Update on my health

[ToniXX]

Hello loyal supporters of the Unseen Servant!

As a couple of you are aware, I had brain surgery two months ago. In particular I had deep brain stimulation (DBS) surgery. I was diagnosed with Parkinson's in 2015, when I was 45 years old. When people get such a diagnosis when they're pretty young, they will usually be good candidates for this surgery, which I was. The surgery placed two probes five inches into my brain (one for each hemisphere) These probes are as thick as a cat's whisker, and they have four electrodes on the end of each one. These are then connected to a battery pack that was surgically installed on the right side of my chest. This battery pack can send pulses at various frequencies and voltages, thus 'stimulating' the part of my brain that isn't working correctly to make dopamine and transmit it to the rest of my body. These targeted areas of the brain are approximately the size of a pea!

For all intensive porpoises (LOL) my condition has been reverted to the way it was after I'd been diagnosed for about a year. So I got back about seven years of my life, and can expect this implanted device to work for 9 to 15 years more. Before the surgery, I needed a lot of medication every three hours. Taking so much was necessary for me to feel ok and to help with the effects of the disease, but it would create side effects that would make my body move in other, odd ways. I would bob my head when I talked, and generally flail my right arm around. These erratic movements are called 'dyskinesia.' (bad movement) I'd crash hard once a dose had ended (referred to as motor fluctuation), and I'd need to get the next dose into my body ASAP. I now need about a quarter of the amount I was taking before and I have no such side effects from the meds.

So I'm back here at the forums, ready to make changes that need my attention. Luckily, Dave and Ron have been keeping things flowing quite well, so a big thank you to them for all of their work.

TLDR: I had brain surgery to help with my Parkinson's. It was a success, I got seven years of my life back, and I'm back at the forums now.

[Rex]

Sorry to hear of you diagnosis Greg, but very glad to hear you have had some treatment that worked and I hope it continues to work for a long time to come.

[OGRE MAGE]

Very glad to hear this positive news!

Keep up the good work, sir.

[gurusql]

Glad the hear good news, only wishing you good health and happy days.

[shaidar]

That's great news. I hope the procedure stays effective for many years to come.

Wishing you all the best for the future

S.

[tibbius]

Goodness, what a lot to go through. Glad that you're handling it so well, and that the surgery was helpful! Thanks, so much, for setting up these forums to begin with, and also for selecting such capable assistants to handle things.

[Inferno]

Glad to hear it Greg. Best wishes on your continued recovery and thank you once again for everything you do here to make this place so amazing.

[hedgeknight]

Greg, I had no idea. Great news about the surgery and the prognosis! We're here for you man. Whatever you need. I'll be drinking to your health tonight, brother!

[Leitz]

Just saw this, glad you're doing better!

[Spearmint]

Thank you for sharing your testimony. Health issues abound and are deeply personal yet I find from going through my own crisis that many well wishes from forum members I never meet up in person yet spend a large portion of my free time with as a player or GM are a great source of encouragement.

I hope you can recover quality of life and enjoy new seasons.

Blessings to you.

[Stirling]

Always great to hear folks news of good or improved health.

[Norjax]

Thanks for being so open about this, I had no idea.
Best wishes and continued gains.

[Scott308]

Glad to hear you are doing well. Was your DBS done while awake or asleep? We do a bunch of these and they are some of my favorite cases to scrub.

[ToniXX]

Was your DBS done while awake or asleep? We do a bunch of these and they are some of my favorite cases to scrub.

Hello,
I had the surgery at the UC Irvine hospital in Orange, CA. So I did it while completely asleep. I understand that if you do it at UCLA or even at Cedars you'll be awake...
Where do you work? Do they do it awake or asleep?

[Scott308]

I am a surg tech at the University of Wisconsin hospital. We do DBS procedures both ways, depending on the patient. If they will tolerate being awake and in one position for the case, that is the first option. That way the surgeon and neurologists can have the patient speak and move their arms and legs to see how they are affected by electrical stimulation at different locations in the brain, ultimately deciding on the best location for that patient.

If the patient is not a candidate for doing the awake DBS, then they go to sleep and we do the majority of the case in the MRI. Several years ago, we had staff fly out to UCSF and observe their intraoperative MRI suite and modeled ours after theirs. We did need to have some things custom made for our particular surgeon and facility requirements.

I like both of these cases for different reasons, although the surgeon is a big draw on his own. I have figured out how to get crossword puzzles printed and sterilized, so I fill those out during the cases as there is significant down-time while they fine tune placement. Awake DBS is cool because you can see and hear the patient's tremor go away when they dial it in. You can't see that while they are asleep obviously.

When in the MRI we are required to have ear protection because the MRI is very loud. We have a set of headphones that are connected to Pandora so I am able to listen to death metal while I sit in the MRI doing my crosswords, waiting for the scan to end so I can make adjustments then do it again.

[dmw71]

If the patient is not a candidate for doing the awake DBS, then they go to sleep and we do the majority of the case in the MRI.

When in the MRI we are required to have ear protection because the MRI is very loud. We have a set of headphones that are connected to Pandora so I am able to listen to death metal while I sit in the MRI doing my crosswords, waiting for the scan to end so I can make adjustments then do it again.

[Scott308]

I'm scrubbing an awake DBS tomorrow.

Also, the neurologist who does the vast majority of our awake DBS cases, knows I have snakes. When her son was in school and unable to care for his snake, she asked if I wanted it. So I ended up getting a really nice Boa for free, as they just wanted to make sure it went to a good home. Her son was studying herpetology and went to Thailand to work in a cobra rescue facility for six months. He definitely got the better of that deal!

[Tiglath]

Just caught this and so Hurrah and continuing good health, sir!

[Nordbo]

Congratulations and continued good health - that is really great news.

Nordbo

[ToniXX]

Thank you everyone for the well wishes. I'm not 100%, but I'm getting closer to 95... I feel like I'm off by a half step, but it's sooooooo much better than before. I'd do it again for sure.