Okay, this is for Dave and Adina and anyone else who cares. I am having back surgery on Aug. 26th. I have a herniated disk that is pinching a nerve that runs all the way down the back of my right leg into my heel. I have had this since the end of March. At first I thought it was a tight hamstring (I had just started running again after Ellyn was born) but it wouldn't get better. I was trying to be as active as possible trying to work my way through it (running, doing Mike's PT program etc...). That just made it worse. i went in to see a Dr. He referred me to a DO (doctor of obstetrics I believe). Luckily it was our very good friend Mark. His wife is my best friend here and we used to run together. Also, we had kind of talked about my leg a few times (I was worried it could be blood clots, it runs in my family). So, by now it is the end of May. Mark tries to have me do a few different things, tries to give me a few chiropractic adjustments and at the end of my appt. he tells me that it might be tight hamstrings but he thinks I have a herniated disk. He puts in the referrals for the MRI and wants me to start on physical therapy. What had started as just a pain that came and went behind the back of my knee finally became the very constant pain that went down my whole leg. There were a few weeks while all the referrals were getting lost in the mail and being typically Army slow that it was so painful I thought I should just cut my leg off. I started physical therapy in July. At first it wasn't helping but they upped the weight on my traction and I actually started obeying the advice about doing as little as possible. That is not an easy thing to do as a mother of three. If I do my housework slowly and carefully without alot of twisting and lifting I can do most things but I can't lift anything more than the weight of my kids and technically I'm not supposed to lift them. I'm not supposed to be doing any housework either-Ha. The trick with this is that many times it will heal itself. However, if it hasn't within 6 weeks it probably won't-and-if you wait more than 3-6 mos. you risk permanent nerve damage. So, while the pain has become much more manageable I do not want to risk permanent nerve damage nor do I want to live as a semi-invalid. I had a consolt with a neurosurgeon and he says that I will not heal without surgery. So... I will have a microdiscectomy. That is where they make an inch to two inch insicion at the base of my back, cut away a piece of the bone move the muscle and nerve bundle aside, remove the portion of my disk that is pinching the nerves and then stitch me back up. There are parts that will never heal and since he thinks that this was brought on by sudden weight gain during pregnancy he says I can pretty much guarantee I will have to do this after every kid-birth control. I should be able to lift my girls again after the first week and return to a careful normal routine after the second week. It will be 4 more months before I can start lifting and running again. So there is my drama. I'm excited to have the pain gone, I'm not excited about all the little risks. I am very grateful to have Barb coming to help. We will have a good time-well, she might not, but I will. Alright, love you all and in case I don't get back on here in time I want to wish my sweet nephew a happy birthday. Unlike your highly organized and thoughtful mother I do not have a package in the mail for you but I do love you and hope you have a great birthday. Brooke