Ecdysis
Diamond Member
So, this is going to be a weird question...
I have a service dog who I've had for 11 years and he's now 13 and palliative.
He has always adored going for car rides and so that's been a huge way how I've incorporated him into all my daily activities and has in turn affected how I plan my day, schedule my appointments, structure my life...
As my dog has become palliative, suddenly he doesn't tolerate long drives/ fast speeds anymore.
He's okay with me going 50 km/ h and driving 10 km to drive to the nearest town to go shopping.
But driving 100 km/h for an hour to get to a Dr's appt is suddenly a no-go.
So this has suddenly, unexpectedly completely messed up all my planning and when it first started happening, I was basically in crisis mode cos I literally could not figure out how to make this work with the commitments I currently have.
It was a huge headf*ck and I was frantic about how to solve this problem so that I could be there for my dog, the way he's been there for me over the years.
So, suddenly, about 10 days into this situation, with me frazzled and clueless about how to fix this... I suddenly get a herniated disc in my back which is so bad that I'm getting major neurological fallout from it (can't walk properly, can't feel my foot, can't lift my foot properly, massive nerve pain) which had me in hospital and I'm meant to get neuro-surgery done on my spine to fix this...
The point is... suddenly "thanks" to this herniated disc (which is clearly visible in the MRI scans and is pretty bad) I'm off sick from "everything" and get to spend 98% of my week at home with my palliative service dog.
So... part of me thinks that this is not a coincidence... Another part of me thinks it is a coincidence, and just happens to be a lucky fluke.
I think part of me doesn't want to have surgery/ doesn't want this herniated disc to heal "too quickly" so that I can continue to be there full-time for my dog.
Does that make sense...?? It sounds kind of crazy...
Did my body do this on purpose? Is it a coincidence because I've always carried all my (PTSD) stress in my back anyway and it's always "given way" by herniating a disc when the pressure in my life has gotten too intense?
Did my back "snap" because I couldn't work out how to protect my dog and that was creating so much stress that my back "snapped" like a safety fuse, giving me a way out of the unsolvable situation?
And if so, what do I do about it?
Should I literally say no to surgery because I think that this isn't an issue that requires surgery because the underlying cause is that I want and need to be there for my palliative dog?
I have a service dog who I've had for 11 years and he's now 13 and palliative.
He has always adored going for car rides and so that's been a huge way how I've incorporated him into all my daily activities and has in turn affected how I plan my day, schedule my appointments, structure my life...
As my dog has become palliative, suddenly he doesn't tolerate long drives/ fast speeds anymore.
He's okay with me going 50 km/ h and driving 10 km to drive to the nearest town to go shopping.
But driving 100 km/h for an hour to get to a Dr's appt is suddenly a no-go.
So this has suddenly, unexpectedly completely messed up all my planning and when it first started happening, I was basically in crisis mode cos I literally could not figure out how to make this work with the commitments I currently have.
It was a huge headf*ck and I was frantic about how to solve this problem so that I could be there for my dog, the way he's been there for me over the years.
So, suddenly, about 10 days into this situation, with me frazzled and clueless about how to fix this... I suddenly get a herniated disc in my back which is so bad that I'm getting major neurological fallout from it (can't walk properly, can't feel my foot, can't lift my foot properly, massive nerve pain) which had me in hospital and I'm meant to get neuro-surgery done on my spine to fix this...
The point is... suddenly "thanks" to this herniated disc (which is clearly visible in the MRI scans and is pretty bad) I'm off sick from "everything" and get to spend 98% of my week at home with my palliative service dog.
So... part of me thinks that this is not a coincidence... Another part of me thinks it is a coincidence, and just happens to be a lucky fluke.
I think part of me doesn't want to have surgery/ doesn't want this herniated disc to heal "too quickly" so that I can continue to be there full-time for my dog.
Does that make sense...?? It sounds kind of crazy...
Did my body do this on purpose? Is it a coincidence because I've always carried all my (PTSD) stress in my back anyway and it's always "given way" by herniating a disc when the pressure in my life has gotten too intense?
Did my back "snap" because I couldn't work out how to protect my dog and that was creating so much stress that my back "snapped" like a safety fuse, giving me a way out of the unsolvable situation?
And if so, what do I do about it?
Should I literally say no to surgery because I think that this isn't an issue that requires surgery because the underlying cause is that I want and need to be there for my palliative dog?
