Spondylolisthesis

Known as "Spondy" for short - this is not a fun condition to have.  What it means is that I have a slipping vertebrae in my spine.  NOT a slipped disk (although I have that too).  L4 sitting on L5 slips 10 mm forward (towards my stomach) when I bend forward.  When I don't bend it's slipped by 3 mm.  Needless to say I now know why, when I bend forward or reach forward, it hurts like crazy.
Here's a photo of an X-Ray of me bending forward:

Here's the same photo showing how the vertebrae below this point are nicely lined up, then the slippage occurs:

It's taken 10 years to discover the diagnosis.  It started as sciatica.  I did physical therapy, lost 10 pounds, did T'ai Chi and it was manageable.  It started when I lived in Mexico (2003) and I recall the ride home being very painful and at times I could not walk.  About three years ago it got a lot worse.  I would just live with the pain and it would come and go - seemed I had good days and bad days, good weeks and bad weeks.  Last Fall it really was acting up but I was quite distracted with the Thyroid cancer recurrence.  So I didn't pay much attention to it.  Again, I just lived with the pain.  After suffering so much on a trip to Seattle I finally asked my doctor about her thoughts.  She said to go to the Allen Pain Clinic and get cortisone shots in my spine.  No way! was my reply.  She said "you can handle ethanol injections into your neck...I think you can handle cortisone shots into your back."  Okay, I'll give it a try.
The doctor did diagnostic injections of cortisone.  If it relieved the pain, then I was a candidate for radio-frequency ablation.  Of course we didn't know about the Spondy yet.  The injections were like magic!  For about a week I was pain free and I felt 10 years younger.  I signed right up for the radio-frequency (RF) ablation.  It gave me about a 10% pain relief and it lasted only a month.  I was so disappointed.  But I muddled through and had things to take care of (battling shingles, graduation for the kids, not to mention work and teaching a night class).  I just kept going and finally went back to Allen pain clinic and said that we needed to do something more, but not RF ablation.  It didn't work and it was not worth it.  So we did another cortisone injection - this time one that was meant to really treat the area.  That helped a lot.  The doctor also said he wanted to do X-Rays where I lean back and bend forward.  I had complained that bending forward was very challenging for me in terms of pain.  That's when we found the Spondy.  I was then referred to a Neurosurgeon in Cedar Rapids.
The Neurosurgeon said I had one option.  Surgery.  I figured an acupuncturist would have said I needed acupuncture, etc.  I was not happy with the idea.  6 hour surgery where the disc is removed and replaced with bone.  Screws are put into the vertebrae and used to pull the spine back into alignment.  Rods hold the whole thing together.  Three month recovery living in a "clam shell" for stability.  No thank you.  What other options do I have?  The surgeon recommended a brace for stability and back to see her in a few months.
When I first put the brace on, I hated it.  Now I don't like how I feel without it - the stability it provides really reduces the odds of the intense shooting pain.  In the meantime I've done research and mulled around this surgery idea.  While I'm still not sold, I'm getting there for a variety of reasons.
The biggest reason is that it's getting worse.  My feet are now numb and tingling most of the time.  On this last trip to Seattle for Thanksgiving I actually lost sensation in my legs while walking.  Try walking on two legs you basically can't feel.  It was not fun.  I also had a long chat with my doctor at the pain clinic - I asked about physical therapy, traction, etc.  Basically it won't help.  The area of the back that supports the vertebrae is essentially "broken."  The doctor is not sure if it's fractured or a birth defect.  Either way it's the same end game.  The other reason is that I do have hyperparathyroidism and osteopenia (precursor to osteoporosis) - so my bones are thinning.  Therefore, I likely have a small window to get this done.
So I'm mulling over the options.  I see the surgeon again in January and I'm thinking about waiting until early May.  I'd like to avoid slippery walking conditions for recovery.  I'd also like some time to get into better aerobic shape and lose some weight.  So, back on Weight Watchers (I'm always on it, sometimes I cheat more than other times).  I actually lost a little weight over the Thanksgiving holiday travels.  I'm back to using Chi focused exercise - Chi Kung or Chi Quong this time.  And as always, the dogs keep me moving.
More to come as this unfolds...hey, at least it's not cancer!  ;-)