Tuesday foot status ...

Quick update ....

I met with an anesthesiologist today about a possible therapeutic epidural injection. I learned that I am not a candidate for this type of pain relief and it is not effective for foot pain. It is normally done to relieve pain for a specific nerve issue and this is not my situation. An epidural for foot nerves would only work for 2-6 hours - it is a very short term solution. This doctor suggested increasing the dosage of oral pain medication to get me through physical therapy. I am thankful for a clear and direct answer on this.

The physical therapy sessions have been a huge challenge this week and have increased pain significantly. The constant pain and inability to walk are preventing me from being able to work effectively and the pain is all I am able to concentrate on during the day (not how it should be). I am taking more narcotic medication than I would like and it is not as effective as it should be.

I am supposed to talk with the Chicago surgeon via phone on Friday. I suspect she wants to wait a month before doing the toe surgery, but I don't feel like I can wait due to the increasingly difficult pain situation. I am close to needing to take a "leave of absence" from work, and don't want this to happen.

Pray that the Friday phone call will definitely happen, that the surgeon will be open to fixing the toes sooner than later and that I am able to make it through the week with the pain situation. I am very thankful that she is willing to talk to me on the phone.

je