On Monday, the VA flew Dave out to Anchorage to have a basic exam to evaluate the current state of his foot and knee problems. While they were doing some routine x-rays the man doing the exam started asking some of the right questions and decided they needed to x-ray Dave's back as well.
These x-rays showed that Dave has a broken back, and has for years. He went in forever (and ever) ago and told his Dr. at the time that he was having bad back pain, they misdiagnosed him with a muscle strain. And although he brings up his back pain at nearly every exam (I usually go with him), no one has ever looked further into it.
I'm very thankful that we finally found out what has been causing Dave's pain, but I'm equally frustrated that no one caught it before. He has a fractured L5 vertebrae and it's scary to think of all the damage he could have done, without knowing he had a broken back. Dave was told that if he had been in a car wreck/falling the wrong way/gotten jolted he could have become paralyzed.
We're praying that with some specialized yoga and physical therapy we can avoid surgery, if possible. As much as I hate to see my husband in pain and I can't believe he's had an undiagnosed broken back to years, I'm also very thankful that we now know what was actually causing all of the knee/foot pain. In a strange way, it's kind of a relief to know that a lot of his physical pain is all connected, because if we can get the back pain under control then hopefully the other issues will subside as well.
These pictures are all Instagram pics from our walks around the glacier trails last weekend.
Oh hun im so sorry to hear this.. I hope the therapy works. Please know dave and you both are in my prayers.
ReplyDeleteThe chiropractors I work for take x-rays of every patient of the age of 8 (unless they are pregnant) for this very reason. A lot of people don't get it but sometime, back pain can be caused by something very serious. One of our patients came in and ended up having an abcess inbetween his vertebrae and ended up in emergency surgery the next day. Had he gone to a chiroprator who didn't take x-rays, the abscess could've burst and killed him.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad someone figured it out though and I hope he can manage his pain through anything but surgery!
sweet friend - it hurts me to hear that David does in fact have a broken back. however, i am so hopeful that there might be a way for him to not have surgery! i can only hope yoga can be helpful for him. i know it works wonders on the body, so i pray it can help with the healing of his back as well!
ReplyDeleteScary, I hope everything goes well. I will be praying for both of you.
ReplyDelete~Sarah
That is total insanity! A broken back? Man, I can't even imagine. Prayers to you both! Hope surgery isn't necessary and that he has a speedy recovery now that you guys know what the heck is going on. HUGS!
ReplyDeleteHoping things get better now that he knows what is wrong! Praying for you!
ReplyDeleteHow scary! I'm glad you guys figured out what was going on.
ReplyDeleteThis just happened to my brother who is stationed in TX! He has been complaining of back pain and they sent him home with ADVIL. Then he went back again and they finally gave him something better and he got them to authorize a MRI which showed his back was fractured too! Crazy! Glad he has finally found out what is wrong so he can work towards making it better!
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad someone finally figured it out! How's scary though, hope he doesn't need surgery though.
ReplyDeleteOh Mal!! I'm so sorry to hear this. Dave is so lucky to have you by his side though and I am praying and hoping that all yoga and back therapy goes well! Hope to hear updates on this in the future. xoxoxoxo love y'all!
ReplyDeleteI'm linking over from Life of the Lane blog. I'm so sorry to hear about this! I appreciate your attitude to look for the silver lining, but that has got to be frustrating. I pray they can find a fix soon, and without surgery.
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