[Artificial Disc Replacement / Lumbar] WPKat's Journey to Stenum (Artificial Disc Replacement L3-L4 & L4-L5)

[KBear]

How funny, the name of the town sounded as if it was in Germany and my eyes skipped over the part that it was in Texas ... my bad.

Oh yes, my family is Catholic all right. I'm like you though and consider myself non-denominational.

I have an Aunt on my Mom's side who is a nun. I also had an Uncle on my Dad's side who was a brother in the Catholic church. He was a very nice man. I cried when he past even though I didn't know him all that well. He was a good hearted soul who was super easy to like.

I wonder how much it costs to do the DNA thing; it would be quite interesting ... unless you discovered you were related to a serial killer that is ... hahahahaha ... okay, not so funny if it were true.

I tried looking up your family name in Geni to see if we were related, but not sure how that part of the program works. You might want to take a look at the site to see what you could learn. I only just entered my family into it and have other things to focus on right now ... like surgery

Bis spater,

Kathleen

LOL... I guess a lot of the German settlers were Catholic. Where I grew up, the school was owned by the church, but the State of Texas rented it from 8:15-3:30. So, if you got there early, they could and would make you go to church. I had to go to religion 2 days a week and church 3 days a week, plus I still had to go to church on Saturday night. We had nuns on campus, a couple of my classmates became nuns. My family is definitely die hard Catholics, my great grandpa (the one born in Germany), so did not believe in divorce, that Father had to tell him it was okay to divorce his second wife (his first one passed away) because the woman was poisoning him! NO joke, the man was going to stay with her b/c of the no divorce rules in the church.

Another thing about my family and the others I know, they are all really 'frugal' tight, whatever you want to call it with their money. They will hold on to every penny like it is the last one they may ever have. They call them 'krauts' and another favorite is 'flat head'. What's funny is they are all that way, yet will refer to each other in those terms, it's not considered huge derogatory, as it is said to their face. Not sure if this is from just surviving in harder times or part of the heritage. Their are several millionaires who if you saw them on the street, you would think they were very poor. My great grandpa had jars of money around his house, and in his garage. Ok, and this is a bit weird and gross to me, but they believe that if you lost a body part, you kept and would be buried with it. My great grandpa had lost a thumb on an oil rig in his 20's or 30's and no joke had it in a jar and they buried him with it. I heard this was common among Catholics, I don't know, just seemed odd to me. That would be like me asking for my diseased disc in a jar and keeping it for show... no thanks!

That would be totally crazy if we were related. I wouldn't doubt it though, seems like the world just gets smaller and smaller as technology grows. We believe my dad is mostly native american/american indian, though we are not 100% sure as his biological father abandoned him shortly after birth. He has done quite a bit of research into his roots and wants to do the dna testing for it.

Cl- You are so funny, I love talking about heritage and hearing stories, even if it isn't my heritage, so jump on in! it's sad to me that so many people no longer care about where they are from, and to learn more. I asked my husband what he was and his response was "I don't know? Probably Indian, maybe some German.... ask my cousin, she does all that genealogy crap" That was his serious reply. I guess I was just raised to take pride in who I was and where I was from. It's really interesting how things once were. I'm just glad I was born when I was, I don't think I would have made for a good wife 100 years ago, when your husband would not consult you; but tell you, that you were moving half way across the world to a new land. Yeah, pretty sure they would have off'ed me. LOL

Oh, and Kathleen, my real name is Kathleen, just go by Kathy.

[KanRunMo]

KBear et al,
My husband's grandfather was from Germany and lived in Loraine, Kansas, a German Baptist community so I'll check on your name. Since his father's mother died when his father was a baby, he was raised by his grandmother who spoke only German so he spoke only German. However, his grandmother died when he was 5. He later visited Germany and tried to speak German but they couldn't understand him. He got very frustrated. We have been to many of those "German" towns in Texas such as Fredricksburg and Gruen. I have had my DNA tested from a cheek swab and sent to one of those places that checks your ancestry. However, in women, the mitochondria in the DNA is used and they can't tell anything recent (as in the last 5000 years). My DNA was of the most common kind and all they could tell me was that my mother's family lived somewhere in France or Germany in the last 5000 or so years. On both sides of my family, our ancestors came to America (U.S.) over 200 years ago so we are definitely a mix. I think the blood DNA test is more accurate than the cheek cell and can tell more recent heritage. I am an amateur genealogist and have a huge family file on the computer. The libraries have access for free to some of those internet sites that charge for information.

[KBear]

KBear et al,
My husband's grandfather was from Germany and lived in Loraine, Kansas, a German Baptist community so I'll check on your name. Since his father's mother died when his father was a baby, he was raised by his grandmother who spoke only German so he spoke only German. However, his grandmother died when he was 5. He later visited Germany and tried to speak German but they couldn't understand him. He got very frustrated. We have been to many of those "German" towns in Texas such as Fredricksburg and Gruen. I have had my DNA tested from a cheek swab and sent to one of those places that checks your ancestry. However, in women, the mitochondria in the DNA is used and they can't tell anything recent (as in the last 5000 years). My DNA was of the most common kind and all they could tell me was that my mother's family lived somewhere in France or Germany in the last 5000 or so years. On both sides of my family, our ancestors came to America (U.S.) over 200 years ago so we are definitely a mix. I think the blood DNA test is more accurate than the cheek cell and can tell more recent heritage. I am an amateur genealogist and have a huge family file on the computer. The libraries have access for free to some of those internet sites that charge for information.

Wow, how cool. What a small world! I am going to have to borrow our Centennial book and see exactly when and where in Kansas my family was there. That is so neat that your family was there too. My grandfather and great grandfather were both John Hess, one was middle name Joseph, other middle name Louis. I added myself to geni, but am thinking I might get further faster on ancestory.com (patience is not my strong suit- LOL)

[WPKat]

Wow, how cool. What a small world! I am going to have to borrow our Centennial book and see exactly when and where in Kansas my family was there. That is so neat that your family was there too. My grandfather and great grandfather were both John Hess, one was middle name Joseph, other middle name Louis. I added myself to geni, but am thinking I might get further faster on ancestory.com (patience is not my strong suit- LOL)

I think it is great that we are all connecting via this Forum and finding common ground in our heritage. If we are not related, perhaps then our ancestors knew each other and were BBFs !!



Kathleen

P.S. Update to follow

[WPKat]

Tuesday, June 1st

It is funny and somewhat embarrassing, but because we are 10 hours ahead here and my computer is still on Alaska time, I can easily report the wrong day unless I pay very close attention and double check. But no biggy, what's 10 hours, give or take?



Yesterday, I was held up in my room for most of the day, but the rest of the my crew took a short visit into Kremmen, which is a small town very close by. I guess a lot of places were closed so there was not as much to see. My daughter brought back some medicine for me, called Iberogast, but all the directions were in Germany ... go figure.



Google is such a powerful engine though because within minutes, I had the directions in English. It turns out that it is a simple mixture of herbs used to treat a variety of minor things.

We are approaching the ninth hour as today is our last full day at the Hotel Sommerfeld. We are are heading off to the hospital in Berlin tomorrow afternoon for reassessment and admission. They will then take over all of my medical care in terms of pain management and any other health related issues. I will be monitored and taken care of by them from Wednesday afternoon until I am discharged. It will be interesting to see how much different my experience will be here in the hospital from back home. So far I can say that admission to the hospital the night before surgery is not done in Alaska, at least not for back surgery.

My roommate will actually be a family member as I will have a private room with two beds in it. Either my husband or my daughter (who is 24) will be there with me until I feel good about being there at the hospital on my own ... then I will give them permission to roam about the city ... (hahahaha, like I have any control over what they do or don't do).

We will be located very close to the castles in Potsdam and I do hope they will get a chance to see them before we are transferred back here. And yes, rehabilitation will bring us back to the Hotel Sommerfeld, which doesn't hurt my feelings one bit because this is a very nice place to be.

I will be at the hospital, DRK Kliniken Berlin - Westend, they have a nice website and you should be able to find it if you use Google, but here is the direct link:

DRK Kliniken Berlin: DRK Kliniken Berlin | Westend

I love the old buildings as they have such character; I bet there is has a lot of history behind them too. As I understand it, the hospital has many buildings and is setup like a campus. My goal is to be able to do a bit of site seeing within the boundaries of hospital property. They will probably have to chase after me or send security to locate my whereabouts.


Just kidding, I will be a model patient and will do everything I am told to do.

Unlike American hospitals, I will not be discharged until they feel I can move around nicely on my own (but the average is 5 to 7 days) and I will stay at the hospital until they are satisfied with my progress. Also, if I do not feel like I am ready, I stay put where I am. They really have a different approach to medical care here. It's definitely not the "hurry up and get the heck out of here" approach that I am stuck with at home.

We do not know yet if we will have Internet access at the hospital. Because I have my husband, daughter and son with me, they will move us to a hotel within walking distance of the hospital. I would think the hotel in Berlin will have Internet access. All of arrangements are being taken care of by Malte Petersen and we will know more details on Wednesday. Our cultural differences make things interesting at times, but they have been extraordinarily responsive to our requests. I have zero complaints, and so far, it's been a rather pleasant experience.

Our private meeting with the surgeon, Dr. Karsten Ritter-Lang, will take place this evening sometime after 6 pm in our hotel room. At this point, I really only have a hand full of questions for him, but I would feel a whole lot better knowing the answers to them before Thursday (the day of the surgery).

For now, we are just hanging around the Hotel Sommerfeld near Kremmen, Germany ... for those of you who like to use Google Maps, you could locate both this hotel and the hospital on it. If you are really computer savey, you should be able to zero in on us via satellite (now that's a scarey thought isn't it?)

I tried to post pictures to the Forum, but the feature is not working right now. For those of you who are on Facebook and are interested, you could find me under Kathleen Lawyer. If you send a short note saying you belong to this Forum, I would accept your request to be my friend. I posted some pretty nice pictures of the area around the hotel.

If you do not hear from me by Thursday afternoon, than just consider "no news as good news." Aside from myself, my family is not keen on "writing essays" and they are making fun of me for staying connected to my family, friends and this Forum ... so, if you get two words out of them while I am in the hospital, I would be surprised. I hope Katie will begin posting whatever word she gets from me or my daughter after Wednesday.

If I have Internet access, then when I am able I will post a few words ... it will probably take me a while before I am able to formulate a sentence that makes sense though.



I really should be more anxious because the big day is just around the corner ... but I am very calm and so ready to get started on my quest to get my life back. Everyone else in the group is far more mobile than I am. They have been able to go out pretty much every single day since we arrived to see the lay of the land. While I am truly happy for them, I am sad that I am not able to sit, stand or walk long enough to enjoy seeing this beautiful country. I do not understand why, as stubborn as I am, I am so physically restricted. And don't think I haven't tried going out with them ... I did, and it was a dismal failure. Intellectually, I know I should not compare my case to theirs, but it is hard not to do that when the difference in ability is so dramatic. Well, my fellow members, that in itself is a clear indication to me that I need this surgery in the worst way if I ever want to enjoy the simple things again ... like sitting even. I guess that is why I am not anxious about the surgery.

Wish me luck!

Bis spater,

Kathleen

[ajj1001]

It is funny and somewhat embarrassing, but because we are 10 hours ahead here and my computer is still on Alaska time, I can easily report the wrong day unless I pay very close attention and double check. But no biggy, what's 10 hours, give or take?


Unlike American hospitals, I will not be discharged until they feel I can move around nicely on my own (but the average is 5 to 7 days)

You are on proper European time now! i think i've added you on facebook (aj boast)

In UK you aren't allowed home until you can do a couple of flights of stairs, the stairs at the end of the corridor take on a special significance!

Praying all goes well.

xxx

[WPKat]

You are on proper European time now! i think i've added you on facebook (aj boast)

In UK you aren't allowed home until you can do a couple of flights of stairs, the stairs at the end of the corridor take on a special significance!

Praying all goes well.

xxx

Alison,

Oh, it's funny you should mention the stairs, I was asked to climb them too. I climbed up extra stairs even just to see if I could. The problem was that I was on such good pain medication that I didn't feel any pain at all. They didn't switch me over to oral pain medication until I was discharged on the 2nd day and didn't take any until I was at home later that same day; that's when the party was over and climbing stairs wasn't such a peice of cake anymore.

I am really sorry to hear that your discogram was so painful; both during and afterwards. I clearly remember screaming, and quite frankly, it was an involuntary response ... it just popped right out of my mouth every time she put in the dye.

I was given extra pain meds for afterwards and I took it (rather than white knuckling it like I usually try to do). It took a while for things to calm down, but the stronger meds and ice packs were a Godsend.

I sure hope your back calms down soon as I know it's not the least bit fun.

Bis spater,

Kathleen

[KBear]

You are hilarious, love reading what you wrote. I really didn't get nervous about my surgery until the morning of, then it was like "here we go." I think when you have been miserable you are just ready to be done, not to mention you did your homework and are confident in your decision, that helps a lot too. Going to add you on FB now.

[Cindylou]

Am gonna add you on FB now too Kathleen. You will do awesome. I just know it. And....it's time. Post when you can! Meanwhile, we'll wait for Katie's posts for you!

[WPKat]

June, 2nd

Last evening, we met with Dr. Karsten Ritter-Lang in our room. For a surgeon, he did not give off that air of superiority like so many of the specialists I have seen before. Although he did not have my chart before him, it was clear that he knew exactly what what going on with my spine and I found that very comforting. He explained what was wrong in a way that we could understand and was not in any rush, which has been my experience with most specialist's. Although sometimes his English was hard to understand, he did not seem to mind explaining it in a different way so we could understand. As he talked, I thought of a few more questions to ask him, which he did no seem to mind at all.

My last question was how many surgeries had he performed ... 6,000 ... Holy Cow!! Although I am sure the number consists of a combination of ADR, fusions, hybrids, other types of spinal surgery and other surgeries period ... I was still stunned by the number and immediate thought that he certainly knows his way around the spine. I would venture to say that he dreams about it in his sleep and wakes up with ideas on how to improve upon his techniques. Of course, I am speculating here ... but I bet I am not far off the mark.

We arrived at the hospital complex around 11 am this morning and went straight to the "bone" doctor for reassessment. Since I am the lucky one that cannot sit for long, I was first in line. Thankfully, they put me immediately into a room where I could lie down in the doctor's office to wait. The view from the room was pretty impressive as I was able to see the side of the complex where the old buildings are located that you see on their Website. They have a lot of history behind them and I understand that the main lobby across the way has many old pictures that show how the hospital has been used over the past century.

When the orthopedic doctor ... okay, I finally spent all of 2 seconds and googled how to spell the specialty ... and Malte walked into the room, the doctor got right down to business. He went through every piece of paper and took nothing for granted. I was very impressed by the fact that there was no rush; he was exceptionally thorough and detailed oriented. By the time we were done, I was very confident that he knew my case quite well.

After the physical examination, he decided that I should have a few minor tests just as a precaution; because when he touched the left side by my kidney, it smarted, but keep in mind that at the time my back was very pissed off ... I believe that if he touched my nose it would have hurt like a bugger (hahahaha). I truly believed is was simply referred pain, but he wanted to make sure. And as I suspected, there is nothing wrong with my kidneys, but it was fun talking with the radiologist who was happy to point out all the different parts and peices inside of me. How she was able see it all with just one shade of gray or another is really quite amazing to me, but of course, she is trained well. Unlike my previous experience with such testing, she reported my results right on the spot ... no waiting for answers, how refreshing.

After the consultation, Malte showed us to my room; where my family waited until arrangements were made for a hotel within walking distance. Lauren will be my roommate tonight, but Tom will be at my side after surgery tomorrow night. Tom and Lauren will take turns just to keep it interesting.

The orthopedic doctor came into my room to do more tests and to discuss my medications, which are not working very well since the flight here was pretty hard on me. You take your own medication right up to the surgery, then they take over. This is definitely not the case in an American hospital, where you rely completely on them from start to finish for all of your medications and you pay a hefty fee for each and every pill (i.e., $30 for one simple Tylenol).

The anesthesiologist came in later to discuss the medication given during surgery along with their risks and pain management afterwards. Their medications are different here, but I managed to communicate how medications in the U.S. affected me and what I was concerned about .... like NOT kissing the porcelain God for one. Another doctor will be in the room with me during the surgery since this poor doctor had to pull an all nighter, and no, I guess I wouldn't want her falling asleep on me the next morning, so her colleague will take over in the morning. I will do my best to make sure he becomes my new BFF. I won't have long, so I hope he knows just enough English to understand me and has a good sense of humor so that I can get in a joke or two as I am wheeled out of the room and down the hallway to the operating room. But of course, I am not sure how that works either ... maybe I walk there and plop myself onto the operating table. I actually did that once at a surgical center and I found no humor in it at all.

But no matter what the differences are in procedure, I hope I get the "happy juice" long before I leave my room and that I see my husband, my daughter and my son. My family being the most important thing above all else, I want to see the ones I can before I am carted off.

I will be the first of our group to go in ... around 8ish ... I should be in and out in two hours or less. Afterwards, you may or may not get more than a one liner out from my daughter about how I am doing ... unless the drugs they give me are excepionally good ...


June 3rd


Of course, I forgot about the fact that I might very well wake up long before the crack of dawn in pain. But this is a good thing as I wanted to relay a story of a sweet event last evening, but I was so tired, I fell asleep.

One of the International group members is a devout Christian, even so, he is not pushy about his faith. He gathered the other member of our group and together with his wife, came into my room and read from the Bible. He choose the scripture well as it made complete sense to me that our worries should not be of the materialist things of this world. At the end, we all gathered together, held hands as he said a beautiful, calming prayer. I cannot remember the prayer in its entirety, but he asked that God would guide the hands of the surgeon ... a wonderful thought to reflect upon as I fell asleep and was actually the first thing I thought of when I woke up this morning.

I am not sure I will fall back to sleep again even thought it is only 3:19 am in the morning. Oh my, I guess I have a few butterflies after all ... go figure

Bis spater,

Kathleen