For a pain in the ass, back surgery giveth and taketh away

(Not my actual doctors.)

“You’ll need to bring in your medical power of attorney document, just in case.”

Not the words I was expecting to hear from the pre-op nurse just minutes after the neurosurgeon recommended a discectomy for my 17-year-old aching back. My brain went from “Oh shit! I have to have surgery!” to “Oh shit! I’m going to die?”