The Day I Finally Felt Reassured After Being Told “Your Arm Looks Fine” — 2026/5/21 (Thu) R8

Today, at Dogo Onsen Hospital, I underwent a bone density test of my lumbar spine and femur.

Last March, I slipped slightly during the night and hit my chest. It was a Saturday. Earlier that morning, after swimming a long-distance breaststroke session, I began to feel chest pain and went to an emergency orthopedic clinic.

There, I was told:
“Your third thoracic vertebra is bent forward. This is a compression fracture.”

The treatment was a corset.

After the pain improved, I underwent a bone density test of my femur and lumbar spine. I was told that my femur was weak. Later, I was referred to a nearby orthopedic clinic and started taking Bonviva and calcium medication.

Around that time, I became very concerned about bone density.

At the first hospital, they measured both my lumbar spine and femur, and explained:
“Your femur is weak, but your lumbar spine is not too bad.”

However, at another hospital later on, the follow-up test was only a simple arm measurement.

And I was told,
“You’re fine.”

But even as a non-professional, I could not stop feeling uneasy.

“If my femur was weak, can I really feel reassured just because my arm looks good?”
“Does measuring a different part of the body mean the same thing?”
“Am I improving, or getting worse?”

Those questions stayed with me for a long time.

Since I already knew I would be moving to Matsuyama, I decided:
“Once I move, I will find a hospital that properly measures both the lumbar spine and femur.”

Then, at the orthopedic department of Bethel Hospital next to Eden no Sono, the doctor clearly told me:

“Simple hand or foot measurements can be useful as references. But in current medicine, measuring the lumbar spine and femur with DXA is the most important.”
“If you want that, go to the specialist at Dogo Onsen Hospital.”

So today, I finally went there.

The results showed that my femur is still weak. My lumbar spine is somewhat better.

However, the doctor also explained that the medication seems to be working, that the current treatment plan is appropriate, and that continuing exercise and treatment could make a difference 10 or 20 years from now.

My grandmother suffered a femoral neck fracture.
My mother repeatedly experienced compression fractures.

So, because of family history, my own risk is high as well.

But today, for the first time, I felt I could truly accept this reality:
“Yes, my bones are weak. But there are still things I can do from now on.”

The lingering uncertainty that began the day I was told,
“Your arm looks fine,”
finally started to clear.

Osteoporosis is not something that heals quickly.

But perhaps the future can still change by:
“knowing the current condition,”
“measuring correctly,”
and “continuing treatment.”

Today was the day I finally began to believe that.

#Osteoporosis
#BoneDensity
#CompressionFracture
#DXAScan
#DogoOnsenHospital
#SeniorHealth
#HealthyAging
#Bonviva
#LifeInMatsuyama
#LivingWithOsteoporosis