Delano, California

In my late teens, my back pain began as an intermittent, intense dull ache in my right lower back. By my mid 20’s, the pain was so unbearable that I underwent my first spine fusion surgery. This was intended to stabilize my lowest two lumbar disks, which collapsed after I lost a bet with God. This increased my pain three-fold, so I ended up having two more spino-pelvic fusions, which have left me with sympathetically maintained pain in my right foot and low back. This RSD-related condition was not identified until one year after its onset (it started after my third surgery, a sacroiliac joint fusion).

Recently, I am gaining significant relief from an implanted pump, which delivers morphine and local anesthesia to my spine. Physical therapy has helped a lot also. I am up and around for about one hour each day. I have fully detailed my experiences here.

(Editor’s Note: The author remarked, “I have a typing injury, so I will have to keep this short and leave out such interesting words as scheherezadian and Byzantine.”)