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Carol, I love what you have written here. My husband never went through DBS so I've had no personal experience with the procedure. I only know about the experiences of the list members. You've made the procedure and follow-up come alive for me. I'm wondering if DBS is going to be done as frequently in the future - it certainly doesn't sound like something I would like to go through. But then, I don't have PD. ---------- God bless Mary Ann (CG Jamie 68/28 with PD, died 11/20/07) www.bentwillowfarm.org > Ray, I keep reading all these wonderful > > DBS success stories, and while I am sure that the patients > are sincere and well-intentioned, I think it is important > to understand that it is no walk in the park. I thought I > was well prepared for my October of 2007 surgery. After > all, I was an R.N., had attended a conference on the > subject, met with a Medtronic rep, spoken in person to > fellow PWP's who had had the operation, watched the movie, > and emailed trusted internet friends. I thought I was > prepared. I wasn't. > Oh, it wasn't what i was worried about- the head shaving, > the drilling through my skull, and the screwing in of the > halo apparatus. It was the little things- like the weight > of it as it held me pinned in one position like part of > some butterfly collection while my back spasms continued > for hours, during the pre-and post-op MRI's and the surgery > itself. > And the bigger things-like the programming that has been > going on for two months now, still with unsatisfactory > success. The man from Medtronic, who make the > neurotransformer, tells me there is no "book," and that he > services many of the major centers on the East Coast, and > that they "all do it differently." And that there are > literally thousands of settings. > In the meanwhile, as they tweak my settings yet again I > know how Elsa Lancaster got that streak of white hair in > "The Bride of Frankenstein." > In conclusion, let me say that I am not trying to > discourage anyone from DBS. It is one of the newer tools in > our fight against Parkinson's and I believe you should use > any weapon you can get as you battle this monster. I just > want to inject a dose of realism into the mix. > Carole Hercun ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn