Bummed Out!

Many of you know that I have been battling low back pain since I was about 15 years old, sometimes worse than others. Recently, having taken a job in EMS, I am constantly lifting a stretcher that weighs about 100 pounds with a patient weighing on average 200 pounds - day in and day out. Although I was taught the proper lifting techniques, and I use my legs predominantly to lift, I have noticed a quick and sharp increase in my back pain. After a week of having trouble sleeping and feeling anxiety when I had to transfer patients at work for fear that my back would hurt (not to mention the difficulty running), I finally broke down and went to an orthopedic doctor.

Well. Little did I know!!!

Of course I am anything but ordinary, so it shouldn't surprise you that my diagnosis was a unique one. This is going to take a little bit of an anatomy crash course! The lumbar (low back) spine normally consists of 5 lumbar vertebrae with intervertebral discs made of cartilage - that help to cushion and support spinal stability. Low back pain is one of the most common complaints in American healthcare because many people are overweight, carrying much of their excess weight in their stomachs, and not supporting their backs appropriately. I am not overweight, however. My back has a rarely unique anatomy - new news to me! I was born with 6 lumbar vertebrae - meaning I have one extra vertebra and one extra intervertebral disc. That extra disc, which isn't supposed to exist, is underdeveloped - leading to spinal instability. In addition, each normal vertebra has bony processes that extend to the side. In my extra vertebra, the bony process on the left is enlarged and actually fused with the bones above and below... meaning on one side of my spine, right above my pelvis, is fixed and the other side of the spine is mobile. This fixed bone causes limited range of motion, and in addition the underdeveloped disc leads to inflammation and nerve pain. Great, just what I wanted to hear.

How is this going to be fixed? My doctor suggested that I have an MRI scan to see the actual cartilage tissue to rule out disc herniation (when the intervertebral disc nucleus slips through the outer coating called the annulus, and places pressure on the nerves). In addition, he is referring me to a spinal specialist to recommend having an injection of synthetic cartilage between my vertebrae to encourage more fluid movement. This is a scary procedure!!! Why, you ask? Well if the needle is placed incorrectly there is always a risk of paralyzation. One of the scariest things ever, to me, because of my love of being active! However, I have to take comfort in the fact that if someone who is as highly trained as a spinal surgeon, surely they will be comfortable with a simple non-invasive injection procedure. Another fear that my orthopedic doctor has is that at some point, I may need to undergo a spinal fusion surgery to make both sides of my spine fused to my pelvis. Now that, I'll need a few opinions on.

This is just so frustrating, because I'm wanting to start increasing my running mileage in order to train for some springtime half marathons - especially one in Minnesota where my friends Tori and Ryan recently moved. Yes, I'm making a vacation centered around a race... you really shouldn't be surprised haha!

Another Bummer!? I am a really hard working person, but one thing that I simply cannot find the blessing of patience in is the waiting process to find out if I have earned an interview for PA school. Last year, I had already been rejected by 4 programs by this time of year - an utter disappointment and shock -most of which can be attributed to a lack of receipt of my GRE scores by the admissions office. At any rate, I have been extremely diligent in the last year in the fact that I have accepted every opportunity to improve my chances as an applicant - by taking the GRE again and improving my score, shadowing several new Physician Assistants to increase my patient contact experience, becoming a certified Emergency Medical Technician and accepting a full time position working as an EMT, among other things such as completing my college degree.

Until now I have felt fairly confident that I have in the very least earned the opportunity to interview with the admissions committee. Last week I was rejected from the PA school that I applied to in Denver, CO - where Vincent plans on taking a full time job as a mechanical engineer for Ball Aerospace. I'm sad that there is no longer any potential for us to move to Colorado together, but I have tried to remain positive that I will be accepted to the PA school that I have been pursuing admission with for the past 2 years - LSU Health Sciences Center in Shreveport, LA. The program there is very impressive and I truly want to be a student at LSU. Hopefully I will be receiving a letter any day now to relieve some of my anxiety about this career path.

Until then, I'm going to figure this back pain out and I am looking forward to a visit from my sister Katie, her girlfriend Jen, their dog Scout and their sun conure Sassafras. They don't get to come often, so this weekend will be very special and I am incredibly excited :)

My friend Moniree sent me this little gem of encouragement -
" The hardest thing to do is leaving your comfort zone, but you have to let go of the life you're familiar with and take the risk to live the life you dream about" - T. Artigo

Thanks to all of my wonderful friends and family for the continuous support and unending positive reinforcement for my journey to pursue a career as a Physician Assistant. I really appreciate the support and love... and I hope to not disappoint this year!