconscious body habits I’ve developed over years to protect me from the stenotic pain. Freedom from these postures allows the work in Barre class and Foundation Training to strengthen my spinal muscles. But I still walk like a duck. Can I retrain my nerves by myself and restore full function to my legs? I hope so. Tune into the next exciting episode of Stenosis Journal to find out!