I do wish you all the best in your surgery. I know if you already have the date for your surgery set, you have done all your homework about it. I had my second fusion C3-7 a year ago. My result was very good, and the pain is alot less. My surgery however was pretty painful. Make sure you are on the same page as your physician regarding medications after the proceedure. I am glad I did this second fusion, and I hope you have good results with lots of pain reduction when it is all said and done. I did start PT soon after surgery, at just 4 weeks with my surgeons blessings. This helped me more than I thought it would. Take care during your recovery, and be extra good to yourself. I also hope you have someone in your life that can help you out for a couple of weeks while you heal. That alone is worth gold. I also hope that by Christmas you can enjoy some of the holiday. My sincere best wishes for you. ginnie