Uncategorized – Renée Gaubert, LCSW

3 Weeks Post-Op

At my 2-week post-op visit last Friday, my surgeon was impressed with my mobility and said both the front and back incisions are healing well. She prescribed a 7-day course of Prednisone to help with the nerve pain, and between that and the Gabapentin, the pain in my legs is now more of a dullContinue reading “3 Weeks Post-Op”

2 Weeks Post-Op

I’ve been moving through my milestones in PT quickly. I’ve transitioned from a walker to a cane (it’s leopard print, of course), and I get to use it for some of my upper body PT exercises, too. I’ve been walking up and down the apartment stairs since last Friday, and this morning I walked outsideContinue reading “2 Weeks Post-Op”

1 Week Post-Op

I’m a week out from surgery, and recovering strongly! Walking with the walker gets easier every day. My legs still feel like they are not totally awake, and I have cramping in my calves and thighs that is a challenge to control. Hopefully that will go away as the nerves heal. I’m no longer feelingContinue reading “1 Week Post-Op”

Heading Home!

Here’s what my lumbar spine and pelvis look like with my new hardware. My surgeon did have to place screws into the ilium. She discovered that the pedicle bone on the left of my L5 was missing (part of the congenital deformity that made the vertebrae wedge-shaped), so she wasn’t able to place a pedicleContinue reading “Heading Home!”

Surgery was a success!

I’m out of surgery and I can wiggle all my toes! Will post again soon. Feeling grateful and loved!

Surgery Day!

Surgery is scheduled for today, December 15, 8am-2pm EST. At our pre-op visit, my surgeon reviewed my most recent MRI and an EMG and said they confirm a pinched nerve at L5 due to stenosis at L4-S1. She also said it is worse than my MRI last October showed. She said she wants to proceed withContinue reading “Surgery Day!”

Surgery is Scheduled for December 15

When I met with my spine surgeon on November 4, she said she thought that since I did get total pain relief (for 2 days) after the epidural steroid injection into L5, it is likely that surgery at that level could give me total pain relief long-term. While it’s clear that my scoliosis has progressedContinue reading “Surgery is Scheduled for December 15”

October Update

October went by scary fast. I had a cortisone steroid injection in my hip, which brought my hip pain to 0 for about 3 hours the next day. I also had a Transforaminal Epidural Steroid Injection (TESI) in my L5 region, which brought my back and hip pain to 0 for 2 glorious days. TheseContinue reading “October Update”

September Update

Happy fall, y’all! In the past few weeks, I’ve met with the orthopedic spine surgeon I mentioned before, a physical therapist, and an orthopedic hip surgeon. I like all 3 of these providers. I felt heard, understood, and collaborated with in these appointments. I felt like the focus was on addressing what I am feelingContinue reading “September Update”

Anniversaries

It’s the 10th anniversary of this post I wrote about anniversaries, so I thought it’d be cool to repost it. https://reneegaubert.com/2015/08/31/anniversaries/ Anniversaries are cornerstones in therapeutic journeys. Therapy is a safe space to share the unique experience we have on anniversaries. Like having one foot standing in the past and one in the present, weContinue reading “Anniversaries”