November 23 - “JBS (again)”

And so it begins. My JBS - Journey into Back Surgery (again) has officially left the dock. But first …

The day actually started in the morning (as it usually does).  I had an appointment to pick up my other hearing aid. Much-welcomed addition to my arsenal of age-related assistants. 

But while we were there, we stopped in at the little optical factory on site. Why? Because my glasses broke clean in half the day before when I was trying to clean off turkey grease. I wrapped the proverbial nerdly tape around it as a temporary fix, but it wasn’t really a successful union. So … it was off to the glasses shop to see if they had a cheap frame that would hold my lenses. Aaand of course they did not. Well, unless I wanted to spend upwards of $400. Nope. The lady was really nice, though. She did a temporary fix with some kind of shrink wrap gadget. It’s together, but is “extremely flexible.” Guess I’ll get used to my old ones again until I can see an ophthalmologist. Next year. Maybe. 

As important as the hearing aid was, that’s obviously not included in the back journey discussion. Now, yesterday afternoon was reserved for the first pre-surgery required test. This one was a DEXA Scan. The purpose was to determine if my bones are dense enough to hold the screws needed to put in the rod for my back. Whew. That’s a mouthful. The neurosurgeon told me to take a Valium beforehand, because I would have to lie flat on my back for a while. Not a comfortable position for me (to put it mildly).  He also called one in for my CT scan next week. Yay (I guess. Don’t remember ever taking Valium before). 

As it turned out, if that’s how the Valium “worked,” then next week for the CT scan, I think I’ll add a couple of those super extra strength Tylenol to the mix. I finally did get a little sleepy - after we got back home. That test, though? It was, thankfully, quite short. But for my back … also quite painful. 

By the way …  it was great hanging out with Jachin the other day. He came over after his parents left and had a slice of pizza with us. 

‭‭1 Thessalonians‬ ‭5‬:‭16‬-‭18 says, Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Father, thanks for helping me get through that time on the table. One more of those and then it’s the big day. Amen.