In June of 2009 Dolores Fallon was recovering from elbow surgery. She remembers
being relieved the surgery was behind her, and she was mindful of taking care of her
elbow while it healed. That was when she began experiencing neck pain that
radiated down her arm. Had she unknowingly done something to her neck, in her
attempt to be careful while her elbow healed? A wrong movement perhaps that
tweaked something in her neck? Assuming that was the case, she waited a couple of
weeks for the pain to subside. Her elbow was feeling better.
Unfortunately, her neck pain did not resolve. In fact, the pain became severe, and
Dolores went to see her family doctor. Her family doctor sent her to a neurologist,
who examined Dolores and ordered an MRI. The neurologist then recommended
that Dolores make an appointment to see Dr. Patrick Reid so that he could evaluate
her and her MRI. Dolores remembers being scared – the thought of having to see a
neurosurgeon was unsettling.
During her appointment with Dr. Reid, Dolores described her symptoms. “I really was in so much pain. I couldn’t do anything at this point. My son had to drive me anywhere I needed to go. I couldn’t drive – I couldn’t even turn my head.” After
examining Dolores and carefully reviewing the MRI, Dr. Reid explained the condition
Dolores was suffering from. “You have neck and arm pain from a herniated disc
pressing on a nerve going to your arm”. Dr. Reid explained that the MRI showed
that there were two abnormal disc in Dolores’s neck, however after carefully
listening to her symptoms and performing his exam, decided that her symptoms
were only being caused by one of them, and thus indicated to Dolores that he would
only have to address one disc, minimizing surgical intervention. Dolores became
more comfortable as Dr. Reid described her condition and walked her through the
procedure (anterior cervical discectomy and fusion) that would correct the
problem. “At first I was scared, but I also knew that I couldn’t go on the way I was. I
couldn’t sit. I couldn’t stand. I couldn’t even lie down comfortably. Dr. Reid put my
mind at ease – he explained everything so carefully and so thoroughly.”
After a successful surgery and one night in the hospital, Dolores was able to head
home and continue recovering.
Today, Dolores is amazed by the fact that she is pain‐free and able to do all of the
things she could do before her neck condition stopped her in her tracks. “I went
from 0 to 100. Before the surgery I was in so much pain, and had to rely on others
to help me get through the day.” Even though she knew something had to be done,
Dolores remembers being concerned about the surgery. “Dr. Reid listened. He took
the time to make me comfortable with the procedure, and the surgery was a success.
He was my miracle.”
