Hi my name is Rick im having surgery done on july5th L4L5S1 fusion done the doctor is giving me a epidural for 1 to 2 days for the pain i am really scared about this do you think ill be in a lot of pain when i wake up there working on the back building up my disk with bone from my pelvic and also cutting me in the front and put a plate with screws

Hi Rick,

Do you think the stock market will go up or down on the 5th? :rolleyes:

The answer to both questions is that there's IS no way to know for sure what will happen, but worrying about what might (or might not) happen just causes stress that will make anything worse. It serves no useful purpose whatsoever. If you talk yourself into believing you will be in a lot of pain when you wake up, your brain may just listen to you. And vice versa.

Do you trust your surgeon? Are you confident that this surgery is right for you? Do you understand everything about your condition and what will happen? The answers to those questions should be YES.

If you haven't discussed these concerns with your doctor(s), I think you should. You might also touch base with the hospital's Patient Advocate and have a discussion about the "what if..."s.

AFAIK, those things, and a positive attitude, are the best any of us can do.

Others may have other/better suggestions. I'm just one voice in the ether.

Doc

I'm so glad I found this forum! The information provided here is very helpful. I am thinking of have a L5-S1 spinal fusion within the next month. The majority of what I have stumbled upon have been horror stories.

I will be 30 yrs old in October and want to be a police officer. I was curious if I will be able to pursue this career path after a spinal fusion. The information from Mike and other posters gives me very little doubt.

I just wanted to thank all of you for posting your stories.

Rick....
 

Thinkin' about ya. Thinkin' positive. No pain no more! ;)

Doc

Hi SoonerSense03,
 

Did you happen to stumble upon the reason for that? (It's a LOOONG thread, so I'm not sure what Mike said) Mostly, it's because the people who've experienced the horror stories post their experiences as a caution/warning to others, while the success stories tend to get on with their lives -- they don't need support groups, so they don't post their successes. What's important are the actual statistics for your particular procedure, if you can find them.

No-one can predict future outcomes. We all just have to hoope for the best, and wait and see. It'd probably be a good idea to talk with your surgeon about future occupation plans.

"Sometimes, ya just gotta roll the dice." ~"Paul" (movie)

Doc

I am not singling out any posts. I realize success stories will most likely not be posted. I just found it encouraging to read a success story. Nothing more than mentioning that

I have done alot of research about the success rate of a L5-S1 spinal fusion and I realize the future cannot be predicted. However, I believe that if you keep a positive mentality with hope for the future then things tend to turn out that way.

My doctor said that I should be able to run and be active to some extent. I was looking for some personal stories where this has occured. Mike's testimony is very helpful.

I apologize if I said anything to upset you.

No, you didn't say anything that upset me. I was trying to put the horror stories into perspective while remaining cautiously optimistic.

Doc

July 5th surgery
 

Wondering how your surgery went; Let us know how you're doing now. I'd also like to encourage you to be quite diligent in doing the exercises they give you in PT. I feel it's extremely important. My fusion (same as yours) was 10/19/2011 and I did extremely well until I slipped on hardwood floors (stocking feet- a NO NO) and twisted to keep from falling. (I posted then) I don't know if I did damage at that point, as my Dr. gave me the impression I was healed; But I have had increasing pain and had a CT scan done at my 9 month check-up, finding the L5 has not fused. So I am going in to have my Dr. take screws out and redo that joint. He said it was not from anything I did, but that sometimes this just happens. Otherwise, It has been great and the best thing I've done for myself.

Hi Tarry,

In case Rick doesn't see this, he posted another thread following his surgery:
http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/thread173045.html

Doc

L4-S1 Sucsess
 

Hello, my name is Bill, great site here and thank you for it. I had l4-s1 fusion Oct 29th at the U of U Med center in Salt Lake. Surgery took a little longer than expected there was a tear in my sac that took some time to repair. 10 hours on the table then 36 hours of flat rest, that was the worst. I am a farmer and have a hard time being still. Had a bit of a time getting my bowels to wake up and join the party. I was diagnosed with a pars defect with degenerative spondylolisthesis. This is something I have been living with for 30 plus years with on and off pain. In May it finally slipped far enough that it was almost unbearable. Standing or walking was tough, after a 100yard walk I would have to lay down even if I was in the field. After beind diagnosed in June I hit the internet hard looking for alternatives then I found KiwiMikes posts. I sat and read every post. It was a blessing seeing positive comments. I stopped most of my pain meds in the hospital to get my bowels working and am taking minimal meds now. My back and leg pains were gone as soon as I could walk in the hospital. Thank you to all of you that have contributed to this site and for the positive attitudes. We all have a few little set backs but push on. Again thank you, Bill.