All In

I was just sitting here reading the side effects of Chantix, the drug they give people trying to break a nicotine addiction. Some of them are things like irritability, sudden mood swings, murderous rampages ... I'm surprised they didn't run a study on a placebo group because I'm pretty sure those don't have anything to do with the drug. I'm pretty sure those of the symptoms of people trying to break a nicotine habit.

Anyway, it was quite a long day. We got started fairly early with routines tests; blood work and the like. I met with all of the secondary doctors and discussed their part in tomorrow's adventure. Oh, wait. I forgot to tell you. Surgery is going to happen ... sometime tomorrow around 2:00 P.M. or so here. That will be about the time you are waking up in the morning. So, throw up a quick prayer for me and Dr. Ritter-Lang.

Dr.Heinz, Dr. Ritter-Lang's assistant was a little more pessimistic about the chances for success. However, she followed that up with "He's the best and he's been doing it for 20 years. If he believes he can fix it, then I believe him" Finally, after a little down time, I was able to meet with Dr. Ritter-Lang. He's very, very confident that he can make things work for me. Truly though, his final argument, and my final argument, and Dr. Theiss's (from UAB) final argument, all are about the same. I have three options. Option one is to do nothing. I can't do that because pretty soon my vertebrae are going to start fusing themselves. I certainly don't want that. Option two is to do a total fusion from the mid-chest down. I'm 40 years old. That doesn't sound like a good idea either. This is my best option at this point. I have nothing to lose. Truly though, I think he really can do what he says he can do. I've seen some pretty amazing things around here this week.

So, I may make another post tomorrow. I may not. I'll get to the hospital around 8:00AM and I really don't know the schedule from there. I will let you know when it's surgery time though. After that, I will expect it will be a few days before you hear from me again. I am going to be feeling a little bit like a catfish filet for the next few days, so I doubt I will feel much like typing. But, I will talk to you soon. Thanks for all the love and prayers fine people! I need it!