Week #5 Progress

Shot well this week:
Mon - 84 arrows, weight training
Tues - 84 arrows
Wed - 114 arrows, weight training
Thu & Fri - too much running around, no time to train
Sat - 78 arrows

I decided to compete at the Georgia Cup tourney May 25 & 26, excited!  I'm shooting from a stool now because of increased numbness in right foot and persistent heel pain. 

After looking at old MRI from July 2011 and recent MRI, things that said mild/moderate on the old report now say moderate/severe. It looks things are moving in the wrong direction and my neck is collapsing. I have an appt with a local cervical doc to find out how fast things are deteriorating and then I plan to get a second opinion from Dr. Lenke's colleague, a cervical specialist, in St. Louis.  Quite honestly, if I need surgery, I only want someone that Dr. Lenke recommends doing the procedure.

I talked with Dr. Riew's nurse in STL and was trying to make an appt to see him at the same time I see Dr. Lenke in October.  Unfortunately, Dr. Riew will be gone the entire week that I will be in town.  The nurse was very nice and asked a lot of questions about where my numb areas area, balance issues, etc.  She said that I probably want to come in sooner than later because of the increasing numbness.  She explained that if the damaged nerves are left too long, they may result in permanent numbness. 

There are 7 bones in the cervical spine and discs are the spongy areas between each bone.  Healthy discs are plump and have a whiter appearance in the middle area.  Unhealthy discs loose their height and the middle areas turn solid dark in color due to the watery gel deteriorating. 

You can see the upper discs have lost their height and lost the healthy white core (you can see the whitish core in the healthy bottom two discs).  The upper vertebrae are shifting into the spinal fluid area (white areas on each side of the dark gray spinal cord) and there are three levels that have bone spurs caused by cervical degenerative disc disease.

Sheesh!

Archery has been a nice distraction from all of this stuff.  A few more test results are due soon from Neuro and she will make a diagnosis.  I think it will be nice to be able to pin point all my issues to one source, possibly my neck, but who knows.  Praying for God to keep me strong and at peace, to place the right doctors in my path and give them wisdom to make an accurate diagnosis.


July 2011



May 2013