Consultation appointment next week ....

The Chicago orthopedic surgeon e-mailed back on Wednesday evening and said that she had talked with another surgeon, friend at a foot conference (last weekend) about my case. She would like me to see this doctor for a consultation appointment. The new physician is also a foot/ankle orthopedic surgeon, but he does a lot of very challenging foot cases. He is older in age and presumably has tackled thousands of medical cases. My current doctor studied under him as part of medical school. We (current surgeon & myself) decided that physical therapy needs to be on “hold” until we see where we are headed. Although I desired to taper off of this, it was still hard to hear that we are “done.”

I made a few phone calls early this morning and was able to get a consultation appointment scheduled (2:00pm) for next Friday, July 27th in Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois (Chicago suburb). Someone was praying this morning, because this doctor only sees patients 1 ½ days per week and I was able to quickly get an appointment. I spoke to a generic “scheduling” person at a large hospital, so it wasn’t even his personal assistant. God is good, especially in times when everything else seems to be falling apart.

The past 3-4 days have been the largest emotional challenge ever. I cannot go into all the details now, but let’s just say that the magnitude of the present situation has been totally overwhelming. Today was the first day in three years that I was stayed home for several hours this morning, to “pull it together” mentally. I made it through the day, but not w/out tears. I’m thankful for a supportive boss and co-workers.

Big prayer request: I very much need to meet w/my current Chicago orthopedic surgeon after the consultation appointment with the new doctor. Preferably this would happen on the same day, but this would need to happen very late afternoon on Friday, July 27th (like 4:00-5:00). It would be nice to not have to stay in Chicago the entire weekend and wait to see her on the following Monday. Pray that something can be worked out. There are ways that this could happen, but it would be highly unusual for a doctor to see me during “off” hours.

There is absolutely no indication that my current Chicago orthopedic surgeon will tell me that she is “done” with my case, but at the difficultly level of the situation, it is always a possibility. It has happened before when I least expected it, so I am very fearful of it happening again. She is a big reason that I did not give up long ago. I have a significant desire to and emotional need to keep working with her. She is a huge blessing.

It has been a long day and week …. I’m not sleeping well, so I need to try to get to bed earlier tonight. Keep praying for strong faith and that I will truly take one step at a time. Pray that I will be able to relax about what is to come and will not worry about the situation continually for the next week.

Looking forward to a wedding shower in Illinois on Saturday with a future Eickhorst “bride-to-be” ……

In His grasp,
je