Final Thoughts and Advice

My final adjustment of the six is next week. Things are going well for me. I do want to share some final thoughts with you.

Be prepared for each adjustment. Research shows that six adjustments are better than five;make the journey and be adjusted until you believe that your brain is "humming" beautifully. (By the way, I like Simon and Garfunkel).

Know as much as you can about issues related to DBS surgery. Attempt to obtain the "hard" professional research reviews usually written for your neurosurgeon and neurologist. Ask your doctor what he knows about emerging drugs and bilateral surgery (two sides). For example, I found in the most recent and comprehensive review of DBS surgeries, that 83.7% had DBS surgery on only one side. Perhaps, some of these patients had read the literature and had decided, like me, not to risk the side effects now associated with bilateral DBS. My neurologist summarized the possible side effects as problems with walking, talking, and thinking. My wife concluded that these were very important functions. For now, she'd take her husband the way he is.

Learn as much about your doctor as you can. If your doctors are "rising stars", as mine are, you need to understand that they are expected to perform high level research and get it published, teach, give speeches, and do fundraising (especially if they are at a teaching and research hospital). They also have families and a private life. Be respectful of their time, but be insistent about your needs and priorities. Be organized for your appointments with specific information about your progress or lack of. List your current medications with dosages so that your doctor can know where to begin with medication adjustments.

In short, be your best representative of yourself. God bless you and yours. d