8/10 Brain MRI
8/20 Appointment with Dr. Oro in CO (making this into a mini-vacation with my mom)
8/24 Appointment with Dr. Holly at UCLA
8/27 Appointment with Dr. Amirnovin at LDR (the NS I saw July 6th)
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Monday, July 30, 2007
Appointment scheduled in CO
I just scheduled my appointment with Dr. Oro for August 20th. Wish me luck!
Thursday, July 26, 2007
The Chiari Treament Center Called...
But the girl left a message and she was gone when I called her back. I plan to call her and UCLA on Friday to schedule appointments.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Brain MRI Scheduled
I just scheduled my brain MRI for August 10th at 2:00 PM. I have a follow up with the original neurosurgeon on August 27th at 10:00 AM.
Why the delay you ask? Because I have to pick up a CD of the films from the hospital and bring it with me to the appointment and I didn't want to risk not being able to get them in time for the only other available appointment on the 13th. Since this isn't life or death, I'm low on the appointment priority. They have to leave openings for the really serious neurological people.
I'm going to call and make an appointment with UCLA. The doctor there is on the medical advisory board for ASAP (found that out in the info I got yesterday) so I might as well get his opinion while I wait to hear from Colorado.
Why the delay you ask? Because I have to pick up a CD of the films from the hospital and bring it with me to the appointment and I didn't want to risk not being able to get them in time for the only other available appointment on the 13th. Since this isn't life or death, I'm low on the appointment priority. They have to leave openings for the really serious neurological people.
I'm going to call and make an appointment with UCLA. The doctor there is on the medical advisory board for ASAP (found that out in the info I got yesterday) so I might as well get his opinion while I wait to hear from Colorado.
Monday, July 23, 2007
Red Letter Day!!!
YAY!!! I received a letter approving my brain MRI in the mail today!!! This means that I can schedule it finally. YAY!! (Note to my family - I will let you know when I schedule it. I will immediately update this blog when I do. Please do not ask me. If it's not on the blog, I haven't done it yet.)
I also received an info packet in the mail from ASAP that includes a TON of good info. (Why they can't just post it on their website, I don't know, but that annoys me.) The info is good and I'm going to read through it thoroughly when I'm done here. They have a Medical Advisory Board that will refer you to specialists in your area. (Again, why not on the website?) I will (of course) be looking into the specialists that are local.
I mailed my MRI CD off to The Chiari Treatment Center in Colorado today and will wait to call them next Wednesday if I don't hear from them before then.
I went to the chiropractor after work and he adjusted everything below my neck and massaged my neck to relieve some of the tension. My neck is still really tight, but NOTHING like it was before I started seeing him three months ago. I realized that my smaller neck (as a result of relaxing some of the muscle spasms) is what is causing MANY people to ask if I'm losing weight. That works for me! :)
I also received an info packet in the mail from ASAP that includes a TON of good info. (Why they can't just post it on their website, I don't know, but that annoys me.) The info is good and I'm going to read through it thoroughly when I'm done here. They have a Medical Advisory Board that will refer you to specialists in your area. (Again, why not on the website?) I will (of course) be looking into the specialists that are local.
I mailed my MRI CD off to The Chiari Treatment Center in Colorado today and will wait to call them next Wednesday if I don't hear from them before then.
I went to the chiropractor after work and he adjusted everything below my neck and massaged my neck to relieve some of the tension. My neck is still really tight, but NOTHING like it was before I started seeing him three months ago. I realized that my smaller neck (as a result of relaxing some of the muscle spasms) is what is causing MANY people to ask if I'm losing weight. That works for me! :)
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Update
Well it turns out the email address is for someone who hasn't worked there in months. Of course it wasn't returned, so I didn't know that until I called on Thursday.
I answered some questions over the phone and they asked me to mail them the CD with my MRI films. I'm making a copy of it this weekend and mailing it to them on Monday along with a list of my symptoms.
Once they receive it the doctor reviews everything and then they'll call me to schedule an appointment if they deem me worthy of their time. (I feel like I'm applying to college or something).
Keep your fingers crossed!
Oh and I'm still waiting the approval from my insurance for the brain MRI. The neurosurgeon didn't submit medical records indicating the need for the second MRI - having taken a medical billing class I understand why this is necessary - most people (including insurance billers) don't. They submit them (they have to mail them which is really lame), the insurance company has an RN, and maybe even a doctor, review them and then they grant their approval. Again, it's like I'm applying to college or something.
I answered some questions over the phone and they asked me to mail them the CD with my MRI films. I'm making a copy of it this weekend and mailing it to them on Monday along with a list of my symptoms.
Once they receive it the doctor reviews everything and then they'll call me to schedule an appointment if they deem me worthy of their time. (I feel like I'm applying to college or something).
Keep your fingers crossed!
Oh and I'm still waiting the approval from my insurance for the brain MRI. The neurosurgeon didn't submit medical records indicating the need for the second MRI - having taken a medical billing class I understand why this is necessary - most people (including insurance billers) don't. They submit them (they have to mail them which is really lame), the insurance company has an RN, and maybe even a doctor, review them and then they grant their approval. Again, it's like I'm applying to college or something.
Monday, July 16, 2007
The Chiari Treament Center
Well, my original neurosurgeon's office called today and left me a message that they were still waiting on approval from my insurance for the MRI of my brain. I came home and was reading the posts on the Chiari support group on Yahoo (click here) and came across The Chiari Treatment Center (click here).
This makes me happy...not only have I seen Dr. Oro's name all over the Yahoo Support Group site, but their website was very informative and user friendly. Dr. Oro is one of the BEST neurosurgeons in the US specializing in Chiari and they are located in Colorado. Now that would initially seem like it's far far away, but I have a friend that lives in Highlands Ranch, CO which is only about a half hour away from Aurora. How happy am I? Even better? They have an EMAIL ADDRESS to schedule an appointment and ask questions AND they accept my insurance. THIS IS SERIOUSLY THE BEST THING I'VE FOUND!!!!
This makes me happy...not only have I seen Dr. Oro's name all over the Yahoo Support Group site, but their website was very informative and user friendly. Dr. Oro is one of the BEST neurosurgeons in the US specializing in Chiari and they are located in Colorado. Now that would initially seem like it's far far away, but I have a friend that lives in Highlands Ranch, CO which is only about a half hour away from Aurora. How happy am I? Even better? They have an EMAIL ADDRESS to schedule an appointment and ask questions AND they accept my insurance. THIS IS SERIOUSLY THE BEST THING I'VE FOUND!!!!
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