u/Ok_Jello_5139

I'm 20, turning 21 later on in the year and I feel like I've hit a plateau. My profession is tutoring Korean, and I really enjoy it but it's starting to slow down a bit. It's what's been keeping me on my feet since I do nothing but stay at home. And not of my own volition, I just don't have anywhere else to go. I graduated highschool but I don't have a bachelors degree. Again, not of my own volition. Going to uni would've made things harder for my mom financially so I chose to help out by tutoring full time from home. I also recently went through a breakup to a relationship that was pretty much a waste of my time, but he was the only person I could confide in so I put up with the bs until I couldn't anymore. To add onto all of this, I recently discovered that I have congenital foraminal stenosis, which basically means that there's a defect in the structure of my spine causing my nerves to compress and I've been dealing with the pain of that for months now. My doctor says I'll have to come up with a hospital plan soon because this will need surgery. I don't have a medical aid and I'll have to pay out of pocket. Sometimes I feel like I can't breathe from the weight of my issues. I'm only 20 but I have to figure so many things out in order to survive. I feel lonely sometimes. I think I just need some advice or maybe some reassurance that things will be fine I guess. Idk. Thanks for listening to my Ted Talk.

I'm 20 years old and I was recently diagnosed with congenital foraminal stenosis at C4 and C5 and a loss of normal cervical lordosis, after experiencing main in my neck, traps and back for months. The doctor put me on pills to alleviate nerve inflammation and muscle relaxants. I've been taking them for a month but I haven't been seeing much of a difference in pain. In fact, I'm starting to notice the pain radiating down my arms and fingers, and legs. I'm really hoping to not have surgery done because it's just not financially feasible right now. In addition to taking the pills, I've been doing some stretches and exercises focused on alleviating the localized pain. Is there anything else I could do to help deal with this? I have trouble sleeping because I can never find a comfortable position and I deal with vertigo on really bad days.

I'm 20 years old and I was recently diagnosed with congenital foraminal stenosis at C4 and C5 and a loss of normal cervical lordosis, after experiencing main in my neck, traps and back for months. The doctor put me on pills to alleviate nerve inflammation and muscle relaxants. I've been taking them for a month but I haven't been seeing much of a difference in pain. In fact, I'm starting to notice the pain radiating down my arms and fingers, and legs. I'm really hoping to not have surgery done because it's just not financially feasible right now. In addition to taking the pills, I've been doing some stretches and exercises focused on alleviating the localized pain. Is there anything else I could do to help deal with this? I have trouble sleeping because I can never find a comfortable position and I deal with vertigo on really bad days.