In Reply to: fusion posted by eric on December 14, 2000 at 04:31:34:
Hi Eric - while I haven't had the first 2 surgeries that you had, I did have a 2-level fusion at L4-5 and L5-S1. I do think it is very normal to have pain for a while after your surgery - my first couple weeks were pretty rough. Did your doc give you any pain meds? If not, you should call him/her and tell them that you NEED some - you shouldn't have to suffer when there are good meds that can help you. My neurosurgeon didn't want to give me very much pain meds, so I went and saw my regular family doc (who is the GREATEST!!) and he gave me a prescription and said "if that doesn't work, call and I'll get you something stronger". Hope your doc is compassionate enough to help you with that.
I am currently about 9 or 10 weeks post-op, and I still have quite a bit of pain. My neurosurgeon said that can be normal - it can vary a lot from person to person. Elaine (on this board - maybe she'll post to you too) was doing great by about 11 days I think she said. My doc said it will be at least 4 months till I know the final results of surgery and how much pain relief it will give me. So don't get discouraged yet - it's still very early for you. Best wishes to you and
God bless your day!
Jill
- to jill and my other friends eric 12:52:39 12/14/00 (2)