I have been off work since 2/11 as "Health Leave". I am trying very hard to convince the powers that be to allow me to work my shifts with the aid of my wheelchair. Please pray that the answer comes soon and that the answer will be YES!
I take a medication called Baclofen for the spasticity in my legs which has progressively gotten out of control since this past summer. The recommended maximum dose is 80 mg per day and I am taking 130 mg per day. I could go as high as 160, but due to the lack of response and the unpleasant side effects, I am uninterested in going any higher.
I am being evaluated for the implantation of a Baclofen medication pump. The pump would be implanted in my abdomen and the catheter would wrap around my side, be sutured into my spine, and the tip would rest in the intrathecal space of my spinal cord.
The benefit would be a targeted dose to the problem areas in micrograms versus the milligrams in the pill form. As a result, the IT medication would bypass my other organs causing less unpleasant side effects. The hope is that the pump along with aggressive physical therapy would return function to my legs comparable to many months ago.
The drawbacks are obvious; the risks that surgery entails and pump malfunction which could be devastating. I am willing to take on the risk.
The evaluation process will be about 2 months, followed by surgery and recovery. Hopefully, I am looking at approximately 3 to 4 months but possibly longer before I am up and running (figuratively speaking).
