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Thank you so much for these resources. When I finally found a specialist who understood my spinal cord injury/congenital defects, he said he was willing to operate but that he needed a thoracic surgeon to assist, and ALL of them had strict weight limits and wouldn't work with him on a case like mine.
He also said that due to my age and severity, I would likely need revision surgeries every year or year and a half for the rest of my life. He agreed the BMI limit was BS but also said unless I lost weight, there was nothing he could do. I pointed out that long-term weight loss is impossible so even if I lost enough in the short term to get the surgery (which would be a miracle because I'm very superfat), I would almost certainly gain it back (and then some) while failing surgical hardware further disabled me and I couldn't have it repaired because I wasn't small enough. He mentioned that stupid balloon you can swallow to fill up my stomach and prevent me from eating too much. I said it was horse shit to assume that my size was due to my appetite and ended the visit.
I genuinely believe if I'd been able to access surgery when I was younger, healthier, and stronger, that I would've done really well and preserved all or almost all of my mobility.
I really truly hope this piece helps someone younger who is in my shoes.
It's not certain that I'll need lumbar fusion surgery (I'm at the injection stage of the torture), but I was told by me orthopedic surgeon that he wouldn't be able to do the procedure because of my weight. I immediately began researching and discovered OLLIF, a new protocol for the kind of surgery I might need. The problem is access. So far, I can't find a surgeon in my city who is adept in this procedure.
All I know is that I can't function with the level of pain I've been experiencing for most of the past year. And it's only getting worse.
Thank you so much for these resources. When I finally found a specialist who understood my spinal cord injury/congenital defects, he said he was willing to operate but that he needed a thoracic surgeon to assist, and ALL of them had strict weight limits and wouldn't work with him on a case like mine.
He also said that due to my age and severity, I would likely need revision surgeries every year or year and a half for the rest of my life. He agreed the BMI limit was BS but also said unless I lost weight, there was nothing he could do. I pointed out that long-term weight loss is impossible so even if I lost enough in the short term to get the surgery (which would be a miracle because I'm very superfat), I would almost certainly gain it back (and then some) while failing surgical hardware further disabled me and I couldn't have it repaired because I wasn't small enough. He mentioned that stupid balloon you can swallow to fill up my stomach and prevent me from eating too much. I said it was horse shit to assume that my size was due to my appetite and ended the visit.
I genuinely believe if I'd been able to access surgery when I was younger, healthier, and stronger, that I would've done really well and preserved all or almost all of my mobility.
I really truly hope this piece helps someone younger who is in my shoes.
It's not certain that I'll need lumbar fusion surgery (I'm at the injection stage of the torture), but I was told by me orthopedic surgeon that he wouldn't be able to do the procedure because of my weight. I immediately began researching and discovered OLLIF, a new protocol for the kind of surgery I might need. The problem is access. So far, I can't find a surgeon in my city who is adept in this procedure.
All I know is that I can't function with the level of pain I've been experiencing for most of the past year. And it's only getting worse.