"I reached a point that even walking caused excruciating pain...My bike just sat in a spare bedroom. Three weeks after surgery, my friends came and got me for a recovery bike ride... Six months later, one buddy and I biked 100 miles a day for five days straight."

Testimonial

My buddies who taught me how to ride a bike in a paceline, all knew me when I was vertical.  I had injured a disc overdoing it at the gym, I began walking tilted slightly sideways and forward. My friends called me Crooked. 

I could still get on a bike but I found myself getting slower. Pain was balled up in my buttocks and my sciatic nerve sent jolts down my leg. It became painful to walk.  After eating at restaurants,   I'd try to stand next to the chair and act like I was bent over looking in my purse to give myself a chance to straighten up. I started to wonder why my 50-year- old body looked more twisted than that of a 70-year-old.

Everyone had warned me to avoid surgery but I became so debilitated that I met with an orthopedist and a neurosurgeon. Neither made me feel comfortable so I tried physical therapy, hot/cold compressions, epidural cortisone injections, acupuncture, chiropractic, massage therapy, and decompression.  I lived on Ibuprofen.

I reached a point that even walking caused excruciating pain.  At Easter church service, I could barely stand and sing with the rest of the congregation. At work, I dreaded getting up from my desk. I couldn't hide the pain and I hated being pitied. My bike just sat in a spare bedroom.  I like to think of myself as a pretty strong person emotionally but one night I just locked myself in the bathroom and cried and cried.

One of my friends really understood the four walls of pain that surrounded me.  She had a friend who was an operating room nurse and got to see surgeons perform.   She said I should see Dr. Razack. When I finally got in to see him, he was so calm and studied that I felt hopeful. He didn't just glance at the notes of the technician who had written a report about my MRI - as the orthopedic surgeon had done.  He carefully reviewed the MRI films and he explained exactly what was going on with my back. Unconvinced I needed surgery, he ordered a new set of MRIs. Within a day of getting them, he reviewed the new films and told me he could help me.

I checked into Sand Lake Hospital about 7 a.m. for tests and the surgery was about 10:45. When I awoke after my surgery, my husband helped me get up and - for the first time in two years _ there was no bolt of electricity charging down my leg.

Within four days of surgery I was, somewhat gingerly, walking two miles a day.  A week afterward, I felt so good I actually wanted to go back to work, even though my medical leave gave me three weeks off. 

Three weeks after surgery, my friends came and got me for a recovery bike ride.  Six months later, one buddy and I biked 100 miles a day for five days straight. 

No pain. No doctors. And no one calls me crooked.

"A very large tumor was discovered on the right side of my brain...Dr. Wehman's surgery provided me an opportunity to LIVE...I am able to once again produce multiple art pieces of "fused glass." Bowls, dishes, candle holders and pendants are my specialty."My brain tumor was discovered in June of 2009.

My brain tumor was discovered in June of 2009. Leading up to this day in my life I was increasingly dizzy, confused, forgetful, just not myself.
 
"DENIAL" was my modus operandi.
 
Driving I would often get lost.  Even when driving to familiar places. When I would get lost driving, I blamed it on using my GPS too often, which prevented me from having to remember where I was going.  I blamed the "lady in the box" instead of realizing my real issue. When I was forgetful I blamed it on recent retirement," I stopped needing to remember things". My dizziness I blamed it on my lack of exercise and just sitting around.
 
Then it happened. I fell in my garage on a sheet of glass from my hobby "fused glass".  Incoherent, I went to the ER.  My wife knew something else was wrong.  She spoke with the doctors and they took an MRI. A very large tumor was discovered on the right side of my brain. The operation happened immediately and to this day it has not grown back, THANK YOU GOD AND THANK YOU, DR. WEHMAN. To this day I do not remember the trip to the hospital or conversations with anyone at the
hospital for the first few days after my operation.
 
My life and recovery were in the hands of Dr Wehman.  The tumor was the size of an omelet. Days after the operation I began to realize what had happened. Certainly the shaved head shed some light on the situation. How could THEY slice open my skull and remove a ham and cheese omelet attached to my DENIAL filled brain without any negative repercussions? Conversations with people about my ordeal were not always encouraging. Someone would relay a story of the negatives to follow. They would tell me of someone who went through what I was going through and they were told they had 6 months to LIVE.   NOT what I wanted to hear.
 
Dr. Wehman's surgery provided me an opportunity to LIVE. Visits to his office after surgery have been positive and encouraging. I do remember my first visit 30 days after surgery. I was a nervous wreck; Dr Wehman was both professional and personal. He told me the medical side of what was going on and more importantly to me the personal side: RECOVERY and what it meant to me.
 
Being a SEABEE in the US Navy I developed and adhered to their motto..CANDO, in fact it is my personal motto and nickname.  I strayed a little from that path during this ordeal. I am happy to say I am back on track. I am able to once again produce multiple art pieces of "fused glass." Bowls, dishes, candle holders and pendants are my specialty.

After my visit with Dr Wehman I was so pleased how he took the time to explain everything about me to me that I found out his favorite color and produced one of my signature pieces and presented it to him as my heartfelt THANK YOU.

What would our lives be without people like Dr Wehman who studied relentlessly to "FIX" those in need of his EXPERTISE??
 
THANK YOU DR WEHMAN
CANDO....aka John Nagle

"I had heard about Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) but thought it was only a last chance effort for patients with Parkinson's that exhausted all other avenues...I cannot say enough about Dr. Gonzalez and the deep concern he has for his patients. I went from looking like a jumping bean to having a normal life again."

It's been a little more than one year since I first met Dr. Gonzalez. I had heard about Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) but thought it was only a last chance effort for patients with Parkinson's that exhausted all other avenues. I had been taking a common Parkinson's drugs but most didn't help much and others made me feel like a zombie.

I researched "DBS" and was anxious to talk to someone that specialized in this field. I soon found out there are only a few specialists to choose from.  I considered myself lucky that Dr. Gonzalez was recommended to me.

My appointment lasted almost one hour and at no time did I feel like I was being rushed. It was clear to me that Dr. Gonzalez took a personal interest in my case. I was treated more like a friend instead of just another patient. One important item we discussed was the downside possibilities. They range from death to almost 100% satisfaction. At the conclusion of our meeting there was no doubt that I was going to have the operation. But this was only the first step. I had to meet with the neurosurgeon and get his approval, then pass a rigorous physical exam to ensure that I was physically able to have the surgery.

Well the day finally came, June 17^th my birthday. This was no coincidence; I selected the 17^th because this would be the nicest gift ever. I arrived at the hospital at 5:00 a.m. and by 8:00 a.m. I was on my way to the operating room.

I understand the operation took a couple of hours and I was awake for 15 minutes during the surgery. I barely remember being awakened. Prior to the start of the operation I heard a phone ring. One of the nurses had forgotten to turn off her cell phone. Knowing that most phones have a camera built in, I requested to have my picture taken. The next thing I remember is waking up in IC. I finally made it to my room around 3:00 p.m. Shortly after my arrival to the room I was greeted by several nurses carrying a chocolate cake, a birthday card signed by the entire staff and singing happy birthday.  The next day I received my pictures over the internet.

I forgot to tell you that DBS is a two part operation. The first part is the placing of the wire in the brain and the second part involves implanting the stimulator in the chest and running the wire from the brain to the stimulator. There is more discomfort with the second part.

It has been almost one year since I had the DBS procedure. I cannot say enough about Dr. Gonzalez and the deep concern he has for his patients. I went from looking like a jumping bean to having a normal life again. The only downside I encountered was that a friend of mind refuses to walk near me during a lighting storm.

Another valuable piece of information is to shave your head before the operation. If you don't, the staff does it for you. Believe me, I forgot and when I looked in the mirror I thought I was a rodeo clown.