DBS Evaluation Appointment Made... Finally

Stanford Hospital finally called me and gave me the dates and times of the 4 appointments I apparently  need to assess whether I'm a good candidate for Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) surgery or not.  I have 2 appointments on November 7th, and 2 on November 8th.  The first one is just a consultation; I think this is where I get a chance to ask my questions.  There are lots of little things I want to know about, like:  what are the risks and percentages? How long is the recovery time typically? Do I really have to shave my head?  Can I still go swimming (after healing)?  etc., etc., etc.  The next 3 appointments are to assess my symptoms , I gather.

I hope I "pass" these tests, whatever that means.  I know that people look at me and think I look fine most of the time, and I AM fine most of the time, but in order to stay that way, I am now having to take medication every 2 hours.  The side effects are starting to catch up with me, especially the dyskinesia (unwanted, uncontrollable movements ala Michael J. Fox).  Also, the effort necessary to do ordinary things and still look "normal" is becoming exhausting.  I'm looking forward to being able to cut down on my medications or maybe even do without them entirely for awhile.

DBS is not a cure, I know that.  It doesn't last forever; I can see that for myself.  However, if I can improve my quality of life as dramatically as DBS reportedly can, why not do that while I'm still relatively young and otherwise in good health?  It could give me years more of normal or near normal functioning; I could keep working and get my full retirement (for which I am eligible in about 2 and a half years).  On the other hand, it is BRAIN SURGERY, and those two words together make me a little nervous.

I take heart, though, when I hear and read about others' experience.  Case in point: my friend Sherri at Parkinson's Journey (see my blog list).  Sherri is just one of the toughest PD fighters there is.  Her positive attitude is hard to beat.  Here's a link to her article about the DBS surgery that she went through:
http://parkinsonsjourney.com/my-journey-with-dbs-deep-brain-stimulation/

I wish I didn't have to wait until November to get started on this side trip in my walk with Parkinson's.  Once I get the notion to do something, I want to do it and get it over with, or know a very good reason why I shouldn't!

Thanks to my readers and Healthline!

I recently discovered that Healthline.com has listed my blog as among the 25 best of 2012!  I'm amazed!  Thanks so much to Healthline (a very useful online resource) and to the folks that patiently weed through all my ramblings for the occasional helpful comment.

Thank You , Thank You, Thank you!

Considering DBS

Saw my neurologist last week, and he says I should really start looking at Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) surgery.  In fact he provided me with a referral to the DBS group at Stanford, which is only 30 minutes from my home, luckily for me.  This is a hospital that I'm very familiar with; I was hospitalized there once when I was a teenager. My son was born there, as were two of my brothers.  It's where we go when we need to go to emergency.  It feels as comfortable as a hospital can be.  So that's good.

I'm looking forward to the consultation and getting my questions answered.  The biggest question I have, though, doesn't seem to have an answer.  How does it work?  No one seems to know; they just have theories.  Still, I know enough people who have been through it with good to amazing results, that I will seriously consider it, even though the idea of having a hole drilled in my head for any reason just gives me the willies...   Of course, if it really means that I can feel better and take less medication, I would drill the hole myself.   Okay, that's an exaggeration.  Poetic hyperbole; don't mind me.

Anyway, I'm waiting for a call to set up an appointment.  I hope that happens soon, because I'd just as soon have it over with so I can decide what to do.  Waiting sucks.

Well, vacation is over.   :-(
As always, we had so much fun just being together, it hardly mattered where we were.  However, we happened to be in a beautiful house on a lake in the Poconos Mountains in Pennsylvania.  Every hour of every day was restful, entertaining and/or thought-provoking.  We laughed so much that my stomach muscles were actually sore the first day.  That house was so full of love and joy that I felt that if you could see such things, you could see the house from space.  That's why I love this picture that my sister-in-law, Debra, took.  Can't you just see the laughter and happiness spilling out?

The trip was a little challenging for me, physically; more so than ever before.  But I was able to do everything I wanted to do, and Old Man Parkinson was NOT able to ruin my time.  Hah!