Posts by Carol White18

Thanks, much appreciated, Felix.

I was wondering if anyone could help me understand what the ANCA and AFL test results actually show.

I just heard that those spinal segments can actually fuse together, which sounds like an absolute nightmare.

Maybe there’s a different name for this condition, which would explain why nobody here seems to recognize it?

Ronald Green31 said:Maybe try leaving a comment on Dr. Smith's blog. He actually responds publicly and tries to help his patients out there. www.dr-saftic.com/blog

Thanks, Ronald Green31. I took a look, but what I'm really looking for are comments from people dealing with this exact same thing—like if they ended up having surgery or what.
It’s honestly shocking how little information there is online about this. Most of what you find just treats it like some niche issue for livestock.

There’s got to be someone out there who actually knows what they’re talking about.
Please, just speak up!!

I asked my doctor if this was some super rare thing, and they told me it’s actually pretty common. So, I wanted to check in here—does this usually require surgery, or is it possible to just manage the pain through physical therapy and regular exercise?

You can only have one primary care doctor, one dentist, and one gynecologist; your place of residence doesn't actually matter.
Other specialists require a referral that specifies exactly which Medical Center you need to go to, and you can use those referrals anywhere in the US.

Am I seriously the only one??

I’ve been scouring the web and various forums, but I'm coming up empty. Am I really the only one dealing with this alongside my horses? Even the official diagnosis is listed as "kissing spine." Apparently, physical therapy is the go-to, but if things get serious, surgery might be needed to shave down those excess vertebrae.
Has anyone here actually gone through this?
The pain isn't unbearable, but it definitely messes with my gait. I try doing some exercises, which helps for a little bit, but the relief doesn't last long.