hot darn i feel great, had my surgery jan 8th,got out the 13th, wife kicked me out feb 6th and still going strong. moved back to sunny cali, been doing my 2 mile walks every day with no problems. i would do it again in a heart beat. except getting the boot from the wife.lol. the only trouble im haveing is infections on the front where a couple of stitches where.other then that i feel pretty good, legs burn from time to time but feels better then what my back did.

It's so good to hear a success story...except that part about your wife...keep up the good work but dont let yourself be fooled into false security. You have to take care and not overdo or you will undo all the good work. Congratulations.
Carol

I had an L4/L5 fusion on January 8th and have been doing great too!! :) I'm up to 3 miles a day on the treadmill. The doctor gave me the go-ahead today to see how it goes on the eliptical machine (taking it easy), recumbent bike and pool. Yeah.....a bit of variety to my day. He also gave me some floor exercises to start in 2 more weeks. I won't start PT for another 6 weeks. Anyhow, I'm feeling pretty good. I do still have back pain...........but he explained that is normal at this point, and it will be a little bit of a roller coaster ride until I'm fused...........but my hip/leg pain is gone. The only things that bother me are sitting upright for very long, and trying to find a comfortable position to sleep. Thank goodness for recliners!!!!!! :)

Michigansk8er

Hello Hotptato :wave:

I am happy to hear that your recovery is coming along well. I was wondering how you were. I am so sorry to hear about your break up with your wife and what a rotten time to get the boot. As if this recovery is not hard enough. But you are in California and I bet you are so much warmer than I.....lol I have only been dreaming of that warm weather as I believe that makes all the difference in our pain levels. I will keep you in my prayers for a successful recovery.

:angel: Jeanne :angel:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~LUMBAR SURGERY~
June 30, 2003
Procedures:
Bilateral L4-L5-S1 Laminectomies.
Left L4-L5 Discectomy.
Left L5-S1 Discectomy.
Left L4-L5 translaminar posterior interbody fusion using allograft & bone morphogenic protein. (BMP)
Bilateral posterolateral arthrodesis L4-L5-S1 using pedicle screw instrumentation & spinous process bone graft.
Intraoperative pedicle screw stimulation.
Instrumentation:
Rods - 2
Disc Spacers - 2
Screws:
4 - 6.5x 40mm
1 - 6.25 x 40mm
1 - 6.25 x 35mm
Final Diagnosis:
L4-L5, L5-S1 Degenerative Disc Disease. (DDD)
Spinal Instability.