Frank B*

Frank was less than impressed the first time he heard about neurostimulation. “At first I kind of blew it off. I said, ‘This isn’t for me,’” he recalls. By then, Frank had been suffering for years after falling while working as a plumber. During the fall, he damaged his spine, and he later had surgery to repair the injury. Pain soon became a daily part of his life.

The pain included a relentless aching and terrible burning sensations in his legs. Somehow he managed to keep working but at times was on so much pain medication that he could hardly keep his eyes open. Away from work, his condition affected those he cared about, including his wife and two young daughters. “It was very hard on my family,” he says. “My wife is the one that kept me going.”

A volunteer firefighter for more than two decades, Frank found it harder to go on calls and had to abandon or limit his favorite pastimes, such as riding motorcycles and working on cars. Adding to his problem was the fear that he might not live a normal life again. He tried injections and other pain treatments, but each one worked only for a short time or not at all. Yet he resisted the idea of getting a neurostimulator, taking about two years to research the devices and speaking to a series of doctors who all told him that getting one would be his best option.

Finally, Frank agreed to use a test stimulator for a few days and was later implanted with a neurostimulation system. The decision would have a huge impact on his pain, giving him solid relief for the first time in years. “It has changed my life,” he says. “It did not fix me. It gave me control of my life and my pain.”

Now with a neurostimulator for over five years, Frank has changed jobs and continues to be a volunteer firefighter. He has built a swing set for his daughters and helped one of them learn to ride a bike. “The stimulator helps me raise my daughters and have fun with them,” he says. “I am living a better, happier life now.” He also spends some of his time sharing his experiences with others, telling them what it’s like to get and live with a stimulator.

If you are considering neurostimulation and would like to correspond with Frank, email him at FrankB@sjmneuro.com.