| Lisa: Fibromyalgia (post trial) |
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After four years of constant pain and missing out on her growing children's lives, an emotional Lisa tells us she "got her life back." Dr. Greenspan: What advice would you give somebody who's thinking twice, not ready to go on with the trial? Lisa: "Don't even think about it!" My whole take on this thing is that if you're thinking twice about it, then I don't think you're in enough pain. Your life is not altered enough, because you wouldn't even think twice about it. Anything that can help you get back to a more normal life, I would say, "Do it. What do you have to lose?" Dr. Greenspan: What kind of pain were you having in the past? Lisa: I have fibromyalgia, so my pain is pretty much everywhere. Dr. Greenspan: How many years have you had fibromyalgia? Lisa: It's been about 4 years. Dr. Greenspan: How has the pain impacted your life? Lisa: I have 4 kids, and 2 of them are under 4 [years of age]. I feel like I am missing a whole phase of their lives, and I should be enjoying it,... and I can't. Dr. Greenspan: Do you spend a lot of time in bed because of your pain? Lisa: More than I'd like to, yeah. Dr. Greenspan: Do you have any trouble getting out and doing things? Lisa: Yep. Dr. Greenspan: When I first proposed a trial of occipital neuromodulation, what were your thoughts then? Lisa: (laughs...) That I could get my life back... finally! It was awesome. And I cried when I came in here and you took the things out of my head, even though I wasn't even connected anymore. Dr. Greenspan: So the trial went really well for you? Lisa: It did. Yes. Dr. Greenspan: What percent pain relief do you think you were getting from the device? Lisa: 70-80% Dr. Greenspan: Was your sleep improved as well? And your mood was better? Lisa: Yes... Much better. Dr. Greenspan: What other things do you remember doing during the trial that you weren't able to do otherwise? Lisa: I don't ever take my kids anywhere. I took them to the movies one night... a couple weeks into the trial. I didn't think anything of it, but my sister said, "You're kidding, you haven't done anything like that in years." I took my kids to the circus one day in really hot, humid weather, and you can't do that with fibromyalgia. After 5 minutes, it's "forget it, we're not staying." It was amazing to me the difference it made, and the difference in my sleep... that was so much more than I expected because everything wakes me up. I really don't sleep. There were days when I'd wake up and my kids would be literally running around me, screaming and yelling and bouncing on me, and they couldn't wake me up. That's awesome. It may not sound awesome, but it's awesome. Dr. Greenspan: So, your family noticed a big change in you during the trial phase. Dr. Greenspan: What advice would you give somebody who's thinking twice, not ready to go on with the trial? Lisa: "Don't even think about it!" My whole take on this thing is that if you're thinking twice about it, then I don't think you're in enough pain. Your life is not altered enough, because you wouldn't even think twice about it. Anything that can help you get back to a more normal life, I would say, "Do it. What do you have to lose?" This procedure is performed by Dr. Joshua Greenspan at our Somersworth facility. For more information, read Promising new treatment: Occipital Neuromodulation. |
