My trip to the neurosurgeon....

Well, I finally met the fabulous and famous Dr John Macfarlane. My sister-in-law, Juliann, introduced me to this great doctor. Poor Juliann has had numerous spinal fusions and various issues with her back, so I fully trusted her recommendation to see Dr. Macfarlane. First, I must say, he is hilarious. A doctor with great bedside manner...I thought they may be a dying breed. But he was a hoot and the poor guy had to deal with me and Juliann at the same time. Something no man should ever have to do...just ask our poor husbands. Anyway, he looked at my MRI's and I have a herniated disc in my lower neck and an annular tear as well. This is what is causing the numbness in the back of my neck, down my arm, etc. I also have a herniated disc and tear in my lower back which is why I am having such awful pain there and numbness, pain down my leg, etc. I also have a lot of joint issues apparently which are not good. So, the prognosis for now is that I continue doing physical therapy for the next few months and hope that it can fix this. If not, we can try cortizone shots. OUCH. And if all else fails, we'll look at surgery. So, that is the update for now. If nothing else, it was a blast meeting Dr Macfarlane. Now I see why Juliann loves him! I'm sure he thought we had completely lost our minds when we asked for a picture, but hey, we HAD to document this one.