Many of you know me personally and know that I have been dealing with a few annoying health issues for the past several years - chronic headaches, difficulty breathing, sleep apnea, vision problems, etc - but over the course of the last few weeks, I have reached a major turning point in my life, and I would like to share this with the community at large. I consider the TMF and everyone in it to be a part of my family, and I know that many of you reciprocate that sentiment. As such, I would be remiss to not let you know what's going on.
As I mentioned above, for the past several years I have been living with chronic headaches, difficulty breathing, a vision condition called "nystagmus", and a balance deficiency, among other problems. These are symptoms that have been developing and progressing since I was about 15 years old, and they are the result of a condition called a "Type II Chiari Malformation" - in simple terms, my cerebellum (gray matter - the small wrinkly pouch sitting underneath the brain) is herniated and pressing against my spinal cord in the top part of my spinal column. I was just informed of this diagnosis yesterday afternoon.
Because the cerebellum is very important to the body's ability to maintain balance, and the spinal cord (which controls the pathways for motor function and sensing abilities) is compressed, this is obviously a fairly major problem. Because it is congenital and may be hindering the flow of cranial and spinal fluid throughout my spinal column, I have been definitively informed that surgery will be required to halt the progression of these potentially debilitating symptoms and to possibly restore full fluid flow to my spine, as well as possibly alleviating the above symptoms once and for all.
I will know later today when my next MRI appointment will be to check my spinal cord for damage, and in the extremely near future I will be making an appointment to see one of my area's most highly rated neurosurgeons.
As the title of this thread implies, now I have an excuse for being such a fuckin' loon sometimes.
Please know that this is not a pity party thread - as much as I will appreciate your well wishes, thoughts and prayers, I wanted to start this thread for the simple purpose of informing the community. Thanks so much for reading, and don't worry - when the time comes, I won't be out of touch for long, I promise.
As I mentioned above, for the past several years I have been living with chronic headaches, difficulty breathing, a vision condition called "nystagmus", and a balance deficiency, among other problems. These are symptoms that have been developing and progressing since I was about 15 years old, and they are the result of a condition called a "Type II Chiari Malformation" - in simple terms, my cerebellum (gray matter - the small wrinkly pouch sitting underneath the brain) is herniated and pressing against my spinal cord in the top part of my spinal column. I was just informed of this diagnosis yesterday afternoon.
Because the cerebellum is very important to the body's ability to maintain balance, and the spinal cord (which controls the pathways for motor function and sensing abilities) is compressed, this is obviously a fairly major problem. Because it is congenital and may be hindering the flow of cranial and spinal fluid throughout my spinal column, I have been definitively informed that surgery will be required to halt the progression of these potentially debilitating symptoms and to possibly restore full fluid flow to my spine, as well as possibly alleviating the above symptoms once and for all.
I will know later today when my next MRI appointment will be to check my spinal cord for damage, and in the extremely near future I will be making an appointment to see one of my area's most highly rated neurosurgeons.
As the title of this thread implies, now I have an excuse for being such a fuckin' loon sometimes.
Please know that this is not a pity party thread - as much as I will appreciate your well wishes, thoughts and prayers, I wanted to start this thread for the simple purpose of informing the community. Thanks so much for reading, and don't worry - when the time comes, I won't be out of touch for long, I promise.
