My appointment is Wednesday. I hope to leave with a plan to solve my problems. Wish me luck!

Hi BelleLea,

Perhaps I misunderstood your post. It sounded like you were having worsening symptoms following your recent surgery. Perhaps not, as you suggest. However if I did read that correctly and you are worsening since your recent surgery, then what I related would make some sense...getting a contrast and on-contrast MRI to rule out recurrent herniation. If all is well, then pardon me and disregard!

Result of appointment

I have severe central stenosis and spinal cord compression at C4/C5, so am now scheduled for a 2 level laminectomy with posterior fusion using instrumentation and cadaver bone. Diagnosed with both myelopathy and radiculopathy. Surgery in about a month. After surgery my spine will be 100% fused due to a combination of surgical fusion from C4-C6 and the auto-fusion from 30 years of ankylosing spondylitis. Very worried about ability to continue to work full time, ability to drive a car, and ability to do things with my family like fishing and some golfing after recovery due to the complete fusion.

Any and all advice or personal accounts is very, very much appreciated!

Jeff

Jeff,

Sep 19 I had posterior fusion of C3-7 with laminectomies. I thought I had lower back trouble until I started losing the use of my right arm, dropping things and couldn't raise my arms or lift my arms etc...

I am currently 4 weeks out and my life has changed dramatically.

I am 49 and I have spent over 30 + years with lower back, leg, feet, hip etc pain. In 2010 things turned for the worse and my arms and legs became severely spastic with lots of other spinal cord problems.

Currently I have no - none - zero - pain from my waist down....I can walk up right and I am still in total shock at how incredible my surgical out come was. My surgery was for my NECK - and a severely compressed spinal cord.

The doctor's did not say anything about my legs getting better or coming out of surgery with no pain . So I am living a miracle - I just can't believe it.

I am still healing with my neck and my arms are sore but that is to be expected.

I will have my 5 week Xrays at the end of this week and will let you know how it goes.

I was very worried about having any surgery on my neck prior to the surgery and now I just can't believe it.

I will keep you in my prayers.

Wow. That is the most inspiring story I've heard about so far. I'm so thrilled and happy for you, and bless you for sharing with me! You absolutely made my day! Thanks also for the prayers. I do believe in them.

Jeff

How is the first day of surgery after you wake up? Horrible pain? Excruciating? Enough to scream or vomit? I'd prefer an honest answer.

Jeff,

to be honest I don't remember a lot about the first day or so following surgery.

I have been in pain management since 1998 due to 9 major spinal surgeries since I was 12 - I am now 49. Lots of other stuff like arachnoiditis, severe scoliosis and the fact that I am an extreme athlete....yeah I guess you might consider me a masochist of sorts....anyway- I have been on about 100 mg/day of long acting narcotics for over 5 years - which makes me narcotic tolerant....

I am bringing this up because following my surgery this team and hospital did not have a Pain Mgmt doctor available until the second day following my surgery. This meant that ICU could only give me medications like they would give a person who was not narcotic tolerant.....

Therefore - until the Pain Mgmt doctor showed up and kinda gave the ICU team one of those - what the hell is wrong with you kind of speeches (or so my family told me) - I was kind of on my own regarding pain.

I have learned to meditate throughout the years and although I never believed in it and always thought that meditation was for "those types" of people.....it truly saved my life during my 1.5 days in ICU.

I even had a physical therapist tell me how impressed she was when I told her that I needed a few minutes to meditate to get my pain under control and then we were able to do the exercises.....

So make damned sure if you are narcotic tolerant that you know what the plan is immediately after surgery and that you know - verbally how much and what they are going to be giving you....

Usually you are on a pain pump for the first few days following the surgery and you press a button when you need pain meds....they make sure you are comfortable - honestly.

I had surgery Thursday and went home Sunday - I would have gone home Sat or even Friday except for the ICU debacle.

Trust in The Lord. That is all you need. Everything else is meaningless. Trust in God and all His helpers - They will get you through.

Kelli

Hi Jeff,

My fusion was no where near as extensive as your might be as mine was only C5-C6. After the local wore off, I only remember having more prominent upper sternal pain (referred from the neck) but was easily controlled with Dilaudid pump. I think I went home on the second day post op and was off pain meds entirely within 3 or 4 weeks. For me, it just wasn't that bad (my shoulder surgery from hell is a different story however). A good friend had C3 thru C6 fused and while her experience was more intense than mine, she said her pain was not all that bad either. She had more difficulties with swallowing post-op than pain. Good luck!

Jeff,

I am at week five after a fusion and laminoplasty of C5-T1 done posteriorly and each day I wake up I am amazed.

I wish I could talk to you via email or something. Is that possible?

In my lifetime I would never have even thought that my lower back issues and my ability to walk upright or sit or lay down at night or straighten out my legs etc....so many things that I and many, many doctors from many, many disciplines related to my arachnoiditis, my severe scoliosis, my 9 major lumbar surgeries (failed surgery syndrome I guess), severe stenosis and on and on and on....

Now I can lay down at night and sleep - no kidding. This is a major. I get up in the morning and walk around - without thinking about crawling to the frig to get an ice pack and how long it will take to get my legs to straighten out enough to allow me to get to my car to work etc...

I can sit - I can sit for hours....prior to the surgery I could sit for about 10 minutes before all hell would break lose and I would be eating narcotics so I could finish work and not have to go home for the day.

I could go on and on - about how my life has changed and now I am weaning off a very high daily dose of long acting narcotics - I am not sure how to go about doing this - but believe me - I can do it and will figure it out.

Do not worry about the pain after surgery - everyone has post surgical pain - everyone has to cope and most people don't feel much due to the narcotics.

If you have any other questions please feel free to ask me - I will check back periodically to see if you need me.

I will be praying for you.

K

Hey, glad to find this forum.
I had just my ACDF about 10 days ago and glad to have all pain in my neck was totally gone.but my legs still unsteady when walking and still got tingling sensation in my both hand palms. I guess it would take time to heal the nerve damages.

I am still hoping for speedy recovery as i am still very young for this kind of surgery...