Well last Friday, I decided to go to the mall, I was feeling so good, and wanted to get out, and I stayed out longer than I should, you could definately say I overdid. I feel so stupid and frustrated, as I feel now worse than before surgery. Every muscle in my body hurts. I could barely walk yesterday, today is a little better.
I am assuming this is just a flareup from overdoing, and in a few days, I will get back to where I was before going to the mall.
So, please take my advise, don't do more than you should just because you feel up to it. My surgery will be 3 weeks this tuesday (13th), I have learned my lesson the hard way, but should of known better.
Thanks Peg. Hope you are doing better. Being 4 days out from surgery, I am already bumping up against this. Without a collar, and with only "no lifting, no bending, no twisting, no extreme flexion or extension" as my post-op instructions, I'm kind of feeling my way around. Back spasms below the fusion site (C4 through C6) are my biggest problem, followed closely by sore throat.
I always seem to think I am the exception to the rule -- "well, sure it may take others 6 weeks, but I can recover in 2!" Dumb . . . Thanks for the reminder to take it slow. I need to remember that I'm not 20 anymore (or 30, or 40 . . .)
PEG...Oh man, I am sorry you are going thru that. I learned the hard way, too. You will be good soon, and the spasms will subside from the overdoing...I bet. Do you have a moist heat heating pad? That has helped me ALOT!!!!. (when *I* overdo). I could not get by without it.
JEFF...it sounds like we must have the same Dr. I have no collar (C5-C7) and those exact same instructions. When I went to my post op appt. (12 days...they told me I could drive. OY.). I did....went only a mile away to the grocery store. Forget it.....the spasms were bad. That head turning is too hard, that soon. They are so liberal , it is ridiculous. Do not listen to them when they tell you all the things that are fine to do. They are on drugs or something! The most I am doing is walking on my treadmill (I am 4 1/2 weeks out), 2 times a day. I WAS walking for half an hour, but it was too much at one time. Now I walk at about 3 mph, 15 mins...2x a day. I am doing better with that. I have gone out to dinner and stuff like that. This is the first week I feel good enough to do it and not pay for it BIGTIME, when I get home.
For most of us there is a strong desire to get back to 'normal', so don't feel bad about your trip to the mall. The lesson to be learned is to recognize any limitations that you may have as a result of this kind of neck problem, and to live within those limits. I am two years post op, and last Friday I was doing some lifting work at the office that I kind of knew I shouldn't be doing. I am paying a big price yesterday and today, and probably well in to next week. It's easy to over do things in the attempt to be finished with this problem - try to give yourself a few months, with gradual increases in activity, and be prepared to accept any new limits that you may discover on this journey. Surgery really improved my condition by stabilizing the vertebrae, but for me, it will not be realistic to get back to everything I used to be able to do.
Wow!! I am so sorry BBP about your trip to the mall.. how long were you out?? I thought I was the shopper here!! no seriously.. I was there for about 45 minutes then I started the lightheaded feeling and I knew it was time to go.. (of course then we went by target for another 20 minutes) but I slept like a baby last night for about 9 and half hours!! I have gone out to dinner three times once last week and twice this past week end with one trip to my friends house last week .. but then I come home and lay down. Don't over do it guys it is just not worth it... get better soon bdancer
Geez, I feel better now...cos you guys are over-doing it!!!!!!! HEHE. Stop that! Its really hard to know what to do and what not to do when your surgeon tells you virtually nothing. My biggest over-doing thing is staying upright too long and not lying down enough. Hence, S P A S M S !
Oh, we are not supposed to stay upright too long??? Hmmm . . . may explain my spasms. I have been sitting or walking all day every day since I got home. Maybe I'll try that lying down thing every now and then. ;-)
GOod thinking there, Jeff! haha. Oh my God...a few mins. ago I got a reverse 911 call saying there was a critical police "situation" going on down the end of my block and to stay inside!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!
I live in a really nice neighborhood. I got out the binoculars and can see a huge to-do going on down there. 4 cop cars!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! What the heck??? So of course now I cannot stop looking with the binoculars....voyeur that I am
this board is so hilarious... skz stay inside you never know what crazies are out there and Ohio I told you a couple of days ago to lay down a couple of times a day so you can't claim you didn't know!!! or is it that you ignore my posts!! LOL anyway i have to tell you guys a funny story. Last thursday it was my b-day so my husband took me over to my friends house for a couple of hours. (he didn't trust her driving) anyway he brought me back then left me alone to take dd to swimming...well I was sitting here when I heard a strange noise outside..like someone rattling the bilco door to the basement (you know these collars make it hard to differentiate sound...) well anyway I kind of freaked but stayed cool then suddenly a big boom fell on floor to bedroom which was right above my head in living room (two story house) anyway I was terrorified!! so called dh, he was far he told me to call police.. well as soon as I called 9-1-1 my friend called in and was playing Happy birthday on her organ!! long story short police came went upstairs..checkedthings out .. my husband had hid my b-day present in closet upstairs and forgotten where.. so he searched through the closet and pushed the telescope stand out of way which decided to fall three hours later.....oh other sound was air bubble in baseboard heater ok I was a little embarrassed..bdancer
We ARE quite the group here, arent we?
Well, that lovely situation where I got the call from police to NOT go outside was quite the big deal! OMG! It was a guy barricaded in a house with a gun. And after 2 and a 1/2 hours he gave up. oy. The nearby school was on lockdown. I swear, NOW I have spasms because I spent so much time peeking out from my upstairs window with the freaking binoculars with a craned neck!!!!!!!! A SWAT team was out there and everything. Who the heck could resist, I ask you?? .Thank God it ended up OK. I still need to find out if it was the homeowner barricaded or some felonious idiot that broke in. All I know is someone called the cops and said someone was "felonious menacing" in there. I would enjoy knowing if my neighbor was a menace or if it was a robber!
First of all, if anyone else lives in Ohio, we are predicted to lot of snow, 6 to 12 inches (I'm hoping they are wrong) LOL. Jeff, I believe you are from Ohio.
I am still not completely over my overdo, some better, muscles are still sore. Thanks for all your replies, and help. I am going to try the moist heating pad.
I guess we live and learn at any age. And Jeff, I'm not 20, 30, or 40 either.
I agree we all try to get back to normal, but you just can't rush this kind of surgery. I have felt "not normal" for 3 years, had lumbar fusion in 05, but from reading this forum, alot of you have had alot worse. Reading these posts helps alot, it certainly makes you aware you are not alone in this.
Have a great day everyone. looks like I will be stuck in the house for a few days with this snow coming. Glad I don't really need anything from the store right now.
It scares me since I have had 2 herniated discs, I will have more.
Peg -- as I watch another 3" of snow pile up on the deck, I concur that it is a good day to stay in. Yep, we need to take things one day at a time, but pushing recovery every now and then is good for the psyche, as long as we are not overtly stupid about it.
I also have a bunch of bulging discs. However, my NS said that by fusing both the C5-6 and C4-5, he thinks the problem will be stemmed. Usually, the level below the fusion gets stronger, and the higher levels are pretty rarely herniated. Exercise, good posture, nutrition -- that's all we can do.
Oh you chickens!
It was 72 here today, walked around the mall. Sat thru "Hannibal Rising". Walked to the store! It rained a little. Caught the bus, and now I'm surfing! The web that is! Will walk to Jims on the morn.
I did take it easy for a couple days after the 5.2 mile walk. I didn't want to but the bod said too!
Later,
Ice
hmmm why is your name ice when you live in tampa??? It has been sleeting for over 12 hours now.. on top of about 5 inches of snow they say snow will come back this evening and we'll get another 8 inches or so...I am having a better day than yesterday... don't know what happened to me.. it is like I had an anxiety attack or something... could be cabin fever.. but things are different physically I now have that stiffness that everyone was talking about... my hips, legs etc are so sore and stiff... I totally freaked yesterday and called doctors office and told nurse I was sure my hard ware was out and I had screws in my esophagus.. she told me to take some pain meds (haven't taken any for days) and make sure I was getting rest (which I haven't been)...I have been feeling so good that I was totally surprised when I started having some slight pain and stuck pill sensation.. nurse told me that this is pretty common around 3-5 weeks .. people feel better start over doing it.. eating hard foods, not drinking enough ice water,, start slowly violating restrictions then have anxiety attacks when they get symptoms.. sounded eerily familiar!! LOL stay warm everyone.. jean
bdancer I can relate .........I only had that stuck pill sensation during the first few days....never had neck incision hurt , now at 3 weeks my throat feels funny and the incision hurts ......if it itched I would know it is just healing but it kinda hurts.......don't know ...........days I feel great and then BAM....i don't feel so good for a day or so ........
My hip feels great.......the incision where they took the bone looks good, slight swelling still, walking really good now, and no problems with stairs,,,,,,,,,the first week was tricky on walking and stairs but no probs now.....A person really does have to remind themselves what the body has been through.......think about the size of retractors holding open your neck , no wonder you can hurt....OUR BODIES NEED TIME TO HEAL.....HEAL........FUSE.....HEAL.....D ON'T OVER DO IT , EVEN IF YOU FEEL GOOD.......take this time to pamper your body.......
hmmm why is your name ice when you live in tampa??? It has been sleeting for over 12 hours now.. on top of about 5 inches of snow they say snow will come back this evening and we'll get another 8 inches or so...I am having a better day than yesterday... don't know what happened to me.. it is like I had an anxiety attack or something... could be cabin fever.. but things are different physically I now have that stiffness that everyone was talking about... my hips, legs etc are so sore and stiff... I totally freaked yesterday and called doctors office and told nurse I was sure my hard ware was out and I had screws in my esophagus.. she told me to take some pain meds (haven't taken any for days) and make sure I was getting rest (which I haven't been)...I have been feeling so good that I was totally surprised when I started having some slight pain and stuck pill sensation.. nurse told me that this is pretty common around 3-5 weeks .. people feel better start over doing it.. eating hard foods, not drinking enough ice water,, start slowly violating restrictions then have anxiety attacks when they get symptoms.. sounded eerily familiar!! LOL stay warm everyone.. jean
Jean,
I am 3 weeks post op. Remeber, I overdid at the mall a week ago, took me several days to get over that, now I am having alot of the symptoms I had before surgery, like you my legs and hips are sore, and stiff, i am having shoulder pain, and sore muscles in my arms, I hope this is temporary. I am freaked out over this. I havn't done anything against the rules since the mall incident.
The most I am doing is walking on my treadmill (I am 4 1/2 weeks out), 2 times a day. I WAS walking for half an hour, but it was too much at one time. Now I walk at about 3 mph, 15 mins...2x a day. I am doing better with that. I have gone out to dinner and stuff like that. This is the first week I feel good enough to do it and not pay for it BIGTIME, when I get home.
anyway i have to tell you guys a funny story. Last thursday it was my b-day so my husband took me over to my friends house for a couple of hours. (he didn't trust her driving) anyway he brought me back then left me alone to take dd to swimming...well I was sitting here when I heard a strange noise outside..like someone rattling the bilco door to the basement (you know these collars make it hard to differentiate sound...) well anyway I kind of freaked but stayed cool then suddenly a big boom fell on floor to bedroom which was right above my head in living room (two story house) anyway I was terrorified!! so called dh, he was far he told me to call police.. well as soon as I called 9-1-1 my friend called in and was playing Happy birthday on her organ!! long story short police came went upstairs..checkedthings out .. my husband had hid my b-day present in closet upstairs and forgotten where.. so he searched through the closet and pushed the telescope stand out of way which decided to fall three hours later.....oh other sound was air bubble in baseboard heater ok I was a little embarrassed..bdancer
A SWAT team was out there and everything. Who the heck could resist, I ask you?? 
.Thank God it ended up OK. I still need to find out if it was the homeowner barricaded or some felonious idiot that broke in. All I know is someone called the cops and said someone was "felonious menacing" in there. I would enjoy knowing if my neighbor was a menace or if it was a robber!
bdancer I can relate .........I only had that stuck pill sensation during the first few days....never had neck incision hurt , now at 3 weeks my throat feels funny and the incision hurts ......if it itched I would know it is just healing but it kinda hurts.......don't know ...........days I feel great and then BAM....i don't feel so good for a day or so ........
, no wonder you can hurt....OUR BODIES NEED TIME TO HEAL.....HEAL........FUSE.....HEAL.....D ON'T OVER DO IT , EVEN IF YOU FEEL GOOD.......take this time to pamper your body.......
