A Pain in the Neck

About 5 years ago, I had this pain in the neck and it's been a "pain in the neck" ever since, in more ways than 1.

It's ultimately how I found out I was pregnant. There was literally this severe pain in my neck. I was popping Aleve like candy and as a side note thought I should take a pregnancy test "just in case". Well, the Aleve had to stop because I was pregnant. I called my family physician, described the pain to him through tears. He diagnosed it as a "slipped disc" but only based on symptoms b/c he wasn't going to order an MRI since I was pregnant and especially since I had not seen my OB.

He called in some steroids and anti-inflammatory by hoping it would correct itself. The following week my OB took me off those meds as a precaution and told me to just "wait it out".

The pain did ease up and I had no problems with my neck throughout my pregnancy. The boys were born and 13 months later...there was that "pain in the neck". I was able to have an MRI this time since I wasn't pregnant. The MRI revealed a "protruding disc" on C6 with C7 slightly bulging. I was referred to a conservative neurosurgeon who wanted to treat it with steroids and anti-inflammatory meds. He thought I was too young to do surgery and wanted to hold off as long as possible. He literally stated, "If you can get 4 more good years before loosing 2 joints that's 4 good years."

Off and on for those 4 years, I've dealt with this pain in the neck. It would typically correct itself with Ibuprofen and a little rest.

The past month, this pain in the neck has become more severe and unforgiving. Ibuprofen is not working, prescriptin pain meds are not working, rest is not working despite my active 4 year old twins. Another MRI and Dr. visit with my neurosurgeon revealed that the pain in the neck has worsened to 2 herniated discs filled with bone spurs. And now this "pain in the neck" will be dealt with surgically. So, I have literally gotten the "4 more good years" that he predicted and hoped for.

My surgery is scheduled for July 1st and will take place back home. I'll have to stay with my parents for about a week to recover as I will not feel like riding the 2 1/2 hours to G'ville. My boys will be staying with my in-laws for a few days and then back with me for the rest of the week.

While I am ready to get rid of this "pain in the neck"...I wish he could rid me of a few other "pains in the neck" that obviously can't be dealt with surgically. Hmmm...anyone know a good psychiatrist for these?

Brilla Soccer Camp June 2010

This past week, the boys and I have been camping out back home with my parents. The boys participated in the Brilla Soccer Camp held at our home church. They both enjoyed it and I liked that it gave them some physical activity to do in the mornings. With the heat index reaching above the 100's here in the south...most physical activities are planned in the morning or late evening and sometimes indoors. They were able to do both...with some warm up activities outside and then some learning soccer drills inside the church gym. I liked that the camp integrated both physical activity/growth and spiritual growth.

The boys were so excited to have real cleats and shin guards. They thought they were ready for the World Cup despite them never having played soccer before. Just the uniform was enough for them.

The picture below was taken for the local paper. The lead boy in the picture is a cool friend of the boys.

You can see CB in the background on the right. While BB enjoyed the opportunity...he's just not as physical when it comes sports. Given the choice...he would rather be hammering or building something.

Hopefully there will be more opportunities like this involving church recreation and sports to teach our children the importance of both physical and spiritual growth.

Delta Traffic

While I have certainly missed my hometown and the amenities it offers, I haven't missed the traffic there especially during "rush" hours. It wouldn't be uncommon for it take 20 minutes to go only 5 miles. A few times, people here ask me about the traffic back home. Apparently it's something that is highly noticed when they visit the "hills" of my hometown area. I just tell them that it's something you deal with and it just comes with the territory of living there.

Here in the Delta, there is traffic but it is quite different than back home. As you can see in the above pictures...the traffic here is overtaken by farm equipment that resemble the likes of Transformers. I don't know what any of those are except the tractor but they can take up the whole road. They are usually nice enough to pull over and let you pass on by...that, too, is different than where I am from; no pulling over for faster traffic in the city.

T-Ball and Trophies

Last Tuesday ended our T-Ball season. We lost to a very good team in the "semi-finals" of the tournament. Even though we lost due to a controversial call, if there was a team to loose team, I'm glad it was this team. Their coaches have proven to be fair and honest. It's the umpire's lack of umpiring skills that made for the controversial loss.

Their disappointment was soon replaced with excitement and smiles when they received their trophies and medallions.

Over all we had a really good season and I grew to love the little children on our team. One day, way into the future I will wonder "what ever happened to _____."

We hope to play again next year and Jeremy hopes to coach again. Each year will bring more memories and learning experiences...for both the boys as players and me as an athlete's mom.