Sharing her journey Coordinator helps educate patients Aymie B., who has been the front desk coordinator at Pain Management and Treatment Center for 20 years, brings a unique perspective to her job assisting patients sta at PMTC. e Milwaukee native has suered from chronic pain for years, but was unable to nd relief – or an accurate diagnosis – until she came to PMTC. Aymie had started suering from migraine headaches at age six, and hip pain starting at age 11. She also suered permanent back pain, after falling out of a hammock in 1981. “ ere were days when I had to use a cane or walker,” she recalls. Over a 17-year period, she suered from “probably 20 dierent pain conditions. I had been told for so long that my pain was not 'for real,' so I just fought my way through it and didn't know where to turn.” A “medical mystery?” After her injury, “my mom took me to eight or 10 dierent specialists. All of them kind of gured me to be a medical mystery – until I got my job here.” She considers her hiring by PTMC in 1998 a case of “divine intervention,” since it led to getting help for her pain. After starting her job at PMTC Aymie didn't seek help right away. “At rst, I just observed, I was curious. When patients had injections I would ask them how it felt. Everything I observed here gave me hope, and made me want to pursue treatment.” •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
en she had a consultation with Dr. Pamela omas-King. “Just from me describing my symptoms, Dr. omas-King suspected the problem was probably a bulging disc, or something else in my low back.” An MRI exam conrmed that initial diagnosis, and through exercise and therapy, Aymie's condition “improved by leaps and bounds.” Dr. omas-King and sta members also “explained to me what was going on using diagrams to show where the nerves run from the (spinal) disks and explained why I needed to do both therapy and injections to get the pain under control.” Aymie received epidural injections (Lidocaine and a small dose of steroids) to reduce the pain she had felt shooting down her legs, and was also prescribed twice-weekly physical therapy, and home exercises, to strengthen the muscles around her bulging disks. “I got about 40 percent relief from the rst epidural, and my legs stopped cramping and waking me up at night.” e second injections brought her pain to about a 70 percent reduction, and, nally, after 23 months of 100 percent relief.
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