Posts by James Cox6

wiredtrucker11 said:Hi everyone!
I have a quick question regarding spinal anesthesia... basically, I’ve been scheduled for a C-section on October 22nd. If I get the choice, I would really prefer the spinal, but I'm not entirely sure if it's an option for me given my back issues.
To give some context, I have a curved spine—nothing extreme, but it shows up on X-rays—and I deal with chronic sciatica and a herniated disc at L5-S1 that's been acting up for about five years now.
Back when I had my last MRI, the report noted that my "spinal canal is of appropriate width"... but that was a while ago...
I'm currently 37 weeks pregnant, so my water could break at any moment, which would mean heading straight to the ER for an emergency C-section, assuming I understood the process correctly. However, if I make it until the 22nd, I believe I might be able to choose, and they usually recommend a spinal. My first baby seven years ago was a natural birth, but this baby is breech and quite large, so it looks like a C-section is likely.
I'm honestly pretty nervous about all of this, especially with my spinal issues... Scott Allen10, I see you know a lot about this stuff, so maybe you could let me know if my back problems will affect my ability to receive spinal anesthesia? Or is it still an option regardless?

You've got it right... if it's an emergency C-section, it's general.

wiredtrucker11 said:Hi everyone!
I have a quick question regarding spinal anesthesia... basically, I’ve been scheduled for a C-section on October 22nd. If I get the choice, I would really prefer the spinal, but I'm not entirely sure if it's an option for me given my back issues.
To give some context, I have a curved spine—nothing extreme, but it shows up on X-rays—and I deal with chronic sciatica and a herniated disc at L5-S1 that's been acting up for about five years now.
Back when I had my last MRI, the report noted that my "spinal canal is of appropriate width"... but that was a while ago...
I'm currently 37 weeks pregnant, so my water could break at any moment, which would mean heading straight to the ER for an emergency C-section, assuming I understood the process correctly. However, if I make it until the 22nd, I believe I might be able to choose, and they usually recommend a spinal. My first baby seven years ago was a natural birth, but this baby is breech and quite large, so it looks like a C-section is likely.
I'm honestly pretty nervous about all of this, especially with my spinal issues... Scott Allen10, I see you know a lot about this stuff, so maybe you could let me know if my back problems will affect my ability to receive spinal anesthesia? Or is it still an option regardless?

You’ll have a consultation with the anesthesiologist beforehand where they suggest options and you sign off.
I have scoliosis myself, and every single time they tried a spinal, it took 7 or 8 attempts—even for this C-section, they started trying for a spinal first (after 6 tries, my doctor walked into the OR and said ENOUGH... STOP TORTURING HER).

The baby just needs to come out... what else matters? General anesthesia... whatever. I don't care—as long as the baby is healthy, born, and has an Apgar score of 10/10. This happens at Mayo Clinic.
They aren't the type of hospital to sugarcoat things; they don't perform C-sections without medical necessity, they don't push general anesthesia if it isn't needed, and they don't hand out high Apgar scores just to be nice.

So... focus on the baby, not yourself or your anxiety. Listen to your maternal instinct. I’d take general anesthesia 100 times over just to ensure the baby is okay.

Scott Allen10 said:🙂

it's not gonna happen...

Who on earth thinks the motivation is "practicing on someone's spine"...😕Spinal anesthesia is actually much safer for the patient, and honestly, that’s the big reason why...not to mention it takes way more skill and effort than general anesthesia. It's way easier to just pump in some succinylcholine and thiopental, pop in a tube, hook the patient up to a "Budweiser" or "Fabius" machine...and then occasionally toss in another dose of a muscle relaxant...
Any seasoned anesthesiologist will tell you that spinal anesthesia is the more technically demanding route...

Exactly.👍

And let's be real—you don't learn actual practice from a textbook, you learn it on patients. That level of precision with the needle requires "muscle memory"—and having that kind of muscle memory usually means you've already poked plenty of XYZ spines.

So how do you actually get there? You practice on patients. 🙂

nimbletrucker72 said:I’m asking for some advice on what to do next. I’ve posted about this before, but I need to repeat it—my dad has small cell lung cancer with metastases in his adrenal glands. We haven't done all the other tests yet. His scans after chemo didn't show much movement—no improvement, no worsening—just steady blood work and lung X-rays. After four months of fighting and four cycles of chemo, which he handled incredibly bravely, he just suddenly collapsed. He hasn't eaten or drank anything—maybe two ounces a day—for the last ten days leading up to the fifth cycle. Just the day before, he was sitting right there with us, but by morning, he couldn't even move, let alone get to the car, so the paramedics came. Now he’s been on an IV for seven days and still refuses any food or drink. He’s moaning a lot; when I ask if he's in pain, he says no. He always recognizes me, but we can't actually talk—the only thing I get out of him is a nod or a shake of the head. The doctors say it's moved to his brain (metastases), but they claim there's "no need" for more imaging. He's getting pain medication via patches and something for sedation, but nothing changes. It's not like he understands why he isn't responding to the meds, though it seemed to me yesterday he was slightly more conscious and moaning a bit more.

So sorry about your dad. 🙂
It's the same story everywhere... "no need to scan"... I honestly can't believe it. 🙄 🙄
There is absolutely a need to scan... just so you understand how serious this is.
They told my mother the exact same thing back in San Francisco... "no need for imaging." Once we moved her to another state... they scanned everything and found she had brain metastases (even though there were no visible signs in her behavior, her motor skills, or anything else the brain controls).

And once things started going south... her hand started shaking, she lost her balance, and her speech got slurred.
If you can... push them to do a CT of the brain immediately.

Though, medically speaking, doctors feel it doesn't matter because the chemo is the same whether it's for the primary cancer or the metastases. Finding out if there are brain metastases won't change his treatment plan—they already know that based on their diagnosis. They're just being cheap. 😢

Doctors—specifically anesthesiologists—prefer spinal anesthesia because they get more practice on our spines, plus it’s just easier for them since you don't have to deal with intubation or bringing someone back around from general

Copying my post from the pregnancy forum here.

So... I've had six hip surgeries (car accident), one cosmetic procedure, and one C-section...
I definitely know my way around anesthesia and narcotics—out of those eight operations, four were under general anesthesia and four were spinal.

Spinal
The OR is freezing—it has to be for the sterile conditions—but honestly, it feels like lying in a morgue.😱 Everything is just shades of green or blue. The table is incredibly narrow; you feel like your butt is going to slide off the sides at any moment. You’re pinned down there like Jesus on the cross... both arms are held up at shoulder height like you're reaching out for a hug.
One hand has an IV, the other has a blood pressure cuff that keeps loudly announcing your heart rate right into your ear.
They give you a sheet to cover up, so you can't see or feel anything from the chest down... but looking up at the anesthesiologist and the nurse at the head of the bed with those masks and caps on... truth be told, it's terrifying. Especially when you realize you can't feel the bottom half of your body.
With a spinal, the actual insertion hurts—it’s not a "pleasant" kind of pain. They have to slide the cannula into your spine before they actually inject the meds.
Recovery... you aren't even getting up until 24 hours later.


General
You lie down, they hook up the IV in one arm and the blood pressure cuff on the other, give you some oxygen, and that's it... you drift off. None of that creepy stuff I mentioned above.
Recovery... you're usually up and moving about 12 hours later.

She passed away... in her sleep... 🙂
Words can't even touch this level of grief... I feel like my heart is actually going to break 🙂
.... this pain is just unbearable

Douglas Booth22 said:I’m starting to suspect these tests aren't giving me the full picture. A few of them showed nothing, yet I haven't had my period. About eight days post-ovulation, I noticed some light pink spotting—which could be implantation—and then the symptoms kicked in: dizziness, nausea, and a sudden aversion to strong smells. I’ve also developed a dark line from my navel down, similar to a linea nigra, and my blood pressure seems slightly elevated. On top of the bloating, I’ve had mild cramping and a total loss of appetite, which is completely out of character for me. It’s strange for my period to be this late; my last three cycles were perfectly regular, so such a sudden delay suggests more than just a minor hormonal fluctuation. In the past, my cycle would drift later gradually—maybe three days one month, four the next, creeping up to an average of five to seven days. Just now, a test showed a faint line for a few seconds before it vanished. Tomorrow, I’m picking up some First Response and Clearblue to get some real answers.

Mine didn't show up until I was 38 weeks pregnant... honey, let's not get ahead of ourselves.🙂

Douglas Booth22 said:I’m starting to suspect these tests aren't giving me the full picture. A few of them showed nothing, yet I haven't had my period. About eight days post-ovulation, I noticed some light pink spotting—which could be implantation—and then the symptoms kicked in: dizziness, nausea, and a sudden aversion to strong smells. I’ve also developed a dark line from my navel down, similar to a linea nigra, and my blood pressure seems slightly elevated. On top of the bloating, I’ve had mild cramping and a total loss of appetite, which is completely out of character for me. It’s strange for my period to be this late; my last three cycles were perfectly regular, so such a sudden delay suggests more than just a minor hormonal fluctuation. In the past, my cycle would drift later gradually—maybe three days one month, four the next, creeping up to an average of five to seven days. Just now, a test showed a faint line for a few seconds before it vanished. Tomorrow, I’m picking up some First Response and Clearblue to get some real answers.

Just go get a blood test for Beta HCG... that's 100% reliable.

Dennis Kim5 said:So, here I am...
I’ve already run two different tests—first, one of those cheap ones you grab at CVS for like five bucks... negative.
Then I went out and got an Intim Plus test just to be sure... also negative.
Hmm... I'm trying to stay calm, but honestly, I'm still just sitting here waiting. 🙄
My period hasn't shown up in about 40 days now. 🙄
And since I was taking those hormone pills to try and regulate things... I can't even tell what my actual cycle looks like anymore.
So... for those of you who have been following this whole mess from the beginning... what do I do now? Do I really just sit around and wait?

I already told you, you aren't pregnant... babies don't just pop out of thin air...
Go get some swabs done instead. 🙂

rapidrider3 said:Now she won't be able to sleep a wink tonight... what a trip...🤣

Just take a test... and let us know what happens.👍

Look, I'm just being honest... playing with rings on a finger covered in bacteria (hands are basically germ magnets).. is a direct way to get fungal infections and pass around aerobic and anaerobic bacteria.

I think at this stage, getting some swabs done is more important than obsessing over pregnancy...
and besides—if it were as easy to get pregnant as everyone thinks, kids would be popping out of every single mess we make--not just jumping out 😉

Dennis Kim5 said:Quick question...
I really don't want to sound stupid or anything like that.
Though, let’s be honest—I probably am... I’d say the same thing if anyone else were asking this.
So, last week my boyfriend and I were "playing around" a little bit.
First, he was handling everything manually—I'm not even entirely sure what all went down there—and then he finished by rubbing it against me... so, is it actually possible to transfer sperm through your hands?
I know this sounds totally absurd and maybe it won't even matter in the end, but I'm honestly starting to panic here...🙄🙄
My period is about a week late... though, to be fair, my cycles have never been super regular anyway. 😕😕
Also, does anyone know which pregnancy test from a place like CVS or Walgreens is actually reliable once you've missed your period?

By eye contact. You can get pregnant just by looking at someone, so you're definitely pregnant now.😂
Honestly, forget the pregnancy scare—worry about the fingering. Go get tested before he passes you some strep (God forbid it's Group B) or some mycoplasma or bacteria.

That's way more likely than getting pregnant from hand contact.😁

Thanks, everyone 🙂 thank you all..
I went to see my mom... what I saw there—I don't think I'll ever be able to forget it. 😢
I said goodbye to my own mother back in March, and since then, between a high-risk pregnancy, the actual labor, a C-section, and the postpartum recovery—I just haven't been able to see her.
My mother was always such a powerhouse—full of energy, positive, hyperactive, constantly talking, just... wired.
Seeing her now? I was speechless. She can't move a single muscle, and since her motor center is gone, she can't even speak..
All she can do is move her eyes. She recognized me. I talked to her while holding her hand, wiping her down with a warm towel, putting cream on her face, and kissing her. 🙂

The thing that absolutely haunts me about this disease is the helplessness... she actually looks okay in the face; she’s even gained weight... about 22 pounds. It doesn't hurt her, but she's completely paralyzed.
I told her about her granddaughter, whom she hasn't even met yet. I told her about myself... I only said beautiful things. (I lied.) But honestly, I don't think someone that sick needs to hear the truth.
I told her how much I'm looking forward to her getting better and coming home, and how much I love her and that she's always on my mind.

She's aware of everything. She's lucid—you can tell by the way she reacts with her facial expressions..

It's a terrifying disease. On the bright side, the IV fluids, vitamins, and the meds they give her to reduce the brain edema make things somewhat bearable. She isn't in pain, and she doesn't complain about anything. As the doctor says... she's "lucky." Most people dying from cancer endure unimaginable agony where even the strongest painkillers don't touch it.

It worked, but I honestly just got lucky—nothing more 🙂
Both times actually... though I was dealing with another tragedy at the time, so, I don't know... everything just kind of settled into this weird equilibrium.
I didn't bother tracking temperature (I don't get it and it seems like too much work), so the second time I just used ovulation strips. My main indicators were basically just fertile mucus and those strips

Carol Moore27 said:So, I just went in for a routine ultrasound, and the doctor was basically like, "Everything looks fine, just hang in there." No other tests or anything yet. Honestly, I haven't been pushing myself too hard lately... this is my fifth month, my fifth attempt at this whole thing. My cycles are all regular and I'm ovulating every time.

Look... I’m no expert here, but I’d start thinking about sending your husband in for a semen analysis—just to rule that out right now. If everything comes back clean, then you can just relax and enjoy things... but if not, at least you actually know how to react.

It doesn't cost much, and it's better to have an answer than to live through month after month of total uncertainty... right? 😉

Carol Moore27 said:Oh, awesome. Glad someone posted something so I didn't have to boot up my computer for nothing. 😂
Ryan Morris15, look at how well everything started out for you. If you don't get your period tomorrow, then it's pretty much a done deal!
mistyharbor8, I honestly thought you’d be taking a test by this morning or today, since you're already four days late...

I'm feeling a little discouraged today, though. My temperature dropped to 98.1 this morning from yesterday's 98.4. It all just feels like a typical failed cycle to me because things always start dipping right before my period arrives. Plus, my breasts are sore, there's more discharge, and I've been dealing with this weird dizziness for about half an hour now. I just don't know what to think anymore...

Have you actually gone in for any testing? How long have you been trying? Has your husband had a semen analysis? Are you definitely ovulating?

mistyharbor8 said:Just wanted to jump in here too. I finally picked up a test today, so now I’m playing the waiting game until tomorrow morning. Nothing certain yet, though my milk is coming in and I’ve been feeling a little off lately. Dealing with regular cramps, too, and some sharp twinges on my right side. Really hoping this is the real deal. Plus, I'm hitting the bathroom way more often than usual. How is everyone else doing?

Which test did you get? If it's Clearblue or an Early Detection one, they work pretty much instantly... those things are super sensitive to beta HCG...

Raymond Parker4 said:So, when should I probably try testing again? I took one on the day my period was actually supposed to start and it came up negative, but I’m feeling all those symptoms, you know? Now I’m about five days late... maybe it isn't pregnancy, but I just have this really strong gut feeling that it might be😉

Do it again right now—because if you're going to be late, you might as well just do it every single day.

Ryan Morris15 said:Not much, really... though I suppose I did land a permanent position, even if it’s still just unofficial 😁

You aren't pregnant... I already told you...
You took the most sensitive test available. If that came back negative, then it's negative. That's just how it is.

Things will look up 🙂

Thomas Lewis10 said:Hello everyone... I am in desperate need of your help because I am feeling completely lost right now... I went to see my OB-GYN this morning since my period is ten days late, just to figure out what's going on. During the ultrasound, the doctor mentioned seeing a small spot in my uterus, but he couldn't confirm anything else yet... Does anyone know what that could mean? Is it possible that I'm pregnant? And if it is, how far along could I be if it looks like nothing more than a tiny speck? I haven't even told my husband yet... I am just so incredibly anxious about all of this... Thank you all so much in advance for any answers you can give me.

So you're just waiting? Didn't that "genius" doctor tell you to get a blood test?
Just go get an hCG test. 🙂