Re: Happy Healing Holidays...

[Guest guest]

Debbie - hello from another Mom named Debbie. My 22 year old daughter

is scheduled for L5-S1 fusion surgery in February. Are you willing to

share any information from your daughter's experience? How long did it

take before she was able to get up and start walking? What level of

pain did she have after the surgery? How long did it take for your

daughter's pain to go away? I am trying to get my daughter prepared for

what she will experience in the first few weeks after the surgery and

would be grateful for any information you would be willing to share on

what to expect.

Regards,

Debbie Whitney

>

> Our oldest daughter's L5-S1 fusion surgery was a success, and she got

home the day before Christmas! For an 18-year old, she is taking it very

well, not really complaining much, and already working to get off the

pain meds so she can think clearly again. Not only did she have a

transitional/segmental lumbosacral problem, there was a ruptured disk as

well. Having a back brace was optional, mostly because the neurosurgeon

didn't think they could find/order a 30-inch waist size, so we are

working on that now, before she goes back to school next Thursday.

Daughter isn't travelling much until we get something, although she's

using an oversized brace we put together from two other braces

temporarily.

>

> Am wondering why the neurosurgeon used such small staples on her. Mine

were a lot thicker and I'm jealous. :0 Hubby bragged that the incision

from his microdiscectomy was glued (no staples at all). We get her

staples out on Monday.

>

> Also, I had an ortho consult for my hips the day after Christmas at

another Tulsa facility. This lady was really good; she looked at the

fresh x-rays and then asked if it hurt where she was pressing on parts

of my leg/hip. I had no idea there were so many sensitive nerves there,

but I'm sure she found every single one of them. Diagnosis surprised

me - not only did she confirm the sciatica problems from (already known)

spine/back problems that I had at L4-L5 (fused a year ago), she also

diagnosed Sciatica RLE (Right Lower Extremity) and discovered Greater

Trochanteric Bursitis. Now I have to research these things so I know

what to expect. She did tell me - honestly - that I would probably have

to learn to live with this, as there was no good way to fix it and I'd

had it many years already. She suggested a change in lifestyle (not

hauling anything around here on the farm). I asked for a specific weight

limit and she said 10-12 pounds was realistic. I about fainted! My

neurosurgeon said to do whatever I felt like, although I'm avoiding the

50-pound sacks of livestock feed like I used to move around.

>

> I received an injection, believe it was Depo-Medrol. Hubby was such a

smarty pants - while they were getting the injection stuff ready, he

said " man, that's a big needle " . THANKS A LOT dear! <G> She got it in

the right spot, if pain was any indication. This reminded me of the Pain

Management shots I had (different facility) in my mid-back, which did

not work BTW because they did not consider the thoracic problems (two

small herniations, osteophytes, etc.) that were actually in the same

area.

>

> I am still needing to find a neuro that will work with my thoracic

problems. Apparently my current one chooses not to address this area; he

claims it will probably go away on it's own in a few months, as my spine

muscles start to realign things. They are (realigning), but the problem

with a suspected fractured facet joint (pars defect) or transverse

process is certainly not getting any better. And I discovered, totally

by accident, that pressure on this thoracic area seems to help, but I

don't know why. This is all on the left side of the T7 to T9 area. I

rolled a soft play ball thing that we have at home under that area while

resting on the couch, and the pressure there (for over an hour) helped.

Anybody know why that would made sense? I don't understand, but it did.

>

> Sooo . . . it has been a very interesting holiday season for us. But

we were together, and that's what counts. Our Christmas was very low-key

and fairly quiet, all things considered with the trips hubby and other

daughter made back and forth to Tulsa every day, and the cold wet

weather. One trip going home was very bad with the highway being

partially frozen.

>

> If we are lucky, we'll make it to a New Year's Eve party with the

Sunday School group, since we missed all the Christmas parties with the

surgery and doctor appointments.

>

> Debbie Dahl

> Oklahoma

>

>