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"I feel 110 percent. I feel I can dance
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Diagnosis: Herniated disc in the cervical spine Treatment: C5-C6 fusion, July 23, 2007 Neurosurgeon: Thomas Saul, MD Initial injury: I’ve been dancing three or four nights a week for several years. Degenerative disc disease also runs in my family. I’m a pretty energetic dancer. It’s an intense hobby. So I’m pretty sure that dancing contributed to my injury. Turning point: I had experienced some minor neck pain for about a year, but the herniation was a memorable event. In early June 2007 I developed some neck pain that was worse than usual. Five days later I woke up with burning pain going down my neck and my back and shooting pain going down my arm. My primary care physician prescribed pain medications and scheduled an MRI, which showed a pretty dramatic C5-6 herniation, with impingement on the nerve root going out the right side. I was then referred to Dr. Saul. For all of June 2007, and up to July 23, when I had the surgery, I was on a constant nerve-blocker. I was still trying to work. Dr. Saul laid out all of the options. I opted for surgery because I didn’t want to be walking on eggshells. I told him to “just cut me open and fix it. I want to be back dancing.” Being a spine athlete: I feel 110 percent. I feel I can dance better now than before I was hurt. I learned a lot in physical therapy about how to care for the spine, how to keep myself strong through core exercises and upper body strength. I stay active. In ballroom dancing, posture is imperative, and that really helped. I’m always conscious of my posture. I continue to dance competitively, but I don’t engage in activities that might cause an injury. I don’t want to water ski, for example. I don’t want my arms jerked around. If I’m going to be injured again, it would be on the dance floor. I’m not going to waste it on water skiing.”
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