🌀 Mood: Grounded, sobered, resilient

If you read my last post, you know I’ve been preparing for a procedure called Kyphoplasty. But I wanted to share more about what exactly that means — and what brought me to this point.

When I was in the hospital after I was given the diagnosis, there were several other things that came along with it.

One of those things is that I have several fractures in my back due to the Cancer. This is why I’ve been experiencing back pain for 5 months. Two vertebrae in particular — at T8 and T12 — are significantly compressed. The pain has been relentless, and now we know why.

To get some relief, I need a procedure called Kyphoplasty. Expandable balloons are inserted to try to restore the natural height of the damaged vertebrae, then bone cement is injected to stabilize the fractures and ease the pain. It’s not a major surgery, but it’s not nothing either.

The other thing I learned in the hospital was that I’d need to be fitted for a back brace that I have to wear 16 hours a day. I can only take it off to sleep. That was a wake-up call — a signal that this is serious. My spine, as it is today, can’t support the weight of my own frame. The brace is the stability. And without it, I can’t bend, twist, or pick up anything more than 10 pounds.

How long do I have to wear it? I don’t know. The team at the hospital estimated 3-6 months. 

Even when you’re broken…you’re not beyond repair.