In November 2009 I herniated my C5/C6 and C6/C7. I saw another surgeon in the east valley whom performed surgery, which put me in more pain and then a second surgery that got me back to where I was when I initially herniated the disc. I had consulted 3 other doctors, all of which told me that I’d never be the same again and would have the chronic pain for the rest of my life. At that point all hope of living a normal life was lost and getting used to my new life with an obsessive amount of medication was sending me into a deep depression, especially for a 34 year old husband and father of 2 young boys.
Eventually I learned about Dr. Field from a good friend of ours, whom coincidentally had the exact same problem that I did. After surgery she was pain free and back to living a normal life. At this point my symptoms were beginning to worsen and I knew something had to be done. After a couple of appointments Dr. Field was able to determine the problem that no other Dr. had been able to find. The original fusion at C5/C6 had never completely fused and had some spurring that was still causing me issues. Dr. Field was also able to locate another issue that had begun at my C4/C5 that he noticed I also had symptoms of that I didn’t even realize at the time. All this would lead to Dr. Field repairing the fusion at C5/C6 and fusing C4/C5. Considering everything I had heard from other doctors I was extremely shocked when Dr. Field had told me that I’d be able to resume life with ZERO restrictions (given that the nerve damage already done wasn’t permanent), which I NEVER thought would happen.
After my third surgery (first for Dr. Field) I immediately noticed relief that I never thought I’d have again. I was completely shocked that I’d have that much relief so quickly. I was supposed to spend 2 days in the hospital but ended up leaving after 1 day since I was doing so well. Six weeks post op and I was down to almost nothing for pain medication and any residual nerve issues I may have had were completely gone.
Dr. Field is an extremely compassionate doctor and I truly believe he genuinely cares. Dr. Field is also extremely thorough when reviewing imaging to determine any and all reasoning behind symptoms. He’s honest and upfront with you and won’t operate for the sake of operating for a chance that something may work. I was also pleasantly surprised by Dr. Field’s prompt response to emails whenever I’ve had the occasional question after my surgery.
The staff at DISC is top notch. Any time I’ve had a request or an office visit I’ve had nothing but the best experience with them.
Thanks Dr. Field and DISC!
- Chris Potter
