Time off also depends on if you are doing paddles vs leads....I just had leads done 2 weeks ago, and took 1 week off work. I too wish I would have taken 1 more. My problem was that it was very uncomfortable to drive (leaning back in the seat right where my battery was REALLY hurts) - so with a long commute it was just too much.

LEADS, ONE WEEK, DRIVING..... so are you a retired SEAL or something? Yeah, you bet the pocket location suture and wound healing is very early on, the channel through which the leads descended from your insertion point is still going to be very tender [I saw the spike took by which the wires are pulled from insertion to generator sight... some macabre, and it is driven subcutaneously to avoid opening the back in one long incision to lay in the wire..... You have the equation for a world of hurt driving within one week, but, then you know this personally. Takes a good two weeks for surgical pain to lessen enough for programming post surgery [of course, I had a laminectomy for the paddles], even so, around a month post surgey things calmed quite a bit. Still there was tenderness at the generator site it is was hit, touched, and such, while that wire tunnel muscular objection just had to calm..... The laminectomy site for the paddles was the least offensive, oddly enough.

Ahhhh, but at least now you know the benefit of self established programs and THAT is about the best there is.

Take care of those pain points,
Mark56

I know, I know I was pushing it...but in my defense - given all of the surgeries I have had, this one wasn't that bad. And, when one is trying to keep themselves employed - after having 3 surgeries in the past year or so - I had to go to work! My Doc has pioneeered a new way to install these bad boys - and uses only 1 incision for both lead and IPG placement. This means I did not have to have that tunnel-digger driven through my tissue And I agree with you Mark, that it is logical that the pocket site will be sore for awhile!

I am trying to Soapbox Rant on Brent's thread for some manufacturer out there to PAY ATTENTION TO THE PATIENT PROGRAMMING PHILOSOPHY, even as Paul, a manufacturer employee himself confesses his co-workers are going to allow him to be involved in the permanent implant programming session.

Toes may get in the way, and maybe a little overstepping involved, but I challenged Paul's employer to invite you, me, my wife, and my doc to go to them for a patient and treating physician perspective on the patient programming phenomenon. If we can swing an invite, my wife and I will gladly pay your airfare. Serious here. We have to strike in season while iron is hot and ears may be open even though our manufacturer is not the company for which Paul works.

Frankly, if Boston Scientific was interested in patient thought, we would have heard from them by now, as I have attempted to upstream communications through my rep [no success]. Having been on the Board of Directors as a heavy in a large corp before, I KNOW the boardroom conversations relevant to profitability, and what we need to achieve is attention to the patient perspective as a means to GAIN for the sake of the corporate bottom line. Too many corporate junkies are influenced by production line statistics, end line sales, and not enough on Consumer satisfaction. MrsD alerted us to the back room conversation.

So, we pierce the corporate veil of reps and gain leadership attention, we may find reps more in tune with the notion of delivering quality service assisting patients in self programming as you have done.

Casting around for support here, I am,
mark56emonstration :

Your enthusiasm is so awesome!!! Its hard to get through to reps who have never been in pain, just how important the programming is, and how much better it could be if the patients are given control. I would totally go with you to have a sit-down eye-to-eye meeting with any manufacturer. I'm also thinking maybe I can pull some strings with that "PhD" behiind my name. Tell me what you need Mark - I'll help however I can!!

Yep, Heather, you with your PhD and me with the JD bring credibility to the message we have to deliver, while my pain management specialist, golly, I should imagine with the medical depth of his MD and Fellowship Training, we could walk into any corporate management team or Board and present formidable believable evidence as a foundation to the argument why a manufacturer reaching for the next quarter financial star would WANT to LEARN HOW TREATING THE PATIENTS WITH ESTABLISHED AND PROVEN TECHNOLOGY PROGRAMMED SUBJECTIVELY BY THE VERY BODIES INTO WHICH THE TECHNOLOGY IS SEWN removes guesswork of present rep by guess and by gosh approaches to propel any manufacturer which GRASPS the branch into the next level.

Goodness gracious, how easy would it be to walk into any Boardroom with the opening question "how many of you have ever heard of a mattress upon which the user has subjective control over their comfort level while their mate wields the same approach via remote control?" The raising of hands MUST be unanimous. Next step, "now take the cognitive awareness of your subjective control over your comfort and apply it to the technology you manufacture for SCS. Can you see how subjectivity in programming pain management devices will yield the same or similar result?" The dawning of realization in their eyes would be palpable..... ENORMOUS once they began to interpret financially the likelihood of opening patients to an era of TRUE PAIN MANAGEMENT SUBJECTIVELY SET DOWN BY SHE OR HE WHO KNOWS THE PAIN INTIMATELY.

Fifteen minutes of a Board Meeting to present a shift in $Billions of income from competitors should catch a mind or two..... that is unless they are closed.

I rest my case,
Mark56

.....is Paul's name 'Brent'.....or did i miss something?
Maybe we have 2 guys who work for the manufacturers?

The first post to this thread is signed by Brent....
If I'm confused (as usual ), just give me a cracker and put me back in my cage.....

Paul indicated he is a systems analyst for accounting systems.....is this actually for a SCS manufacturer? Forgive me, I'm just trying to keep my ducks straight so I can grasp on to the patient self-programming adventure. It is all very exciting, but some of it is starting to go over my head

I'm lovin this thread! So full of energy!
Thank you Mark and Heather for this great inside scoop!

Oh Rae..... I am so , Yep, now I will look in the mirror for my pending self diagnosis.............

Definitely! Aha! A terminal case of nitwititis also known as idiocy, the faux pas of all faux pas........

[B]BRENT please forgive me for refering to you as Paul...... maybe your middle name is Paul? Sheesh, such a clutz am I and here I am ranting in the BLUE to a rep by the wrong name..... color me[/COLOR]embarassed, give me a padded wagon, be gentle with the tug on the straps of that jacket

Now, Eva, NOW is the time for the BELLY LAUGH for which you hoped today. Right now, go for it!!


as I shuffle noiselessly back into my dim corner,
Mark56
P.S. seeing my preview of this I note a couple of faux pas regarding the font and color selections..... oh well, there went a decent rant...... shouted at Paul.... Brent, are you out in Pooh's hundred acre wood or something?

I had the SCS (Medtronic) implanted on Thursday.(Failed back syndrome-disc removal and partial laminectomy in 1979). I don't have much if any pain at the surgical sites. I do have a darn awful rash though across my back, and from my wrist to my elbow!!! I'm wondering what happened during the surgery because the unrelenting pain in my lower back and legs has greatly decreased WITHOUT using the SCS!!! I itch like crazy, but other than that I'm doing great!

Did anyone out there get a rash???

The rash effect could be somehow from latex as you were handled in the OR. That is the only thing I can think of. Were you asked at check-in whether you had a latex allergy at all? It is a pretty standard question these days because it will cause a rash.......

Yup,
Welcome to this great group of folks, and I am thrilled for you that the surgery seems to be a success. Interesting you comment about abatement of pain post surgery..... Now THAT is an effect I did not have, as for me it seemed like an ordinary garden variety back surgery, just not quite as bad.

Prayin all goes well,
Mark56