‘Hell and back’: Finance whiz Suze Orman updates fans on recovery from spinal surgery
Suze Orman has more things to worry about than COVID-19 and the elections. The finance whiz is struggling to recover after a grueling 12-hour surgery over the summer.
In late July, Orman shared the news on her “Suze Tells Everything” podcast that she had to have an operation after getting diagnosed with a benign tumor on her spine.
The 69-year-old Palm Beach resident recounted that she had been experiencing numbness and weakness on one side of her body for some time. Doctors told Orman that the tumor had to “come out immediately.”
Orman and her wife, Kathy Travis, shared an update on Facebook on July 25 about how the author and TV personality was progressing following the procedure.
In her most recent update, the money expert tells People magazine that the experience has been an ordeal.
“That was a journey from hell and back,” Orman admits. “I sure learned a lot about life, I’ll tell you that much.”
The Chicago native also wanted to send the message to her fans that they should never ignore their bodies.
Orman reported that she first saw something was off with her body while taping a PBS special at the New World Center in Miami Beach last October, and had trouble lifting her leg to get to the stage.
She also noticed her right knee buckling while out power-walking with wife Kathy “KT” Travis, but again, ignored the symptoms. While in coronavirus quarantine, “The Ultimate Retirement Guide” author began to notice weakness in her right arm as well.
Finally, a trip to the doctor and subsequent MRI revealed a 3.2-centimeter schwannoma – a non-cancerous, slow-growing, extremely rare tumor. If she hadn’t been operated on, paralysis was likely, doctors told her.
“The spinal cord was wrapped around it, so we didn’t see it,” says Travis, 68. “No one ever detected it.”
Orman showed off her progress on social media, graduating from a wheelchair to a walker.
The story of Orman’s health situation came out in People magazine Friday.
