Well, it has been quite some time since I have written a post however I do have a genuine excuse! Over the course of this year I had been experiencing odd physical changes which I could not explain – increased spasms, sweating below the level of spinal cord inury ( T9/10) and pain above the level of my paralysis. After an MRI scan I was found that I had a fluid filled sack ( called a syrinx) in my spinal cord just above the site where the sever occurred 9 years ago. It was decided that an operation was desirable at this stage to firstly try to stop the progress of the syrinx and symptoms and secondly hopefully improve the symptoms and shrink the syrinx by allowing the CSF ( cerebo-spinal fluid) to flow more freely.
The spinal surgery went ahead on 23rd September but there were complications meaning I lost a lot of blood and the original procedure was substituted by necessity for a more invasive one.
2 weeks later I fell extremely ill, the operative wound burst and cerebo-spinal fluid was leaking freely. I found I had contracted post operative meningitis. I was immediately put on 3 weeks IV antibiotics and a drain inserted in my spine for 2 weeks. A second spinal surgery operation was carried out.
I am delighted to say I am feeling much better now, gradually spending more hours work and increasing the time I spend in my wheelchair.