The latest thing

Well to me anyway. This past Wed. I had my first ever diagnostic nerve (facet) block. My best description is to say it is a lot like when the dentist gives you Novocaine before he starts drilling and half of your mouth and tongue go numb. To be specific about it the doc applied the Novocaine to 5 targeted areas (he managed to do this with several shots.... sounds nice of him but believe me it wasn't), all on the sides of my neck. This is a picture of what it looks like without the skin, muscle, veins, tendons, throat, etc...
The hope was to determine if I would feel any relief from disabling the nerves in question (in my case the facet nerves on either side of my c3-t1 vertebrae). It worked great and I felt a great sense of relief, even though it didn't last as long as I had hoped (the numb feeling wore off in an hour or so). I guess I misunderstood how this was going to go down, because I was expecting him to give me 12 shots all together 6 on each side of c3, c4, c5, c6 ,c7 and t1, and I was expecting it to last for at least a few days. As I now understand the procedure is not really a treatment, it is only a test to see if we have the correct area that is causing the pain. Not only did I misunderstand how long it would last but I also did not know how much it was going to hurt after the Novocaine wore off. It is Friday morning and the whole right side of my neck is still swollen and tender to the touch and my throat feels sore (probably also from the swelling). Anyway, the nerve block did what it was supposed to do and now I have to return in 2 weeks for a follow up and to schedule the second part of the procedure which is the actual ablation. The ablation is more complicated and takes longer since it requires multiple steps at each injection and it requires that all 12 injections be made separately. I am hoping for a local anesthetic but it is not a deal breaker for me since the short period of numbness I had after the nerve block was the best I have felt in a long time. Anyway wish me luck and cross your fingers in hopes that the ablation works and life can go on pain free from then on!!!
Here is a simple diagram of the ablation (the ablation needles are attached to a microwave emitter that kills the problem nerve)

Pain management

It has been a busy month here at home with a recent death in the family and our own trials to deal with, but we are doing well. I am very excited to finally have an answer to the pain I have dealt with for years now resulting from an injury in my neck back in 1999. My doctor recommended that I speak to my physiatrist about having an ablation procedure done. He said it would be my best bet for some lasting relief, and I am all for that. The pain has been pretty much constant for going on three years or so and even after my surgery in November of 07 I have not had much relief except for from medication which is no way to live your life. I spoke to the other doc and he said it sounded like a very good idea and he would check with the insurance company to see if they would give us any trouble covering the procedure. Skip forward a month and I was back in the physiatrist office with the final decision. He said we would have to do a diagnostic procedure called a facet block which is basically injecting Novocaine directly into the nerve facets that come out from the side of each of my cervical (neck) vertebrae from c3 down to c7 and see how well it works (or if it works at all). If that is successful then we schedule for the more permanent fix called an ablation. This is a more involved procedure that basically consists of inserting a needle into my neck that is connected to a radio frequency emitter (sort of a very small microwave) and cooking the nerves which basically kills them and therefore eliminates their ability to transmit pain signals to my brain. It is a somewhat common procedure but it is said to be quite painful. I am not too worried though as long as it works I am willing to do just about anything at this point!
Hopefully I will be writing again on the 17th to tell all about how great it is not being in pain anymore and finally getting back to my "normal" activities (riding, rolorblading, dancing, playing with the kids and the dogs, etc...)!
Wish me luck!!!
-peace

Just in case anyone was wondering...

Suzy and I have been doing great, working on the house, working on our respective careers, and working on raising our three dogs. We (like most any couple) have had our trials, but lately it seems like all of our work and patience has really begun to pay off. We still have trouble from time to time but the difficult times are becoming more and more infrequent.


She has been working for M.F. Poer and Associates, an accounting and corporate tax company, she has had a bit of trouble adjusting, mostly due to the extremely demanding deadline schedule that they impose. As far as I can tell (from our conversations about it) the problems may have more to do with piss poor management and a general lack of accountability from the company higher ups. I have to give her props though, she is very dedicated and has really come a long way from where she was when she started there last May (2007). At first she was really unsure of herself, just because of all the math and hard deadlines, but I think it may have had more to do with all the catty bitches who were there when she first started. She came home after the first few days of work distraught because they kept saying things like "you aren't going to quit are you?" and "are you still going to come in to work tomorrow?" and always telling her about all the other people who had worked there over the years and how most of them quit after only a few days. I was so pissed, she was dealing with enough stress just trying to learn the job and they were just making it worse. In hind sight it is more likely that they were trying to scare her on purpose just to be mean, they do things like that all the time. It must be like working in a daycare, everyone making things up and telling on each other to try and get each other in trouble. I really hate to hear about it (I mean I really hate it) but I am trying to be a good listener and I know that it is important for Suz to get to vent. I guess it is just in my nature to want to go down there and say something about it but I know that would only make things harder for her. Either way, all I want to do is make it better for her.
As for me, I have been working with Predictix LLC, a computer science and software firm in Atlanta. I really enjoy the job, it is not like anything I have ever done before and I have learned a lot since starting there in February of 2007. I work with some of the most brilliant programmers in Atlanta (or anywhere for that matter). I had a little trouble at first, having to learn a new business, new lingo, and having to relearn the ol' computer skills. But there were a bunch of great people (including my good friend Matt) who were all happy to help me, and they were (usually) patient with me. Now, a year and a half later I can honestly say I could probably help you if your computer was not cooperating with you. One of the fringe benefits is that I have a lot of screen time to work on my own pet projects, oh yeah, and I get the honor of helping out if any family members need any computer related assistance.
Here are a couple of shots of the office>

Pix from out Indy / Chicago trip

Photobucket Album

What a week!!!

We (Suzy and I) just returned from an exciting 10 day trip to Chicago and Indianapolis. We had a lot of goals that we wanted to achieve and with a few small exceptions it feels like a great success!! We departed the Atlanta airport on Friday afternoon (6/7).


With the exception of my having spilled a gas can in the Versa the day before (leaving an awful stink in the car) the trip to the airport went fine, we arrived with plenty of time to print our boarding passes, get through security and grab a snack on the concourse before boarding. It was our first trip since my surgery last November and I definitely felt some major discomfort on the flight (mostly on departure and landing) but it was not too bad.



We had decided to fly in to Milwaukee and rent a car to drive in to Chicago which worked out great, the Milwaukee airport is small and easy to get around in which really made our arrival nice and easy. The rental car allowed us to get around easier and stop for whatever we wanted to, which was great. We stopped in southern Wisconsin to grab a bite since Suz was feeling a little low and the weather was looking pretty bad. It turned out that a huge rain storm was brewing and actually spawned a few tornadoes. We managed to side step the worst of the storm by taking a little time to walk around at a Gander Mtn. store and then grabbing a bite at a steak house right off the highway.



After eating we both felt a lot better and other then the traffic on the Kennedy expressway (ugh!!) we made it Frank and Sarah's with time left over for a little walk in their new neighborhood and a late bite at a little diner around the corner







We had a lot of fun getting to know Zane again, since the last time we had seen him he was a new born. He is really starting to explore and learn, sometimes learning a little too fast.







We had a great time taking Zane to the Morton Arboretum and there are too many great pictures to post here so I will create an album on Photobucket for them!
It was a little on the hot side that day, but it was totally worth it, seeing all the beautiful trees and plants and watching Zane in the children's garden made for a great day! The next day we went to a White Sox game (Z's very first!)



which was a lot of fun once the downpour ended. The Sox handed the Twins a serious ass whooping.

That evening we shared a Thai dinner (including fried meal worms...)






Yes, those are worms in my bro's mouth.



We spent most of the next day on a solo trip to visit my Mom and Dad's graves, which was very emotional for me and for Suzy too. It was her first time meeting them and my first time there in over 10 years. It was a lot harder then I expected to be there again but we both left with a great sense of relief and closeness. That night we decided to head down to Navy Pier for some sight seeing and a bite to eat. It had rained off and on so it was nice and sticky but we had a great time anyway.





On our last day in Chicago we took a little trip out to the Queen of Heaven cemetery and mausoleum to pay a visit to my grandparents, great grandparents and my great aunt Dolly. Suz and I were really impressed by the size of this place. It is absolutely huge and the decorations are really beautiful.



After leaving the cemetery we headed down to the city for a little sight seeing. Suzy got to take her first trip to the top of the Sears Tower which was cool but I guess not as cool as it was when I was 5.




We returned our rental car and Sarah gave us a lift back to their place for our last evening with them. Frank dug up some old documents and records that he had kept which were our dad's and some genealogy records that I had a great time reading through. It was really nice getting to catch up with him and spending time with our nephew.
The next day we packed our bags and headed down to Union Station for our bus ride to Indianapolis which was not as nice as we had hoped but also not as long as we thought it would be.
Arriving in Indy was a huge relief for us both, Suzy's Grandma Nancy is one of the most wonderful human beings I have ever met, just being around her is relaxing and her personality makes you want to be a better person. We had a nice dinner with Nancy and headed to her house to relax and get some sleep.



The next day we met up with Suzy's aunt Heather for breakfast and then went for a visit to the rehab facility where grandpa Russell is recovering from a fall he had at home. He was having a rough morning but seemed to really perk up upon seeing Suzy, I can't say I blame him, she usually has that effect on me too.



We had such a wonderful time visiting grandma Nancy, grandpa Russell, Heather and Eric that we really didn't want to come home. We did a lot there but I will say one thing for sure, we payed a lot of attention to finding shoes for Suzy and me, maybe more then we should, but then we both had a great need for foot comfort!



Grandma Nancy has made a very nice home for them in their condo, she has it decorated to the gills with beautiful artwork, crystals, plants and of course their sweet kitty Molly, who was very happy to have someone to lavish with attention since grandpa has been away for a little while and she usually spends a lot of time with him. Our next visit to grandpa was a lot better since he was much more awake and we brought him some cool headphones so he could listen to his shows on t.v. without bothering his butt head roommate. He was much more talkative and had a great time checking out the picture of little Taylor (our niece/his great granddaughter) that we brought for him.
We tried to visit him often but he gets tired easily so we usually kept it short and sweet. We got to go to the mall near Nancy's house a couple of times and we had lots of great food, but most of all it was the company that made it a great time.



It had to come to an end some time, and we had forgotten that Sunday was fathers day so we decided to try and get on an earlier flight home to spend time with Jim and Chris (Suzy's dad and brother) who were celebrating their first grandfathers day and fathers day respectively. We checked on the Air Tran website and the 6am flight showed to have 22 seats still available so we figured ... cool, no problem... right. Well, no not right, we woke up at 3:45 am we were out the door at 4 and arrived at the airport in 30 minutes, when we got to the front of the line and asked if we could stand by for one of the available seats we were informed that there had been an error in Air Tran website showing and selling (un)available seats and the flight was actually way over sold. The desk agents were trying to shuffle the people who had been over sold on to other flights to get them to their destinations but it did not look good for us. That was not the best thing to hear when you have only had a few hours of sleep and you are aching all over from a long week of running around and sleeping on beds that you are not used to but the agent told us we should come back to the desk at 8 and try to get on the 11:30 flight so we decided to make the best of it and get a cup of coffee and a muffin and take a stroll around the airport. We came back to the ticket desk to find a different agent there who told us that we could pay $25 each and that would allow him to confirm us on the 11:30 flight, we decided that was the way to go and got our passes and headed out to the gate. Three hours passed while we played on the computer and read while sitting at the gate. The gate agents made an announcement asking if anyone wanted to upgrade their tickets to first class for a $50 fee and Suz thought that would be fun so we decided that would, she went up to the gate and asked if we could do that and the gate agent proceeded to tell her that not only could we not upgrade but that he was going to have to refund the $50 we had paid earlier and that we could not get on the flight at all!!!! Needless to say she freaked out, I was sitting close by but did not hear what was going on exactly but I could see that Suz was getting upset so I went over to find out what was going on and the agent immediately copped an attitude with me as if we were trying to sneak on to the plane and somehow it was our fault that the flight was full. I got very upset and explained to the agent that we were told that by paying the $25 per ticket fee, we had been assigned seats, our bags were checked and we were guaranteed to be on that plane! Maybe it was all the other flights and all the other passengers who had been yelling at him all morning, or maybe it was just me but he decided to argue with me and tell me that we were not going to be on that flight. I was livid, deprived of sleep and a little jacked up on caffeine so I let my voice get a little elevated and apparently that pushed the gate agent over the edge. He walked away from me and refused to speak to me at all! I tried to calm down and got on the phone with Air Tran while Suzy tired to talk to one of the other agents that were already almost done boarding the plane by now. Then, after a few minutes on hold the agent suddenly changed his tune and called us over, handed us our passes and nodded over toward the gate. I am not exactly sure what happened but I was just ready to get out of there so we grabbed our things and boarded the plane. It was pretty cool when we were walking down the isle towards our seats other passengers were saying "way to go" and "glad you made it on" I guess there were other folks who were having similar problems that morning. All I can say is I hope Air Tran gets the kinks worked out of their system and can avoid this sort of thing in the future. We finally made it back to Atlanta at about 1pm and by the time our bags got out to the terminal Suzy's mom had just showed up to pick us up. We headed out to their house to reunite with our puppies (we had been suffering some major dog love withdrawal) and relax while waiting for the rest of the family to come over for a little cook out and cake for fathers day. I am going to post the photos of our trip in my Photobucket album for all to see so feel free to go check them out!!

here is a link to photobucket

Taking Great Strides

Well this weekend was the Great Strides fundraiser benefiting the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. The event raised awareness about CF and raised money for research to help make life easier for patients and hopefully to find a cure some day soon. The event seemed to be a huge success, it felt like the crowd was a lot bigger then last year and all around it seemed to be better organized. I had a great time as is usual at these events, I always really enjoy working with Sarah, Susan, Kirsten and all the other folks at the CFF. I have been working for several years with the CFF and the Pickering Foundation which has an annual charity golf tournament in October. I had to skip the golf tournament last year so I was really missing the good times and looking forward to the walk. I have included some links for anyone who is interested in learning more.

Here is a link to some photos!!
http://s195.photobucket.com/albums/z86/C_Santoro/Great%20Strides%2008/

Bone growth

So this is a new discovery for me. My last visit to the doctor, when he explained that one of the screws (who's job is to hold my spinal fusion together) has started to back itself out, he prescribed more physical therapy or I should say more "intensive" physical therapy, and something called a bone growth stimulator. The P.T. was pretty much self explanatory but the bone growth stimulator was a little more of a mystery to us. I didn't think to ask at the time of the appointment and Suzy and I just figured it was some sort of medicine that helped to strengthen your bones. I guess that seemed to make sense, I mean they have all sorts of stuff for people who have low bone density or osteoporosis. My mother in law Anna takes something like that and I guess that is what I was expecting. Well, I was way off.

The bone growth stimulator is actually an electronic device that you wear over the area that needs to be stimulated. It looks sort of like a small tennis racket without a handle that has a giant c.b. radio mic attached to it. I have since done some research on the subject and found that they have an impressive track record of making huge improvements in users quality of life. Having said that I am going to document my progress here.


The company's rep. came by last week for a quick tutorial and to explain the devices limitations. I was surprised to learn that, because of the company who make them, the devise has a relatively short lifespan (because they set the device to automatically turn itself off after nine months, so it can not be used longer then prescribed, it is also set to only be used once every twenty four hours). I was at first a little pissed about it but I suppose I understand why they do it, I guess they have to protect their company's future. I think I would not be quite as calm about it if I had to actually pay for it out of my own pocket, seeing that the price of only one b.g.s. device, that you can only use once a day for nine months, costs over five thousand eight hundred dollars, and even my insurance company who has a contract with the supplier still pays over twenty five hundred dollars for it. Anyway we had already met our out of pocket maximum for the year so it didn't cost us anything, and the rep. who delivered it said that if I am still using it at the end of the nine months that they had to give me another one free, so I will be sure to keep track of his card.

I am using the device daily trying to keep it close to the same time, so as not to mess up the every twenty four hours rule. Obviously, I have not seen any sort of results yet as it takes several weeks to start making progress. For those of you who are interested, the way it works is by emitting electro-magnetic energy in a focused area that causes increased blood flow in the inner part of the bone, the cells in the bone are then caused to build their structure more rapidly then they normally do. I guess it is a similar ideal to all those magnetic necklaces, bracelets, shoe insoles and such, only on a much more powerful scale (like 5000 times more powerful). So for someone like me who has a degenerative disease that keeps your bones, joints and cartilage from growing as strong as they should, it makes your bones stronger and more dense (less likely to crack or break). And in my case specifically it will make the donor bone that replaced my damaged vertebral disc and my own vertebrae (which are now fused with titanium screws and a plate) grow together faster and stronger (hopefully).

We will see if the bone growth stimulator is all it is cracked up to be.

When I take a step back

And look at the past year I am sad to say that I have come to the difficult decision to sell my beautiful motorcycle. I guess just about anyone who is reading this probably knows that I had to have surgery on my neck for the second time in 9 years last November. The surgery has not left me with the result I had hoped for and now that I am still having to live with pretty much constant pain in my neck and upper back I hardly ever ride my FZ at all any more.

I bought the bike about 14 months ago after first seeing one like it at the International Motorcycle Show the year before. It was love at first sight for me and I knew at that moment that I would one day have one. I purchased the bike new from Lawrenceville Honda Yamaha and I also purchased several accessories to make it both more comfortable and more powerful. The end result was (for me) the perfect mix of style comfort and performance. It has been very hard for me to come to this decision but seeing it sitting there in the garage every day and not being able to ride (especially now that the weather is so nice) is really a lot worse then passing it off to someone who will get to enjoy the ride. And I guess if things improve with my neck, and I feel like I can get back in the saddle, I can always try again later. Who knows, maybe they will come up with something even better then my beloved FZ down the road.

With baited breath

I am sitting here with this funny taste in my mouth and thinking about where it came from. Is it my snack of Fritos and peanut butter cookies or the allergy meds I am taking to battle the wonderful life giving pollen, or is it the anticipation of tomorrows (hopefully productive) doctor visit? I guess all of these things effect me in one way or another. Tomorrow I will be visiting my surgeon to find out what he and the radiologist think about the results of my last MRI (last week). I am not sure what to expect, I guess I want to try an remain hopeful that they will be able to pinpoint the cause of the ongoing pain I am dealing with but at the same time the cynic in me expects to hear the usual run around and double talk instead of direct answers. I don't know if it is just bad luck with picking doctors or the doctors fear of repercussions from assholes but something seems to cause them to clam up when it comes to giving straight answers to my questions. I wish there was some way to weed through all the b.s. in these situations, I guess there can't be though, too many lawyers, too many idiots that want everyone but themselves to be the cause of their problems, too many doctors who honestly believe they are incapable of making mistakes, and way too many far removed insurance company officials and politicians who do not care what the effect of their actions will be on their customers well being as long as there is a way for them to deny benefits and or line their pockets somehow, that are making too many decisions without a single caring thought about the people who will be harmed in the bigger picture. It is the look out for #1 and fuck everyone else attitude that we all see on a daily basis in every aspect of our society that will eventually be the end of us all in one way or another.

Cool song from my bro in law

Hopefully this will work correctly. If it does you should be able to click on the player below to listen to a track my Brother in law Chris recorded last year (I think).

The Harry Boogie.mp3

Free File Hosting

You may have thought that I had a couple of screws loose....

Well, it turns out you were right. Well sort of anyway. I have been having a lot more pain in my neck lately, and I was worried that I had done something to damage another part of my back by over compensating for my neck. Well that remains to be seen but in my last visit to the doc for a status check and x-ray. The x-ray showed that one of the screws that are holding the plate in my neck to my bones has backed itself out a little. The doctor said I should not worry too much (that is easy for him to say) but it may be a sign that the bones are not fusing as well as we had hoped. He did however see fit to order another M.R.I. this time of my whole spine (not just my neck, as he had done before). So for now I am just having to up the pain meds for a while until it either clears up on its own or till the doc decides to take some other action. Either way there is not much I can do other then continue the stretching and resistance exercises that I have been doing all along. Hopefully this will be the last problem I have to deal with (with my neck anyway) and I can move on.
-Peace

Can I tell the future??

I have been wondering for a while now if I, that is my physical being, have the ability to foresee the future. I have noticed over the years that I am prone to body aches and pain in my back, neck and other joints just before a major change in atmospheric pressure. However, since first having surgery in 2000 on my spine and more recently last November having another similar operation in almost the same area, this acute sense has become even more sensitive. I have heard of other people who have the same sort of experience, but they usually say it is the rain or the snow or something like that. I however, feel that it is not the rain itself that is causing my discomfort but rather any change at all in the barometric pressure. I guess I am not 100% sure as to how it works but I am trying to pay closer attention to it and it just so happens that last Friday I was in a particularly great amount of pain (more then usual anyway) and I mentioned to my wife and her parents while we were at dinner that there must be a hell of a storm headed our way. The next couple of days saw a rare and historical event here in Atlanta, tornadoes!!! There were at least 3 for sure but the news stations have said that there may have actually been more. I guess from now on I will really try to remember to pay attention to my body's internal barometer and adjust my plans accordingly.

Take a look at My Daily Thread...

I would appreciate any feedback that may come to mind if you have had a minute to go and try out my new website "My Daily Thread" we have put a lot of time and energy into it but as with any new venture there is always room for improvement. Stop in and take a look, create an account (it's free of course) post some of your own "threads" and have fun reviewing and rating other peoples items. We have also written a companion app for Facebook that synchs up to MDT. Please try it out and tell your friends to check it out too.

Thanks a lot!!
-C

Another day another......

I guess all is well in Santoroland. Tomorrow is my 34th birthday and I am happy to say nothing is going on. I guess you could say I am a bit of a pessimist, but with the roller coaster ride I have been on for most of the last 30 or so years, I have learned to enjoy the rest periods. I know, boring!! But at least nothing bad is happening. Well not to me anyway. That is not to say that life has been uninteresting. Between my surgery and recovery which is going ok (not as good as I would hope but still ok), Suzy's having been put on the insulin pump, and the rest of the clan keeping up their normal high jinks, things are still quite lively. We are hoping to get to take some time off this summer for a much needed vacation. I am not too sure exactly where or when but I think we may try to do a nice long trip to visit various family members, my bro Frank and his family, Suzy's grandparents, Suzy's aunt Linda and uncle Jack and maybe we will squeeze in a little time to ourselves along the way. I know it is still a few months away at least but I am happily looking forward to it. Peace.

Work daze.

Thank goodness I am back working in the office for a change. I have spent the last several months working form home and recovering from my neck surgery, and I was starting to go nuts. I am back in the office and getting back to the routine of daily life surrounded by other people (not just our dogs). I must say I had really enjoyed working at the house and being relaxed on the sofa most of the day, but I guess I was starting to lose touch a little bit with reality. I had started going three or four days without shaving and sometimes almost that long without a shower too. So now I am getting back into the swing of things and feeling better too.
My physical therapist (for my neck problems) has had me doing a bunch of stretching and resistance work that has me thinking more about taking better care of myself. I have been taking some vitamins for a while now (about a year) and noticed that if I miss even a day or two of taking them I really feel the difference in my body. I can honestly say I will be doing my best from now on to keep the appropriate levels of vitamins in my system. For now I am taking one One a day mens, one 1000mg C, one 1000mg B12, and two 500mg Inosotol every day and I feel a lot better for it. I highly recommend it to anyone who just wants to feel better then they do now.