Hi everyone, my name is Anne, 58 years young, and live in North Carolina. I
was diagnosed with tm in 1971. All the doctors were completely stumped, they
had never seen anyone come into the hospital for a bladder dialation procedure
and wake up 2 days later completely paralyzed from the waist down. My family
had me transferred to another hospital where the dr. there did a mylogram the
very next morning. There was just one thing that went wrong. The dr. inserted
the dye/contrast however, he forgot all about drawing the dye out after the
test was complete. I went on to a full recovery after a 4 month hospital stay.
Then in 1993 I noticed that my legs started feeling very heavy and I was having
a great deal of pain radiating down my spine, into my hips and continuing down
my legs. Oddly enough, I was then working in the very hospital that I had
recovered in back in 1971 so one day I went to the medical library and to my
surprise every book that I picked up researching tm, had my name in it along
with one other gentleman who lived about 8 miles from me.
Anyway, after seeing several neurologists, I was told that the leftover dye had
attached itself to my spine and had destroyed the myelin (the protective
covering) over our nerve endings leading away from the spine. It progressed
rapidly and I found myself using a walker, but within just a few months I was
in a wheelchair. For the last 12 years my life has consisted of either being
in a hospital bed or my power scooter. I don't suppose I will ever walk
again. But I continue to live alone, with my son and daughter checking in on
me and getting me to my dr. appointments. I probably should be in a nursing
home but as long as I can continue to function in the capacity that I am
currently in, I just want to stay at home.
Please keep me in your prayers and thanks for hearing my story. Take care
everyone and God Bless you all. Anne
