Take care of yourself.......

I encourage all of you to take care of yourself.  Take your vitamins and if you are susceptible to osteoporosis, be active in taking vitamin D and calcium.  Do whatever it takes to prevent it from happening to you. Because last week, I encountered a bad experience at my chiropractors office and have 2 fractured ribs now due to my Osteoporosis.  I have had Osteporosis for a couple years now, and take supplements, Boniva and still, I got 2 fractured ribs.  Having fragile bones from this makes it hard to fulfill my dreams. Now, I can't ride horses for at least 6-8 weeks.  And you all know how much that means to me. I wasn't going to post anything about this, it isn't WLS related, but it is important that you know you need to take care of your body and be pro active on NOT getting Osteporosis.  If a family member has it, chances are you will get it.  Do what you can to prevent it.  Let me tell you that the pain can be unbearable. My spine and lumbars (2 of them have osteoporosis) and my rib cage has been effected now. I urge you to research your family history, check your bone density levels, and take action so that you don't end up with broken ribs, hurting spine, and worse, hunched over in a few years. I never thought I would end up with Osteoporosis.  I ate like a cow when I was big, and I drank a great deal of milk.  Obviously, that wasn't enough.  I found a great site to offer information on Osteoporosis and who can get it, and what the symptoms are. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/osteoporosis.html Be good to yourself, and your bones.  Thanks for letting me share this information- I hate to see all of you hurting like I am.

I'm so sorry you have to go through that.  Feel better soon and a speedy recovery.   I have to say, for me, osteoporosis was 100 % WLS related.  I am now 29 and I was diagnosed about 4 years ago.  (2 years post-op)  The reason I got it was directly related to be not taking my vitamins and calcium.  I would have never been diagnosed with it had I listened to my surgeon and did what I was supposed to do from the very beginning. 

Hi Julie, thanks.    I believe my osteo was diagnosed about 1-2 years prior to me having RNY.  It was in two lumbar and beginning stages. Then after I lost all the weight, it got worse due to the excess panni. One day at a time, and I wish now, I had taken the precautions but I have petite frame and inherited some of it from my maternal gramma.  Being obese didn't help matters either. I am so devoted to my vitamins due to this that I wish I had taken better care of myself years ago. It's the main reason I posted this.  Take care of YOU! Stacey W

Stacey, What a great post.  Thanks so much for reminding us about vitamins and taking care of our bodies.   Thanks  P

If we don't do it, WHO WILL????????? You're welcome.  Often in the post op and even pre op world we are looking for answers to things............and thi**** me hard. Take care of your body. It's all you've got.  And when it hurts like mine is, you wish you had listened. Just pay attention to what it is telling you.  I wish I had.  Now, I am paying for it. And it isn't all due to a bad chiropractor experience.........I have hurt these same ribs in the same place before.  Bound to happen sooner or later.   SW

I agree with Jay.  Maybe you should contact an attorney.  I mean, did the doctor know that you had osteoporosis before working on you?  Regardless, I am not one to say to rush to an attorney (because my husband is a lawyer and I hear about really stupid cases all day long), but in this case, I think there may have been some malpractice.   A really good friend of mine happens to work for a very good med mal firm (she's an attorney) in Michigan.  I can speak to her if you like. 

Thanks but as I said to Jay, I'm not interested in pursuing this legally. She knows I had/have Osteoporosis. I appreciate the thoughts -- but contacting a lawyer right now is not something I am interested in RIGHT NOW. Would I win a million dollars for something like this? I'm not missing work I'm only in minor pain and this is far less than when I fell off the horse last year So.................why would I want to sue her or pursue this in a legal sense. Why do that to someone?  Why?  Why is it that all of a sudden we see reason to contact a lawyer and take someone to court over a couple broken ribs that has not laid me up. Maybe I dont see the reasons...........I'm not the kind of person to do this. SW

well for one thing to save some other poor soul of being treated so negligently that the doctor they pay to help them goes and breaks their ribs!!!  if you don't want money you can donate it to a good cause.  Any "doctor" who does that to their patients should be disciplined.  that's just awful. 

why are you so insistent i contact a lawyer? i'm not that kind of person to ruin a chiropractors practice due to me having osteoporosis and having proof these ribs have been fractured before that wouldnt stand a chance.  this is the 2nd or third time the same ribs have been fractured. now how is that going to look on me in court? answer that one

i guess because not only is the science behind chiropractic medicine disproven but this particular chiropractor is breaking patients ribs.  I think you have a responsibility to other people who will seek treatment with her.  but hey whatever.  it certainly won't be me, i've already been down that road. i learned my lesson when a chiropractor hurt me, i didn't blame it on my previous condition as he was well aware of it and shouldn't have done what he did.  Some people never learn.