I am 71 years of age, female, use to be very activate. 13 years
ago I put the 5th Lumbar vertebrae out by 1 cm. Since then it is now out about 1.5 cm The last 2 years have been tough going with my legs stiffening after walking only 50 to 100cm. I have seen a surgeon in xxxx, and I have been waiting 4 months to have a MRI Scan. It has been frustration times as to know what is going to happen, as I feel that the quality of life has gone a lot.. My doctor put me on Calcium Carbonate tablets which over time I started to feel sick and then I started to vomit, I refused to take any more which made me feel better.
Would a Calcium tablet with Vitamin D help. With what information I have given you would those Vit.D and Calcium tablets help?
"V"
_______________________________
Gary Moller comments:
Sadly, the state of the health system is such that there is rationing and with that we have age discrimination that will only worsen as the ageing Baby-Boomer Tsunami swamps our health services.
It is obvious that this has been dragging on for years since you first noticed not all was well. You deserve much better service from the health services and I urge you not to settle for any more delays. Go back to your doctor and insist on more urgency. Can you afford private specialist care? Write to your Member of Parliament and to your elected Hospital Board representative and visit them. Be assertive. If that fails to get action, then be loud! Write to the papers and even make a placard and have a vigil outside the hospital entrance. Tell the papers, radio and TV. Your health and quality of life are everything and a proper diagnosis is the first step in the medical process. The longer the delay with these kinds of health issues, the more difficult they are to treat. Act your age - get assertive and be stroppy if that is what it is going to take to get the wheels in motion!
In the meantime you can look at dietary measures to ensure that any suspected osteoporosis does not progress. I am not keen on high dose pharmacy grade calcium products that some doctors insist on dishing out. There is increasing evidence that calcium drives dementia and cardiovascular disease. It is much better to go for milder and more natural remedies. But you need to be very thorough because what you have described that may be going on with your spine is not nice. Do not compromise by settling with half measures. Here is what I recommend you do from today in terms of diet and supplementation to build and maintain strong bones:
- Have a daily cup or two of nutrient rich beef or lamb bone broth.
- Eat lots of vitamin C rich foods such as Kiwi Fruit and Tamarillos which are currently in season.
- Eat a delicious liver dish twice weekly
- Ensure there is a a little high quality protein in every meal
- Consider starting the day with a nutrient packed Super Smoothie with a fresh raw egg in it as your breakfast
- Eat vegetables like cabbage, broccoli, onions and garlic
- Have about 1,000 mg of natural vitamin C daily more than you get in food
- I strongly recommend daily glucosamine and chondroitin for helping build strong collagen and to help bone healing
If you want more detailed advice, including access to some of the new and exciting practitioner products for reversing osteoporosis, contact me via my website contact links, thanks.
Some daily exercise is very important to stimulate the bone cells that lay down healthy new bone. You could inquire with your nearest ACC office about Tai Chi classes being run in your town. These may be suitable for you. However; as a first step, please have a chat with your General Practitioner about the possibility of getting a referral to an experienced physiotherapist who can assess your current abilities and help you develop an exercise routine that is safe and effective for you.For information about osteoporosis, get online and search for "Gary Moller osteoporosis) and visit the website of osteoporosis expert, Gillian Sanson, who I believe was raised in South Canterbury (A piece of trivial information).
Please let us know how things go and if there is anything else we can do to help.
Couldn't a chiropractor help her? Or it would only worsen what she's experiencing? But I think calcium supplement wouldn't do anything good for her problem.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the suggestion.
ReplyDeleteI could not agree more: If she was to consult a chiropractor. Who else could be better qualified than a health professional who has studied the spine and its treatment for several years under the tutelage of a Professor in spinal assessment and treatment?
Having said this, it often comes down to the interest and skills of the individual therapist, rather than the discipline they practice as to who is the best for a particular case.
I encourage people to shop around, ask others for recommendations etc be assertive, ask questions and be prepared to pull the plug on a treatment if it is not giving the expected results.