post-MRI happenings

Today I put the discs with the MRI's I've done into the mail to my New York doctor. Paid a pretty penny for express mail, and it's out.

Ironically today as well, I got a phone call from the plastic surgery department at Soroka hospital, where I first had the NF. I'll explain why...

When I went to them over a month ago to request that they write a referral for the MRI's which my NY doctor ordered, as my health fund required me to do, the doctor I saw that day had a condition in order to give me the referrals for the MRI's. That condition was that I come to a "team discussion" of my case after the MRI's. Today is when they called me to give me the appointment for that team discussion. That will take place this coming Monday at Soroka, in the plastic surgery unit. The purpose of this is to discuss the findings of the MRI's (which I don't even know yet), and I think to try to convince me to keep my care in Israel. I think the health fund doesn't want to pay again for a surgery abroad, and that's why they required me to jump through hoops to get the MRI's done. So the condition that the Be'er Sheva plastic surgeon put on the referral for the MRI's is that I hear what the opinion is of the surgeons here. While there is never anything wrong with hearing another medical opinion, I don't want to go to this team discussion in Soroka. That isn't the place where I would move my care to. I wouldn't undergo another surgery in Soroka unless my life depended on it. That being said, there is a doctor in Soroka plastic surgery that I might trust, but haven't met him yet. He has very good ratings and comments on the internet, and, although I wouldn't make this a rule of who I can trust, he is religious. I'll meet him at this team meeting. I hope they don't use the platform to tell me to go to the pain clinic, and put me on the defensive again (like the plastic surgeon did when I saw him to ask for the referral for the MRI's). Unfortunately Robert can't be with me for that team meeting, he's working at that time. I might see if I can take a friend but I'm not sure.

I don't like the idea of being in the room with a bunch of doctors, and me, the patient, it sounds intimidating. I've done it before, at Ichilov hospital for the PVNS, and it was stressful. Also, being in Soroka plastic surgery is stressful. I do know some of the doctors there, and it was from a time that I got PTSD, in part, from them. But since I agreed to this condition, and the health fund paid for all the MRI's, I do have a responsibility to go. So that's on Monday. Wish me luck.

Other than all this stuff, things are going ok. Pretty stable. The pain isn't getting worse, but unfortunately not better either. I can walk to shul on Shabbat, and I usually do, but I pay for it the rest of the day and often the next day as well. Last week I decided just to stay home and not deal with more pain. But missing shul takes out a big part of my week in many ways.

I am still making jewelry every morning and enjoying it. Here is a picture of the last set that I made: (it's not in great focus, sorry)

My birthing work is kind of on hold at the moment. I am willing and ready to give birth preparation courses, but not being a doula for the time being. Probably not until after I recover from whatever surgery is looming in the near future. I'm just not physically up to being there for a birthing woman. I am not actually sure if I'll ever get back to it. I can't see that deep into the future.

Thank Gd the kids and Robert are all doing fine. My youngest is starting 11th grade this year, it's a big year of national graduation competency tests (bagrut). He's a great student, he'll do fine, b'ezrat Hashem. Shifra, my 19 year old, is just starting her national service being a paramedic at Magen David Adom (red star of David, like the red cross paramedic and ambulance service), so that's an exciting new start for her. She just moved into her new apartment in Jerusalem today! Ya'akov is staying with his program of working as a gardener in and around Be'er Sheva, and going on hikes and trips with different groups he belongs to. Dovi, my oldest, married, with my beautiful granddaughter, is also starting a new job this year, teaching in the Yeshiva he learned in, in Bet She'an. It's really awesome for him, he's starting to teach Torah and gemorrah to the first year students. It's really quite an honor. My daughter in law is in college learning for her teaching degree, and my little granddaughter is very busy being a 1+1/2 year old and delightful. Thank Gd, family is stable and thriving. I don't have enough thank you's to Hashem for that. Onward and upward.