We have a few more questions answered, but now just awaiting second opinion from a radiologist. We will know more tomorrow hopefully by noon at the latest.
The big question answered for me is that Joie does have a previous disc herniation that happened in her middle back before I got her. She didn’t have surgery so they think there may be fluid building on the spine because without removing the disc that was herniated, it dies off and fluid then cannot flow through, which is causing her pain. Surgery at this point is likely not an option to fix that, but again, we await the second opinion. There is also a potential other serious concern regarding something they saw on scan, but I’ve decided to not give that thought until radiologist looks at scan and eliminates that thought. The disc herniation not being treated correctly the first time and fluid build up makes sense to me, so that is what I’m going to hope for as a best case scenario.
Her condition is going to be chronic, but hopeful we can manage with medication and possibly some other holistic approaches. I’m sad this will be a lifetime thing for her, but I’m happy she is with me and that I will do what I can to help her. I place no blame on the family before me, though I wish I could have known more. I believe they did the best they could with what they knew at the time. But it serves no purpose to blame or accuse, but instead move forward, and help Joie the best I can.
I’m so grateful for all the prayers and thoughts left on my blog post yesterday, via emails and on Facebook since I said Joie would be getting a CT scan. I hesitated whether or not to share the news initially because I didn’t want to cause worry or was not asking for sympathy. But Joyful Paws and part of my mission is to continue to educate others about IVDD and hopefully help others, and most importantly, save lives. So I felt it important to share where Joie is at. There can never be too much education out there about IVDD.
The neurosurgeon is really wonderful and with Dodgerslist help, I feel like I’ve got all the bases covered to help Joie. I’ll keep you updated.