I’m finding that my balance is getting worse and worse. I fell two times yesterday. Luckily, I was able to get up both times. If I bend over to grab something and I come back up, I lose my balance. I am afraid it will get worse after surgery. Although, maybe I
Will do the opposite and fall less. I sent my doctor an email, but he didn’t get back to me. I assume he thinks I’m crazy by now. Had I never had that TIA for that time that I had to be taken to the ER from the casino, I would not be even thinking these things. But, since blobbo is there, I always think….what is he doing?
3 Likes
Ohh Abby, what can I say other than ‘Me too’. Prior I had all of those same sorts of questions. “What if ‘x’ happens…” “What if ‘y’ happens…”. Due to our experiences, I think it’s fairly normal to be questioning, I certainly did. Most of my ‘x’ and ‘y’ were of negative outcomes. It was my wife who took the more level-headed view and had me turn it around ‘So what if the results are positive…?’ ‘What are the consequences of saying ‘No’ to the operation…’ The consequences were a slow and steady decline, with ever increasing symptoms until my demise, so there really wasn’t much choice in saying ‘No’. And once I accepted that then ‘x and y’ couldn’t be anymore negative, I came to some sort of acceptance… …it had to happen. Don’t get me wrong here that ‘acceptance’ was not a simple straight forward thing, I still had those ‘What if’s…’ rattling around in my head (No pun intended), but the reality was…I had no choice.
As for your Dr not responding, it’s not unusual. They already have a plan and in all honesty the ‘plan’ is all they concentrate on. Even post surgery I found the neuro’s disconnected from it all. If the scans look OK, then it’s all OK. Me? I was a mess, but that was very little of their concern because ‘The scans look OK…’
I am 10yrs on from my last neurosurgery and still today I often think ‘Is that my head or just me…?’ especially when I get those weird ‘Oddball’ symptoms. I think the best advice here is ‘Be aware. Not alarmed’, as I say I get some weird symptoms regularly, but rather than looking at the weird I now look for a progression of symptoms, ramping up. If it’s progressing, I need to act.
Now, I want preface my next comments before I even start, because when people advised me I told them in no uncertain terms what they could do with their advice, BUT in hindsight they were correct.
“TRY not to stress…” (You can yell and scream at me now… …I don’t mind 
)
Stress is only going to exacerbate symptoms, which then adds to your stress and around you go again. For me, I needed to keep my mind occupied, doing something/anything. If I sat down and thought about it all I could take myself down some awful dark holes, so tried to avoid doing that.
Something I did find of benefit was learning relaxation techniques. There are videos on YouTube on this very topic which may assist. I wouldn’t say relaxation techniques were the answer, but they did help me identify some of my triggers and the early signs of an upcoming episode. Learning some of this prior to surgery was very helpful for me managing post op recovery pain.
Merl from the Modsupport Team
3 Likes
You have to give your doctor or the staff time to respond. Sometimes mine takes a few days, on rare occasions, Ms. Ryan answers the same day. Doctors take vacation, they have to do their C.E.s like any other medical professional and several helping fields. Sometimes their staff wants to talk to the doc before they answer.
I recall you saying you’ve had a problem with balance, do you know what’s causing it? You may want to reach out to your PCP and have them check you out.
Back in 1976, I learned relaxation breathing as it was called back then at a State hospital I was taking a class at. It has helped me through the years so much, I couldn’t even begin to explain it. I can tell you that it does control blood pressure because when they were giving me the Triple H Therapy to raise it in order to stop the vasospasms, I could keep it lower. It’s frustrating for one’s medical team😂. They call it different names now, box breathing is one of the methods and is taught to service people who have PTSD. Can you get into a yoga class or Tai Chi? I chose Tai Chi and it helped tremendously with my balance. There may be other types but those are the ones I know. We’ve had many members do yoga to help with stress and just about everything else in their life. Some of my PT stretches probably come from Yoga. Both also teach breathing techniques.
My neurosurgeon, sent me a referral to go to a physical therapist to assess my gait. It could also be from the
Menierse that I gave
That’s great news Kassi! I hope you enjoy PT as much as I have. I actually wish I could still do many they taught but my last visit, one I had never had before took away all of them for my neck. Whatever they teach you, you must do those exercises at home as well, otherwise you’re wasting your time and theirs. I saw many a patient fired for not practicing what they were taught. They usually gave me print outs of what to do, especially after I ruptured as I would forget by the time I got to my vehicle.
Hi Abby
Reading this takes me back a few years when my balance was very poor. I am now almost 7 years post rupture. I still have balance issues, but that is a rare occurrence now. On my way to recovery, I had the same issues and my wife always stayed on my left so I would end up in the street when we walked. It gets better, it takes time and you may need to make adjustments. I am the designated shopping cart pusher. It gives me something to hang on to when the “visual and audio assaults” of shopping in a crowded, noisey environment with lots of shiny things to make me turn my head. Oh and by the way, a trigger for my pain spikes and balance issues seems to involve turning my neck, and sensory overload. I also keep earplugs and sunglasses handy. Think about what your triggers are. That in itself is distracting. See if you can find your coping mechanism while you continue to heal.
K
3 Likes