Monday, November 10, 2014

The Diagnosis, Part II

Two weeks ago, we left the hospital with two very different diagnoses: Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS), and an AVM in my upper leg. The problem with these two diagnoses was they were seemingly unrelated, which didn't make sense in conjunction with my "injury" (for anyone who needs a reminder: I rolled my ankle walking on flat ground. Yes, I'm that graceful).

To add insult to injury (pun intended), the treatments for each one can aggravate the other.

This morning, we saw a new and very highly recommended vascular surgeon to get a second opinion on the state of my arteries and veins. This doctor was wonderful, and it was such a gift to get to be seen by him.

After multiple ultrasounds by this doctor and his team, they found no vascular abnormalities in my leg.  He said that the CT scan from the hospital that had shown the AVM was incorrect due to a timing error in the dye that they injected into my bloodstream.  

So, no AVM.  No artery problems.


However...



He also re-confirmed that I have CRPS and explained that the discoloration in my leg is coming from spasms in the nerves that cause the blood vessels in my leg to get angry. This is just one of the many strange symptoms of CRPS/RSD.  It is why sometimes my leg is a bluish-purple color, sometimes it is an orange-red, sometimes it is bone white, and other times it's a blend of all three, which makes it look almost gray (I do dream in color!).

It's definitely comforting to have one firm diagnosis, instead of two diagnoses with no explanation of their connection to one another, so for that, PRAISE GOD!  And with all of the many people who have been praying for us, all of the credit goes to God for giving me whole and healthy arteries!!

To be honest, I was kind of hoping that we would go in this morning and find out that I would be able to have some sort of vascular surgery that would take six weeks to heal and then I would be pain-free and walking again.  It would been so insignificant.  So short.  So...medically fixable. wouldn't have been life-long pain, likely to spread through my body, often resulting in permanent loss of function, having no cure...

But, insignificant, short, and medically fixable wasn't what God had in mind.  And I trust Him.  I will praise Him in it.  He will be glorified.



Without the presence of vascular issues, I was cleared to use the coolest machine ever at physical therapy...the UNDERWATER treadmill!! It's amazing--it's like being in a bathtub with water jets and being on a treadmill at the same time! This is going to be a HUGE aid in helping me work through the pain to keep the muscles and bones in my leg alive so that if and WHEN I go into remission, I will be able to use my leg.

So, where so we go from this point?  

They will continue to increase pain medications, to help manage the pain from the CRPS, as my body adjusts to them. I will continue in rigorous physical therapy to keep my muscles and bones from atrophying while I can't use them.  I will be getting a nerve block (kind of like an epidural, through an injection directly into the nerves in your spine, except that it lasts for 6-12 months) within the next two weeks, to help me work through the pain. 

And we will keep on "running the race" (insert my adorable husband making a joke about how I'm not actually running so that I can keep laughing through it all...), and trusting God, and praising God, and surrendering each moment to Him.

"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." (Ephesians 3:20-21 NIV)





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