M.D. Zeynep Ekici Ljama

As a 72-year-old retired classical violinist with trigeminal neuralgia, I had accepted that my performing days were over. The electric shock pains in my face made even holding the instrument unbearable. Dr. Zeynep didn't just see me as another pain patient—she understood my loss of identity. Her pulsed radiofrequency procedure was like a conductor's precise gesture. Two weeks later, I played Mozart's Violin Concerto No. 3 for my grandchildren. She restored my music and my soul.

My 14-year-old daughter, a competitive gymnast, developed complex regional pain syndrome after a minor ankle sprain. We'd seen six specialists who dismissed it as 'psychological.' Dr. Zeynep spent 90 minutes mapping her pain pathways, then created a multimodal plan combining sympathetic nerve blocks with virtual reality therapy. She treated my daughter like an athlete, not a psychiatric case. Last month, she competed in regionals. Dr. Zeynep saw the person behind the pain when no one else would.

As a 41-year-old underwater welder, I lived with chronic spinal pain from decompression sickness. The constant ache threatened my career and sanity. Dr. Zeynep designed a 'diver-specific' protocol using epidural adhesiolysis combined with hyperbaric oxygen sessions. She coordinated with my diving physician—something no pain specialist had ever done. I'm back at 40-meter depths, pain-free. She understood that my pain was woven into my profession's fabric.

My 83-year-old mother with advanced osteoporosis had vertebral fractures causing debilitating pain. She'd refused treatment, saying 'old age hurts.' Dr. Zeynep visited her hospital room with a translator (my mother only speaks Kurdish) and explained kyphoplasty through analogies from her village life. The procedure took 45 minutes. That evening, my mother walked to the bathroom unaided for the first time in months. Dr. Zeynep bridged medical science with cultural understanding.