Taya Derun

My name is Taya Derun; I'm 28 and was suffering for the past 13 years (would be exactly 14 this July 4th) following a severe automobile accident. I had daily debilitating axial neck pain with radiculopathy since the day following the accident. The only thing that somewhat alleviated it was chiropractic adjustment, which lasted until I awoke the following morning. On the average, the pain was an 8-10. MRIs & CT scans showed a severe herniation between C5/C6 + an osteophyte. I had a semi pain-free day once every 1-2 months. In order to live a normal life in terms of manageable pain, I would have needed to be adjusted by a chiropractor every morning. The pain decreased my quality of life and capabilities tremendously, especially after sitting, reading, running (or at least attempting to), and sleeping. I was scheduled for ACDF surgery twice before, but something didn't feel quite right and I didn't go through with them. To say that I'm thrilled to have met with and been operated on by Dr. Albert (artificial disc replacement) is a tremendous understatement. If waiting nearly 14 years in miserable chronic pain was what I needed in order to be healed by the most talented surgeon I could ever imagine, then it was all well worth it. Grateful doesn't even begin to describe what I feel. Thank you Dr. Albert and HSS for giving me a second chance at a quality-filled life where I can now focus on treating patients and not being the patient.