And then I got a crush on my physical therapist

Next up - neck surgeon. I was expecting it but still delighted to hear the S-word mentioned on visit #1. Even though I think of myself as reasonably (ok more than that) intelligent, it wasn't until he asked me that I even realized my hand and thumb were numb. Worst history-providing patient ever! I waffled, equivocated and I-guess-so'd my way through the history. Honestly, it seemed pretty pro forma. I'm sure it is statistically borne out BUT I still felt like I was just getting queued up for the surgery train.

After a bout of "how will I ever find the time to go to therapy", I dove right in to PT. Developed a wee crush on my therapist, but I think mostly that was the Medrol-Dosepak speaking. After a week of steroids, I felt like I was 75% better but was probably only 50%. I didn't realize until that initial PT evaluation how limited my neck range of motion was.

Soon, the kids were joining me in the dorky nerve glide exercises she gave me. I like to think they were cheering me on but in reality I think they were ribbing me a bit. Snarky brats! At this point I'm walking around with ice on my neck every hour and thinking how much better I'm doing. (Product plug: Found a great reusable gel ice pack which fits perfectly around my neck http://amzn.com/B004XWBTKQ)

In reality, I think I was just adapting to "my new normal". This included me not bending to put clothes in the dryer (so sad for me, I know), no housework, cooking (okay I didn't cook before) but no exercise of any kind. I'm home on the couch under a blanket trying to counteract arctic neck syndrome.