Re: Introduction
Robert e Parker (bob(AT)dragon7.demon.co.uk)
Wed, 11 Mar 1998 19:11:49 +0000
In message <3506AC62.403D(AT)hsutx.edu>, Steve Nickell
<snickell.dev(AT)hsutx.edu> writes
>My name is Steven Nickell. I am a 27 year old white male, and a
>>graduate fellow of the school of English at Hardon-Simmons University.
>>2 years ago, I had surgery on my left ankle to correct a rather serious
>>injury to the exterior ligaments of that joint. One month later, I
>>began experiencing vague "back pain"; within one 24 hour period, on
>>February 10, 1997, I went from unbelievable spasticity of the legs and
>>abdomen to total paralysis from the Pectoralis minor region down to my
>>feet. Included in this were numbness, vibration sense, temperature
>>discernment, and positional acknowledgement loss. It was like a
>>complete lesion, involving bowel and bladder control as well.
>> At first, (within 3 months) I experienced an almost complete recovery:
>>I could walk with a cane or cuff-crutch, but was easily fatigued, often
>>encountering numbness in the lower extremities. I assumed this would
>>pass if I merely "worked through it." How wrong I was! Gradually, I
>>began to get weaker and weaker again, with less sensation and less
>>bowel/bladder control. I am now confined to a wheelchair. The
>>diagnosis is acute, chronic transverse myelitis with lesions apparent.
>>The origin has been determined as spinal arterial thrombosis. So it is
>>now acute myelitis compounded by the "stroke." When I (timidly) asked
>>my neourologist about my recovery outlook, he merely told me to get used
>>to the 'chair.
>> I am trying to get used to it...and the many other things that come
>>with it. The current theory is that years of chronic steroid usage (for
>>asthma), and the accompanying side effects, combined with a very active
>>lifestyle (I was a professional martial artist instructor and tournament
>>fighter) somehow created a weakness of the entire vertebral column. I
>>also have complete compression of all lumbar vertebrae, and a variety of
>>disc intrusions into the canal.
>> The worst part of all this is the horrible, desolate feeling that
>>somehow takes me over. It somehow comforts me to know it is chronic. I
>>now have somnething to build on, a reference point to proceed from. And
>>best of all, I find this group and learn that I am not alone.
>> I am grateful to you all for your service to the TM community, and to
>>myself. If there is any way in which I may assist you please let me
>>know. We do, after all, seem to have a mutual enemy.
>>
>>Steven Nickell
>>Hardin -Simmons University
>
>P.S. Has anyone heard of other steroid-dependency related cases of TM?
>If so, I would like to hear about it.
>
>God Bless,
>Steve
>
Hello Steven,
sorry i cannot help with any steroid-dependency cases,but the steroids i
was given to treat my ATM have distroyed my left knee,so if i ever get
to the stage where i can try to walk (still in wheelchair) then i will
need a new plastic replacment.
As to those desolate feelings, i think we all have those,it helps being
able to write to this list because only other ATM sufferers know what it
is really like!!
As to the comments from that doctor about the wheelchair "get used to
it" yes for know, but who knows how you will be in one year or five
years, so dont take that to heart!!!
Regards Robert......
--
Robert e Parker