Thanks everyone for all the tips. Obviosly Im new to this and appreciate any tips from all of you that have experienced this firsthand. Its so hard to speak to someone, even someone close, about this. They just dont have ANY IDEA, which is a good thing.
I have been seeing a great pain mgmt doc for the past 3 years and that has given me some normalcy in my life. I have good communication with this doc and she encourages me to be upfront about my pain so this should be helpful after my procedure. I will post following my operation, even though it has been pushed back slightly. Another concern I have is living in cold weather and how this will affect the pain or stiffness (live on the Coastline of Lake Michigan, the western side of Michigan).