Stem Cell Therapy Blog

Week 6:

Post Blood Core Stem Cell Therapy

It’s been 3 weeks since my last post and I would say the last 3 weeks has proven to be promising with my road to recovery! I haven’t worn my slang for about 2 weeks now. I did attempt to do a jog/speed walk rotation which did not work out so well. I was told it’s too soon for that and I need to start my physical therapy prior to doing anything that will cause fast motion or pulling on my shoulder. While this was disappointing I was very pleased to see how much joint space I’ve gained in the last 6 weeks. Some of the things I can do now that I wasn’t able to do previously or was very limited in doing;

• Drive with my left arm
• Hold my phone and talk with my left arm
• Dry my back with a towel
• Lift my arm easily reaching up
• Sit/Stand/Walk for an extended period without extreme pain in my left arm
• Easily blow dry my hair
• Lift myself up from a seated position using my left arm

My right foot has been pretty painful the last week. I haven’t done anything to cause this. Dr. Neff reminded me that my body is in a repair state and I may have good and bad days but to keep in mind this is a process that over time improves.

I do still suffer from headaches daily and back pain. The tension however between my shoulder blades has seemed to lessen just a bit. My neck pain is still present as well. I know those haven't been talked about a lot and that would be because the pain in my foot and shoulder were so prevalent it kind of makes you forget for a moment all the other pains you've been dealing with for years. I am definitely cautiously optimistic and very excited to see what my updates will be next week.

If you haven't already done so please read my note that I posted explaining my journey leading up to my Stem Cell Therapy.

Week 3:

Post Blood Core Stem Cell Therapy

I don't have anything big to report this week. My pain levels in my arm still fluctuate from a 3-7 depending on the day, but generally on the lower spectrum of the scale. I can walk around for about an hour without have sharp pains run through my arm so that's a plus. Also, I've been wearing my slang this week too because not wearing it right now is definitely not an option. I attempted a push up and 1 minute plank of which neither I could even come close to completing. For now I've decided to do a daily routine with a 30 minute walk so I can get some sort of exercise in. I'm hoping within the next couple of weeks I'll have some major milestones.

My right foot is still doing well and holding steady. I do continue to have pain even when driving but it does seem to be less than previous.

I do still suffer from headaches daily and back pain. The tension however between my shoulder blades has seemed to lessen just a bit. My neck pain is still present as well. I know those haven't been talked about a lot and that would be because the pain in my foot and shoulder were so prevalent it kind of makes you forget for a moment all the other pains you've been dealing with for years. I am definitely cautiously optimistic and very excited to see what my updates will be next week.

If you haven't already done so please read my note that I posted explaining my journey leading up to my Stem Cell Therapy.

Week 2:

Post Blood Core Stem Cell Therapy

Ok Peeps! I have some exciting news, I was able to drive my car with my left arm for about 45 minutes today with little pain. The significance of this comes from not being able to drive with my left arm for more than maybe a minute before I was rudely reminded by the sharp pains that it was not an option for me. I didn't even realize it until I was about 10 minutes out from my destination. I can also still dry my back with no issues. However lifting my arm above my head or carrying heavy objects is still a challenge. I haven't worn the arm brace for about 4 days now, I just limit myself on how far I push it and take it slow knowing that one day soon I will be able to lift again and function as I did in the beginning of the year.

My right foot is still doing well and holding steady. I do continue to have pain even when driving but it does seem to be less than previous.

I do still suffer from headaches daily and back pain. The tension however between my shoulder blades has seemed to lessen just a bit. My neck pain is still present as well. I know those haven't been talked about a lot and that would be because the pain in my foot and shoulder were so prevalent it kind of makes you forget for a moment all the other pains you've been dealing with for years. I am definitely cautiously optimistic and very excited to see what my updates will be next week.

If you haven't already done so please read my note that I posted explaining my journey leading up to my Stem Cell Therapy.

Week 1:

Post Blood Core Stem Cell Therapy

This past week I would say the most noticeable changes I've had are, I can now easily dry my back using both arms which previously was proven to be quite challenging. The other symptom that is no longer present is the feeling of standing on rocks in my foot from the moment I wake up. Every day I have pain that goes up the side of my ankle and I still have a lot of pain every day that fluctuates between a 4-6 throughout my body. I have been wearing the arm brace about 70% of my day and it certainly makes a difference, but I'm totally over it by the time I get home. I'm very careful in what I do day to day to ensure I don't cause more injury to myself and allow my stem cell buddies to run around and make their repairs. Trust me, they're working overtime and definitely have their work cut out for them!

I totally understand that I am only at week 1 and anticipate this will change drastically over the next few months. I'll be updating my post once a week.

If you haven't already done so please read my note that I posted explaining my journey leading up to my Stem Cell Therapy.

Day 4 & 5:

The last two days have been much of the same. The pain in my foot hasn’t changed but the standing on a rock feeling hasn’t returned either. I’m still having periodic pain in my right hip, I know I haven’t talked about my hip much but that’s because it doesn’t rule my day like the other body parts. I chose not to wear the slang for my left arm today, I haven’t decided if this was good or bad. Granted I wasn’t running around tying to be Wonder Woman. The pain in my arm I believe have been a little less than previous days. I would say today it fluctuated between 4-5.

If you haven’t done so already please read my note about m journey to getting Stem Cell Therapy.

Day 3:

Today my foot was still very sore throughout the day, however the feeling of standing on a rock is still gone. The pain on the side of my ankle and the aching/burning of my foot is still very much present. The stiffness from the injections is gone as well, (apparently my little buddies invaded my body like a tsunami). As for my left arm, that is still status quo. Driving, holding or carrying anything, pushing myself up and raising my left arm whether straight up or from my side for any period longer than 10 seconds are still not an option. Even as far as holding my little pocket mirror while doing my makeup is very challenging as it causes immediate pain.

If you haven't already done so please read my note that I posted explaining my journey leading up to my Stem Cell Therapy.

Day 2:

Update for 8/8/18

After my injections yesterday I was pretty sore even through today. My foot had pain going up the right side of my ankle (which is a common occurrence for me post surgery 2 yrs ago), however I didn't have the sensation that I was standing on a rock. My neck was pretty sore and a bit stiff all day, laying on the flat ground provided some relief. As for my left shoulder that has two tears in it, I still have a lot of pain. Driving, holding or carrying anything, pushing myself up and raising my left arm whether straight up or from my side for any period longer than 10 seconds are still not an option. Even as far as holding my little pocket mirror while doing my makeup is very challenging as it causes immediate pain. I've put a slang on to try and help mobilize it while my little stem cell buddies run around repairing it.

My day ended with a major migraine, hence my late post. All in all I realize this is a process and I won't heal overnight.

If you haven't already done so please read my note that I posted explaining my journey leading up to my Stem Cell Therapy.

Day 1:

My pain today is the same as it is most days at a level 7. My foot feels like it’s on fire, is aching and the ball of my foot has a ton of pressure that makes it feel like I’m standing on a rock. I’m unable to wear a regular bra, push myself up from a seated position, hold my phone for longer than 10 seconds, or drive with my left shoulder because the pain instantly becomes sharp. There’s a constant pulling between my neck and left shoulder that’s causing me to slightly tilt my head to the left to try and alleviate some of the pain. My right hip is a bit piercing whether seated or standing and I have a hellacious headache.

Today I received my Stem Cell Therapy injections that consisted of two injections in my left shoulder for each tear, one in my right foot, two in my neck for my bulging discs and an IV injection. While the injections were more painful than anticipated (I'm sure due to the considerable inflammation and aggravation at the injection sites) I am happy to have finally received them and look forward to posting my progress.

If you haven't already done so please read my note that I posted explaining my journey leading up to my Stem Cell Therapy.