I’m asking for help again! Last time I requested memories of piano lessons, which were fun and have already been incorporated into the first chapter of The Cure for Anger. Now I’m looking for stories about what it’s like to have a vertebra collapse due to osteoporosis. That experience is not as common as it once was — we’re much more aware of the dangers of osteoporosis and we have drugs to treat it.
In the past, many women developed what was called a dowager’s hump, which was a curvature of the spine that developed when the body of a vertebra became so flimsy, it simply collapsed — usually on the interior side so the bowing was outward. I’d like some insight into what that feels like. Is the collapse sudden or gradual? Is the pain gnawing or sharp? Lingering or temporary?
If you yourself have had a vertebra crumble or if you remember this happening to an elderly parent, please get in touch. My email is mary@marydoriarussell.net and I could use a tame optician if there’s one out there who’d be willing to answer some questions as well! Thanks, all!