Hello Everyone,
I thank you all for your answers and advice. I guess I should have been more specific on a few things, lol. First on the job, I will be at a desk and driving to different work sites for meetings as an IT Project Manager. As I am a Senior at the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee's School of Information Studies and I was an IT in the Navy for 5.5 years, IT has always been my field. I think that is the cause of all of my neck problems, the constant sitting and staring at a computer and then, before I got my degree so I could move up into management, I was a on the technical side which meant moving PC's and large Servers. Work is really hard to come by these days and just like Maria, I am on a low dose of pain meds daily that my surgeons are not concerned about. I spoke with her about addiction and she said that they will wean me off of my current level slowly.
I tend to take on too much at once. I need this job but I also need my neck to heal. I am also carrying a full load this semester and 6 credits this summer along with 2 very active kids.
So, I have made the decision to wait until the end of September as they can not get me in for surgery until the first week of May and that will not be enough time to heal. When I spoke with my surgeon I voiced all of my concerns about the meds, and especially it getting worse and no longer being a candidate for the ADR. She said that the cause of my problems was osteoarthritis and that 3-4 months wouldn't make any difference. But then she said I should take it easy over the summer, no high impact activities, and if I suddenly fall while walking or lose bladder control to get the the ER right away. Well, that scared me!
I thank each one of you for taking the time to read my story and give me advice and I will stay on the boards from now until surgery and even after! Thank you once again!
Jenn
