This years ADk Hike for Hope. The back story.
So before I post about this years beautiful journey through part of the Great Northern Forest, I thought
it important to speak of my experience just before I embarked.
You see I’ve been having a tremor in my right hand now for over 10 years. I can no longer easily hold a pen to write.
I attributed this to an old injury either to my hand or my rotator cuff, but was obviously concerned .
Speaking to my GP about it, her opinion was it was possibly from the neck and it would be a good idea to have an MRI.
Off I went, another machine to jump in to. Been in all of em, every single one on the planet.
Two days before I leave on the 90 mile canoe trip I receive a call, not from my GP but from a nurse for an orthopedic surgeon she referred me to.
The nurse bluntly started out by saying I had a serious problem and before I saw the surgeon
they wanted to prescribe pain medicine, aka… Oxycodon. That was a big WTF ?! I said I didn’t know what she was talking about and I’d like to speak with my GP about the MRI results first and no thanks for the Oxycodon.
The nurse at my GP informed me I had degenerative C4 and C5 disc in my neck. Ok fair enough but I was in no pain and why hadn’t anybody discussed this with me ?
She apologized , too late for that, it already scared the hell out of me.
I said “ look I’m 69 years old, been active all of my life, is this really unusual ? “ A delayed sigh, “no”.
Meanwhile the surgeons office kept calling about the pain medicine, which I told them in no uncertain terms, Stop Calling !
I ordered my GP to write a script for PT at The Lake Placid Sports Clinic, got a massage and went to PT one day before my trip.
The therapist at the LPSC commented on my experience, “typical”. She was great, got me and my confidence going and the next day I was off on my 90 mile canoe trip with a number of miles of carries.
Moral of this story is obvious. Second guess doctors, get second opinions, they like to dole out meds. You are the captain of the ship. BTW… I am on absolutely no medication for anything. Nada.