Included withIn the following articles are extracts from messages from people with a BPI. The original messages are already 'out there' in the public domain, and we are grateful to the people concerned who have participated in this endeavor. We have to point out that NONE of the contributors or authors of these articles are medically trained or qualified in any way. We cannot stress enough the importance of consulting with a clinician who is experienced in treating these very complicated injuries, as soon after injury as possible.
INTRODUCTION
The message board on this site is a valuable and fluid source of information about living with a Brachial Plexus Injury provided by the injured people themselves.
As new messages are posted, others get pushed further down, and information that could be useful for someone new to this injury is lost. It can be almost impossible to find answers to the many questions that newly injured people want to ask but don't feel comfortable with the messageboard environment at first. Everyone should feel free to participate and post because no question relevant to these injuries will be seen as being 'daft' or 'stupid.'
Some questions are asked over and over again by newly injured people via the messageboards or privately in emails, so we compiled a list of the five most common questions then posted them on the messageboard. We received many replies from people who have had a Brachial Plexus Injury for varying lengths of time, from a few months to several decades. Extracts from these replies are presented in this set of articles and are not designed to be definitive, rather to show how our view of ourselves and our injury changes, and how broad the range of answers can be.
The following questions were posted on the board; (click button for article)
1. Will my arm ever get better?
2. Will I be able to work for a living?
3. Will members of the opposite sex be turned off by the arm?
4. Will the pain ever stop?
5. I'm alive, I survived an horrific accident, why do I feel like throwing myself under a bus-or at least like staying indoors feeling sorry for myself?
These questions are those that tend to arise in addition to the more technical medical questions a newly injured person usually asks regarding prognosis and treatment. We feel that the medical questions are best answered by your bpi specialist, in view of the fact that all of our injuries are so different, and modes of treatment differ too.
However, if your specialist has suggested a particular procedure or you have other questions about your treatment, don't hesistate to ask on the message boards, others may have had similar experiences and will be able to tell you what to expect.
