So sorry about your cat. It is so difficult to lose a beloved pet. Time does ease the pain. Good luck with the upcoming surgery. Any questions feel free to ask.

This holiday was very sad for me I really do miss my beloved cat. I hope things will start to get better. I went to my chiro 2x this past week, my neck and arm are very tense. With all the christams cookies I made this past week I also have a lot of pain in my hand too. I am looking froeward to my upcoming surgery to hopefully help with me pain !!! I know the recovery might be difficult. I got a recliner for christmas. Hopefully I will get some relief trying to sleep in it while I recover from surgery. I am trying to get as much housework done as I can, so there will be nothing left for my hubby to do but take care of me. Since I am only having one level done, I hope there will not be a lot of difficulty with the recovery. I have read things on here that go either way, it can be great or it can be horrible.

Of course you miss your beloved pet. It does indeed make that first holiday without him sad. You also lost him close to the holiday itself. I also looked at scruffys pictures, and petted my new cat sammy. I think my companion was speaking from heaven to tell Sammy how to behave with all the wrappings and bows. It was almost spooky how like him Sammy was. In time, your grief will become tolerable. There is no way to rush this eithor. I just wanted you to know I understand your great loss. You are in my thoughts as the new year begins. ginnie

Thanks for the kind words !!!

I want to post because I had a great result. I am 6 days post-op ACDF c6/c7. I have experienced very little post-op pain. My troubles pre-op are gone, and recovery is going very smoothly. I was very anxious about post-op pain and have not taken more than 2 pain pills in 6 days, and then mostly just to sleep. I found a comfortable sleeping position on my side last night and that is a big relief. My voice is still raspy, but i believe it will come back. I am walking and trying to avoid the temptation to do things that are on the "no-no" list because I feel pretty darn good!!

I hope you all can be reassured that there are many more good outcomes that are just never posted. Keep a good attitude, and walk, and drink lots of fluids, and eat well. Good luck!

Right on! I am glad to hear another success story. Some of these surgeries do indeed work. You did your homework and got the best possible outcome. I am happy for you too. Take it easy when healing, and consider PT. My doctor did recommend the PT and it was a good experience for me, even though I didn't like going in so often for the excersises. Glad to hear your good news. Heal quickly....ginnie

I am getting a bit nervous as time gets closer to my surgery. One week to go now !!! My biggest concern is the fact that I can't sit still for long. I want to be doing something all the time, from playing with the cats to cleaning the house. I am not sure how good I am going to be with NO BLT. I am also not sure if I will have a crevical collar or not. I called the Dr's office and told them I wanted one due to the fact that I am a clutz. I am afraid that I might do too much too soon and hurt myself. The Dr office said I would prob get a soft collar to restrict my movements anyway. I am kind of freaking out a little bit The crazy thing is that in the past few weeks I have had my normal arm pain all the time, but there are times when it is not too bad. I still have a marked weakness and the tingly fingers all the time. I think I am stressing myself out !!!

Guess where I ran to one week before my cervial fusion? I ran right to this site, and you are where you can receive that vote of confidence. I was so scared just like you are. It helped me to calm down and relax to know that others understood my fears. I do understand yours. I believe your surgery wil go just fine. You will be OK. I too had a soft colar, and it helped me not to over do it. Let me know if I can do anything for you to ease your mind. All will be OK tigerbear. I believe you have a good surgeon and that you are in good hands. I am praying for you. Tell me the date of the surgery and I will put you on my calander, time and date. I will pray for you while you are in surgery. ginnie

Hi Ginnie, it really helps to talk to people who have been there n done that !!! My surgery is Jan 11th. We have to be at the hospital at 6am, my surgery is at 9am. It's going to be a LONG day. I recover form anesthesia BADLY !!! I have to be premedicated or I am sick for days !!! My doctor allready know's this, I will be given oral and injectable anti neasusea medications !!! I don't want to get sick at a time when I can't bend over into a bucket !!!

I put you down for the 11th. I too had to be medicaded with zanax. And like you I get sick to my stomach after I wake up. I got a few injections for my stomach. Also during my recovery with the pain injections, my stomach acted up a bit then too. Just tell them right away, and I know they will get you what you need. It is good you talked to your doctor first, so they know ahead of time what trouble you have.
I have a tooth out next week, I will be put out for the same reason. My nerves just don't do that good. I will also have pre-surgery zanax. The whole thing can be nerve racking. It will be OK. I sure hope that you heal fast. Keep coming back here until your surgery date, and get all the comfort you can. I sure did, including the morning I went to the hospital. I also jumped on line briefly to tell everyone I was OK, maybe 4 days after recovery at home. Take care, and sleep well. ginnie