Originally Posted by Leesa

Hi ~ You have pinched nerves in your HANDS??? Or are the nerves in your neck affecting your hands?

I can tell you that I'm not a fan of surgery, only because most of the time your pain will NOT be relieved. The surgery only fixes mechanical problems - your pain will most likely still be there, and sometimes it's worse than before. There have been articles from the Amer. Society of Surgeons that stated that MOST of the surgery performed on spines in the U.S. had the SAME results as did physical therapy!! So in other words, the surgeries were useless. That went for the fusions too, as stated in the article. I've had 2 open spinal surgeries, and I'm worse now than I was before the surgeries - I have more pain than I had before.

Also, after spinal surgeries, you will undoubtedly have the "domino" effect, meaning that the levels either above/below the surgical site will fail - thus requiring further surgery. It's a never ending cycle unless you just opt for physical therapy. The only reason I would ever opt for further surgery is if my SPINAL CORD was being impinged.

I'm sorry you have to have surgery. You will need to talk to your doctor about post-op medications because they ALWAYS undermedicate the patient. Be firm about wanting adequate pain medication. The recovery is "longish." If you mean how long does it take to be fully fused -- that takes about a year - sometimes longer. As far as how you feel - it's different for everyone and it's hard to say. You will need some help for probably the first week. Sleeping - you will have to wear a collar for awhile - most docs have you wear a soft collar at night. They aren't too bad. It may take awhile before you feel relief because the nerves are very irritated - nerves heal at the rate of 1" per month. So it depends on your own case.

I hope I've answered a few questions. God bless and take care. hugs, Lee