Injections & Pain Doc Updates

Here is an update of what's happening in my life, in terms of things with my pain management doctor:

So attractive!! (I swear I usually look better than this--this was immediately post-injection)

Monday morning I had an injection. It made me look like a stroke victim with my droopy eyelid and lip. The red on my neck was also because of the injection medicine. I'm still in extra pain due to this. 

This is the "psych eval" I have to do to get approved for a neurostimulation implant. The technology is similar to a pacemaker. It interrupts the signal from the nerves to the brain, so the brain doesn't get the message the body is in pain.

First you have one placed via an epidural, while awake, and with a portion of the device is left sticking out of your body (a la Matrix). If the three day trial is successful, they surgically implant a permanent device.

A psych eval is required because you have electroshock devices in/sticking out of your body. It takes about 2 months to get insurance approval, which is good, because my Hopkins TOS surgeon is opposed to this treatment, as is my physical therapist. So I don't know if I'll go ahead with it or not. 

This photo was JUST taken.

Above my scar you'll see some bruising and a needle point dot. That's from the injection 2 days ago. This particular injection (over the past few months I've had about 5 different types of injections) is especially heinous because once he inserts the needle, he wiggles it around until I feel shooting pain from my neck, down my arm, and into my fingers. Then he injects the medicine, inserts a second needle and does the same wiggle process. It's quite unpleasant.