June 2002 I moved to the Orlando area of Florida| June 2002 | June 2002 I moved to the Orlando area of Florida |
| July 26 2002 |
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| July 27 2002 | I was scheduled for an MRI but it was canceled by radiology when I told them about a possible iron foreign object and a Xray of the brain was ordered to locate the foreign object in my eye. The Xray showed a cloudy spot and may indicate the presence of a foreign object. |
| July 28 2002 | a CT scan of the brain was taken. |
| August 1 2002 |  Dr.
Zuckerman(neurologist) notified me of a cerebellum atrophy and that a blood test would be
taken for a genetic test by Athena labs to test for Freidrich's Ataxia. |
| August 4 2002 |
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| August 5 2002 |
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| August 12 2002 | I was scheduled for a follow up visit with Dr. Zuckerman but his office called to reschedule because the lab results (genetic Freidrich's ataxia)from Athena were not back yet. The appointment was rescheduled for Sep 9 2002. |
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| September 11 2002 | I got the quad cane from Lewin Medical supply in Riverhead. |
| September 12 2002 |
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| September 14 2002 |
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| October 28 2002 |
New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance Division of Disability Determinations that requests for information sent to Dr. Zuckerman and St. Catherine's were not answered. |
| November 4 2002 |  I
went for an SS Disability evaluation at a neurologist working for the US Social Security
Administration. The neurologist that I saw told me that based on the history that I gave
her and her exam she thinks that I may have MS. |
| November 8 2002 | I went to see a new neurologist yesterday at Stony Brook University Medical Center at the university. I saw Dr. Mousli and he did an evaluation. He was perplexed and consulted another doctor. She saw that I had a weakness in my legs. She asked me to stand with my arms folded across my chest, but I couldn't. The doctors also asked me to try and walk with 1 foot in front of the other, but I couldn't do that either. They saw that I had a neuro problem, but they were perplexed as to what the cause may be. They did schedule an EMG for Nov. 22. An EMG will test for nerve response. They also may order a spinal tap. He also prescribed a muscle relaxer. The drug ordered was Zanaflex, but Genovese filled it using Tizanidine which is equivalent to or is the same as Zanaflex. It is a nerve agent that is commonly used to treat MS. The doctors told me that it may help, but it also may not. Stiffness in the legs sometimes helps patients and removing the stiffness may hinder mobility. |
| November 22 2002 |
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| November 26 2002 |
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| November 25 2002 | I have been taking the |
| November 30 2002 | For years I have had a problem with being tired. I always felt guilty and to compensate I used coffee. Now I take a short nap during the day when I need one. |
| November 29 2002 | I have had a tripping problem for the last several years. Entering a store or other carpet or mat edge I always tripped and would have to roll it back in place. |
| December 1 2002 | I have had a persistent dull pain in my lower back for years. For the last several years I have chosen to sleep in my easy chair instead of my bed although it was available. Sleeping in the bed or on the floor always caused pain. |
| December 2 2002 | Last night I had some numbness in my arms. This morning I had numbness in my hands again. I tried to reposition my arm and hand to relieve the numbness. I have had numbness during the night, but I dismissed it thinking that perhaps I was pressuring a nerve causing the numbness so I repositioned myself. |
| December 3 2002 | I finished my prescription for the |
| December 4 2002 | I was typing to reply to an email and I could only hold my hands up for short periods of time before I had to let them rest. I was typing on my laptop computer and I could only write a sentence or 2 before my arms got too tired and I had to let them rest for a minute. |
| December 11 2002 | This morning I was taking a nap I got numbness in my left hand and I got a "pins and needles" feeling too. I tried many times to reposition my arm thinking that perhaps I was laying on a nerve, but that did not help. |
| December 15 2002 | I walked to a local convenience store. It's a little over 1 mile each way.
It usually takes me a few hours. I took pictures of my trip there and I am working on
making a slide show. It was not cold and in the mid 40's. My  cane
helps a lot. I had numbness in my hands most of the way. |
| December 28 2002 | As I was laying in bed I had an incident of uncontrollable muscle movement (twitching) in the muscles in my arms and side. The uncontrollable muscle movement or twitching is similar to the twitching that I experience in my leg muscles. |
| Sept. 2002 | I use a Quad cane to walk. My cane was prescribed for me by my current neurologist. It has really helped me especially with my knees. Fortunately I have not experienced much pain except in my knees. Because my walking has been rather funny for years my walking has put unusual pressure on my knees making them move in unusual ways. |
| Sept. 2003 | 
Now
I use a walker similar to this one. The walker was recommended
by my physical therapist. He suggested a walker and I tried one there and it was
one of the traditional kind with 2 wheels in the front and solid posts in the
rear. I knew it would be much better for me because I always use a shopping cart
at stores whether I need one or not. The shopping cart provides equal balance
and the support I need relieving my back muscles from having to provide
stiffness and rigidity in my body. |
| Oct. 31 2003 | I finally got and MRI of the brain. Actually it was 2 because a series was taken without contrast then I was injected with contrast and then another series was taken. The results did not show anything unusual. |
| Dec. 2003 | I have been taking Baclofen for almost a year now. The medication does not really have any profound effects, but it seems to have relieved the awful muscle cramps that I used to get. I haven't had a muscle cramp in about a year. |
| Dec. 30 2003 | I have experienced some minor vision problems. my problems have just been dark spots in my line of sight similar to the dark spots experienced shortly after viewing a flash from a camera. |
| Dec. 31 2003 | I have had experiences with shortness of breath. An example is when I woke up this morning and I was just laying in bed watching the morning news and without any physical exertion |
| Jan. 6 2004 | I have had experiences with lower back pain. The pain feels like it is in the muscles, not in the bones. Any use of my back muscles like any kind of bending or sitting in a seat without back support results in pain in minutes. |
| December 27 2003 | It has been a while since I updated this. I have been busy learning digital video and 3D multimedia. |
| Jan. 8 2004 | Unfortunately I had an appointment with my neurologist tomorrow, but I had to cancel it because I can't get transportation. I was denied transportation by Suffolk County Medicaid. |
| Jan. 10 2004 | Recently I read that swallowing problems also include minor things like liquids that "go down the wrong pipe" and liquids are mistakenly directed to the lungs instead of the stomach. If this occurs often enough pneumonia can result. As part of my neurological exams I was asked by doctors if I had an swallowing problems. I always answered "no" because I interpreted swallowing problems to mean problems swallowing pills or food. Knowing this now I am not sure. |
| Jan. 16 2004 | I have described this before, but it is bothering me again. I am writing a note and it requires a great deal of typing and I can only type a sentence before my arms become very tired and I must rest them. I only need to rest them briefly, maybe for just a few seconds. |
| Mar. 4 2004 | Recently the pain in my back has gotten worse. Most of the time my back must be supported. I can only sit in a seat without back support for a few minutes, after that my lower back muscles get quite painful.. |
| Mar. 4 2004 | My legs seem to have gotten weaker, but my leg muscles are not weak, they just don't work. |
| June 21, 2004 | I had an MRI of the brain. 1 scan without injected contrast and 1 scan with contrast |
| July 7, 2004 | I was struck by a man driving a new Dodge pickup truck. It happened at the corner of Pine Street and Montauk Highway as I was crossing Montauk Highway from north to south. I was crossing with the traffic light and he turned left into me. I was taken by ambulance to Brookhaven Memorial hospital where I was treated and released after a CAT scan was taken to rule out brain injury. |
| Sept. 29 2004 | I had an MRI of the spine and upper body to determine if damage was done to my spine. |
| Nov. 29 2004 | I am very lucky to have a friend in Argentina, Marcela Fox.
I chat with her very often on the computer and we chat about many things.
She is very interested in moving here and I am helping her to improve her
English.
We began chatting a few years ago. |
I admitted myself to St.
Catherine's Hospital in Smithtown NY for diagnosis and treatment of my walking problem.
I was denied for public assistance by Suffolk County DSS
because I am receiving SSI benefits.
Today I went for my EMG test. I told the
doctor that I have been taking the Tizanidine before bed, but that I did not take it last
night because I didn't want the EMG test of my nerves to be influenced by the medication.
The EMG doctor asked me about the foreign object and I told her that because of it that
perhaps the EMG test would be more important. The doctor told me that the EMG test would
be more important than an MRI anyway. She told me that 1 nerve in my leg was good, but she
did not make any other comments.
I called Stony Brook neuro for the results
and to make myself available for additional tests and I was told that Dr. Mousli would
call me back. I explained to the receptionist that I prefer not to wait until January 17
for the results
Tizanidine for several weeks now and I
have not seen any change or improvement in my muscle tremors. I still have muscle tremors
and uncontrollable muscle movements, but to be honest they are fewer.