That's an idea, Lee. I will look into that.

I had my second opinion appt with the doctor today. His office was in a downtown area I am not familiar with and I had a hard time parking. Then when I got there at 1:45 for my 2:00 appt, I was told that the doctor was running 45 minutes late. His office is in a large medical bldg connected to a large downtown hospital. I was told to go downstairs for coffee and to come back at 2:30. So I walked across to the hospital(there is a walkway connecting the two buildings), must have been a good 1/4 mile one way. I'm not up for long jaunts so it took me about 20 minutes to get from one building to the next.

Got back to the office at 2:30 but did not see the doctor until almost 3:00. I had not taken any pain meds bc I had a long drive. Well I did see the ortho surgeon for 5 whole minutes after waiting over an hour to see him. All he did was look at my MRI, asked me how my pain was, how long I had back issues(25 years) & his recommendation that surgery will most likely help. Then I was hustled out of there because "I have a waiting room full of patients I need to see". Non committal *and* rude. he was a young guy too.

I did have a chance to quickly ask him if there are any alternatives to surgery. He mentioned PT, I said I had it. He mentioned epidurals, I said had them in the past, they don't work for long. Not to mention that my insurance company won't pay for them. Well he said that surgery might be your best option if you decide that your pain & disability are seriously interfering in your life.

I would say yes, that is a fact. I have also spoken to another person by email who had a more involved surgery and did well afterwards. So I will most likely be going forward. After I get my D&C of course. Want to get that out of the way first. I pray I am doing the right thing.