In addition to working, she thrives on helping others, exercising, and spending time with family. When her joint pain began in early 2016, she tried ignoring it at first, not noticing how severe it had become until she looked around her house one day and realized that her typically clean and tidy home was in complete disarray. Prior to her chronic pain, Jeanette took great pride in keeping her home sparkling clean, cooking meals from scratch and enjoying Sunday dinners with her family. As the pain gradually worsened, each of these aspects of her life had slipped away, until it was all she could manage to make it through the work day, only to come home and sit in a chair all night, too uncomfortable to move around.
Upon realizing the drastic shift in her quality of her life, Jeanette initially sought treatment at a local pain management clinic. There, it seemed as though the staff took the same approach to all patients, doling out pain medication rather than listening with a caring ear and developing a personalized treatment plan.
When she finally pleaded with her primary care physician to refer her to someone who could help her resolve her pain, he recommended Dr. Antoniades in the Orthopedic Department at Saint Agnes. According to Jeanette, she immediately felt at ease during her first appointment with him. With a calming presence, Dr. Antoniades took the time to listen to her, ordering an MRI and x-ray to get to the bottom of her pain issues. He also prescribed a treatment of steroid shots to help ease her joint pain while they developed a plan of action.
The results of her MRI and x-ray showed arthritis, nerve issues, and a deteriorating hip. While the steroid shots were helping to temporarily relieve the pain, Dr. Antoniades discussed the pros and cons of a hip replacement with her, explaining what she could expect before, during and after the surgery. By this point, he had built a strong level of trust with Jeanette, and she felt armed with all of the knowledge needed to make an informed decision to move ahead with surgery.
"Sure enough, everything happened the way Dr. Antoniades said it would. He even helped arrange home care for me once I came home from surgery," Jeanette recalled. "I was in the hospital for about three days, and felt like I was staying in a five-star hotel. The nurses and staff were on point, checking on me 24/7; the food was delicious; and my whole experience was just awesome."
Her family expressed how impressed they were with Dr. Antoniades and the team at Saint Agnes as well, telling Jeanette that the energetic mother, sister, and daughter they love had finally returned after years of suffering in pain. "This is the person we know," her mother commented following Jeanette's recovery.
Jeanette is thrilled to be back to her old self, enjoying things like swimming, walking on the treadmill, and taking time off of work for "staycations" with family. She calls herself a "walking advertisement" for Saint Agnes, telling everyone she knows how Dr. Antoniades changed her life and now encouraging her brother to seek treatment with him. "I am the picture of health now. Dr. Antoniades gave me my life back and I will never forget that," Jeanette said with a smile in her voice.