Am I the only restless sleeper?...lol I can start out in one position when I fall asleep but find myself off the pillows totally when I wake, sometimes even diagonal in the bed. I've not had more than 4-5 hours sleep in a single stretch since surgery, and wake with stiffness and pain. I'm thinking that the only way my head and neck will be kept in alignment is to go back to wearing the philly collar to bed, or go back to sleeping in a chair, and those options I dread!

Thank you all for the advice.

I'm up here in WA sleeping with a regular pillow and it ain't working.

If I could find a low rise cervical pillow I think that may do it. It cannot be tall though. That pushing up on my head hurts my neck and gives me headaches. Whew...have not slept well in so long can't remember what it is like. Guess I'll visit the local stores and see what they've got.

The result is I spend way too much time trying to get rest..up to 15hrs in a day!! I wake up all night long over and over feeling uncomfortable. The shot lumbar is part of the problem too..so achy.

Y'all take care out there. Southern boy up here in yankee land. I order "unsweet" tea and they look at me weird. Sweet tea is a suthern thang evidently.

jb

Oh I was told Braintalk is back up but I can't find it.

i am new here, and i had a question about the mri as well.. i heard that the mri causes vibration to the metal? but you guys are saying its safe to do? i have a titanium plate and screws in my neck after my acdf on the 24th of oct. they are trying to determine if i have a herniated disc in my lumbar region. im scared to get an mri after what i just learned about the mri causing vibration... arggh. help.

Loveshinesthru,

I've not heard of any pain caused by an MRI after Fusion surgery (w/hardware). My guess would be, any vibrations felt would be from the machine moving and vibrating itself. Many here have had MRI's after their surgery and may be able to help you more, since I have not had another MRI since my ACDF surgery this past summer. I do know that my OS is considering sending me for a new MRI, and I don't think he would suggest it if it would cause more problems.

Best wishes,

Kim

thanks kim

hi jb,
i have one of the memory foam pillows. Although i am not a cervie but i thought i would let you know that i use mine backwards. That is, the thinner side. The thicker side that you are supposed to use is way too much for me.

The other suggestion i have is to take a memory foam pillow and cut it lengthwise to make the pliiow thinner. If you can't use it the way it is, its worth a shot.

hope this helps a bit.
sims

Hi there jb. I have had MRI's since titanium implant. One time I had it with gadolinium contrast medium, next time it was a different part of my spine so they didnt bother anyway.

Hi.
I am on 6 days post acdf c6/c7. I finally slept last night laying down. I have 2 memory foam pillows stacked up, and slept with my back against the back of the sofa and slightly slanted on my side. i woke up with my incision a little bit tugged and in a minor amount of pain but i slept!! The cervical u-shaped pillow is too tall for sleeping flat, but the two pillows stacked are perfect for sleeping on my side.

Otherwise, I feel great! No more headache. No more arm pain, numbness or tinglies. I think my biggest problem will be resisting temptation to do things i'm not supposed to do. I was very anxious that this would be too painful to bear, and it was quite the opposite. I still don't have any voice, and have troubles swallowing fluids without aspirating (i can drink slowly) but i believe it will come back eventually. I feel very positive about the whole thing.

My big question now is, how still do I have to keep my head to promote fusing? Can I lean over at all? With plate and screws, isn't the neck fairly stable? I am not required to wear a cervical collar at all.

Hi,
I have ACDF c5, c6, c7 also... Same titanium plate, yes you can have MRIs after, I have had three since surgery.

As for sleeping, I have found sleeping on my obus form cervical pillow, smallest side (approx 3") on my side with a pillow supporting my arm and another between my legs works best. Also cleared this position with my PT tp ensure posture and it's all good.

Still have nights that are bad, but that position works better then others.

Cathie

The only pain I feel from MRIs after my fusion is lying on the hard table, but it's usually only a 20 min test so it's not too bad.

(I also have a fusion with titanium plate and screws, c5,c6,c7)

Cathie