Surprise!

Some unexpected – but hopefully good – news. I saw my back surgeon on Thursday last week, and he scheduled me for another surgery tomorrow. It’s been quite a rush, but I’ve deteriorated rather quickly and he was quick to act. Once again, I’ll be visiting the beautiful hospital I went to last September and experiencing their five-star dining after enduring an exploratory surgery with a "bilateral foraminal decompression and laminectomy with additional levels and procedures as needed." Now those are my doctor’s words, so I’m not 100% sure what they mean. I’m thinking he might fix the herniation at L4 while he’s exploring the L5/S1 nerve root.

Alas, for all of us back sufferers, there is always that gleam of hope that this will fix it completely, and I admit I am feeling a little bit of hope with the normal fear. I keep chanting to myself, "the end is in sight!" :) I’m still working on Cooper’s Choice and remain optimistic that this will not prevent it from coming out next month. However, if something does happen, I will post here and let everyone know.

As always, thank you all for your continued support! You’ve been amazing at keeping me motivated, and I appreciate everyone’s kind words. There truly are some wonderful people out there, and every note, message and comment helps a lot! Thank you, thank you to all!

Although a little late in posting, here is my continuing series of scenes from my books. I've chosen Eyes on Tango, one of my favorites to feature next. A jungle adventure, a vacation gone awry, and the beginning of the mystery is falling into place. 

Please enjoy seeing some of the scenes where Dani and Hayden began their road to love, where Rocky and Micaela reveal their plans, and where Zach begins to find the information he needs to catch the bad guys he and Ian have been hunting for months.

From the ruins in Tulum, Mexico, up the Mayan Riviera to Playa del Carmen and finally Cancun, Mexico, the two lovers run for their lives in search of escape from a beautiful land turned deadly.

I hope you have a fun time exploring the sites with Dani and Hayden!

It’s been a very long time since I posted an update, but I do have good reasons for it.

After the busyness of the holidays, I began moving house. Remember the doctors warned me not to lift more than 5-10 pounds, right? Well, with no other choice in the matter, I did lift more than I was supposed to. It took me over a month moving very slowly to transfer everything – three kids and eight years of stuff… isn’t it amazing how much we accumulate? :o)

At any rate, starting in February, I noticed I was deteriorating. I took to bed first, thinking I had strained something. A few days later, there wasn’t much change, so I went back to my doctor for a stern lecture and some oral steroids. He referred me back to my surgeon, who reminded me firmly that I should not have done so much. He ordered a new set of x-rays and a CT-Scan. Three rounds of oral steroids and two exams later, I returned to my surgeon, and here are the results:

The fusion is healing. Although we feared I damaged the new bone, it held up and is growing. That was a relief – I can’t even begin to tell you – especially after that horrible surgery. However, it’s come to light that more of my discs have deteriorated. I’m back at square one again with degeneration, stenosis, nerve compression, etc., and that just about broke my heart. L2 and L3 are bulging, and the herniation at L4 has progressed further. It’s a different set of problems now, where I can’t move the toes much in my left leg, and it’s very weak, so “heavy” at times that I have to use my cane. I had to increase my dose of Percocet again (that was such a bummer after I had started weaning off all the medications), and the tears started coming daily again.

So after feeling this overwhelming feeling of hopelessness and teetering on the edge of depression, I did an Internet search and found this terrific website called Spine-Health. They have a bunch of forums in there, and many of the stories I read were so similar to mine that I felt better. I guess it's true when they say misery loves company, LOL. I haven’t posted in any yet, but just reading through them has helped.

I’m sure many of you in the same situation can relate when I say it’s difficult when people don’t understand exactly what you’re going through. You look somewhat normal (unless you’re trying to move, LOL), so they have a tough time sympathizing with the pain you’re in. Friends want to know why you can’t hang out and don’t understand how sitting for more than five minutes at a time is excruciating. Family doesn’t understand why you can’t just pick up a laundry basket and carry it into the bedroom for folding when it only weighs a few pounds, etc. etc. They feel bad but can’t fully comprehend. So this website is a must visit if you’re in a situation like mine. It will help, trust me!

Anyway, so being back to square one means another round of injections. I had my first one last week and will have the second one tomorrow. It hasn’t helped much. I’ve also begun to use the inversion table again (boy, does it hurt!) in the hopes of sucking those bulging discs back in. I'm still doing the exercises daily, and I love the pool! Just dangling there is like heaven. My pain management doc believes that all those discs will have to be fused eventually, and that was a hard blow, but I’m trying hard to stay away from that. Time will tell, I suppose. I’ll be back to the surgeon again next month, so we’ll see if surgery is coming...

How is the writing coming along?

I’ve had so many emails asking about book six. It’s a huge honor to hear of everyone’s excitement for the next release, so please write away! I promise, I’m still planning on having it ready this summer. With everything else going on, it’s been hard to keep up, but I already sent the cover information to my cover artist, I’ve done a read-through, and next will be final edits and beta-readings. I’ve also started working on Cher’s story and the culmination of the Evans series. Book seven might end up being a bit longer, but it will have closure. Whoo hoo! Everyone will make an appearance in that story, and I’m hoping to have an exciting and suspenseful adventure bringing the bad guys to justice. If I can stay out of surgery, I’m aiming to have that ready to go this fall. I usually have my books done a year in advance, so I’ll be cutting it close this time. If that’s the case, I might postpone at the risk of quality. I want the final installment to be perfect! I’m sure you all understand. :o)

Thank you to everyone for keeping in touch. I love hearing from you, and it keeps me motivated to continue working. For those who follow my back progression, I hope you’ll continue to keep positive, no matter how overwhelming it all feels. You are not alone. There are others like us who feel the same way we do. Check out that website and maybe you can find some helpful tips and more hope.