Intro and a sincere Thank you - Spinal Cord Disorders Message Board

allforhim · 05-19-2004, 07:51 AM

Hello Everyone,

This is my first time posting but I have been a lurker here for 5 weeks. I was diagnosed with a ruptured disc impeding the spinal canal at c5-6 with a 3/4 blockage of the canal. I had suffered with moderate upper back and neck pain for several years but resting always resolved it until August of 03. I was an avid exerciser and enjoyed mountain hiking. But for the last 6 months the pain grew so intense I was practically debilitated. Being a Homeschool Mom with 3 children (3, 4 and 7) I realized I couldn't take this any more. When I finally got an mri my pcp sent me to a spinal surgeon immediately. My gosh, I had a million questions. I read every post on this board (literally)

and made the decision to have an acdf with own bone and hardware on 4/29.

Doc said surgery went great; he was surprised by the amount of bone spur growth that he had to remove and amount of canal blockage. Hip didn't hurt until they wanted me up and walking. Back and shoulders felt terrible like I had been hit by a really BIG truck. Also waking up in ICU was a surprise. Turns out my doc always does that so you get 100% attention for first 24 hours. Then I moved to regular floor for a day then home. ICU was definitely better than regular floor. I could have died in my bed and no body would have noticed. I mean you can't really move and how are you suppose to move the bed or push the call button when the controls are at your side and you can't turn or reach them.

Oh my goodness, although I read the difficult recovery for most, I somehow thought I could bounce back in no time. My surgery was on Thursday and I planned on managing my house and kids by Monday. What a joke. I wasn't really doing anything until 7 days later. I have had 2 c-sections and they were cake compared to this. It has now been almost 3 weeks and I am managing to do the basics with minimum pain meds. Saw surgeon yesterday and he said everything is going well. I am in the Miami-J for one more month slowly weaning out each week until I am completely free. The only thing I would have done different is had Doc cut me on the right hip not left because that is the side I sleep on and now that I can lie on side for short periods of time I would rather it be that one.

Well that is everything about me. I just wanted to let you all know how very grateful I am to all of you who have taken the time to post on this site. Although you don’t know me you have made a world of difference on my life. You educated me on all of the different issues, helped me to decide what course of action to take, prepared me for recovery and encouraged me through all of your testimonies. When I feel like I am going to lose my mind and no one understands I can turn here and feel comforted. Thank you from the bottom of me heart. If anyone has any questions please feel free to ask.

I pray God blesses and heals each and every one of you.

grace2 · 05-19-2004, 08:11 AM

I'm so glad you're feeling better. The first week or two is pretty rough, isn't it? My husband took two days off work - one for surgery and one to get me home the next day, then I was alone. My A/C went out the day I came home from the hospital, so I spent my first day at home alone with the A/C repairmen. They were there from 9-3 so it was a very long day and I just wanted to go to bed. I don't think the timing could have been any worse! Now it's all done and fading from my memory.

This board is wonderful. It gave me a much more realistic idea of what was going to happen than my NS did. I prefer to be prepared and that's the one thing I didn't like about him.

pattymelt · 05-19-2004, 03:42 PM

I am so glad you are doing better. These boards have been a life saver for me too. I was lucky to have my daughter from Alaska here with me for three weeks after surgery and she is a registered nurse and I had such wonderful care from her and then when she went home, my husband took over and has been a great help with everything. This surgery is no fun and although I knew it would be tough (having worked for a neurologist for years) I had no idea it would be this bad. I am doing better every day and this has been a great lesson in patience! Whenever I feel low, I think of all the people who have incurable diseases and how much better off I am than they are. I am so glad to have these boards to go to when I am feeling like I am alone in this! My age (74) is a factor in the healing process but I have surprised everyone with how well I am improving from day to day. It definitely is a "take one day at a time" thing. Good luck to all who are going through this.

God bless!