On my mind. . .

So anyway getting back to every little pain and soreness. . . From the start of my Oct 2006 event, I have had a pain in my mid-back area on the left side. It is about at the base of the rear ribcage area. It has been a tender spot in the years since my right scapula went south (literally). Doctors have assumed (since they know nothing of the bilateral tendencies of NA or the fact that it can involve other plexus sites) that the soreness was simply due to my body trying to rebalance itself against the losses of my right side. What has changed recently is that this tender spot is not just noticeable in movement. I feel a general ache type sensation on the left when I take a deep breath. Glancing at imagery on the web of the diaphragm location, it is at least a possibility that this tender ache type area is at least close to my diaphragm since I see that the diaphragm takes a dip down as it nears the back of the ribs. It may also just be a sore muscle that is aching now because I am taking more deep breaths that usual. Anyway, I guess if it is just a sore muscle my question would be as to why it has not gone away in more than two years. This is just another weird thing I may not ever know for sure.

One other thing that has bugged me for a number of years is my left hip. Back prior to either of my more recent events in 2001 or 2006; I had a sore left hip. In fact it was one reason I chose to get an automatic transmission car in 1999. It was just getting too hard to use a clutch with my left leg getting harder to move with ease. This also has not healed since. There have been times it felt almost better, but recently it has seemed to slip a bit. I have to lift my leg into the car. If I stand too long, it feels like my leg is just being dragged after me. I have a bit of a limp going when walking now. Some have noticed this and asked if I have leg pain. No. There is not real pain most times. It just feels weak.

Are either of these related to HNA? Since they have not healed I have to think they must be related. It bothers me. It makes my temper short. And that bothers me more. But, I do not look sick. That is all that matters to some. And I guess that bothers me even more.

Is Social Security Disability in your future?

This is something I had not considered at the start of my NA/HNA journey, but after the three attorneys I consulted during my recent Worker’s Comp process were surprised I had not already applied, I thought it worth mentioning.

One thing that you should know is that the social security folks seem to need to know that more than one limb is impacted for them to agree you are disabled by anything. That and you have to demonstrate that this impacts your ability to perform basic tasks that might be associated with paying work or just everyday living. To show this, it is important to document everything that has happened to you so you can demonstrate how this impacts your everyday life. Documentation is the key in this. My documentation amounted to a good inch thick stack of paper reports and doctor notes that go back almost ten years. They also have a list of all of the doctors I have seen and when I saw them. Social Security is free to contact the doctors you provide information for, so it is possible that their complete list of documentation exceeds what I have at this point.

That documentation should refer to impacts you have on more than one limb. The right arm by itself is not enough. The right leg alone is not enough. But if you can show that both arms are impacted or that you also have leg involvement, you will have better chances of your claim not being rejected out of hand. If a doctor anywhere in your past ever made note of a different limb being involved, make sure you have a copy of that in your file. In my case, the original mention of my other arm being involved was important, even though the conclusions this doctor came to ended up being incorrect. In my case, there was another doctor who mentioned that involvement later, so I have two independent doctor notes about other limb involvement. What made this difficult for me was the Workman’s Comp system. My claim only mentioned my right arm. When I brought up the potential that my left arm was involved, they said they could not look at it unless I filed a claim for it. At that point, I was tired of the system and it was only a minor issue to me, I decided not to file a new claim. But it was important enough that two other doctors made note of it. Do not discount those fleeting mentioned items. They could be the difference in being denied or not.