Surgery for full implant tomorrow!
 

:eek: So the day has finally come, im having the Full SCS fitted tomorrow have to be at hospital at 7.30am! I think, no i know im ready its been a long wait 23 weeks since my trial. As soon as i feel upto coming back online i will give you wonderful guys an update on how things go, which hopefully will be imformative to others! Fingers crossed all goes well and off to bed for me early start and a long day ahead :Sigh: Sending :grouphug: to all of you who have had a bad day pain wise, speak soon :) x

Hi Melly
 

Prayin all will be well with your implant procedure and healing!!

Mark56:grouphug:

Melly!
 

Best Wishes for your big day tomorrow!
You KNOW we'll be anxiously awaiting your update!
You've waited a long time for this day - I just know you're gonna do great!

:hug: RAE :hug:

Hooray, congrats on your surgery day finally arriving!! I hope all goes well for you with the coverage and relief you get and the recovery afterwards :)

So glad your day has finally arrived. Wishing you a successful surgery and relief from your on going pain. Good luck.
Sandy

Hi Melley :)
 

So excited for you!!! We have installation on the same day :hug: hope to talk with you soon

Anxiously awaiting an update dear Melly!
You're probably in pain at the moment, but it will pass SOON. Lay on ice and let us know how you're doing when you are up for it :hug:

Rae
:grouphug:

I like Viv's take
 

Installation...... i n s t a l l a t i o n....... never thought about this. You know Viv you are absolutely right!! Installation. Did you and Melly order the options???? The plug n play USB stull? An iPod? Anything? Maybe inside your eyelids 3D movies with surround [think about it] sound?

Installation..... St Judes, Boston Sci, Medtronics, Nevro, had best stay on the toes.... Sears and Roebuck will soon be doing these installations complete with a maintenance plan priced just right for the consumer!!!!!!

OK Rae,,,,,, blast me one.:D
Mark56:Deliberate:

P.S. hope the surgeries went well today for both Melly and Viv!!

Too funny Mark!
 

It would be great to have other options in the stim package. I was truly surprised that I received nice cases for my remote and charger - and a nice binder (that I started reading) but got too drowsy.
Let us know how you are doing melly27. :) I hope to get some sleep tonight, as after surgeries, I usually don't sleep well.

Hi Guys Thank you all for the well wishes, im now on day 6 of recovery and am still feeling no better :( Surgery went well i was first on the list so went into theatre at 8.30 and all i remember was waking up in recovery at 11.30 i did not need to be awake at anytime throughtout the procedure as the surgeon used my trial x-rays to place the leads. I have an incision site in the middle of my back around T7 and another on my left side where the stimulator has been placed, both are very sore and the one on my back feels like an elephant has stamped on me! im finding it very hard to move.

I had a 3 day stay in hospital as my blood pressure was very low and my temp was high, but once that was under control i was sent home with plenty of pain meds, the day of the surgery later in the afternoon the reps came to my bedside and programmed me up, only one programme as i was so groggy and felt really sick so im waiting for a follow up appointment so they can give me more settings, which i need as im not getting the complete coverage i hoped for, i feel on my right side its to high and to close to my ribcage.

In hospital the pain was under control with morphine, tramadol, paracetamal and also my butrans 40mg patches, once home myself and my husband found it hard to stay on track with the meds because i felt so sick and was vomiting. The journey home from the hospital was terrible i felt so sick my husband said i look grey and i went straigt to bed as my whole body was shaking, i think it was the moving around. The next day was much the same but without the shaking, the next i felt better but still found any little movement very painful in my upper back (the stimulator incision has not caused me much pain only for the first day or so) Sleeping has been a challenge in hospital zero amount of sleep nor the night before surgery so when i got home i was thinking i havent slept properly for 4 nights now im going to sleep like a baby ... wrong .... well i slept like a baby but one who was teething! awake on and off, couldnt get comfortable and on top of that had hot and cold sweats!! Last night was better so im hoping as time goes by things will improve.

Because i have felt so terrible over the last week i can't really give you much detail of how the stimulator is working for me,apart from im going to need some more settings done to get better coverage. If i can stop feeling nauseous and can stop taking the extra pain killers i think ill have a better idea of how things are going to be. Today i am determined to get up out of bed or of the sofa and move around more some fresh air in the garden sounds wonderful might have to take a bowl LOL!

My clips at the incision sites have to be taken out on the 15th ten days post op and im waiting for an appointment to come through for my follow up and meeting with the reps.

All in all im glad surgery is over and i have my new friend which is going to help me get my life back on track, it may take awhile but im sure i will get there no one says recovery is easy you just have to push through the hard times, as soon as i have some good news for all you wonderful, inspirational people ill share :wink: Lots of Love Mel x:grouphug:

Hi Guys Thank you all for the well wishes, im now on day 6 of recovery and am still feeling no better :( Surgery went well i was first on the list so went into theatre at 8.30 and all i remember was waking up in recovery at 11.30 i did not need to be awake at anytime throughtout the procedure as the surgeon used my trial x-rays to place the leads. I have an incision site in the middle of my back around T7 and another on my left side where the stimulator has been placed, both are very sore and the one on my back feels like an elephant has stamped on me! im finding it very hard to move.

I had a 3 day stay in hospital as my blood pressure was very low and my temp was high, but once that was under control i was sent home with plenty of pain meds, the day of the surgery later in the afternoon the reps came to my bedside and programmed me up, only one programme as i was so groggy and felt really sick so im waiting for a follow up appointment so they can give me more settings, which i need as im not getting the complete coverage i hoped for, i feel on my right side its to high and to close to my ribcage.

In hospital the pain was under control with morphine, tramadol, paracetamal and also my butrans 40mg patches, once home myself and my husband found it hard to stay on track with the meds because i felt so sick and was vomiting. The journey home from the hospital was terrible i felt so sick my husband said i look grey and i went straigt to bed as my whole body was shaking, i think it was the moving around. The next day was much the same but without the shaking, the next i felt better but still found any little movement very painful in my upper back (the stimulator incision has not caused me much pain only for the first day or so) Sleeping has been a challenge in hospital zero amount of sleep nor the night before surgery so when i got home i was thinking i havent slept properly for 4 nights now im going to sleep like a baby ... wrong .... well i slept like a baby but one who was teething! awake on and off, couldnt get comfortable and on top of that had hot and cold sweats!! Last night was better so im hoping as time goes by things will improve.

Because i have felt so terrible over the last week i can't really give you much detail of how the stimulator is working for me,apart from im going to need some more settings done to get better coverage. If i can stop feeling nauseous and can stop taking the extra pain killers i think ill have a better idea of how things are going to be. Today i am determined to get up out of bed or of the sofa and move around more some fresh air in the garden sounds wonderful might have to take a bowl LOL!

My clips at the incision sites have to be taken out on the 15th ten days post op and im waiting for an appointment to come through for my follow up and meeting with the reps.

All in all im glad surgery is over and i have my new friend which is going to help me get my life back on track, it may take awhile but im sure i will get there no one says recovery is easy you just have to push through the hard times, as soon as i have some good news for all you wonderful, inspirational people ill share :wink: Lots of Love Mel x:grouphug:

You poor dear!
 

You poor dear! Sounds like surgeries are hard on you, as they are on me. I find I can feel sickly sometimes for a couple of months after, but those first two weeks I'd really rather not think about as I feel so awful. I do thank you for the reminder as mine is coming up soon and I need to prepare myself for being so sick. Then wouldn't it be wonderful if I wasn't? I'll be offering up prayers for you Melly, that this bad time will quickly pass and you'll just be dealing with some surgery pain. That sounds like a picnic compared to this past 6 days! Hoping with you that the rep can adjust your settings to get the coverage you need - ElizaJane

Oh Melly
We've all been there. I didn't start to feel better until after two weeks. My staples were so painful, itching and hot. Went back to Dr. so he could check the incision and staples. He said it was some type of reaction and gave me meds for the itching.

There is light around the corner.

My friend had an scs implanted about a month after mine. She called me on day 10 post op saying "Why didn't you tell me this hurt so bad?" I said get through week two and you will see some improvement. She called me into week 3 and said you were right.

Now, when we meet at church and sit next to each other we joke about our batteries pushing us apart and our remotes charging each other!

Hoping and praying each day brings you healing, comfort and rest.

Sandy

Oh Sandy, thank you for that!
 

The lightheartedness of envisioning you and your friend being pushed apart as if two like poles of a magnetic field just makes me laugh and smile!

Yes, indeed it was definitely tender for the first few weeks post op, the reason why my programming session was delayed until week two post op. I do distinctly recall the implant surgery was better than recovering from any of my deep invasive back open surgeries for screws, rods and the whole gamut of scraping muscke from bone and stretching it apart to open the surgical field...... yep, implant was less difficult to overcome. Even so, Melly, I empathize with you for the pain post op.... suggest you take it easy according to doc's limits, and I will add my prayers to those being lifted up for you.

Prayin,
Mark56:hug:zz:grouphug:

Me too Mel!
 

Adding my prayers as well! :hug:
You're doing great, even if you don't feel like you are. Allow yourself the time you need to let the surgical pain ease up. Right now you've got several different pain issues going on all at once, but it'll get easier as each day passes.

Soon you'll have a few new programs to work with and that's when things will start happening for you....

:hug: Rae :hug:

Thank you all for the kind words, today is a better day as long as i sit still, as soon as i have any movement the dreaded sickness kicks in :mad: im hoping that it will soon pass if it continues ill mention it to my GP, managed to have a sit down shower yesterday with my husbands help with washing my hair and later in the day he changed my dressings for me, so it was the first time id seen the incisions, they looked clean tidy but a little swollen. I felt very tired throughout the day but thankfully i had a better nights sleep :) I have some discomfort in the incision sites it feels like sometimes its stinging but its not causing me to much trouble and its a little itchy! So apart from the sickness i think as each day that passes things are improving .... Happy days:winky:

Nausea...
 

Melly, maybe you could put in a call regarding the nausea and they can call in a script for phenergan or something? It might even help with the itching since it is also used for allergic reactions, similar to Benedryl.

Maybe this was already mentioned, so forgive me if it's a repeat :o
I hope you are getting a better night's sleep tonite

Rae
:hug:

Ahhhhh a SHOWER!
 

Gee, I am sorry about that nausea..... Rae probly has the best suggestion- call Doc.

But, to feel good and CLEAN, isn't that divine, and to receive help from your blessed spouse, just as I have time and again counted on my wife. I feel so blessed, as I am sure you do as well.

So, itchy incisions that seem a bit swollen yet...... swelling is natural with the trauma of the big zip with the scalpel and the retraction, if any, and then being pulled back all together. It isn't exactly like sewing a blouse with perfect seams; BUT from the sounds of it you are progressing nicely, especially when you get the Itchies... yeah, that tends to indicate you are on the mend. Just do not scratch, K?

So take care of you, smile at your husband for that care, and you are on the mend. Before you know it the nausea will abate, then we pray the really good stuff comes your way.

Oh yeah,
Mark56:grouphug:

Just a quick update, Thursday (10 days post op) had the surgical clips removed didn't hurt to much just felt a little stingy! The incision on my side where the neurostimulator is placed has healed lovely but the one down my spine is red and inflammed, the nurse thinks its because im quite slim and my spine protrudes quite alot, shes seems to think it will settle down in a few days if not then to come back. The last three days i have felt quite under the weather with really cold shivers and then hot sweats with extreme tiredness and upon waking im drenched in sweat, has anyone else suffered this 10-13 days post op? I hoping its not some sort of infection and today i feel like i have gone twelve rounds with Mike Tyson or an elephant has trodden all over me from my shoulder blades right down to the base of my spine all around my rib cage surely this is not normal? i cant seem to get in a comfortable position, therefore haven't been able to sit still for very long. If im still feeling like this in a day or two then i think a visit to my GP is needed.

Signing off now as i can't sit here anymore! Big Hugs to you all Love from Mel :)

SHAME on that nurse for not bringing this up to the doctor!!
ANYtime something is red and inflamed should be of concern to the medical staff.
Mel, you've got all the tale-tale signs of infection and this needs brought to the doctor's attention. Oh my Lord I am fumigating about that nurse!

Please contact the staff of your SCS installation. I'd do this before seeking the GP's help, since this is probably a direct result of your implantation and they need to know about this.

I'm so sorry you are feeling like this. This should be the time you are beginning to feel great and excited about your new device.

Anyway, this is just my opinion. You probably are more savvy with who should be called. Nonetheless, this requires attention!

Caring! (like a mother hen :p)
Rae
:hug:

Ummmmm...........
 

Hi Melly, being one who had a red, inflamed, pus producing incision site after a surgery about which I knew NOTHING until my daughter asked "Dad, it looks like your back is bleeding! Are you OK?"

Of course I was not OK, and I had a roaring infection which had not produced noticeable pain. So, there I am in a grocer with my daughter, and I am wearing a red polo shirt, so any moisture is going to manifest on the back of my shirt as either a real case of the sweats or bleeding. I had neither. Instead, I was suffering an infection which produced a pustule of yucky stuff which upon opening, made a great big splotch on my back..... BLEAH, oh, and should I mention this was on the highway to my spine, the insertion point of leads for the Trial surgery?

Not something to play with. Certainly not something for a nurse in any medicinal practice to pat you with a "get outta here deary and we will check with doctor later if it doesn't go away." Infection is no laughing matter in any situation. I vote with Rae..... get seen soon!

Yup,
Mark56:eek:

Hi Melly :)
 

I hope you are feeling better, and getting that back incision healed up. The area is already tender, without getting it inflamed or infected.
Goodness Mark, I'm thankful you got taken care of. I can't imagine how angry I would be if I was in your shoes. Of all the "issues" regarding this implant, I think infection has been my biggest concern :eek:

hi Guys hope you all had a fantastic Christmas and New Year :)

Im now 4 weeks post op and am feeling really down, both sites seem to have healed well although the one on my spine is still sore but no longer inflammed :) I still only have one setting which im not getting the right amount of coverage in all areas of pain, so because of this i havent used it much, this is really frustrating me and i haven't got a follow up appointment til the 23rd of this month!!!! im just frustrated that i have this machine of hope, but am not getting the most out of it yet, therefore i can't cut down on medication and have to deal with the side effects, My goal was to get the SCS implanted so i could get back on track rebuilding my life that once was, but everything is so slow each week that pases between hospital appointments is a week longer for me waiting to sort out my life AAAARRRGGGGHHHHH!!!!! I need to get back to work (i left my job in June last year after struggling for years) with me not working our family are one wage down so any extras go out the window and trust me when your feeling like i feel most day you want to run away to somewhere far far away and god knows my husband needs a rest from all of this! but you cant do that cause your not working to earn that extra cash to do those things!!!! So for now its except things aren't going to happen straight away and that theres a long way to go to get things better than they are now.

Alot of people don't understand they think now youve had surgery you should be better, i so wish that was the case, honestly i feel no better than the day before i went down for surgery :(:mad: One of my dearest friends texted me over the New Year wishing i have a better 2012 and a pain free one so we could meet up more! ive been wishing that for years and each year its no different, im sure you can tell im having a bad feel sorry for myself day!

Roll on the 23rd of this month when hopefully ill get more settings which will help, until then ill continue to be the pill popping, sick, emotional, unreliable, frustrated, angry, moody, constant PJ wearer like ive been for what seems like forever!!!!

Fingers crossed things are going better for you Guys, sending big hugs Melly:hug: x

Hi Melly27
 

Have you spoken to your rep about getting more programs? I left messages on their phone asking to meet with them to tune-in my settings a couple of times before I met the doctor. I would hope that they could meet with you and get you some relief. :hug:

Hiya melly! I hope that things get better for you right away because it's time now!:hug:

Dear Melly
 

Please hold your shoulders up, as you are not a burden, you are a person with chronic pain, a condition not understood by many folk. You do have much to add, and I have hope working on yoru programs will help toward your goal of returning to work. I did accomplish the return to work, and see this as quite a bridge to cross on that attainment of a bucketful of self esteem.

You, too, can do this if your rep will assist with the programs such that pain becomes more manageable. I agree with Viv about placing calls to your rep if that is permitted, for getting on their agenda, even pre-Jan 23 might provide a sense of relief. Perhaps the rep can arrange to meet you before that appointment.

I hope and pray this works out the best for you Melly,
Mark56:grouphug:

Hi Kelly
My reps told me to call any time 24/7. There are three reps who work as a team and I've worked with all three. I'd call your rep and see if they can meet with you before the end of the month. It's worth a try.
Hope you are able to get some relief.

Sandy Kay

Melly....
 

:hug: You have every right to be feeling the way you are right now.....and no it's not 'feeling sorry for yourself'.......you've been dealing with this crap pain for so long and now that you've got the device in you, you want results!
It sometimes makes me wonder why they seem to drag things out.
The reps should be more readily available to you and like the others have said, put in calls or emails. Don't feel like you're being a pest to them. You aren't!
Explain your frustrations to them and more than likely they will have something reassuring to say to you......or even get you in earlier for tweaking.

Thanks for the update, cuz I was wonderin how you were doing. We're here for ya 24/7, so vent anytime you need

We're pullin for you!

:hug: Rae :hug:

Hi Melly,
Just been reading through your thread and you poor thing you shouldn't be suffering like this it's not fair and it's not right! It's a long way to the 23 and I think you should phone an try to get an earlier appointment, explain the pain your in and ask to be seen sooner. These surgeries and anaesthesia always take it out of me and I could be lying around for almost two to three weeks but I wouldnt be sick, just really really tired.

I hope the that you get some relief sooner rather than later,

Sinéad :hug::hug: