My name is Nancy Pereira. I am a 71 year-old woman that has suffered with back pain for more years than I can count.
Years ago, I was told that if I didn’t keep my weight down and stay active, I would probably end up in a wheel chair. The years after didn’t get any better… I had to have epidurals on and off for many years just to deal with the pain. I was told my back was really bad by many doctors…I got so bad that I was sent to pain management with Dr. Andrus, who is an excellent doctor- she tried to keep me moving. But, I was getting worse. The severe pain was causing problems with my legs and I was having a problem with walking. I also had severe leg cramps at night, due to nerve problems from my spine. My body was bent over and shifted to the left… it became so bad that people would notice it.
One day, I had an MRI of my neck for pain in my head and eye and went to see Dr. Jeffrey Carlson for the results. That was the beginning of a new life for me. As we talked, he noted the MRI of my back and told me my back needed to be fixed. I told him I was leery about surgery, after other doctors over the years had told me I needed a rod in my back, had multiple layers of bone spurs and had to put my back into alignment due to a slipped disc with no guarantee that I would get better. I figured I was still walking and that was something. Dr. Carlson told me if I didn’t fix my back, I probably wouldn’t be walking soon. I felt so confident about Dr. Carlson telling me he could fix everything with no problem that I booked my surgery that day. Because it was around Christmas, we did the surgery on January 14, 2015 which was the first opening after the holiday.
This was the best thing I could have done… I would definitely recommend Dr. Carlson to anybody who needs back surgery. The surgery went very well, I was up and walking the same day and haven’t stopped. I am one month post-op and still have a way to go for the fusion to heal. He fixed everything that needed fixing and I am so much better than I was before. He is a god-send to me and I will always be grateful for Dr. Carlson and his skilled hands for helping me. I now stand taller and my legs don’t cramp at night… Looking forward to walking straighter with no back or leg pain this summer…